The Rights Of Women And People Of Color - 1396 Words

In the past two centuries the primary groups which had to fight for such rights were women and people of color. Now in the twenty-first century, a new group which knows no color and/or gender are verbally attacked for such ideas. This community is the homosexual community. Although there is more of a tolerance of homosexual citizens, in general they are still discriminated because often times one is not willing to accept a different lifestyle but rather practice ignorance to the situation. The idea of love for one another is nothing new. It is something that one learns overtime and practices over time. It is a fundamental human right for one to receive respect from peers despite being different. But rather punish one for practicing†¦show more content†¦Fr. Osterreicher argues in his essay â€Å"Nostra Aetate† that all people, despite many different backgrounds are all the same, â€Å"All men form but one community. 1 This is because all stem from one stock which God created to the people the entire earth (cf. Acts 17:26)† (Osterreicher 2). This is not mainly a religious issue but a personal issue that affects us all and for that a call to tolerance means understanding one individual and his/her life. Another way that such a just world is possible is if one refuses to be ignorant and believes in stereotypes. As human beings, we are called to love one another and respect another as well as opinions and lifestyle and yet it is often difficult to do such a thing. There are many reasons why it is difficult to accept a person because of who they are. The most common reason is as said before, one is taught the various prejudices about a group. This happens for many reasons. Often times the ignorance is bliss mantra wins out in philosophy and becomes the normal thought. One is ignorant because one is afraid to challenge the status quo due to retribution. The community is however not the only ones at fault. Usually it also the stereotypes told by outside sources that cause such fear and lack of knowledge. Such is the case for homosexuals in America and other parts of the world. In the 1980’s it was rumored that the AIDS epidemic was started with homosexual

Physician Assisted Dying Cases Essay - 644 Words

Tony Nicklson, a father of two, starves himself to death after the Supreme Court rejects his request to â€Å"die with dignity† with the help of medical professionals. A graduate student faces ten years in jail for shooting his dying brother after the court refused his plea to die. A retired magistrate, suffering from multiple sclerosis, refuses to take any medication or palliatives to help the fight to change the law on physician assisted dying. These are some of the recent headlines telling stories of people fighting to legalize physician aid in dying (PAD). Currently, PAD is illegal in most states except for Oregon, Washington, Montana and Vermont. I believe that PAD is an essential constitutional right, and should be legalized in all†¦show more content†¦Legalizing PAD doesn’t mean legalizing euthanasia. The key difference between these two practices is who administers the lethal dose; Euthanasia requires the physician or other party to administer the leth al dose, which places the responsibility of the physician, whereas PAD requires the patient to take the dose him/herself. In other words, with euthanasia the physician is in control, while with PAD the patient is in control of his own destiny. Advocates for â€Å"the right to die† have been attempting to legalize PAD since 1906. Oregon was the first state in the U.S. to pass the law in 1994. Since then there have been more than 135 legislative proposals in 27 states, most of these bills were either defeated, withdrawn by sponsors, languished with no action taken or are pending like in Pennsylvania, Maine, Massachusetts and New Jersey. To advance the implementation of PAD laws, I suggest establishing several educational programs to raise the public awareness of this matter. Also, to ensure proper compliance with the guidelines, a medical legal committee should be established to investigate the underlying facts of each case reported. Such committee should also keep records and stats for each doctor, hospital and state performing PAD. Opposing parties to PAD usually argue that this practice lowers the value of life and might lead to a higher number of patients giving up on their treatment; however,Show MoreRelatedThe Ethics Of Physician-Assisted Suicide1381 Words   |  6 PagesPhysician-assisted suicide can be the withholding of essential care, but it can also be the administration of lethal drugs either by the patient themselves or by a medical professional to end suffering from incurable diseases (Richmond, 2014). Is it fair to make someone live in chronic pain for the rest of their life when there are options? If someone has tried all options to live and have come to terms with no more options, is it okay to help them end their life? The choices do not come easy andRead MoreThe Case Of The Hippocratic Oath1269 Words   |  6 Pagesdoes not give the patient the right to die with dignity. With advances in medicine, physicians are able to extend a person s life. Unfortunately, medicine is not able to accept t he patient to die as they choose. Hospices are able to make a patient comfortable and feel no pain but again the patient is left to die as the body systematically shuts down. Careful consideration should be given when assisted dying should be instituted and counseling of the patient and the family should be an integralRead MoreEuthanasia And Physician Assisted Suicide1629 Words   |  7 Pagesillnesses or major health problems, assisted suicide creates options to reduce the amount of suffering the patient must enduring. Dying with dignity could be beneficial for not only the person who is dying, but also the person’s family and loved ones. This option, however, is often viewed as unethical and immoral throughout society. Physician-assisted suicide offers an option for those with health issues but poses various ethical and social issues. Assisted death is practiced in two differentRead MoreAssisted Death And Voluntary Euthanasia1586 Words   |  7 PagesLAW BE REFORMED TO ALLOW ‘ASSISTED DYING’ FOR THE TERMINALLY ILL? To begin with, assisted dying remains highly topical and debated, both in the public and medical arena. Assisted death, incorporates both physician assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia. It gives the freedom to a terminally ill person or a mentally competent adult, to choose on their own free will and after meeting strict legal safeguards, takes prescribed medication which will end their life in dying. There are two types of EuthanasiaRead MoreThe Death Of Physician Assisted Suicide1731 Words   |  7 Pagesthose who think it could be immoral. For physician-assisted suicide to even be considered the patient must be of sound mind when they are requesting the physician-assisted suicide. To guarantee that the process is carried out correctly a doctor or a witness should be there to prove consciousness. The patient must be diagnosed with a terminal illness, if they are not then there is a possibility for a life. There are many pro’s and con’s to physician-assisted suic ide. If a person is terminally ill theyRead MoreThe Legalization Of Physician Assisted Suicide1720 Words   |  7 PagesIt is obvious discussing physician-assisted suicide is a very controversial issue that is discussed daily by those who wish to die to avoid loss of dignity and also by those who think it is unethical. For physician-assisted suicide to even be considered, the patient must be of sound mind when they are requesting death with dignity. Physician-assisted suicide should be a legal option for people who are unable to end their own lives. However, there should be safeguards to prevent any sort of abuseRead MoreWhy Physician Assisted Suicide Should Be An Available And Accessible Option For Patients1551 Words   |  7 Pages Dying On Your Own Terms Jenell Mote Mohave Community College Nursing I NUR 121 Ms. Goss March 30, 2016 Dying On Your Own Terms Dying on your own terms is a very controversial topic. It seems that both sides of the argument feel very strongly about their position. In this paper, I will argue that physician assisted suicide should be an available and accessible option for patients that are opting to end their lives on their own terms. Choosing to utilize physician assisted suicide can decreaseRead MorePHI 103 Final1311 Words   |  6 Pagesï » ¿ Should Physician-Assisted Suicide Be Legal? Eileen K. Cordova PHI 103 Instuctor James Hardy July 11, 2013 SHOULD PHYSICIAN ASSISTED SUICIDE BE LEGAL Physician-assisted suicide has been a controversial topic for over a decade now. In today’s society, physician-assisted suicide brings so many ehtical questions as such, who is the true owner of our lives? Should releiving pain and suffering always be the highest priority, or does it occure for a reason?Read MoreThe Debate Of Assisted Suicide1747 Words   |  7 Pages The topic of assisted suicide is very controversial and is heavily debated upon all around the world. While physician assisted suicide is only legal in the Netherlands, Switzerland, and a few states in the U.S., it is illegally practiced widely by physicians and nurses, such as Dr. Jack Kevorkian. I first heard of physician assisted suicide when the death of Dr. Kevorkian, an assisted suicide advocate and a suicide aid, was on the news in 2011. Kevorkian assisted in the suicide of many patientsRead MorePhysician Assisted Suicide For The Terminally Ill Essay1554 Words   |  7 Pages Physician assisted suicide for the terminally ill is one of the most debated policies in America. Physician assisted suicide (PAS) is only considered a when a patient has a terminal illness and expresses their right to end their life with a physician. This scenario typically takes place when a patient is suffering severely from a terminal illness and it is only a matter of time before they will die. Advocates for PAS have typically had a loved one who is or was suffering through their final stages

