Trend Paper- Current Trend in America to End Capitol Punishment Essay

Trend Paper- Current Trend in America to End Capitol Punishment - Essay Example Since then more than 15,000 American citizens have been executed under the death penalty inscribed in its laws and practices, with the first half of the twentieth century marking the period of time in its history, when there was the most prolific use capital punishment (Dieter, 1). The new Millennium has been marked by a rising trend against the use of capital punishment in the laws and practices of America. Drop in execution rates, unwillingness of some states to use capital punishment, and rising exonerations are clear indications of the growing trend in America against capital punishment. A recent Gallup poll confirms the trend against capital punishment, with support for capital punishment reducing among the general American population to the lowest level in the last thirty years (Sarat & Martschukat, 2). There is a clear rising trend against capital punishment in America. ... nt in the American judicial system, it is necessary to evaluate the trend in the attitude of the States and communities that make up the American nation. New Jersey stands out as being the first jurisdiction to remove capital punishment from its judicial system by means of legislative action, in 2006. A commission was appointed by New Jersey for evaluating its capital punishment system, and the commission by a vast majority recommended the removal of the capital punishment system. In Illinois, in 2000, consequent to a near miscarriage of justice, the Governor banned capital punishment, which still remains in place. Attempts to reinstate death penalty that was overturned in 2004 have been strongly resisted by the New York legislature (Dieter, 3). The scenario across America is almost the same, reflecting a clear indication that the death penalty is no longer popularly acceptable across the country. In twelve states death penalty finds no place in their statutes. Among the other 38 sta tes the application of death penalty is less than more, with probably the State of Texas remaining the sole staunch supporter of the continued use of capital punishment. With such clear evidence of mounting resistance to capital punishment across America, there can be no argument against the rising trend against the use of capital punishment in America (Revenge begins to seem less sweet). Arguments for the Removal of Capital Punishment The lethal injection used for capital punishment may be a benign manner of bringing an end to the life of an individual through the judicial process. Yet, many a botched execution, resulting from its use by unqualified personnel or poor management has roused the empathy of the public to the manner in which a condemned man is put to death (Sarat & Martschukat,

Argumentative Essay Essay Example for Free

Argumentative Essay Essay Governments should be more involved in citizens diets Modern age supermarkets selling off the shelve foods are normal nowadays. Unfortunately the knowledge of what is healthy and what is not had been effected by this. People should be better educated on what is healthy and what is not. Healthier diets make healthier citizens and healthier citizens will save a lot of money in health care, bad diets do cause expensive health problems. Although it is general knowledge that unhealthy products are cheaper than healthy products, it is not general knowledge that products claiming to be healthy are usually full of harmful and unhealthy ingredients. It is time the government steps in to protect the population. Firstly, health problems caused by bad, unhealthy diets weigh heavily on health care expenses. Several population-based prevention policies can be expected to generate substantial health gains while entirely or largely paying for themselves through future reductions of health-care expenditures according to The Lancet (Cecchini et al., 2010). Just by eating healthier a reduction will be made possible, this alone should be reason enough for a government to get more involved Secondly, people will be stimulated to choose healthier products when prices for unhealthy products will be raised. The current situation is just the other way around. The healthier choice is more expensive. â€Å"With proper nutrition and regular exercise, you can reduce the costs of health insurance premiums, the amount you spend on medicines and the number of co-pays for doctor visits† according to Livestrong (Ellyn 2011). However true this may be, as long as healthier products cost more instead of less people will be inclined to buy more unhealthy products. Thirdly, in order to make the healthier decision, information about unhealthy ingredients should be clearer and more visible. Reading food labels is strangely enough rather difficult, excellent vision and extensive knowledge on what the ingredients mean are necessary to understand the labels. â€Å"It makes it easier to compare similar foods to see which is a healthier choice† according to the Mayo Clinic (2012), however easier to understand labelling, easier to read labelling will enable more people to making that choice. In conclusion, if governments decide to invest in educating the population it will enable and stimulate citizens to make healthier choices. In order to reach this goal the government should demand clearer and more visible information on products concerning the ingredients put a fairer price on healthier products.

We Must Protect Animals from Needless Experiments Essay -- Argumentati

We Must Protect Animals from Needless Experiments Picture this: Researchers place a dog in a device called a â€Å"shuttlebox† which consists of a box divided into two compartments separated by a barrier. Hundreds of intense electric shocks are delivered to the dog’s feet through a grid floor. At first the dog is able to escape the shock by jumping across the barrier, but then the barrier is replaced by a piece of plate glass. The dog is tested again and, as expected, tries to jump over the barrier, but instead he smashes his head into the glass. The researchers observe that the dog’s reaction to his situation includes such symptoms as â€Å"defecation, urination, yelping and shrieking, trembling, and attacking the apparatus.† After ten or twelve days the dog ceases to resist the shocks. The conclusion of this experiment is that a combination of the plate glass barrier and foot shock was â€Å"very effective† in eliminating jumping by dogs (Singer 36). No medical benefits emerged from this experiment, yet this same experiment continues to be carried out by other researchers. In fact, every 24 hours in this country, about 200,000 creatures die in the name of medical and scientific progress, some in experiments like the one just described (Satchell 4). Many of these experiments are repetitive and unnecessary. Congress needs to pass a law preventing cruel and unnecessary experimentation on animals. The Animal Welfare Act was passed in 1966, the only Federal law that directly defines the rights of animals. The act sets standards for lab animals’ living conditions but sets no regulations on actual experimentation. The act was amended in 1970, setting standards for the transportation, housing, and handling of animals sold as p... ...ce 14 October 1988: 185-186. Huges, Jane. â€Å"Raining Cats and Dogs.† National Review 23 July 1990: 35-38. Marcus, Erin. â€Å"New Research Methods Seem Unlikely to Eliminate Animal Testing.† Washington Post 28 August 1990: A3. Morrison, Adrian R. and Dominick P. Pupura. â€Å"Legislative Shift on Animal Research.† BioScience March 1990: 172. Rosenberger, Jack. â€Å"Whose Life Is it Anyway?† New York 15 Jan 1990: 30-31. Satchell, Michael. â€Å"Do They Have Rights?† Parade 13 January 1985: 4. Scharmann, Wolfgang. "Ethical Aspects of Animal Experimentation." Fox 89. Singer, Peter. Animal Liberation. 2nd ed. New York: New York Review of Books, 1990. United States. United States Codes. 7:2131, 1988. Weiss, Rick. â€Å"Test Tube Toxicology.† Science News 16 January 1988: 42. Wright, Robert. â€Å"Are Animals People Too?† The New Republic 12 March 1990: 20-22, 26-27.

Solar Energy Essay -- A Level Essays

Solar Energy ~Some history, types, and facts~ In this modern fast paced world that we live in, there are many issues that are looked over, energy is one of these. As a world, we are dependant on dwindling fossil fuel supplies and take for granted electricity, oil, and gas. There are four completely renewable sources of energy around us that should be used and developed, they are: wind, growing plants, flowing water, and the sun. These sources of energy are the ones we should be tapping, because they are reliable and renewable. Harnessing the suns energy is the most certain and ultimate energy source. Looking at a brief history and some facts about solar energy, a glimpse of the future can be seen, a future not dependant on fossil fuels. Using the sun for its heat and energy is not a new idea. It has been around for thousands of years. The first record of sun being utilized for energy and heat dates back to 400 BC. The Greeks designed their buildings and oriented their houses to utilize the sun during the winter and obscuring its hot rays during the summer. The Romans then continued on with harnessing the suns energy by developing window glass that allows the sunlight to come in, but traps solar heat. The Romans even put the sun in their legal system as to make sure that every house had so much access to the sun. The first solar water heaters came into play in the 18th century. A French-Swiss scientist in Maryland did an experiment to see how much heat window glass would actually trap. By building a box and putting different glass tops on it, he learned he could reach the boiling point inside the box. Another person developed this idea and decided to put tanks of water into them, and sure enough that w... ... on the fuel supplies and political alliances that are very uncertain. From the history of solar energy, and the present developments, having your own solar power is very attainable for everyday life. Bibliography Facts Regarding Solar Energy. http://www.solar.org.uk/ecoshop/pages/seido1.htm. 2002 Fossil Fuel Consumption. http://zebu.uoregon.edu/1999/ph161/l10.html History of Solar Energy. http://www.solarenergy.com/info_history.html. History of Solar Energy, Revisiting Solar Power’s Past. http://www.abc.net.au/rn/science/earth/stories/s225110.htm. Charles Smith. 1995. How Stuff Works. http://people.howstuffworks.com/hydrogen-economy1.htm Komp, Richard J. Practical photovoltaics, electricity from solar cells. 3rd edition. aatec. 1995. Solar Energy Basics. http://www.eere.energy.gov/RE/solar.html. U.S. Department of Energy.2003.

A Dirty Job Chapter 23

23 A FUCKED-UP DAY It was a fucked-up day in the City by the Bay. At first light, flocks of vultures perched on the superstructures of the Golden Gate and Bay Bridges, and glared down at commuters as if they had a lot of goddamn gall to still be alive and driving. Traffic copters that were diverted to photograph the ranks of carrion birds ended up covering a spiral cloud of bats that circled the Transamerica pyramid for ten minutes, then seemed to evaporate into a black mist that floated out over the Bay. Three swimmers who had been competing in the San Francisco Triathlon drowned in the Bay, and a helicopter camera photographed something under the water, a dark shape approaching one of the swimmers from below and dragging him under. Numerous replays of the tape revealed that rather than the sleek shape of a shark, the creature had a wide wingspan and a distinctly horned head, unlike any ray or skate that anyone had ever seen before. The ducks in Golden Gate Park suddenly took to the wing and left the area, the hundreds of sea lions that normally lounged in the sun down at Pier 39 were gone as well, and even the pigeons seemed to have disappeared from the City. A grunt reporter who had been covering the overnight police blotter noticed the coincidence of seven reports of violence or missing persons at local-area secondhand stores, and by early evening the television stations were mentioning it, along with spectacular footage of the Book 'em Danno building burning in the Mission. And there were hundreds of singular events experienced by individuals: creatures moving in the shadows, voices and screams from the sewer grates, milk souring, cats scratching owners, dogs howling, and a thousand people woke up to find that they no longer cared for the taste of chocolate. It was a fucked-up day. Charlie spent the rest of the night fretting and checking locks, then double-checking them, then looking on the Internet for clues about the Underworlders, just in case someone posted a brand-new ancient document since he'd last checked. He wrote a will, and several letters, which he walked outside and put in the mailbox out on the street rather than with the outgoing mail on the counter of the store. Then, around dawn, completely exhausted yet with his Beta Male imagination racing at a thousand miles an hour, he took two of the sleeping pills Jane had given him and slept through the fucked-up day, to be awakened in early evening by a call from his darling daughter. â€Å"Hello.† â€Å"Aunt Cassie is an anti-Semite,† said Sophie. â€Å"Honey, it's six in the morning. Can we discuss Aunt Cassie's politics a little later?† â€Å"It is not, it's six at night. It's bath time, and Aunt Cassie won't let me bring Alvin and Mohammed into the bathroom with me for my bath, because she's an anti-Semite.† Charlie looked at his watch. He was sort of glad that it was six in the evening and he was talking to his daughter. Whatever happened while he was sleeping at least hadn't affected that. â€Å"Cassie is not an anti-Semite.† It was Jane on the other line. â€Å"Is too,† said Sophie. â€Å"Be careful, Daddy, Aunt Jane is an anti-Semite sympathizer.† â€Å"I am not,† Jane said. â€Å"Listen to how smart my daughter is,† said Charlie. â€Å"I didn't know words like anti-Semite and sympathizer when I was her age, did you?† â€Å"You can't trust the goyim, Daddy,† said Sophie. She lowered her voice to a whisper. â€Å"They hate baths, the goyim.† â€Å"Daddy's a goyim, too, baby.† â€Å"Oh my God, they're everywhere, like pod people!† He heard his daughter drop the phone, scream, and then a door slammed. â€Å"Sophie, you unlock this door this instant,† Cassie said in the background. Jane said, â€Å"Charlie, where does she get this stuff? Are you teaching her this?† â€Å"It's Mrs. Korjev – she's descended from Cossacks and she has a little residual guilt for what her ancestors did to the Jews.† â€Å"Oh,† Jane said, not interested now that she couldn't blame Charlie. â€Å"Well, you shouldn't let the dogs in the bathroom with her. They eat the soap and sometimes they get in the tub, and then – â€Å" â€Å"Let them go with her, Jane,† Charlie interrupted. â€Å"They may be the only thing that can protect her.† â€Å"Okay, but I'm only letting them eat the cheap soaps. No French-milled soaps.† â€Å"They're fine with domestic soap, Jane. Look, I drew up a holographic will last night. If something happens to me, I want you to raise Sophie. It's in there.† Jane didn't answer. He could hear her breathing on the other end. â€Å"Jane?† â€Å"Sure, sure. Of course. What the hell is going on with you guys? What's the big danger Sophie's in? Why are you being spooky like this? And why didn't you call earlier, you fucker?† â€Å"I was up all night doing stuff. Then I took two of those sleeping pills you gave me. Suddenly twelve hours are gone.† â€Å"You took two? Never take two.† â€Å"Yeah, thanks,† Charlie said. â€Å"Anyway, I'm sure I'll be okay, but if for some reason I'm not, you need to take Sophie and get out of the City for a while. I mean like up in the Sierras. I also sent you a letter explaining everything, as much as I know, anyway. Only open it if something happens, okay?† â€Å"Nothing better happen, you fuck. I just lost Mom, and I – why the hell are you talking like this, Charlie? What kind of trouble are you in?† â€Å"I can't tell you, Jane. You have to trust me that I didn't have any choice in the matter.† â€Å"How can I help?† â€Å"By doing exactly what you're doing, taking care of Sophie, keeping her safe, and keeping the hellhounds with her at all times.† â€Å"Okay, but nothing better happen to you. Cassie and I are going to get married and I want you to give me away. And I want to borrow your tux, too. It's Armani, right?† â€Å"No, Jane.† â€Å"You won't give me away?† â€Å"No, no, it's not that, I'd pay her to take you, it's not that.† â€Å"Then you don't think that gay people should be allowed to get married, is that it? You're finally coming clean. I knew it, after all – â€Å" â€Å"I just don't think that gay people should be allowed to get married wearing my tux.† â€Å"Oh,† Jane said. â€Å"You'll wear my Armani tux and I'll have to rent some piece of crap or buy something new and cheap, and then I'll go through eternity looking like a total dork in the wedding pictures. I know how you guys like to show wedding pictures – it's like a disease.† â€Å"By ‘you guys,' you mean lesbians?† Jane said, sounding very much like a prosecuting attorney. â€Å"Yes, I mean lesbians, dumbfuck,† said Charlie, sounding very much like a hostile witness. â€Å"Oh, okay,† Jane said. â€Å"It is my wedding, I guess I can buy a tux.† â€Å"That would be nice,† Charlie said. â€Å"I'm sort of needing the pants cut a little looser in the seat these days anyway,† Jane said. â€Å"Thatta girl.† â€Å"So you'll be safe and give me away.† â€Å"I'll sure try. You think Cassandra will let me bring the little Jewish kid?† Jane laughed. â€Å"Call me every hour,† she said. â€Å"I won't do that.† â€Å"Okay, when you can.† â€Å"Yeah,† Charlie said. â€Å"Bye.† He smiled to himself and rolled out of bed, wondering if this might be the last time he would ever do that. Smile. Charlie showered, ate a peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich, and put on a thousand-dollar suit for which he had paid forty bucks. He limped around the bedroom for a few minutes and decided that his leg felt pretty good and he could do without the foam walking cast, so he left it on the floor by the bed. He put on a pot of coffee and called Inspector Rivera. â€Å"It was a fucked-up day,† Rivera said. â€Å"Charlie, you need to take your daughter and get out of town.† â€Å"I can't do that. This is about me. You'll keep me informed, right?† â€Å"Promise you won't try to do anything stupid or heroic?† â€Å"Not in my DNA, Inspector. I'll call you if I see anything.† Charlie disconnected, having no idea what he was going to do, but feeling like he had to do something. He called Jane's house to say good night to Sophie. â€Å"I just want you to know that I love you very much, honey.† â€Å"Me, too, Daddy. Why did you call?† â€Å"What, you have a meeting or something?† â€Å"We're having ice cream.† â€Å"That's nice. Look, Sophie, Daddy has to go do some things, so I want you to stay with Aunt Jane for a few days, okay?† â€Å"Okay. Do you need some help? I'm free.† â€Å"No, honey, but thank you.† â€Å"Okay, Daddy. Alvin is looking at my ice cream. He looks hungry, like bear. I have to go.† â€Å"Love you, honey.† â€Å"Love you, Daddy.† â€Å"Apologize to Aunt Cassie for calling her an anti-Semite.† â€Å"‘Kay.† Click. She hung up on him. The apple of his eye, the light of his life, his pride and joy, hung up on him. He sighed, but felt better. Heartbreak is the natural habitat of the Beta Male. Charlie took a few minutes in the kitchen to sharpen the edge of the sword-cane on the back of the electric can opener he and Rachel had received as a wedding present, then he headed out to check on the store. As soon as he opened the door to the back staircase Charlie heard strange animal noises coming from the store. It sounded as if they were coming from the back room, and there were no lights on, although he could see plenty of light filtering in from the store. Was this it? Sort of solved the problem of what he was going to do. He drew the sword from his cane and crept down the stairs in a crouch, moving along the edge of each step to minimize squeakage. Halfway down he saw the source of the animal noises and he recoiled, leaping nearly halfway back up the staircase. â€Å"For the love of God!† â€Å"It needed to be done,† Lily said. She was astraddle Ray Macy, her plaid pleated skirt (mercifully) draped out over him, covering the parts that would have caused Charlie to have to tear his eyes out, which he was thinking about doing anyway. â€Å"It did,† Ray agreed breathlessly. Charlie peeked down into the back room – they were still at it, Lily riding Ray like he was a mechanical bull, one bare breast bouncing out of the lapel of her chef ‘s coat. â€Å"He was despondent,† she said. â€Å"I found him giving himself hickies with the shop vac. It's for the greater good, Asher.