Sunshine Chapter 19 Free Essays

string(56) " way I would have chosen to†¦leave this existence\." And Paulie had taken the early shift this morning. (He’d offered.) Okay. We will write a custom essay sample on Sunshine Chapter 19 or any similar topic only for you Order Now My little excursion through nowheresville must have taken no time at all. One of the standard features of nowheresville, maybe, that made a kind of sense, but you didn’t really expect your very own alarming out-of-this-world experiences to align with the science fiction you’d read as a kid. The science fiction you’d outgrown in favor of Christahel and The Chalice of Death. My eyes wandered involuntarily to the gem-festooned goblet. I had to admit my reading had sort of prepared me for an overheated fantasy like this room. About nowheresville I was on my own. Con didn’t look as if he’d suffered any ill effects from his coma, or whatever it had been. I wondered what passed for a near-death experience in a vampire? A slightly misplaced stake? He’d been able to go out foraging, anyway: the bread and the apples were both fresh. â€Å"I wouldn’t have expected you to†¦choose to sit next to a fire,† I said, at random. Sitting next to a fire seemed like the sort of thing only silly, show-offy vampires would do. Like human kids playing chicken in No Town. He didn’t say anything. Oh, good, we’re playing that game again. I ate another apple. He raised his head and shook his hair back in an almost human gesture. Almost. â€Å"We do not need heat as you do,† he said, and I expertly translated the â€Å"we† and â€Å"you† into â€Å"vampires† and â€Å"humans.† â€Å"But we may enjoy it.† Enjoy. I didn’t enjoy thinking about vampires enjoying things. The things they tended to enjoy. â€Å"I enjoy it,† he said, and, surprising me enormously, added, â€Å"it is the warmth of life and the heat of death.† Life as defined by warmth to a chilly vampire? Death by burning, death by the sun? Or the original death of being turned? Maybe he had been harmed by his coma: it was making him introspective. As being bounced off walls appeared to be doing to me. I took a deep breath. â€Å"I – I have had a – a feeling that all was not well with you – for some time,† I said. â€Å"I think it began the night you – healed me. But it took me a while to – to figure out that that was what I was picking up. If I was. If you follow me.† â€Å"Yes,† he said. He didn’t say anything more for the length of time it took me to eat a fourth apple. Hey, they were small. Was it rude to eat, er, food, in front of a vampire? I’d done it before, of course. But if there was a future in congenial vampire-human relations there were grave (so to speak) etiquette questions to be addressed. â€Å"Will you tell me what happened to you?† I said, half irritated at the need (apparently) to drag it out of him, half astonished at my own desire to know. What was this, friendship? Big irony alert. Here we’re both agonizing over this Carthaginian bond business and maybe it’s only that we’re learning to be friends. I could get into fireside sitting as the warmth of life too, probably. Hey, he was still a vampire and I was still a human and there was some other weird stuff, like transmuting and poisoned wounds and nowheresville. Not to mention going out in daylight. But if we were supposed to be friends, I was going to have to get used to the fact that he wasn’t the chatty type. He said, musingly, as if he was listening to his own words as he spoke them, â€Å"I was more wearied by the effort to heal your wound than I realized at once. I had not, you see, ever attempted anything similar before. As I told you, I had to†¦invent certain aspects. Guess others. I am not accustomed to not knowing what I am doing.† One of the advantages of very long life. Lots of time for practice. â€Å"I was careless after I left you. I permitted myself to be preoccupied. I was†¦sensed. By one of Bo’s gang. I needed to escape, and not to let her trace you through me. Another maneuver I am unaccustomed to is protecting the whereabouts of a human.† I had the feeling he was saying something more than, â€Å"And they weren’t going to get anything out of me other than my name, rank, and serial number.† I wondered what a vampire address book would look like: would it have alignments rather than street numbers? What would an alignment index look like? Could one vampire steal another vampire’s address book? â€Å"The first one called for assistance, of course; and they were very†¦persistent, when they caught the trace of you on me as well. I eluded them eventually. It was not easy. I came here. As you found me.† Naked in a dark empty stone room. Vampire convalescence gone wrong. â€Å"You mean you had been like that over a month? You schmuck, why didn’t you call me before?† He looked up at me, and there was undeniably a faint smile on his face. It looked a little grotesque, but not too bad, considering. Nothing like as awful as his laugh, for example. â€Å"It never occurred to me.† I had said to Yolande: Vampires don’t call humans, do they? He looked back at the fire. â€Å"Even if it had, I do not think I would have done so. It would not have occurred to me that you could assist in any way.† â€Å"You called me. You called my name. Once. I wouldn’t have found you if you hadn’t.† â€Å"I heard you calling me. You asked me to answer you.† â€Å"I called you to call me.† â€Å"Yes. Sunshine, do you wish me to apologize again? I will if you desire it. I could not have rescued myself. I was†¦too far away. But I heard you, and I could still answer. You came and†¦brought the rest of me back with you. I am grateful. I thank you. That is not the way I would have chosen to†¦leave this existence. You read "Sunshine Chapter 19" in category "Essay examples" The balance between us has tipped again.† â€Å"Oh, the hell with the damn balance,† I said. â€Å"What I’m thinking is, if you hadn’t needed to protect me, it would have been a lot easier, right? I weaken you, don’t I? Aside from your having got tired already bailing me out that night.† With the blood of a doe. There were times, like now, when the feel of light and warmth was†¦different too. Different like seeing in the dark was different – but differently different. Different in a way I knew didn’t come from a vampire. Is this simple nowness of awareness some gift from her? For a moment there were three of me: there was the human me. There was my tree-self. And my deer-self. Surely we outnumbered the vampire-self? â€Å"Weakened,† he said thoughtfully. â€Å"I think your interpretation of weakness may be distorted. I am physically stronger than any human. I can go without sustenance for longer than any human. But you can derive sustenance from bread and apples, which I cannot. And you can walk under the sun, which I cannot. How do you define weakness?† I was thinking about my experience of bringing the rest of him back. It was a little difficult not to think about comparative weakness when only one of you could fling the other one across a room and into a wall and you were the one that got flung. Okay, I was not going to pursue that line. I sighed. He had already told me he couldn’t stand against Bo alone. Choosing me as an ally might have made more sense to me if getting calories out of bread and apples and going around in daylight had any discernable relevance to the issue. â€Å"Where am I?† I thought he looked puzzled. Another of those vampire-senses-are-different moments, I suppose. â€Å"This is my†¦home,† he said at last. â€Å"You don’t call it home,† I said, interested. â€Å"No. I might call it my†¦earth-place, perhaps. I spend my days here. I have done so for many years.† â€Å"Earth-place? Then we are underground?† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"What about the fireplace?† He looked at me. â€Å"Doesn’t the smoke say ‘Someone’s here’?† â€Å"The smoke is not detectable in the human world.† Oh. Vampires would hold a lot more than one-fifth of the global wealth if they patented a really good air filter. The cynical view of the Voodoo Wars is that the Others had done us humans a favor, by killing enough of us off and thus lowering the level of industrial commerce to a point that we hadn’t managed to commit species suicide by pollution yet, which we otherwise might well have. Even if they looked at it this way, which I doubted, this would not have been pure philanthropy. Demons and Weres, whichever side of the alliance they’d been on, need most of the same things we do, and vampires†¦well. Maybe it depends on your definition of â€Å"philanthropy.† I looked around a little more. The only light was from the fire, and my dark vision was sort of half-confounded by something about this place, maybe just the thundering excess. Still, I could see a lot, and it was all pretty bizarre. The fur I was wrapped up in appeared to be real fur, long and silky, in jagged black and white stripes. I couldn’t think what animal it might be. Something that didn’t exist, perhaps, till a vampire killed it. With the slinky black shirt – and the bruises – I felt like something off the cover of this month’s Bondage and Discipline Exclusive. All I needed was ankle bracelets and a better haircut. The buttons on the back of the sofa I was lying on were tiny gargoyle faces, sticking their tongues out or poking their fingers up their noses. Every now and then they weren’t faces at all, but pairs of buttocks. The sofa itself was some kind of purple plush velvet†¦except that the shadows it laid were lavender. Well , if I could travel through nowheresville I suppose I shouldn’t protest about shadows that were lighter than their source, or about furs from animals that didn’t exist. My knowledge of natural history in black and white didn’t extend much beyond skunks and zebras anyway. Maybe it did exist, whatever it was. The fur could have been dyed, but somehow this didn’t suit my idea of vampire chic. Actually Con didn’t suit my idea of vampire chic. This hectic Gothic sensibility was a surprise. â€Å"Interesting decorating principles,† I said. He glanced around briefly, as if reminding himself what was there. â€Å"My master had a sense of the dramatic.† I was riveted both by my master and had. As in used to have, as in dead, rather than undead? â€Å"Your master?† I said experimentally. â€Å"This is his room.† Silence fell. Con returned to staring motionlessly at the fire. So much for leading questions. I sighed again. Con, to my surprise, stirred. â€Å"Do you wish to hear about my master?† he said. â€Å"Well, yes,† I said. There was a pause, while he, what? Organized his thoughts? Decided what to leave out? â€Å"He turned me,† he said at last. â€Å"I was not†¦appreciative. But I was apt to his purpose. As there was no going back I agreed to do as he wished.† Another pause, and he added, with one of those more-expressionless-than-expressionless expressions, like his more-than-stillness immobility: â€Å"A newly turned vampire is perhaps more vulnerable than you would guess. I was dependent on my master at first, whether I wished it or not, and I†¦chose to let him teach me what I needed to know to survive. That was many years ago, when this was still the New World.† Eek, I thought. Three or four hundred years ago, give or take a few decades, and depending on which Old World explorers you are counting from. That can’t be right: if he was that old, he shouldn’t be able to go out in moonlight. â€Å"He wished to rule here, when the Liberty Wars came, at least†¦unofficially.