† â€Å"Well, stop it,† Charlie said. â€Å"No, no, no, no, no,† said Ray. â€Å"It's a charity thing,† Lily said. â€Å"You know, Lily,† Charlie said, covering his eyes, â€Å"you could exercise your charity in other ways, like Salvation Army Santa or something.† â€Å"I don't want to fuck those guys. Most of them are raging alcoholics, and they stink. At least Ray is clean.† â€Å"I don't mean do one, I mean be one. Ring the bell with the little red kettle. Jeez.† â€Å"I am clean,† said Ray. â€Å"You shut up,† Charlie said. â€Å"She's young enough to be your daughter.† â€Å"He was suicidal,† Lily said. â€Å"I may be saving his life.† â€Å"She is,† Ray said. â€Å"Shut up, Ray,† Charlie said. â€Å"This is pathetic, desperate pity sex, that's all it is.† â€Å"He knows that,† Lily said. â€Å"I don't mind,† said Ray. â€Å"I'm doing this for the cause, too,† Lily said. â€Å"Ray was holding out on you.† â€Å"I was?† said Ray. â€Å"How?† Charlie said. â€Å"He found a woman who was buying all the soul vessels. She was with the clients you missed. Somewhere in the Mission. He wasn't going to tell you about her.† â€Å"I don't know what you're talking about,† Ray said. Then added, â€Å"Faster, please.† â€Å"Tell him the address,† Lily said. â€Å"Lily,† Charlie said, â€Å"this isn't really necessary.† â€Å"No,† Ray said. There was a loud smack. Charlie opened his eyes. They were still there, doing it, but Ray's right cheek was bright red and Lily was winding up to slap him again. â€Å"Tell him!† â€Å"It's on Guerrero Street, between Eighteenth and Nineteenth, I don't know the number, but it's a big green Victorian, you can't miss it. Three Jewels Buddhist Center.† SMACK! â€Å"Ouch, I told him,† Ray whined. â€Å"That's for not getting the address, BITCH!† Lily said. Then to Charlie: â€Å"There you go, Asher. I want a prime position when you take over the Underworld!† Charlie thought that one of the first things he was going to change when he took over was expanding The Great Big Book of Death to include how to handle situations like this. But instead he said, â€Å"You got it, Lily. You'll be in charge of dress code and torture.† â€Å"Sweet,† Lily said. â€Å"‘Scuse me, Asher, I have to finish this.† Then to Ray: â€Å"Hear that? No more flannel shirts for you, grommet!† SMACK! The grunts coming from Ray increased in frequency and intensity. â€Å"Sure,† Charlie said. â€Å"I'll just go out the other door.† â€Å"See ya,† Ray said. â€Å"I'm never going to look either one of you in the eye again, okay?† â€Å"Sounds good, Asher,† Lily said. â€Å"Be careful.† Charlie crept back up the steps, went out the front door of his apartment and down the elevator to the street entrance, suppressing his gag reflex the whole way. On the street he flagged down a cab and rode into the Mission, trying to wipe the image of his shagging employees out of his mind. The Morrigan had followed the gift souls that had escaped through the drains to a deserted street in the Mission. Now they waited, watching the green Victorian building from storm-drain grates at either end of the street. They were more cautious now, their rapacious nature having been dampened somewhat by having been severely blown up the night before. They called them the gift souls because the little patchwork creatures brought the souls right to them in the sewers – the gifts showing up in the Morrigan's weakest moment. After the accursed Boston terrier had chased them through miles of pipelines, leaving them battered and exhausted on a high ledge at a pipe junction, along marched twenty or so of the darling little nightmares, all dressed up in finery and carrying just what they needed to heal their wounds and replenish their strength: human souls. And thus renewed, they were able to scare away that obnoxious little dog. The Morrigan were back – not to the strength they'd achieved before the explosion, maybe not even enough to fly, but certainly enough to venture Above once again, especially with so many souls at hand. No one was out on the streets tonight except the junkies, the hookers, and the homeless. After the fucked-up day in the City, most everyone had decided that it was just a better idea to stay in, safer. To the Morrigan (for all they cared), they were safer in their homes the same way a tuna fish is safer in a can, but no one knew that yet. No one knew what they were hiding from except Charlie Asher, and he was getting out of a cab right in front of them as they watched. â€Å"It's New Meat,† said Macha. â€Å"We should give him a new name,† said Babd. â€Å"I mean, he's really not that new anymore.† â€Å"Hush,† hushed Macha. â€Å"Hey, lover,† Babd called out of her drain. â€Å"Did you miss me?† Charlie paid the cabbie and stood in the middle of the street looking at the big jade-green Queen Anne. There were lights on in the turret upstairs and in one window downstairs. He could just make out the sign that read THREE JEWELS BUDDHIST CENTER. He started to step toward the house and saw movement in the lattice under the porch – eyes shining. A cat maybe. His cell phone rang and he flipped it open. â€Å"Charlie, it's Rivera. I have some good news; we found Carrie Long, the woman from the pawnshop, and she's still alive. She was tied up and thrown in a Dumpster a block from her store.† â€Å"That's great,† Charlie said. But he wasn't feeling great. The things that had been moving under the porch were coming out. Moving up the stairs, standing on the porch, lining up and facing him. Twenty or thirty of them, a little more than a foot tall, dressed in ornate period costumes. Each had the skeletal face of a dead animal, cats, foxes, badgers – animals Charlie couldn't identify, but just the skulls – the eye sockets empty, black. Yet they stared. â€Å"You won't believe what she said put her there, Charlie. Little creatures, little monsters, she said.† â€Å"About fourteen inches tall,† Charlie said. â€Å"Yeah, how'd you know?† â€Å"Lots of teeth and claws, like animal parts stuck together, all dressed up like they were going to a grand costume ball?† â€Å"What are you telling me, Charlie? What do you know?† â€Å"Just guessing,† Charlie said. He unclipped the latch on his sword-cane. â€Å"Hey, lover,† came a female voice from behind him. â€Å"Did you miss me?† Charlie turned. She was crawling out of the drain almost directly behind him. â€Å"The bad news,† Rivera said, â€Å"is we found the junk dealer and the bookstore guy from Book 'em Danno – pieces of them.† â€Å"That is bad news,† Charlie said. He started moving up the street, away from the sewer harpy and the porch full of Satan's sock puppets. â€Å"New Meat,† came a voice from up the street. Charlie looked to see another sewer harpy coming out of the drain, her eyes gleaming black in the streetlight. Behind him he heard the clacking of little animal teeth. â€Å"Charlie, I still think you should leave town for a while, but if you don't, and don't tell anyone I told you this, you should get a gun, maybe a couple of guns.† â€Å"I think that would be a great idea,† Charlie said. The two sewer harpies were moving very slowly toward him, awkwardly, as if their nerves were short-circuiting. The one closest to him, the one from the alley in North Beach, was licking her lips. She looked a little ragged compared to the night she'd seduced him. He moved up the street away from them. â€Å"A shotgun, so you won't need to learn to shoot. I can't give you one, but – â€Å" â€Å"Inspector, I'm going to have to get back to you.† â€Å"I'm serious, Charlie, whatever these things are, they are going after your kind.† â€Å"You have no idea how clear that is to me, Inspector.† â€Å"Is that the one who shot me?† said the closest harpy. â€Å"Tell him I'm going to suck his eyeballs out of the sockets and chew them in his ear.† â€Å"You get that, Inspector?† Charlie said. â€Å"She's there?† â€Å"They,† Charlie said. â€Å"This way, Meat,† said the third sewer harpy, coming out of the drain at the far end of the block. She stood, extended her claws, and flicked a line of venom down the side of a parked car. The paint sizzled and ran where it hit. â€Å"Where are you, Charlie? Where are you?† â€Å"I'm in the Mission. Near the Mission.† The little creatures were coming down the steps now, down the walk toward the street. â€Å"Look,† said a harpy, â€Å"he brought presents.† â€Å"Charlie, where exactly are you?† said Rivera. â€Å"Gotta go, Inspector.† Charlie flipped the phone closed and dropped it in his coat pocket. Then he drew the sword from the cane and turned to the harpy from the alley. â€Å"For you,† he said to her, whipping the sword in a flourish through the air. â€Å"That's sweet,† she said. â€Å"You always think about my needs.† The 1957 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham was the perfect show-off of death machines. It consisted of nearly three tons of steel stamped into a massively mawed, high-tailed beast, lined with enough chrome to build a Terminator and still have parts left over – most of it in long, sharp strips that peeled off on impact and became lethal scythes to flay away pedestrian flesh. Under the four headlights it sported two chrome bumper bullets that looked like unexploded torpedoes or triple-G-cup Madonna death boobs. It had a noncollapsible steering column that would impale the driver upon any serious impact, electric windows that could pinch off a kid's head, no seat belts, and a 325 horsepower V8 with such appallingly bad fuel efficiency that you could hear it trying to slurp liquefied dinosaurs out of the ground when it passed. It had a top speed of a hundred and ten miles an hour, mushy, bargelike suspension that could in no way stabilize the car at that speed, and undersized power brake s that wouldn't stop it either. The fins jutting from the back were so high and sharp that the car was a lethal threat to pedestrians even when parked, and the whole package sat on tall, whitewall tires that looked, and generally handled, like oversized powdered doughnuts. Detroit couldn't have achieved more deadly finned ostentatia if they'd covered a killer whale in rhinestones. It was a masterpiece. And the reason you need to know all that, is that along with the battle-worn Morrigan and the well-dressed chimeras, a '57 Eldorado was rapidly approaching Charlie. The bloodred lacquered Eldo slid around the corner, tires screaming like flaming peacocks, hubcaps spinning off toward the curb, engine roaring, spewing blue smoke out of the rear wheel wells like a flatulent dragon. The first of the Morrigan turned in time to take a bumper bullet in the thigh before she was dragged and folded under the car and spit out the back into a black heap. 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Don't act like that's a surprise.† Charlie looked at the gleaming interior of the car, the bloodred leather seats, the dash fitted with walnut burl and gold-plated knobs. â€Å"This is a great car. My mailman would love this car.† â€Å"Your mailman?† â€Å"He collects vintage pimp wear.† â€Å"So what are you trying to say?† â€Å"Nothing.† They were already on Guerrero Street and Minty floored it as they approached the target block. The first Morrigan he had hit was just getting to her knees when he hit her again, knocking her over two parked cars and into the side of a vacant building. The second one turned to face them and bared her claws, which raked the hood as he rolled over her with a drumroll of thumps, then he ran over the third one's legs as she was crawling back into the storm sewer. â€Å"Jeez,† Charlie said, turning and looking out the back window. Minty Fresh seemed to turn his full attention to driving safely now. â€Å"What the hell are those things?† â€Å"I call them sewer harpies. They're the things that call to us from the storm sewers. They're a lot stronger now than they used to be.† â€Å"They're scary is what they are,† said Minty. â€Å"I don't know,† Charlie said. â€Å"Have you gotten a good look at them? I mean, they got the badonkadonk out back and some fine bajoopbadangs up front, know what I'm sayin', dog? Buss a rock wid a playa?† He offered his fist for Minty to buss him a rock, but alas, the mint one left him hangin'. â€Å"Stop that,† Fresh said. â€Å"Sorry,† Charlie said. â€Å"Talk Like a Playa in Ten Days or Less – Stone Thug Edition?† Minty asked. Charlie nodded. â€Å"We got the CD into the store a couple of months ago. I practice in the van. How am I doing?† â€Å"Your Negro-osity is uncanny. I had to keep checking to make sure you're still white.† â€Å"Thanks,† Charlie said, then, as if a light went on: â€Å"Hey, I've been looking for you – where the hell have you been?† â€Å"Hiding out. One of those things came after me on the BART a few nights ago when I was coming back from Oakland.† â€Å"How'd you get away?† â€Å"Those little animal things, a bunch of them attacked her in the dark. I could hear her screaming at them, tearing them to ribbons, but they held her off until the train pulled into the station, which was full of people. She bolted back into the tunnel. There were pieces of the animal creatures everywhere in the train car.† Minty turned onto Van Ness and started heading toward Charlie's side of town. â€Å"So they helped you? They're not part of the Underworlders trying to take over?† â€Å"They don't appear to be. They saved my ass.† â€Å"So you know some of the Death Merchants have been killed?† â€Å"I didn't know. It wasn't in the paper. I saw where Anton's shop burned up last night. He didn't make it out?† â€Å"They found pieces of him,† Charlie said. â€Å"Charlie, I think I caused this.† Minty Fresh turned and really looked at Charlie for the first time, his golden eyes looking forlorn. â€Å"I failed to collect my last two soul vessels, and all of this started.† â€Å"I thought it was me,† Charlie said. â€Å"I missed two as well. But I don't think it's us. My two clients are alive, I think they're in that house where I was going when you saved me: the Three Jewels Buddhist Center. There's a woman there who's been buying up soul vessels, too.† â€Å"Cute brunette?† Minty asked. â€Å"I don't know. Why?† â€Å"She bought some from me, too. Tried to disguise herself, but it was her.† â€Å"Well, she's in that house back there. I've got to go back there.† â€Å"I don't want anything to do with those bitches with the claws,† Minty said. â€Å"True dat,† Charlie said. â€Å"I had a thing with one of them.† â€Å"No.† â€Å"Yeah, she got all up in my grille and shit – had to cut da ho loose.† â€Å"Stop that.† â€Å"Sorry. Anyway, I've got to go back.† â€Å"You sure? I don't think they're dead. Doesn't look like they can be dead.† â€Å"You could run over them again. By the way, how did you know where to find me?† â€Å"After I heard about Anton's place burning, I tried to call him and got a disconnected message, so I went to your store. I talked to that little Goth girl you have working for you. She told me where you went. Talked to her for about ten minutes. She knows about me – I mean us? The Death Merchants?† â€Å"Yes, I told her a long time ago. Wasn't she, uh, busy when you got there? With a guy, I mean.† â€Å"No. She seeing anyone?† â€Å"I thought you were gay?† â€Å"I never said that.† â€Å"Yeah, but you didn't go out of your way to deny it either.† â€Å"Charlie, I run a music store in the Castro, I'd do more business as a gay Death Merchant than a straight shopkeeper.† â€Å"Good point. I never thought of that.† â€Å"Color me surprised. So, she seeing anyone?† â€Å"She's half your age and I think she's a little twisted – sexually, I mean.† â€Å"So is she seeing anyone?† â€Å"She's like a little sister to me, Fresh. Don't you have employees like that?† â€Å"Have you never met anyone who works in a record store? There's no greater repository of unjustified arrogance in the world. I'd poison my employees if I thought I could find replacements.† â€Å"I don't think she's seeing anybody, but since the world is about to be taken over by the Forces of Darkness, you may not have time for dating.† â€Å"I don't know. She seems like she might have an in with the Forces of Darkness. I like her, she's funny in a sort of macabre way, and she likes Miles.† â€Å"Lily likes Miles Davis?† â€Å"You don't know that about your little sister?† Charlie threw his hands up. â€Å"Take her, use her, throw her away, I don't care, she's only part-time. You can date my daughter, too. She's going to be six and probably loves Coltrane for all I know.† â€Å"Calm down, you're overreacting.† â€Å"Just turn around and take me back to that Buddhist center. I've got to stop this thing. It's all on me, Fresh. I'm the Luminatus.† â€Å"You are not.† â€Å"I am,† Charlie said. â€Å"You're the Great Death – with a capital D? You? You know this to be true?† â€Å"I do,† Charlie said. â€Å"I knew there was something different about you, but I thought that the Luminatus would be – I don't know – taller.† â€Å"Don't start with that, okay.† Minty swung the car off Van Ness into a hotel turnaround. â€Å"Where are you going?† Charlie said. â€Å"To run over some sewer harpies again.† â€Å"Back to the Buddhist center?† â€Å"Uh-huh. You have any weapons besides that stupid sword?† â€Å"My cop friend told me I should get a gun.† Minty Fresh reached into his moss-green jacket and came out with the biggest pistol Charlie had ever seen. He placed it on the seat. â€Å"Take it. Desert Eagle fifty-caliber. It'll stop a bear.† Charlie picked up the chrome-plated pistol. It weighed like five pounds and the barrel looked big enough to stick your thumb in. â€Å"This thing is huge.† â€Å"I'm a big guy. Listen, it holds eight shots. There's a round in the chamber. You have to cock it and release the safety before you fire. There and there.† He pointed to the safety and the hammer. â€Å"Hold on to it if you have to shoot. It will knock you on your ass if you're not ready.† â€Å"What about you?† Minty patted the other side of his coat. â€Å"I have another one.† Charlie turned the gun in his hand and watched the streetlights playing off its chromed surface. (Beta Males, who inherently feel they are always at a competitive disadvantage, are suckers for showy equalizers.) â€Å"You have a lot going on under the surface, Mr. Fresh. You are not just the run-of-the-mill seven-foot-tall Death Merchant in a pastel-green suit.† â€Å"Thank you, Mr. Asher. Very kind of you to say.† â€Å"My pleasure.† Charlie's cell phone rang and he flipped it open. Rivera said, â€Å"Asher, where the hell are you? I've been circling the Mission and there's nothing here but a lot of black feathers flying in the air.† â€Å"Yeah, it's okay. I'm okay, Inspector. I found Minty Fresh, the guy who owns the music store. I'm in the car with him.† â€Å"So you're safe?† â€Å"Relatively.† â€Å"Good. Lay low and I'll call you, okay? I want to talk to your friend tomorrow.† â€Å"You got it, Inspector. Thanks for coming to help.† â€Å"Careful, Asher.† â€Å"Gotcha. I'm laying low. Bye.† Charlie snapped the phone shut and turned to Minty Fresh. â€Å"You ready?† â€Å"Absolutely,† said the fresh one. The street was deserted when they pulled up in front of the Three Jewels Buddhist Center. â€Å"I'll go around to the back,† Minty said. Well, cars suck, I can tell you that,† said Babd, trying to keep herself together as the Morrigan limped back to the great ship. â€Å"Five thousand years, horses are fine, all of a sudden we have to have paved streets and cars. I don't see the attraction.† â€Å"I'm not even sure that we need to rise and let Darkness rule,† said Nemain. â€Å"Apparently darkness isn't qualified yet. Speaking as an agent of Darkness, I think it needs more time.† She had been crushed into a half-woman, half-raven form and was shedding feathers as they limped through the pipe. â€Å"It's like that New Meat has someone watching over him,† said Macha. â€Å"Next time Orcus can deal with him.† â€Å"Yeah, let's get Orcus to go after him,† Babd said. â€Å"See what he thinks of cars.†