† The standard human slang was below ground and above ground. Unofficially would be below ground: being the biggest, nastiest junkyard dog of the dark side. Officially would still be pretty unofficial: control another two-fifths of the world economy, presumably, and make our global council into a bit of window-dressing. â€Å"He might have succeeded, but he had bad luck, and a powerful and bitter enemy with better luck. There were not many of my master’s soldiers left after the Liberty Wars. I was one. Much of my master’s vitality left him with the ruin of his ambition. He turned collector instead. Those of his soldiers that had survived the Wars left or were destroyed, one by one, till only I remained. When my master also was destroyed, I was left alone.† I was glad of the warmth of the fire. Con’s voice was low and, as ever, dispassionate, and I had no clue whether he’d been, you know, fond of his master in any way, maybe after he’d got over being un-appreciative of having been turned. What purpose had Con been apt for? I was sure I didn’t want to know. Good. One question that probably wouldn’t get answered that I didn’t have to ask. Why had Con stayed when everyone else left? I remembered him saying a month ago: There are different ways of being what we are. His master before the Liberty Wars sounded like your common or garden-variety world-takeover odin vampire thug, and a powerful one at that. So why had Con stayed? Con who didn’t even run a gang now. More questions not to ask for fear he would answer. But I didn’t have much clue about the working range of vampire emotion. Blood lust. What else? (Other kinds of lust? Maybe it had been†¦life lust, earlier. No, I wasn’t thinking about that.) Did Con get over being unappreciative by getting over being able to feel appreciative? No – Con had just told me he was grateful for being rescued. But gratitude might be a human concept, applicable merely to a situation that demanded some kind of courtesy, as pragmatically meaningless as thank you. Well, at least he’d, hmm, felt that courtesy was demanded. And then there was Bo. The inconvenient bond between Con and me that we were trying to, um, strengthen, without, um, intensity, was because of Bo’s threat to both of us. I did not like where this thought was going. â€Å"Your master’s bitter enemy†¦was it Bo?† â€Å"No. Bo’s master.† Oh well that made it all better immediately. I stuffed a handful of fur in my mouth to stop myself from whimpering. Con looked up at me. Perhaps he thought the bread and apples hadn’t been enough and I was still hungry. â€Å"I destroyed his master. It’s only Bo now.† I bit down on the fur. Pardon me, I thought, if I don’t find this information overwhelmingly reassuring. Only Bo. And his gang, which had chained Con up in a house by a lake not too long ago from which he escaped only by a very curious chance. Con might not fall for that one again but no doubt there were other possibilities. Bo could be assumed to be the resourceful kind of evil fiend. Another of those possibilities had almost got Con a month ago, for example. Why didn’t Con want to post an ad in the sucker personals – there had to be hidden vampire zones on the globenet – asking for his old comrades in arms to return for a bit and give him a hand? He could pass out the contents of his master’s old room as reward, since he didn’t seem too interested in them. If those were real gemstones in my absurd goblet, it was probably worth the national debt of a medium-sized country. Why didn’t he just run a gang, like a normal vampire of his age? Who should have to because he couldn’t go out in moonlight any more. There were so many questions I didn’t want to know the answers to. I pulled the fold of fur back out of my mouth again, and tried to smooth it down. Teethmarks, not to mention spit, probably lowered its value. I felt horribly tired, and alone, despite my companion. Especially because of my companion. I picked up the goblet again – it nearly took two hands; two hands would certainly have been easier, I was just resisting the idea of needing two hands – and teetered it toward my mouth. As it had seemed a long time before the wine hit the bottom pouring it in, it seemed rather a while before it touched my lips, tipping it back out. Drinking straight from the bottle, however, didn’t seem like an option. Not in this room. In Con’s room maybe – the empty one with no furniture. And no fire. I wanted mountains of dough to turn into cinnamon rolls and bread, I wanted an unexpected tour group on a day we’re short of kitchen staff, I wanted a big dinner party to ask for cherry tarts, I wanted to curl up on my balcony with a stack of books and a pot of tea, I wanted Mel’s warm, tattooed arm around me and daylight on my face. I wanted to go home. I wanted my life back. I had been here before. I had once had all that, and I drove out to the lake one night to get away from it. â€Å"What is this thing, anyway?† I said, heaving the goblet up. I conceded, and used two hands. It could be a loving cup. First prize in vampire league sports. You didn’t fill it with champagne, of course; you cut off the heads of the losing team and poured their blood in. Champagne later maybe when they ran out of the hard stuff. â€Å"It is a Cup of Souls from the ceremony of gathering at Oranhallo.† â€Å"What?† I put it down hastily. Just stop asking questions, Sunshine. No wonder it goddam tingled against my goddam hand. Nobody knows where Oranhallo is. Well, nobody who knows is telling the rest of us. It’s not a big issue on the Darkline but it is one of the things that keeps coming up. Among the people who think it exists somewhere you could describe by latitude and longitude, none of the plausible guesses are anywhere near New Arcadia. But there isn’t any consensus on whether it is a geographic place or merely a part of the rite. It is a big magic handlers’ rite, done by clan. The Blaises probably knew how (and where) to do it, but I didn’t. I didn’t know anything about cups of souls or ceremonies of gathering, but I didn’t want to. â€Å"It is one of the few articles in this room that my master was given,† said Con. â€Å"Usually there was some constraint involved.† I bet there was. â€Å"Why would a magic-handler clan want to give something like this to a master vampire? Especially a master vampire.† â€Å"It was not freely given,† Con said after another of his pauses. â€Å"But it was offered and accepted as payment for a task he had undertaken that was to their mutual benefit. There was some choice about the conclusion to this task. This reward was proposed as persuasion to make one choice instead of another. The Cup carries no taint that might distress you.† And your gracious dining accessories don’t run to wineglasses from Boutique Central. â€Å"Then why does it buzz against my skin?† I said crossly. â€Å"Perhaps because it was the Blaise clan that possessed it,† said Con. I jumped off the sofa, staggered, bumped into the little table, and heard the goblet crash to the floor as I ran off into the darkness. I didn’t get far; Con’s master had been a very enterprising collector, and I wasn’t up to the weaving and zigzagging to make my way through the spoils. I collided with something that might have been an ottoman almost at once, and hit the floor even harder than the goblet had, although I didn’t spill. Further note on vampire emotions, if any: don’t expect a vampire to understand the turbulence of human family ties – including broken ones – or maybe it’s that vampires don’t get it about cowardice, and how a good sound human reaction to unwelcome news is to try and run away from it. I picked myself up. More bruises. Oh good. It wasn’t going to be a mere matter of high-necked T-shirts this time; I was going to need an all-over bodysuit plus a bag over my head. I turned around slowly, balancing myself against some great furled spasm of plaster that might have counted, in these surroundings, as an Ionic pillar. Con was standing up, facing me, his back to the fire, haloed by its light. Maybe it was my state of mind, but he suddenly looked far larger and more ominous than he had since before I knew his name. I couldn’t see his face – maybe my dark vision had been further unsettled by my fall – but there was something wrong about his silhouette against the firelight; something wrong about him being surrounded by light at all. I remembered what I had thought that first time, by the lake: predatory. Alien. He wasn’t Con, he was a vampire: inscrutable and deadly. I made my way back toward the fire. I don’t know if I wanted to reclaim Con as my ally, if not my friend, or if it was that there was no point in running away. I had to pass very close to him to reach the fire; there was only one gap among all the arcane bric-a-brac that would let me through. I knelt on the hearthrug – at least there was a hearthrug, even if the hairy fanged head at one end of it didn’t bear close examination – and held my hands out toward the fire. It felt like a real fire. More important, it smelled like a real fire, and when I leaned too close the smoke made my eyes sting. It spat like a real fire too, and since there was no fireguard a spark fell onto the hearthrug. I glanced down; the hearthrug was unexpectedly unprepossessing, the fur short and brownish and patchy, having had sparks fly into it before. A few new burns wouldn’t ruin its looks because it didn’t have any. I felt hearthrugish. I’d never worried about my looks much; I had always had other things to worry about, like making cinnamon rolls and getting enough sleep. But I was beginning to feel rather too burn-marked. Like I’d been lying too near a fire with no fireguard. Did I hear him sit down near me? You don’t hear a vampire coming: I knew this by experience. But this wasn’t any vampire; this was Con. I’d already promised to help him, if I could, because I needed his help. No. I hadn’t promised. But it didn’t matter. The bond was there. I hadn’t ratified any contract, I’d woken up one morning to discover fine print and subclauses stamped all over my body. If I wanted a signature, it was the crescent scar on my breast. It meant I heard him coming even when I didn’t hear him coming. I waited a moment longer before I turned to look at him. Vampire. Dangerous. Unknowable. Seriously creepy. This one’s name was Constantine. We’d met before. Well. â€Å"What do we do now?† I said. â€Å"I take you home,† said Con. â€Å"Okay, that’s today. What about tonight? Tomorrow?† I said. â€Å"We must find Bo.† My stomach cramped. Maybe it was just the apples. I also had to learn that shilly-shallying was not a vampire gift. I wondered if I could teach him to say â€Å"perhaps† and â€Å"not before next week.† I knew this wasn’t going to be a matter of loading up on apple-tree stakes (or table knives) and knocking on Bo’s front door. â€Å"You don’t know where he, uh, lives.† â€Å"No. I had only begun to search, since our meeting by the lake. He is well defended and well garrisoned.† I glanced up at the invisible ceiling. Given the furnishings the ceiling was probably phenomenal. Or antiphenomenal: like Medusa’s head or the eye of a basilisk. â€Å"I hope you are better defended,† I said. â€Å"I hope so too.† I didn’t like hearing a vampire talk about hope. â€Å"My master specially collected things that defend, or could be turned to defense. He felt that his attempt to win what he desired by aggression had failed, and he wished his subsequent seclusion to be uninterrupted.† Gargoyles and tchotchkes: the vampire arsenal. â€Å"I have always preferred solitude, and have improved on his arrangements. I have some reason to believe that if I never left this place no one would be able to come to me.† â€Å"You are forgetting the road through nowheresville,† I said. Feelingly. â€Å"I am not forgetting,† he said. â€Å"I am assailable by you in a way I am assailable to no one and nothing else.† How to cite Sunshine Chapter 19, Essay examples