Abigail Adams Biography Essays - Adams Family, John Adams

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How to Answer Behavioral Interview Questions

How to Answer Behavioral Interview Questions Behavioral interview questions (questions about how you’ve reacted to things in the past, or would react to hypothetical situations) are really popular with job interviewers. They can push job candidates out of their comfort zone, and give a glimpse of what the person is really like underneath the polished interview suit. They can also identify potential dealbreakers. That’s what makes it so dangerous for job seekers, who may only be prepared to talk about what’s on their resume and the job description. Once you learn the patterns and the â€Å"whys† behind these questions, you can prep for interviews in a meaningful way. Here are five strategies for dealing with behavioral interview questions.DON’T panic.Even if you get a curve ball you weren’t expecting (what do you mean, â€Å"what kind of cat would I be?), don’t show fear. (Interviewers and dogs can both smell fear.) If you need a second to gather your thoughts, do that, and then calmly answer the question to the best of your ability.DO come up with a general list of professional examples and anecdotes you can turn to.Focus on things like problem solving (what did you do at a challenging time) and teamwork, because many behavioral questions hinge on how you would react if things went wrong, or how you would interact with your colleagues. Also have in your pocket a story about a time that things went wrong, and how you resolved it/learned from it for next time. And definitely come up with (true) stories about times you showed leadership or negotiated a challenging time with team members.DON’T stay negative, even if the question is asking you to talk about a negative event.This would be questions like, â€Å"is there anything you’ve failed at doing in your career?† or â€Å"tell me about your weaknesses.† Those are textbook Interview Traps 101. It’s not a confessional, and you’re not obligated to tell them about every weakness you have. Instead, turn to that list of examples you haveDO tell a story.Short answers don’t help you here, because what the interviewer is looking for is process and context information. You want to be articulate and seem candid. Practice in the mirror ahead of the interview, but don’t memorize speeches so that it doesn’t feel like you’re giving canned answers.DON’T be afraid to talk about your challenges.No candidate (or employee) is perfect, and everyone has faced highly challenging times at some point in their careers. The important thing is that when you do mention challenges, emphasize how you worked through them, and how that has made you a stronger professional.The best way to prep for behavioral interview questions is to practice, practice, practice. If you have a friend or family member around who’s willing to ask sample questions and listen to your spiel, great! Even if you don’t, you can practice by yourself in th e mirror to make sure everything flows conversationally. As with anything else, a little advance thought goes a long way, and can make you seem like the suave A+ candidate you are when you walk into the interview, no matter what questions come your way.

The effects of painkillers on the heartrate of a daphnia essays

The effects of painkillers on the heartrate of a daphnia essays Late one afternoon, a lady was driving home in the rush hour traffic. The last thing she needed was a pounding headache. While she was stopped, she dug in her purse for some aspirin to relieve her headache. She chugged it down with the Pepsi sitting by the seat. Her only worry was to relieve her headache. The affect of the painkiller on the other parts of her body was not a concern to her at that point in time. Should people wonder if their painkillers are affecting their body? Should people know how painkillers are affecting their heart, heart rate, or even worse, causing heart disease? It may just be the ingredients of a pill. Often the side effects of medication are discovered too late. Phentermine and fenfluramine are not only a diet pill ingredient but also causes heart valve problems. (Gorman 113) This is just one example of the things that may cause heart problems. They could also include an ingredient in a painkiller or other medications that a person could be taking. There are many different types of painkillers, the most common include Aspirin, Tylenol, and Ibuprofen. Aspirin, is used to relieve minor headaches, reduce fevers, colds, muscular aches, menstrual discomfort, toothaches and arthritis pain. Tylenol, is primarily for the relieve of minor aches and pains associated with headache, muscular aches, backache, minor arthritis pain, common cold, toothache, and menstrual cramps and for the reduction of fever. Ibuprofen, also relieves minor aches and pains due to colds, headaches, toothaches, and reduction of fevers. But yet, why may they affect the heart? The heart is found behind the breastbone. The heart is a hollow muscular organ that balances the circulation of blood. Blood then passes through four chambers that are separated by valves. Valves control the blood movement inside the heart. (Funk and Wagnals 273) What kinds of heart diseases are caused from painkillers...

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Exam Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words - 2

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The woman warrior Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The woman warrior - Essay Example However, the actualization of her tales represents Maxine living the life of the persona. She uses her position as a warrior to interject her personal and familial experiences to the discriminations of the communist rule in China. In the second section of the chapter, she uses her position to lift the cultural gap portrayed by Chinese emigrants in America under the realm of Chinese Revolution. The significance of the changing roles of women in White Tigers as depicted by Fa Mu Lan represents the conventionalism and flexibility for women to pursue a man’s life. Whatever a man can do, a woman can do, is the typical representation of the diversity of female roles in the story. She manages to maintain her family (her husband and child) and simultaneously takes on her community against authoritarianism. The role of Fa Mu Lan in the context differs with the real actualization and impersonation of her as a man warrior. She wears the traditional male armor, and having an entire battalion of traditional warriors to lead the fight against communists. She undergoes intense training in a secluded place and starves herself to attain warrior-like aspects need to sustain her role to protect her community, strategies that a typical woman cannot withhold. According to Kingston, Fa Mu Lan, having an honorable death due to social status does not determine the ideology of death. Barons and the communists’ status quo in the traditional Chinese community represented dictatorial leadership and demand honorary respect from the subjects. However, Fa refutes this stereotype by defeating the communists’ and beheading the lead baron. With her sword, she slashes the head off and leaves the baron to die. Her sword represents the continuation of the fight against societal alienation from changes in revolution (Helena 23). The use of the forest as a spatial convenience of warrior training is used as a traditional setting that induces

Drug and Alcohol Addiction Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Drug and Alcohol Addiction - Research Proposal Example This research will begin with the statement that drug and alcohol addiction has been one chief source of various ills in our society which deserves to be addressed seriously for an intensive permanent resolution. We can never deny the fact that somewhere in history, alcohol drinking and substance use have heretofore prevailed to be part of our culture and we have often found a great deal of change through them in terms of economy and socio-political affairs from societal to global scale. Like poverty and the cold war between nations, drug and alcohol addiction is an appalling crisis that would not cease to torment and misshape the moral sphere of living. On this ground, I have decided to conduct further research on drug and alcohol addiction, being a subject area of huge significance especially in determining certain causes or factors if issues that emerge out of trouble within the family, search for identity, the problem with career, and several other more personal conflicts.  To me, it is quite essential to examine individual concerns that are directly influenced by addiction to alcohol and drug since an addicted drug user or alcohol drinker eventually affects other people in his circle. As observed in reality, every person who has abused the use of drugs and alcohol bears a negative impact on the lives of others who may commit quality-of-life crimes themselves. Moreover, studies demonstrate that drug and alcohol addiction is widely associated to cases of human trafficking, murder, sexual assault, theft and robbery, juvenile delinquencies, different forms of violence, suicide, and other criminal or unlawful acts that run contrary to promoting ethics, health, and life of peace. The paper would aim as well to cover discussion of the existing measures implemented by the American government, how effective these measures are, and what else can be done to improve such measures on preventing and possibly finding solutions to eradicate drug and alcohol addiction co mpletely among the youth.

The Organization System Essay Example for Free

The Organization System Essay The   Organization   System   consists   of   the   people   who   worked   for   achieving   their   goals   as   a   team. In   an   organization,   there   is   a   hierarchy   consisting   of   a   leader   at   the   top   to   the   people   at   the   bottom   working   under   him. This   hierarchy   is   subdivided   in   lower   hierarchical   order   also. Thus   in   the   organization   different   set   of   people   comprise   themselves   to   form   an   organization. The   leader   keeps   his   sharp   look   at   the   team   to   watch   whether   the   organization   is   functioning   effectively   or   not. The   role   of   the   leader   is   very   important   in   organization   to   keep   it   running.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The   responsibility   of   a   leader   is   to   correlate   the   members   of   the   organization   effectively. Thus   he   also   plays   the   role   to   eliminate   the   situations   of   conflicts. Thus   in   these   various   functions   of   the   leader,   the   leadership   quality   for   removing   the   conflicts   in   the   organization   is   also   extremely   important   for   him. By   removing   the   conflicts   the   leader   will   be   in   leading   stage   to   work   along   with   the   members   of   the   team.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The   challenge   for   leaders   is   to   effectively   manage   and   resolve   such   conflicts   or,   better   yet,   anticipate   and   prevent   them   from   happening   at   all,   says   CCLs   Patricia   Ohlott   (Patty   Ohlott  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   page   1). According   to   the   traditional   view   of   conflicts,   the   leader   must   have   to   avoid   the   conflicts   which   may   be   for   higher   designation,   appraisal   and   others. The   leader   by   using   his   leadership   qualities   has   to   eliminate   this   uncharacteristic   and   irregular   part. In   the   traditional   view   related   to   the   theory,   the   leader   has   to   decline   the   conflict   and   get   the   member   to   continue   the    work.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   According   to   the   human   relational   point   of   view   for   conflict,   the   conflicts   will   happen   in   the   organization. The   leader   can   resolve   the   problem   by   creating   routine   contact   with   his   team. This   is   the   simplest   way   of   resolving   the   conflicts. by   having   the   reward   system   one   can   resolve   the   conflict. But   according   to   the   interactionist   view,   the   conflicts   every   time   generate   a   new   situation. Thus   the   leader   must   be   innovative   in   his   ideas,   so   that   he   can   handle   the   various   new   situations   of   conflicts. The   leader   every   time   will   be   able   to   introspect   his   organization   by   having   conflicts   so   that   he   can   judge   the   situation   whether   his   organization   is   working   effectively   or   not.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The   leadership   quality   enables   the   leader   to   improve   the   capability   or   capacity   of   the   organization. When   the   leader   will   be   working   effectively,   then   the   functioning   of   the   organization   will   continue   successfully. The   volatility   of   the   organization   depends   on   leader   itself. If   the   leader   is   able   to   predict   the   upcoming   situation,   then   the   organization   will   not   endure   itself. The   leader   has   to   predict   the   situation   whether   they   are   related   to   the   market   or   related   to   the   internal   affairs   with   in   the   organization. The   leader   has   to   eradicate   the   complexity   by   using   the   different   techniques   and   reviewing   inside   organization   and   the   market   situation.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The   power   means   authority   to   govern   or   leading   the   organization. â€Å"Policies   or   lack   of   policies   often   are   the   initial   reason   for   conflict†. â€Å"Personality   clashes,   clumsy   communication   and   lousy   dispute   resolution   techniques   are   often   why   conflicts   escalate†Ã‚   (PSO   Power   Tools  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   page   1).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In   case   of   traditional   view   of   conflict,   the   power   can   resolve   the   conflict   necessarily. By   having   the   power   the   person   in   charge   can   dismiss,   suspend   demote   a   particular   who   is   creating   the   conflicts. By   the   power,   the   leader   can   negotiate   with   the   stakeholders   and   work   for   the   paramount   functioning. The   power   according   to   the   human   relations   view,   can   resolve   the   conflicts   as   by   having   the   power,   the   continuously   happening   conflicts. The   power   can   suppress   the   conflicts   by   eliminating   the   evil   stuff   which   is   originating   the   conflicts. By   power   the   person   in   charge   can   influence   his   downstream   to   work   by   having   team-work   and   coordination. According   to   the   ineractionist   view,   the   conflicts   are   cause   to   decentralize   the   power. Thus   the   person   having   power   in   an   organization   has   to   correct   the   situation   to   stabilize   the   issue. Thus   the   person   can   be   able   to   review   his   state   and   outcome   of   the   conflicts   to   build   the   new   strategies   for   resolving   the   further   difficulties.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The   power   can   enhance   the   capacity   of   the   organization   by   keeping   watch   on   every   perspective   inside   organization   and   suppress   the   troubling   elements. The   powerful   person   in   an   organization   can   acquire   the   position   to   create   the   opportunities   for   the   benefit   of   the   organization. The   volatility   in   an   organization   can   be   eliminated   by   using   the   power. The   power   has   to   predict   the   situation   by   negotiating   effectively   with   the   other   beneficial   sources   and   the   internal   sources   within   the   organization. The   complexity   is   feature   which   can   be   reduced   by   the   power   either   forcefully   or   by   indulging   the   complex   parts   or   sources   in   other   streams   for   the   fruitfulness   of   the   organization.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The   concept   of   organizational   politics   defined   as   the   as   the   exercise   or   the   use   of   power,   with   power   being   defined   as   a   potential   force. More   than   90%   of   respondents   said   that   politics   is   common   in   organization. 89%   said   that   successful   executives   must   be   good   politicians   and   76%   said   that   higher   one   progresses   in   an   organization.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The   politics   is   the   key   factor   for   creating   the   conflicts   in   an   organization. The   politics   according   to   the   traditional   view,   the   politics   is   one   of   the   key   factors   for   containing   conflicts   inside   an   organization. The   political   scenario   in   an   organization   will   create   misbehavior   in   the   functioning   of   an   organization. The   occurrence   of   the   conflicts   is   basically   many   times   based   on   the   politics   only. According   to   human   relation   view,   the   conflict   can   happen   in   any   organization. The   structural   changes   happens,   are   due   to   the   politics   by   the   members   inside   an   organization. The   member   causes   the   politics   for   stopping   other’s   growth   or   for   their   personal   growth   also. The   interactionist   view   laid   some   different   idea   over   the   politics   in   an   organization. The   politics   causes   the   different   circumstances   many   a   times. So   the   politics   causes   the   fact   for   an   organization   to   review   its   strategies   inside   an   organization.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The   politics   can   degrade   as   well   as   enhance   the   capability   of   an   organization. The   politics   can   cause   problem   to   opponents   for   better   working   of   the   organization. The   volatility   is   the   factor   which   is   due   to   the   politics   in   an   organization. For   example,   if   one   policy   is   being   implementing   in   an   organization,   the   politics   by   someone   can   revert   the   position   also. Similarly   the   complexity   in   the   hierarchical   structure   is   also   caused   by   the   politics. Due   to   it,   the   eligible   person   get   ignored   many   of   the   times,   which   causes   the   complexity   and   hence   instability.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Thus   in   an   organization   the   leadership,   power   and   the   politics   are   very   important   and   play   a   key   role   in   better   functioning   of   it. Reference: 1) Jeffrey Pfeffer, Managing with Power: Politics and Influence in Organizations, Harvard Business School Press .http://books.google.com/books?hl=enlr=id=pdsu3ilaAoECoi=fndpg=PR7dq=politics+organization+conflictsots=N8vFMYLhfKsig=D9rOGuygpm7kBHXAI63WSbmD4NQ#PPA7,M1 2) Power, Politics, and Conflict, Richard Field on Management and Information Science. http://www.business.ualberta.ca/rfield/Power%20Politics%20and%20Conflict.htm 3) Patty Ohlott, Identity: A New View for Leading in a Diverse World,Identity and Conflict: A Leaders Role, July 2005. http://www.ccl.org/leadership/enewsletter/2005/JULconflict.aspx?pageId=1292 4) PSO Power Tools, Conflict Management 3, April 2003. http://209.85.135.104/search?q=cache:po8MFHv9z7gJ:www.sportmanitoba.ca/downloads/PT_Conflict_Mgmt.pdf+power+organization+conflicthl=enct=clnkcd=19gl=inclient=firefox-a 5) EH Schein Organizational culture and leadership, 1992. http://www.fcsh.unl.pt/docentes/luisrodrigues/Organizational%20Culture.doc Work-cited: 1) Jeffrey Pfeffer, Managing with Power: Politics and Influence in Organizations, Harvard Business School Press .http://books.google.com/books?hl=enlr=id=pdsu3ilaAoECoi=fndpg=PR7dq=politics+organization+conflictsots=N8vFMYLhfKsig=D9rOGuygpm7kBHXAI63WSbmD4NQ#PPA7,M1 2) Patty Ohlott, Identity: A New View for Leading in a Diverse World,Identity and Conflict: A Leaders Role, July 2005. http://www.ccl.org/leadership/enewsletter/2005/JULconflict.aspx?pageId=1292 3) PSO Power Tools, Conflict Management 3, April 2003. http://209.85.135.104/search?q=cache:po8MFHv9z7gJ:www.sportmanitoba.ca/downloads/PT_Conflict_Mgmt.pdf+power+organization+conflicthl=enct=clnkcd=19gl=inclient=firefox-a