Strategic Direction Sustainability

Question: Discuss about the Strategic Directionfor Sustainability. Answer: Strategic Direction for the Sustainability The strategic direction and the sustainability of the business model is one of the important aspects of the long term perspective of the business. Sustainability is the approach where the organisation secures the future of the business to keep the business running like the current operation (Colbert and Kurucz, 2007). In this approach the future business need and adjustment according to that is also get the high priority. The company Voyage is currently going through the same type of crisis where the current dip in the profit figure forced the management to derive effective strategic direction for the business to have the sustainable status of the business. The seriousness of the problem can be understood from the operational data of the business. The sales number of the yachts is showing the trend of the business. The sales number is decreasing as the figure showers that the company was able to sell 39, 32 and 29 yachts for the year 2013, 2014 and 2015 respectively. Looking at the rejection number the situation is also grim there. The number of rejection is 4, 5 and 5 for the year 2013, 2014 and 2015 respectively. These figures show the rejection is on rise and sales are slowing down. That means the designs or the marketing of the product is not effective and that is affecting the sales. The private distribution channel is used for the sales process in the organisation. This is also not resulting in the sales figure (Wheelen and Hunger, 2011). Looking at the scenario the business reduced the production of the yachts and the reduction figures are 50, 47 and 43 for the year 2013, 2014 and 2015. But at the same time the inventory figures are rising and there the figures are 195880000, 451332000 and 688681000 for the year 2013, 2014 and 2015 respectively. That means in spite of slowing down the operation the business cannot meet the target sales (Castro and Chousa, 2006). The situation becomes much clearer from the 2015 budget. There the business planed to manufacture 43 yachts but against the 43 yachts produced the organisation is able to sale only 29 of them. The actual figure is 32.3% lower than the budgeted figure. The liquidity figure is also decreasing as the cash balance is dropping (Penman and Penman, 2007).In 2015 the actual cash balance is 100523000 against the 172728000 budgeted amount. If the scenario keep on going the business would have serious liquidity crisis. From the operational data it is clear that the business need to clear the inventory and increase the cash balance figure. On the other hand the financial data show that the sales revenue figure is decreasing in the business. The figure dropped from 1124615000 to 986609000 to 891469000 for the year 2013, 2014 and 2015 respectively. The figure drops 9.6% in the year 2015 whereas the cost of sale dropped 8.9% during the 2014 to 2015. That means that some of the marketing expense for the entertainment of the high net worth in selling process may not be producing the sales value (Penman and Penman, 2007). In that context the business need to rethink about the sales strategy. The profitability figure is on the downward trend. The drop in profitability is 19.4% from the year 2013 to 2014. The figure for the 2014 to 2015 is 54.36%. This is huge problem for the business (Castro and Chousa, 2006). This kind of drop in profitability trend would lead to loss making situation for the business. That means there is not only urgent need to increase the revenue but also with improved margin in the business (Hamel, 2012) . The actual profit figure is 29.9% lower than the budgeted figure in the business. This means that there is serious budget planning in the business and that is why the differentness is high. Now the proposal for the business strategic improvement is to exploiting the social media marketing platform and selling the high end product to the mid segment of the market. The product and service differentiation technique would reduce the risk of the business and may increase the number of sales and total sales revenue. But the margin would be low in the mid segment. At present the business has large inventory position and those are made from the input of the marketing department to follow the current market design trend (Peteraf et al., 2014). To avoid the potential write-off situation of the stocks, the business should use the discounts to sell the products rather than incurring the expense in the marketing promotion through the entertainment of the high net worth individual client. The margin would improve in the mid segment if the organisation follows the different promotion technique in the social media setup rather than incurring high expenses for the entertainment. The inp ut from the marketing department about the design requirements need to be further specified and researched with increasing the production efficiency, so that the rejection figure can be reduced. The business need to create two separate brands for two different segments (Wheelen and Hunger, 2011).In that case there would not be perception problem in the mind of two different customers. This approach would help the company to sell the product to the high net worth individual with higher margin and at the same time the mid segment would also find high value in the luxury yachts (Hamel, 2012). Now the customise facility would only be there in the high segment of the market to increase the value proposition of the customer. For the mid segment there would be standard up to date high end luxury yachts. In the mid segment the sales figure need to increase so that organisation can benefit from the economic scale. Reduction in the promotional cost, use of high economy of scale cost cutting i n the operational process would help to maintain the good margin in the mid segment. All of these approaches would increase the cash flow with reduced inventory; enhance the profit margin and reduction in the risk of the business because of diversification. Style of Budgeting Two type of budgeting are applicable in this type of scenario. The authoritative style of budgeting is the approach where the top management of the organisation decides the goals of the organisation and then make the budget according to those goals. In this type of budgeting the involvement of the mid and low level of management and other employee are low in the organisation (Pilkington and Crowther, 2007). There are some advantages in the authoritative style. The decision making is fast and the control factor is high in this type of budgeting. In the current situation the Voyage is going through some difficult phase where the profitability and sustainability is at stake. In this situation the prompt action is needed and that may suit authoritative style. This approach would make the process fast and the coordination with the marketing, finance operation and other department of Voyage would be effective (Hope and Fraser, 2013).The implementation of the diversification plan would be f ast and the process would be controlled one. But there are other roles of budgeting like communicating the goals, motivating the employees in the goal persuasion. In the authoritative style of budgeting the other staffs and management may feel low motivation because of lower participation level. Because of the low motivation the other management may not effectively communicate the plans (Pilkington and Crowther, 2007). So at the end the goal may not be achieved because of the lack of coordination. The current situation in Voyage is difficult and a well coordinated and motivated approach would be useful. On the other hand the participatory approach the impacted management and the staffs participate in the budgeting process. In the Voyage the marketing department provides the inputs in the manufacturing process. The marketing department provides estimation for the budget for the entertainment of high segment customer to promote and sell the product. The operation department are concerned about the manufacturing facility and stock position. The finance department would be concerned about the margin in the business. In that context the participative approach would be useful to consider the individual plan and goals of the department and different level of management, in the persuasion of diversification goal persuasion. This approach is useful for setting some realistic goal where the other management and employees are motivated to pursue it (Chong et al., 2006). The other management levels also feel responsible in this type of budgeting as they were in the participation process. This w ould help in the better implementation of the process. But in this type of budgeting the top management of the organisation need to provide the leadership. Otherwise the self imposition of the budgetary plan would lack in persuasive force the result would not be according to the expectation. Increase in profitability in Voyage means the efficiency in production, increase in sales, and proper investment in different sales channel development and cost reduction in the operation. This all round approach would be possible in the participatory budgeting approach with the adequate involvement of the top management (Hope and Fraser, 2013). The involvement of the top management would enhance the decision making ability of the process. The evaluation of the performance would be based on the reality rather than an imposed target by the top management of the company. The budget of 2015 shows that there is greater variation in the actual and the budget figure. The actual profit is 29.9% lower t han the budgeted figure (Chong et al., 2006). The actual performance missed the budgeted figure by one third. The participative budget would help in the reduction of difference and low level of stock pile up. Taking the entire thing under consideration the predicative budget is appropriate in the organisation. Pricing Strategy The pricing strategy is useful for mainly three reasons. That is to increase the profit or sale or to maintain the status quo. The aggressive pricing policy by the competitor would impact the sale and the profitability of the Voyage. In that context the new pricing policy would be useful for the organisation to maintain or increase the profit level with increasing sale or through increased margin of the business. There is various pricing policy that the organisation can follow and those are mentioned below. Cost plus pricing- in this type of pricing the fixed and variable cost are calculated for per unit basis. Then a desired profit level is added with the cost value in percentage basis to arrive at the product pricing (Jain and Haley, 2009).This is easy process and be changed when required with less complication. In this approach the efficiency part is overlooked for the increase in margin. Penetrating pricing- to increase the market share with increasing sales volume in this type of pricing the price of the product are kept at low level of the market price. This type of pricing is useful for new market entry or in low market share position. After the achievement of the market share the price of the product are gradually increased. Economic pricing- in this strategy the price of the product or the service is kept at minimum to reach high sale volume (Jain and Haley, 2009).The high sale volume would help to achieve the economy of scale. In this approach the overhead cost, cost of marketing are kept low to produce the product in such low cost. Skimming- this type of pricing is useful for the innovative product type and in this approach the price are kept relatively high at the beginning. The reduction of the price happens after recovery of the large investment. Premium- in this strategy the price is set above the price set by the competitor (Hinterhuber, 2008). This policy is useful for the unique product that has great value for the customer. [Source: www.marketingteacher.com] To understand the best pricing policy for the Voyage, the above matrix would be useful for the purpose. The product of the company is the high end luxury yachts. That means the quality of the product is high. Till date the organisation is selling the product in high price by following the premium pricing strategy. But in recent time the competitor is playing on price to achieve greater market share. Now the business has two options. That is to decrease the price for a while by following the penetrating pricing strategy to capture the bigger market share. On the other hand the company can add much more value to its product and increase the price a bit to increase profit with increase in the margin. The penetrating pricing policy is useful for the new entrant as they low limited value perception in the mind of customer. But Voyage is in the market for long and there is high value proposition for the customer of the company (Hinterhuber, 2008). In that context the penetrating pricing wo uld reduce the value perception. That is why the company would use the premium pricing with the development of new value for the customer. Reference Castro, N. R., Chousa, J. P. (2006). An integrated framework for the financial analysis of sustainability.Business Strategy and the Environment,15(5), 322-333. Chong, V. K., Eggleton, I. R., Leong, M. K. (2006). The multiple roles of participative budgeting on job performance.Advances in accounting,22, 67-95. Colbert, B. A., Kurucz, E. C. (2007). Three conceptions of triple bottom line business sustainability and the role for HRM.People and Strategy,30(1), 21. Hamel, G. (2012). What matters now.Strategic Direction,28(9). Hinterhuber, A. (2008). Customer value-based pricing strategies: why companies resist.Journal of business strategy,29(4), 41-50. Hope, J., Fraser, R. (2013).Beyond budgeting: how managers can break free from the annual performance trap. Harvard Business Press. Jain, S. C., Haley, G. T. (2009).Marketing planning and strategy. Cincinnati South-Western Publishing Company 1985.. Penman, S. H., Penman, S. H. (2007).Financial statement analysis and security valuation(p. 476). New York: McGraw-Hill. Peteraf, M., Gamble, J., Thompson Jr, A. (2014).Essentials of strategic management: The quest for competitive advantage. McGraw-Hill Education. Pilkington, M., Crowther, D. (2007). Budgeting and control.Financial Management,3. Wheelen, T. L., Hunger, J. D. (2011).Concepts in strategic management and business policy. Pearson Education India.

Top Executives Hard Work Pays Off Essay Example For Students

Top Executives: Hard Work Pays Off Essay Top executives formulate the policies and direct the operations or corporations and government agencies. All organizations have specific goals and objectives that they strive to meet. Top executives develop strategies to make sure that these objectives are met. Although they have a wide range of titles such as chief executives officer, president, owner, or executive vice president, all create policies and direct the operations of businesses and corporations, and other organizations. Job Description The chief executive, along with other top executives, establish a corporations goals and policies. In large corporations, the executive officer meets regularly with assistant executives to ensure that operations are applied with these policies. The duties for top executives are highly specialized. For instance, managers of cost and profit center are responsible for the overall performance of one aspect of the organization, like the marketing, sales, purchasing, finance, or training departments. Education/Training Required The educational background of top executives varies as widely as the nature of their responsibilities. We will write a custom essay on Top Executives: Hard Work Pays Off specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now Many need a bachelors degree or higher in liberal arts or business administration. The major is usually related to the department they lead, such as an executive of finance may have a degree in accounting. Commonly, top executives have graduate and professional degrees. Since many top executive positions are filled by promoting experienced, lower level managers when an opening happens, many are promoted within the organization. In industries like retail trade, it is possible for people without a college degree to work up within the company. Top executives must have highly developed personal skills. An analytical mind is very important to quickly assess large amounts of information and data. They must also be able to communicate clearly and persuasively. Other qualities vital for success include leadership, self-confidence, motivation, flexibility, decisiveness, business judgment, and determination. Chief executive officers often become members of the board of directors of one or more firms, typically as a director of their own firm and chair of its board of directors. Some top executives establish their own firms or become independent consultants. Education/Training Costs Location Advancement may be accelerated by participation in company training programs that impart a broader knowledge of company policy and operations. By becoming familiar with the latest developments in management techniques at national or local training programs sponsored by different industry and trade associations, this education will help executives in their careers. Those who have experience in a particular field, such as accounting or retailing, also attend executive development programs to assist their support to others. Participation in conferences and seminars can expand understanding of national and international issues influencing the organization and can help widen a network of valuable contacts. Salary, Benefits Hours of Work Even though top executive are amongst the highest paid worker, salary levels vary considerably depending on the level of responsibility, length of service, and type, location, and size of the firm. A top executive in a very large corporation can earn much more than someone working in a small firm. The median yearly earnings of tope executives in 1998 were $55,890. The middle 50% made between $34,970 and $94,650. Median annual income in the industries employing the most top executives in 1997 were: Management and public relations$91,400 Computer and date processing services$90,600 Wholesale trade equipment and supplies$65,900 Salaries vary to a large extent by level and type of industry and responsibilities. A salary survey made by Executive Compensation Reports, a division of Harcourt Brace Company, said the median income for CEOs of public companies from the economic year of 1998 Fortune 500 list was around $800,000. .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a , .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a .postImageUrl , .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a , .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a:hover , .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a:visited , .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a:active { border:0!important; } .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a:active , .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ucd8ee4872e7cb5bcb458c710b5bc488a:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: The Atomic Bomb And The Manhatten Project EssayAnother salary survey by Robert Half International, senior vice presidents/ heads of lending in banks with $1 billion or more in assets earned $200,000 in 1995. In addition to salaries, total compensation frequently includes stock options, dividends, and other additional benefits. The use of executives dining rooms, company cars and expense allowances are among other benefits commonly enjoyed by top executives in private industries. CEOs (chief executive officers) often enjoy company-paid club memberships, a limousine with driver, and even the use of a private aircraft and other services.