Movie Analysis Of Braveheart Film Studies Essay

Movie Analysis Of Braveheart Film Studies Essay Some movies have big war scenes with huge musical scores to reflect the big action. One of these film is Braveheart. William Wallace, played by Mel Gibson, is the central character and hero of the movie. He is the motivator of men. He is a leader of men. He rallies his Scottish countrymen to his belief that the English had to be fought and Scotland had to be independent. This film has some huge battle scenes of men fighting hand to hand combat. These scenes are so realistic and dramatic for me to observe to give me a feel of this era of history when war was fought man-to-man. William Wallace is a courageous and heroic figure in this film. He is the one who believes in an independent Scotland and desires to remain free from the English influences from the south. He wants the Scottish to retain their own ways, their own beliefs, and their own cultural traditions separate from the English as long as possible. This movie was suspenseful, dramatic, and entertaining for me from start to fi nish because of my respect for the central character and hero, William Wallace, as well as the great musical score to reflect the themes, characters, and plot lines more powerfully. The music for this film is essentially designed to reflect the characters and the plot line. The long warring history of England and Scotland is an important part of the background story to this film. Some of the subtitle text provides insights into this era of time and the background of the relationship between the two peoples and the two kingdoms. The Scottish and English have never really been at peace with each other over the political authority over the territories that comprise Scotland. Even today, there could be debates and disputes found in the pubs in Scotland and England over exactly what the nature of their past relationship is and how it affects their current political relationship. This film provides a living history lesson to that past time period when the Scottish and English warriors fought it out over respect, integrity, and the willingness to lay everything on the line for freedom, independence, and separation from each other. The musical score reflects these theme s as the heroic music is felt when Wallace and the Scots are doing their thing, and the tension and oppression of the English is felt when they are present and especially when they are winning the battles. The Scottish spirit and temperament of this older time period is clearly represented in the films hero, William Wallace. The music attempts to amplify and magnify his heroic qualities. He is played by famous action hero actor, Mel Gibson, who provides this character with relentless, courageous energy and emotion from start to finish. William Wallace is able to lead his Scottish men into battle with exceptional courage and leadership capabilities. Wallace knows how to give his warriors a serious motivational speech before these battles where the Scottish usually are underdog and at much lower odds to win against the usually superior English in regards to military manpower and military weaponry. Wallace is always fighting undermanned and with less weaponry than his English opponents. Yet, at the same instant, Wallace is fighting with his men for higher, spiritual causes and reasons that put their English opponents often at the actual disadvantage. This motivation and spiritual upliftin g energy personified in this central character, William Wallace, is the driving force behind the films plot and battle scenes. The musical flourishes are always important. The music dominates the action. The music is suppose to make us in the audience feel the action. Wallace makes his men and himself believe that they are capable of taking on any opponents force of any size and greatness and defeating that opponent because of their brave hearts. Thus, the music indeed reflects the central theme in this film about English-Scottish history and their long legacy of fighting and warfare that the men with the braver hearts usually won over the men with the better weapons and greater numbers. Because the combat was face-to-face, hand-to-hand, the men with the braver hearts would ultimately achieve victory. The heroic traits of these men are clearly reflected in the intense musical score. William Wallace was aware of thus all important factor of the brave heart when motivating his warriors to fight it out with a more powerful foe. Wallace understands that the brave hearted men in his Scottish forces are going to out fight and out last the English soldiers and warriors as the battles drag on. Wallace knows this is a war that has to be won on the spiritual level first and foremost to be able to achieve victory on the battlefields. This is war that needs to be taken to the next level spiritually and idealistically so Wallace can motiv ate his Scottish men to believe in themselves no matter how bad it gets and now matter how close defeat approaches. This is a war that William Wallace believes that the Scottish have to will themselves to victory through their brave hearts. Thus, the musical score in this film was very important for understanding the central character, William Wallace, and his range of emotions from high to low, from good to bad, and how he was always trying to bring out the best in his men. He is able to be the person who can really be a hero and the musical score was able to reflect these heroic qualities, especially the music during the battle scenes. Film No. 2 Babel The music is exotic in this film because of the fact that the central characters in this film are in four different places and settings simultaneously. One of the central characters is Richard. He is the wealthy white American man who has taken his wife to Morocco to save their marriage. Another central character is Richards nanny, Amelia, who is charge of the two children back in San Diego. A third central character is Chieko in Tokyo, Japan whose father is the one who originally gave the hunting rifle to a hunting guide during a Morocco hunting trip in the past. A fourth set of central characters are the two brothers, Ahmed and Yussuf, who are sons of a goat herder in charge of the goats and shooting jackals with the gun their father Abdulla purchased from Hassan the hunting guide for a good price. These central characters are all in motion at four different places and settings simultaneously. The director does an excellent job in painting the musical score the right way for this p lot line, the character development, and the overall mood of the film. The Morocco setting to start the film offers some traditional music from this region that really does bring an exotic mood to the opening. The two young brothers, Ahmed and Yussuf, are really doing what kids do when given the responsibility of a loaded gun. These young brothers begin daring each other to try shooting things with it besides the intended jackals as their father desired. The two brothers begin shooting at targets to test the gun. Ahmed then turns and shoots at a passing car down on the mountain road. Yussuf, who is a much better shot, takes the gun and shoots at a tour bus coming down the same mountain road in the distance. The boys dont think nothing happened at first, but then the bus slows to a stop. The boys take off running as fast as they can and become worried sick about the accident. They know that someone was probably injured or killed by the gun shot fired by Yussuf who had a good aim too. And they hide the information from their father Abdulla at first becaus e of the great fear of getting caught. This secret becomes even more significant when Abdulla at dinner reveals that an American tourist had been shot on a tour bus in their area. This is something that strikes great fear in the hearts of these two young brothers. In turn, they want to make sure they dont get caught for it. These decisions are typical of two young brothers who look out for each others back. Yet, when the police investigator comes up the driveway when their father is not around, the boys lie about the location to buy more time for themselves and to permit them the opportunity to tell their father. This tell-all to the father becomes a bad time for the brothers as they fight, turn on each other, and become bitterly mad at each other. The father fears their safety and decides to flee with them and the rifle. The music in the sequence featuring the father and two brothers is very moody and exotic in quality because they are mountain dwellers who live very simple lives. Yet, they are suddenly wrapped up in this awful tragedy. The traumatic sequence in the film featuring Richard is something that is suspenseful, tense, and tragic in tone and implication because of the musical score accompanying his presence in the story line. The continuous fear in him that his wife will die from the gun shot wound to her neck without any proper medical aid on this village mountain top in Morocco. Richards character goes through so many different kinds of emotions during his ordeal waiting for the medical helicopter. He has to forge trusting relations with Moroccan villagers, including the village healer, as well as relationships with his fellow bus passengers for a time period to try to get them to see his predicament and his tragedy from his shoes. Richard is a master at getting people to feel like he does and have empathy for his position in this ordeal. The character of Richard teaches us in the film audience the terrifying situation of being face to face with a tragic loss of a loved one. At many points, Richards wife seems ready to die. This constant on the edge of his seat about her death makes him reflect on many things in his life. He becomes a different kind of man than he was before this shooting incident occurred. The music is tense, moody, and changing all the time during this back and forth situation with Richard and his injured wife. The villagers are trying to help them but they dont have the medical technology necessary to save her. The music becomes sorrowful as Richard faces the reality of her impending death coming soon. The central character of Amelia, Richards hired nanny, is another intriguing person for us in the film audience in relation to music and her character development because of her risks and boldness of personality to take Richards children without his permission to her sons wedding in Mexico. She will not miss her sons wedding no matter what she has to do. These white children are very reluctant to go to Mexico. They are socialized to fear Mexicans and Mexico itself. However, in the sequences of the wedding and wedding celebration, these two white children become happier and more relaxed the more fun they start having with the Mexican children their same age. The music in this sequence of the film is very important and it reflects the good time everyone is having. This is probably the most important musical section in the film. Film No. 3 The Color Purple In watching this film, The Color Purple, my awareness and knowledge of the struggle of the African American people in the Deep South earlier this century was increased significantly. This films sets, background scenery, music, and characters were all arranged to bring the most dramatic effect on us in the audience. The excellent performance of the actors and actresses was critical to understanding the plot and action, but the musical score provides the emotions and pain felt by these characters. The protagonist, Celie, is a poor woman with little education who at age fourteen is sexually abused and impregnated by her own father, Alphonso. After she is moved out of her family home, she is forced to marry this widower with several children. This husband is called Mister throughout the play. Celie has to deal with physical abuse from him as well. This play is about Celies development from a naà ¯ve, uneducated woman to a courageous, individual woman who stands up for herself. This musical score in the early part of the film is a tragic one which gives us a feeling about Celies character. She is facing such awful things and her life is affected by it. The music becomes stronger as Celie learns to stand up for herself and become a stronger person because of two strong women, Sofia and Shug Avery. These two women prove to Celie that she as a woman must sometimes stand up for herself. For example, in one scene, Sofia, who is Harpos wife, is fighting back with Harpo. This display of courage and strength by Sofia impresses Celie. In another scene, Shug demonstrates her courage to speak her mind and convey to Celie that a woman can be an independent, fearless creature when wanting to be. In this film, Celie learns from Sofia and Shug how to be an adult woman. Sofia provides the toughness and courage displays against her husband Harpo that impress Celie and make her recognize her need to be more like her. Shug ends up becoming Celies lover who shows her the joys and pleasures of enjoyable sex between two women which is the opposite kind of sex from what she gets from her husband called Mister. Shug is actually Misters mistress who comes to live in the household because of poor health. Even though at first Shug is very mean and aggressive towards Celie, the two women began to have a sexual attraction for one another. Furthermore, Shug remains in the household to help protect Celie from Misters physical abuse. This friendship blossoms into a love relationship which is a central part of the whole play. Celie and Shug are doing the unthinkable for two women living in the same household supposedly both lovers of Mister. These two women are having a lesbian love affair right under the nose of Mister. The musical score during their sexual moments and love moments is very important in the development of Celies character as she learns to really care about someone else, Shug. This is a dramatic part of the play because of the forbidden nature of it. I thought the performances of the two actresses for this key scene in the film when the friendship turns into a love affair was excellent. I was on the edge of my seat wondering what was going on. Yet, in a sense, this is what a great film is all about and the music fit the scene perfectly. Celie and Shug have crossed a forbidden line in Misters household. He has no conception that these two women would be doing this behind his back. He doesnt have a clue but us in the audience know exactly what is going on. Music plays an important part in this film in developing the realtionships among the characters. One of the more important relationships for Celie that doesnt emerge until the end of the play is with her sister Nettie. Celie has long thought that Nettie may be dead since she never received any letters from her. Celie is introduced to lost letters from Nettie to find out that her sister isnt dead but has traveled to Africa with some missionaries and returned. This discovery empowers Celie to think that her sister was alive the whole time. The musical interludes are very important to show the hopeful mood of Celie. The empowerment from getting to know herself also has something to do with her confronting her abusive husband and telling him off for the years of abuse she endured. At the end of the film, Celie feels her empowerment and independence as a woman. She has the courage to move to Tennessee with Shug Avery and another woman to begin a profitable business sewing tailored pants. Upon her return to Georgia, she has inherited a lot of land from her stepfather and her husband, Mister, has reformed his ways. In the very end, everything comes to right order and Nettie and Celie are reunited. The music plays out in a happy manner and the film brings these two sisters back together in a happy reunion. This is an interesting film experience for me because it makes me understand the hardships and struggle of the poor black women of the earlier part of this century in the Deep South. Celie, the protagonist, was an interesting character who had to endure so much pain and so man problems in her life as an African American woman. Although she finds her own identity and empowers herself through her following the two role models of Sofia and Shug, the pain is evident in most of her situations. The musical score was very important for her character development.