A Comparison of Early American Texts essays

A Comparison of Early American Texts essays A Comparison of Early American Texts When the Europeans first came to the Americas in the late 15th - early 16th century, they brought with them a distinctive style of literature that was a complete contrast to the Native Americans who inhabited the land. The Europeans system of literature was based on writing, which was a technique unheard of by the Native Americans, whose system of literature was based on oral traditions since they did not use alphabetic writing. Despite this variance in styles, both European and Native American literature constructs a definite description of an authors personality. I plan to present how the texts of Christopher Columbus, Bartolome de Las Casas, Felipe Guaman Poma de Ayala, and Garcilaso de La Vega reveal a distinctive personality in each of these authors and the significance of this presentation. Christopher Columbus presents himself as a compassionate, magnanimous and dutiful voyager in the texts contributed. Christopher Columbus texts seem to exhibit the author as an adherent to his Highnesses, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. Throughout these texts Columbus repeatedly declares of his actions as restrictively for the favor of his king and queen. For example, in the passage The people of the new world greet Columbus, Columbus states, ...when Your Highnesses so command, they [the seven slaves] can all be carried off to Castile...since with fifty men they would be all kept in subjection and forced to whatever may be wished. Another example is in the passage Columbus describes the people of the New World, in which Columbus proclaims, Our Lord willing, at the time of my departure I will bring back six of them [Native Americans] to Your Highnesses, that they may learn to talk. These two examples depicts Columbus simply as a vassal to his authoritative figures, of ten even more so than to God. Bar...

Measuring and Improving Employee Motivation Essay

Measuring and Improving Employee Motivation - Essay Example The performance is stereotypical a feature that implies that the employees can sue him for destroying their reputation and discriminating against them based on their races. Racial segregation is a heinous criminal offense with the American government striving to create a holistic society. Such performances, therefore, derail government’s endeavors targeted at developing a cohesive society. Additionally, the United States underwent a period of intense racial segregation. The animosity that existed among the numerous races impaired the development of the country. To limit the manifestation of the undesirable features, the government banned racial segregation in its attempt to create a cohesive American society. The government thus criminalized numerous social features that would amount to racial discrimination, performing such imitations in a workplace with numerous people from diverse backgrounds amounts to racial discrimination, thus a criminal offense. While none of the emplo yees considered undertaking a legal action against Smith, the stunt was illegal and was an abject portrayal of disregard to the basic values of humanity. In another equal action pact scene in the episode, Michael Scot harasses the Indian woman a feature that prompts the woman to slap him in the face. The act of aggression constitutes a criminal offense and is an unethical practice in an ideal workplace. As such, Michael Scot can readily accuse the woman of battery, which is a serious criminal offense in the country. Additionally, the woman can also accuse Scot of harassment, which is an equally serious offense. Sexual offenses are serious offenses in any society and the fact that the harassment occurs at a workplace worsens the situation. In fact, should Scot press charges for battery, the Indian can readily claim that she acted in self-defense since Scot makes the first move to harass him. The behavior of the two contravenes factors that create a conducive workplace.

USA Contract Law Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

USA Contract Law - Assignment Example The contracting parties need to be of legal age and sound competence and they should agree mutually on the terms of the contract. The contract law is governed by the provisions of the UCC and the Restatement of Contracts. The UCC governs the sale of tangible and movable assets, property leases, and financial transactions. The common law principles of a contract are summarised, restated and published as the Restatement of Contracts by the American Law Institute. Legal professionals quote the provisions of the Restatement in their written opinions, though this does not have the force of law.[2] When a contract is made, both parties expect some benefit from it and the terms and conditions are consensual. Since unforeseen events in the future may create a loss for any one party, it is essential that both parties are very thorough about the meaning of the content to which they are putting their signature. The whole concept of contracts deal with the future and in many cases gives rise to problems; one or both parties may find that the events that they had anticipated had not gone their way. The problem may be due to a 'mistake.'When one or both parties, to the contract, erroneously believed that certain facts in the contract are true, then a 'mistake' is said to have occurred. In contract law, a mistake can be used to invalidate the agreement. There are two different types of mistakes, according to common law. A 'unilateral mistake' occurs when only one party is mistaken about the terms or contents of the contract. A 'mutual mistake' or a 'common mistake' occurs when both par ties, to the contract, are mistaken about the same term or condition in the contract. Since these mistakes can be used as 'excuses' to invalidate a contract, the provision of 'objective standard of agreement' becomes important in contract law.  

Interpretive exercise Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Interpretive exercise - Assignment Example 2. Measure the width of the river to cross. What are the differences between the biblical audience and us? Bible has been segregated into two segments which are ‘Old Testament’ and ‘New Testament’. Old Testament describes the story of God’s treaty with Hebrew people. On the other hand, New Testament includes several versions of life, death and renaissance of Lord Jesus. ‘Measure the width of the river to cross’ is a New Testament passage relating to Bible. Here, river denotes something which can create differences in terms of diverse culture, customs, languages, time and power among others. Today, one obvious difference can be found between biblical audience and us. The difference is generational gap. Biblical audience was made up of first century and the present audience is made up of twenty first century who does not struggle with legalistic Judaism and traditional Gnosticism. The river which separates biblical audience and us is not wi de, but these differences should be addressed in order to cross the river1. 3. Cross the Principlizing Bridge. What are the theological principles in this text? Theological principles are generally intended for understanding the principles of God. The objective is to overwhelm the current gap between different religions and to demonstrate the mutual obligations of every religious discipline. In order to identify theological principles, one should recall the differences and similarities between present day’s audience and biblical audience. The theological principle of the text is that in order to be operative in serving God, people should employ their strength and bravery. The theological principles affirm that Christ provide the believers of God a kind of power in order to remain happy in variety of circumstances1. 4. Consult the biblical map. How does the theological principle fit with the rest of the Bible? The theological principles of the text are used by every Christian nowadays in terms of worship and divinity on Lord Jesus. The texts in Bible are precise, real and provide universal realities. In Bible, a particular passage can only be applied to certain circumstances. However, the theological principles revealed in the text are fit to each people who always have faith in God. Theological principles have certain definite meaning and application to the olden biblical audience and to the Christians in present days. As the theological principles possess explicit application and can be used by the audiences, it operates as a link for wrapping the river of differences2. 5. Grasp the text in our town. How should individual Christians today apply the theological principles? Individual Christians cannot apply the theological principles without knowing its significance. However, they can understand the main philosophy of Bible without implementing it in practical life. In order to apply the theological principles, initially there exists the need for observ ing the world, examining the cultural background of people and exploring the meaning of God’s word. There pertains huge dissimilarity between understanding the method of applying the theological principles and logically implementing them1. Assignment 17-1 The ‘Book of Revelation’ is the last volume of New Testament. Chapter 1 of the book defines John’s (one of the twelve supporters of Lord Jesus) explanations on seven stars of angels.

How Does Age Influence Linguistic Knowledge English Language Essay

How Does Age Influence Linguistic Knowledge English Language Essay From my experience in teaching English in a great number of mixed-age classes at Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology foreign language center, I have received completely contrasting feedback from my students at the end of every course. By applying the same teaching method when I work with both young learners and adult learners, I discover a big gap in the result of their learning. In the pronunciation section, younger learners acquire successfully and effectively while older learners seem to fail in learning English sounds. From what I observe, most of young learners in my classroom have native-like pronunciation. In contrast, the complexity of English phonological system leads to adults failure in getting phonology accuracy when they have to fight with many non-existent sounds in their mother tongue. Unlike pronunciation, the success in learning vocabulary and grammar is in a reverse order. Adults find it easy to understand and use almost complicated vocabulary as well as gramm ar structures whereas young learners often make mistakes when learning new words and doing grammar exercises. Indeed, older learners feel at ease with most English grammar points while younger learners claim that vocabulary and grammar are beyond their reach. These differences lead me to the wonder whether or not there is a correlation between age and second language acquisition (SLA). Hence, my paper examines the role of age in SLA in terms of the rate and success of learners linguistic knowledge. From the explanation of the effect of age, I suggest some implications to help not only young learners but also older learners to acquire their language knowledge perfectly. SLA refers to the process of learning of individuals and groups who are learning a language subsequent to learning their first and that language (Saville-troike, 2006, p. 3). In learning a second language, a number of variables influence students actual acquisition including age, personality, motivation, learning style, group dynamics, aptitude, attitude to the teacher and course materials and so on. Among them, age the most frequently discussed factor has been paid much attention by many linguists. Countless studies and researches have recently been conducted on this topic in order to know how age affects second language acquisition It is a common belief that children are more successful L2 learners than adults. Meanwhile, many linguistic researchers argue that the older are better. However, the belief about SLA in different ages is actually equivocal. Saville-Troike (2006) explained this controversy in his study. Some studies define success as initial rate of learning where older learners have an advantage while other studies define it as ultimate achievement where learners who are introduced to the L2 in childhood indeed do appear to have an edge. Also, some studies define success in terms of how close the learners pronunciation is to a native speakers where children are superior to adults, others in terms of how closely a learner approximates native grammaticality judgments where older learners are better than younger learners (p. 82) In terms of the effect of age on the rate of SLA, according to Ekstrand (1976), Snow and Hoefnagel-Hà ¶hle (1978) and Snow (1983), in naturalistic situations, children normally have a slower rate of development in the target language and do not perform as well as older learners in the short term, but they quite often surpass older learners in the long run (as cited in Miralpeix, 2007, p. 62). Undoubtedly, younger learners are better at SLA in the long run while older learners are better at learning languages in the short run. Concerning grammar and glossary, Krashen, Long and Scarcellas research paper pointed out that adults proceed through early stages of syntactic and morphological development faster than children (p. 573). In comparison with younger learners, older learners have an initial advantage in the rate of SLA when they deal with a complicated system of syntax as well as morphology. Ellis (1985) supported advantages of older learners that when we take the rate into consideration, older learners are better then younger learners as they can reach higher proficiency levels if learners at various ages are matched according to the amount of time they are supposed to the target language (p. 105). However, other studies suggest that adults do not make progress as rapidly as children when acquiring pronunciation. According to Harmer (2007), children who learn a new language early have a facility with pronunciation which is denied by older learners (p. 81). Also, Cochrane (1980) gave a clear illustration to this belief. He investigated the ability of 54 Japanese children and 24 adults to discriminate /r/ and /l/. The average length of naturalistic exposure was calculated as 245 hours for the adults and 193 hours for the children (i.e. relatively little). The children outperformed the adults. (as cited in Ellis, 1994, p.486) In general, adults seem to be able to acquire grammar as well as lexis more quickly than children and vice versa in the field of pronunciation. Where success is concerned, it goes without saying that the longer the exposure to the L2, the more native-like L2 proficiency becomes (Ellis, 1985, p. 106). Actually, Ehrman and Oxford (1995) pointed out younger learners are more likely to attain fluency and native-like pronunciation, while older learners have an advantage in understanding the grammatical system and in bringing greater world knowledge to the language learning context (p. 68). Hence, it is likely that younger learners will pronounce in a more natural way than older learners. Most young individuals who begin their studies of the L2 at the early age do achieve native-like fluency. The earlier they start the more professional at pronunciation they become. Supporters of this belief claim that children are able to learn second language pronunciation easily, automatically, effortlessly and gain an indistinguishable frequency level from that of native speakers. As Ellis (1994) indicated, learners who start as children achie ve more native-like accent than those who start as adolescents and adults (p. 489). Oyama (1976) also supported the younger-is-better notion in her investigation of 60 male immigrants settling down in USA at various ages from 6 to 20. She found that the youngest arrivals performed in the same range as native-speakers control (as cited in Ellis, 1994, p. 489). Conversely, some adult learners may succeed in acquiring native levels of grammatical accuracy in full linguistic competence (Ellis, 1994, p. 492). When the success of second language lexical acquisition, younger learners do not perform as well as older learners in the short term (Muà ±oz, 2006, p. 90). Snow and Hoefnagel-Hà ¶hle (1978) conducted a research in the Netherlands with English learners of Dutch and then showed that adolescent and adult learners results in the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test were better than those of the younger learners. (as cited in Muà ±oz, 2006, p. 90) We clearly see that there is a great difference in the rate and success of SLA between adult learners and young learners in the aforementioned empirical researches. Hence, the question Why do the contrasting results exist? is raised. When we know the causes we will know how to deal with the problems both younger and older learners encounter in SLA. A number of studies in the light of explaining the role of age in SLA point out that neurological, cognitive and affective factors account for this issue. Many longitudinal and cross-sectional researches assert that the ability to learn a foreign language is biologically linked to age. The biological factor is supported by the Critical Period Hypothesis which claims that learners past the age of puberty are in all probability unable to achieve native-like pronunciation in any case (Saville-Troike, 2006, p. 142). There is a time when language acquisition is easy and complete. However, beyond that time SLA is difficult and almost incomplete. If SLA takes place during that period, in all likelihood learners will achieve native-speaker ability. That is why Pujol (2008) divided the hypothesis into two versions. The strong version is that language must be learned by puberty or it will be never learned from subsequent exposure; the weak version is that after puberty language learning will be more difficult and incomplete (p. 13). Various studies about the critical period hypothesis suggest that younger learners are superior to older learners as they acquire a foreign language before the puberty. Penfield and Roberts (1959) study explained why it is easier to learn the target language within the first ten years of life. During this period the brain retains plasticity, but with the onset of the puberty this plasticity begins to disappear. We suggested that this was the result of the lateralization of the language function in the left hemisphere of the brain. That is, the neurological capacity for understanding and producing language, which initially involves both hemispheres of the brain, is slowly concentrated in the left hemisphere for most people (as cited in Ellis, 1985, p. 107). With regard to pronunciation acquisition, Seliger (1978) indicated that there are many critical periods for different aspects of language. The period during which a native accent is easily acquirable appears to end sooner than the period governing the acquisition of a native grammar (as cited in Ellis, 1994, p. 492). Actually, learners who begin studying L2 as adults are unlikely to have native-speaker competence in pronunciation. Not only neurolinguistic studies but also affective researches have been carried out to explain that children are better than adults. As Brown (1980b) proposed, SLA is related to stages of acculturation including initial excitement and euphoria, culture shock, culture stress and assimilation (as cited in Ellis, 1985, p. 109). The ability of learner to relate and respond easily to the foreign language culture strongly determines the success of SLA. Schumann came to conclusion that the learner will acquire the second language only to the degree that he acculturates (n.d., p. 29). Valdes (1986) offered a more persuasive account of the notion the younger, the better. A young child, because he has not built up years and years of cultural-bound view and view of himself, has fewer perspective filter to readjust, and therefore moves through stages of acculturation more quickly, and of course acquires languages more quickly. (as cited in Tallapessy, n.d., p. 16) At the early age, young learners have socio-cultural resilience as they are much less culture-bound than older learners. Thanks to their strong resiliency, children can overcome stages of acculturation quickly and then acquire the target language rapidly. In addition, as Ellis concluded, child learners are more strongly motivated to communicate with native speakers and to integrate culturally. Also, child learners are less conscious and therefore suffer less from anxiety about communicating in an L2 (1994, p. 494). They learn a foreign language because of the need to be accepted by the native community. That is why most of younger learners can successfully achieve native-like pronunciation as they are exposed to the first language environment. Besides the biological and emotional factors aforementioned, various cognitive abilities between younger learners and older learners lead to their differences in SLA. Leaver, Ehrman and Shekhtman (2005) defined cognition as thinking. There are many processes involved in thinking, and all of them are considered part of cognition. Some examples are noticing, paying attention, making guesses and hypotheses, monitoring what you say, interpreting what you read or hear, and so on (p. 38). Cognitive strategies enable the students thinking process to be unique. This uniqueness is called high level control i.e. consciousness. Ellis (1985) noted that older learners can learn about the language by consciously studying linguistic rules and apply these rules when they use the language whereas younger children consider language as a tool for expressing meaning (p. 108). According to Halliday (1973), the young child responds not so much to what language is as to what it does (as cited in Ellis, 198 5, p. 108). Additionally, Rosansky (1975) believed that L2 development can take place in two different ways. While the young child sees only similarities, lacks flexible thinking and is self-centered older learners are predisposed to recognize both common and different features about the language, to think flexibly and to become increasingly de-centered (as cited in Ellis, 1985, p. 108). Understandably, most social attitudes towards the use of a certain language in younger learners have not been developed, Furthermore, at the early age, children often lack meta-awareness, which results in their open cognition of a new language. Unlike children, older learners own a strong meta-awareness and hold social attitudes towards the target language. That is the reason why Ellis (1994) pointed out that adults possess more fully developed cognitive skills, which enable them to apply themselves studiedly to the task of learning a L2 (p. 493). Thus they will experience more negotiation of meanin g and better input by using general and inductive learning abilities. Actually, various studies and researches show that adults are better language learners because they have not only better cognitive skills but a better memory as well. Whenever they deal with syntax and morphology system they will memorize them quickly and easily. Moreover, many teachers commonly notice that adults have a longer concentration span than children. Children cannot concentrate on certain activities as long as adults. As Hermar explained, older learners do exhibit noticeable superiority because they tend to be more self-disciplined. (2007, p. 288) From the analysis of the strong correlation between age and SLA, I clearly realize that my teaching methodology should be various when I work with younger learners and older learners although I carry out the same lesson about pronunciation, grammar or vocabulary. With the same content, I should change my teaching way in order to suit students of different ages. On the basis of the theoretical framework, younger learners are more intelligible then older learners in the process of acquiring native-like pronunciation. The former are not strongly affected by old habits of their mother tongue whereas the latter find it difficult to form new habits of L2 because of the influence of the first language. Nevertheless, adults have higher awareness than children. As a result, when I teach pronunciation I usually use some kinds of explicit explanation to enable adults to use their critical thinking. For sound formation, I use a sketch of mouth to describe the pronunciation of sound in terms of lips, tongue, teeth, etc. For example, when I teach the target sound /ÃŽÂ ¸/, I will show the following picture and give the description. In order to pronounce it, you should put your tongue between your teeth. Then blow out air between your tongue and your top teeth. Explicit explanation will be followed by demonstration, imitation and practice. (Baker, 2003,p. 133) Moreover, older learners feel at ease with distinguishing two similar sounds thanks to their problem-solving talent. That is why I consider minimal pairs as a powerful tool to draw their attention to differences among some English sounds. Lets take the vowel /I/ as an example. Firstly, I ask them to say the sound /i:/ by opening the mouth a little and lengthening it. Then open the mouth a little more to make the sound /I/. Contrasting two seemingly similar sounds will help adults produce the sounds more accurately. (Baker, 2003,p. 6) On the contrary, when I teach children pronunciation, I overuse imitation and repetition with a model video clip of English sounds. As you know, children are quick at imitating a certain sound even when the sound does not exist in their mother tongue. As a result, I often use clips from the program English have a go in which a native speaker Professor Say It will pronounce the target sound slowly enough for young children to imitate. Because the lecturer in the clip has a good sense of humor to add fun to pronunciation, I find it useful especially when I work with younger learners. As I know both children and adults suffer a lot from such boring pronunciation lessons, I always think of some games to arouse students interest and let for them relax during the lesson. They will not have a feeling of suffering from language learning. Who is a poet? is a common game in my teaching pronunciation. I ask my students (intermediate level) to make a poem with the last word containing the target sound. I will begin with the sentence Jim has a wife (the diphthong /ai/ is the objective of my lesson). Then my students make a poem like this. Jim has a wife She is very nice She is only 25 She has big eyes They have a happy life But Jim suddenly died Then she ends her life They never say goodbye Wish them happy life In the paradise In regard to teaching grammar, three very most important sources of interest for children in the classroom are pictures, stories and games to enhance young learners intrinsic motivation (Ur, 1996, p. 288). Hence, when teaching my younger learners I use a great number of pictures to contribute towards their interest in learning process. As a result of childrens low cognitive capability, I conduct mechanical drills, gap-fills, and sentence transformations to familiarize them with the structure and help them have the confidence to use it in a controlled environment. These tasks can be made into games through which they can get enjoyment, fun and pleasure. For instance, I ask my young children (Lets go) to recognize verbs of past tense in terms of regular ones and irregular ones by marking them with different colors as children are keen on coloring very much. Firstly, I set the rule regular verbs = green, irregular verbs = blue. Secondly, I divide the class first into teams and then show them sentences one by one. In the end, the group which can get the most correct answers is the winner. Conversely, so as to make adults learn structures thoroughly and produce correctly, I use a sequence of activities from accuracy-oriented exercises in the beginning to fluency tasks for the free use of the grammar in a certain context in the end. As Ur (1996) suggested, there are seven types of grammar practice like awareness, controlled drills, meaningful drills, guided, meaning practice, free sentence composition, discourse composition and free discourse (p. 84). These kinds of activities focus mainly on both form and meaning practice with the aim of promoting adults cognitive skill and self-discipline. In terms of vocabulary, I consider visual aids a useful artifact to convey the meaning of the new word when I teach younger learners vocabulary items. I put a lot of efforts in preparing the pictures as well as concrete objects for my young children to learn effectively as what we hear, we forget; what we see, we remember. In contrast, older learners are provided with concise explanations, detailed descriptions, antonyms, synonyms, hyponyms or co-hyponyms whenever they study vocabulary items. Another difference in my vocabulary teaching between children and adults is that I draw the formers attention to the form, meaning, spelling and grammar of a new word while I further introduce the latter the denotation, connotation and appropriateness of a vocabulary item. In short, we can clearly see that age differences have a strong influence on SLA between younger learners and older learners. While children who start to learn a language at the early age have a facility with the pronunciation while adults possess high cognitive abilities which help them benefit from abstract language teaching approaches. We can jump to conclusion that an early start to foreign language learning is likely to lead to better long-term results. Start as early as you can. Furthermore, the age of students is a major factor in our decision about what and how to teach. Students of different ages will have different advantages and learning styles in acquiring L2 linguistic knowledge. As teachers, we should know their strength and weakness to guide them study more efficiently and effectively. Thanks to this paper, I know I should adjust my teaching approach in a way more flexible and appropriate to students of various ages, thus I can be a better language instructor. In this way, I should ensure that my materials and tasks are age-appropriate so that all individuals can learn best regardless of being young and old.