Discourse on Religion: Nietzsche and Edwards Essay -- Philosophy, Chri

Friedrich Nietzsche certainly serves as a model for the single best critic of religion. At the other end of this spectrum, Jonathan Edwards emerges as his archrival in terms of religious discourse. Nietzsche argues that Christianity’s stance toward all that is sensual is that grounded in hostility, out to tame all that rests on nature, or is natural, akin to Nietzsche’s position in the world and his views. Taking this into account, Edwards’s views on Christianity should be observed in context targeted at those who agree with his idea, that G-d is great and beyond the capacity of human reason. Edwards reaffirms for his audience G-d’s Spiritual and Divine Light. This light imparted to the soul by G-d, is of a different nature from any that is obtained by natural means (Edwards, 214). Edwards spells out that his sermon was not intended to address the men who believe solely in life’s natural condition and the anger of G-d. Spiritual light is also something that cannot be witnessed by eye, only by â€Å"due apprehension of those things that are taught in the word of G-d.† It is at this juncture that Nietzsche wholeheartedly agrees, affirming that the ‘Kingdom of Heaven’ is a condition of the heart and is not something that emanates from death or comes ‘upon the earth’ (Nietzsche, Sec. 34). However, Nietzsche debunks Edward’s idea of sin, claiming it as a contrivance used to invoke fear in the believers of Christianity and to denote ruling power to the Priest (Nietzsche, Sec. 49). Nietzsche proceeds to deride the value system of Christianity, spelling out what he sees through the will to power as definitions for happiness, good, and bad (Nietzsche, Sec. 2). For Nietzsche, happiness is the feeling bolstered by power: â€Å"that a resistanc... ...y, according to Nietzsche, still exists as part of certain individuals’ subconscious states. Since that individual has a preconceived notion of it in their mind before they achieve a higher state of being, it provides light at the end of the tunnel to fuel their mental digression. Pity too must be a product of that individual’s emotional state. For people who desire self-pity, the idea of Christianity offers them closure, a rationalized conclusion, at the end of the pathway of the individual’s subconscious. In their eyes, the idea of Christianity affords them some level of higher status within their community, which they would not otherwise be able to attain. Christianity rationalizes for the individual his state of depravity. Had this individual been able to see reality from the get-go, achieve some modicum of societal power, they would not require self-pity today.

Identity Theft :: Journalistic Essays

Identity Theft Everyone loves shopping online, you save time, not exactly money, but who cares when its holiday time, at least you won’t need to fight for a parking spot in the hectic malls. Growing up in America’s technological day and age, almost everyone has a computer or at least knows how to operate one. People like the easy way out, and it has its benefits. Year by year, things seem to get easier and easier. Therefore, people are getting lazier. Well, I say, goodbye â€Å"laziness†, and hello â€Å"being aware of where you place those important documents†. There’s very little you can do to prevent it, and you won’t know it’s happened to you until it’s too late. Identity theft is currently the fastest growing type of robbery in the United States. When a person steals someone’s identification documents without them knowing, and uses their information, the crime is called â€Å"Identity Theft†. â€Å"About one in five victims knows the identity thief as a relative, roommate, neighbor, or coworker, according to the FTC ID Theft Data Clearinghouse report, says reporter Isham Jones for Realtor Magazine Online. There are two main types of identity fraud that enables people to steal your identity. They are financial fraud, being the most widespread including credit card, bank, telecommunications, tax refund, and several other types of scams. Criminal activity is the other type fraud that involves taking someone’s identity and using it to commit heinous crimes. â€Å"Identity theft accounted for 42 percent of the thousands of consumer complaints reported to the FTC in 2001. The FTC processes these complaints through Consumer Sentinel, an electronic clearinghouse available to investigative groups such as the FBI and the U.S. Secret Service as well as to similar groups in other countries†, reports Waterline reporter Carole W. Butler. There are many laws that lash out against identity theft and help protect you against it, but it doesn’t seem like its scaring any of the criminals. ID theft is still the number one crime in America!!! Identity theft can happen to anyone, and to avoid being put in a situation like this one you have to review your Credit report at least once a year. Purchase a shredder to shred all documents with personal information before throwing them away. Be responsible over every bank statement, and keep them under close watch. Don’t send mail using your unsecured mailbox. Have your social security number changed if it is the same as your driver’s license number.