Whitewater vs. Watergate :: American America History

Whitewater vs. Watergate. Both are political sandals that have rocked the nation. As Watergate unraveled, many of Nixon's dirty tactics were learned, including assorted lists of enemies (a number of which became targets of IRS tax audits), wiretapping, political sabotage, burglary, blackballing, and smear campaigns. Similarly, as Whitewater unfolded, the scandal appeared to involve more than just an illegal loan. It touched on possible hush money paid to witnesses and includes the acquisition of more than 900 confidential FBI files on Bush and Reagan appointees. In many aspects, the two are very similar. They are alike in the cover-ups they both produced. But they still are about two totally different events. Each of these scandals is associated with a central criminal event and both involved a web of political intrigue.1 First, what were Whitewater and Watergate? Whitewater started as a land development of riverfront property in Arkansas in the 1980s. The Clintons received a large share of the development without putting up any money. The development went bad, so additional capital was needed. There is evidence and testimony suggesting that this cash was obtained illegally from the federal government and never paid back. As for Watergate - though it was revealed by the Senate Watergate committee as an unprecedented abuse of presidential power that was extremely dangerous to the country, it is remembered 25 years later as a strange and unsuccessful burglary in the Watergate office building by people linked to the reelection committee of Nixon. But Watergate was so much more than a political burglary. The Senate hearings showed Watergate was composed of constant criminality by the Nixon White House, and was driven by an extreme commitment to maintain control of power by any means, including criminal co nduct. It included the break-in of a psychiatrist's office for the purpose of smearing Daniel Elsberg - the leaker of the Pentagon Papers; the misuse of the IRS and other federal agencies to punish those on the president's "enemies list"; the illegal wiretapping of journalists and members of Nixon's own administration; and the purposeful editing of government documents to enhance a political agenda.2 Many similarities come up when discussing Whitewater and Watergate. The scandals may be separated by two decades, but much irony is evident when they are compared. For example, in 1974, Hillary Rodham was employed as a lawyer by the House Judiciary Committee's impeachment inquiry, along with Bernard Nussbaum, former chief counsel at the Clinton White House. Whitewater vs. Watergate :: American America History Whitewater vs. Watergate. Both are political sandals that have rocked the nation. As Watergate unraveled, many of Nixon's dirty tactics were learned, including assorted lists of enemies (a number of which became targets of IRS tax audits), wiretapping, political sabotage, burglary, blackballing, and smear campaigns. Similarly, as Whitewater unfolded, the scandal appeared to involve more than just an illegal loan. It touched on possible hush money paid to witnesses and includes the acquisition of more than 900 confidential FBI files on Bush and Reagan appointees. In many aspects, the two are very similar. They are alike in the cover-ups they both produced. But they still are about two totally different events. Each of these scandals is associated with a central criminal event and both involved a web of political intrigue.1 First, what were Whitewater and Watergate? Whitewater started as a land development of riverfront property in Arkansas in the 1980s. The Clintons received a large share of the development without putting up any money. The development went bad, so additional capital was needed. There is evidence and testimony suggesting that this cash was obtained illegally from the federal government and never paid back. As for Watergate - though it was revealed by the Senate Watergate committee as an unprecedented abuse of presidential power that was extremely dangerous to the country, it is remembered 25 years later as a strange and unsuccessful burglary in the Watergate office building by people linked to the reelection committee of Nixon. But Watergate was so much more than a political burglary. The Senate hearings showed Watergate was composed of constant criminality by the Nixon White House, and was driven by an extreme commitment to maintain control of power by any means, including criminal co nduct. It included the break-in of a psychiatrist's office for the purpose of smearing Daniel Elsberg - the leaker of the Pentagon Papers; the misuse of the IRS and other federal agencies to punish those on the president's "enemies list"; the illegal wiretapping of journalists and members of Nixon's own administration; and the purposeful editing of government documents to enhance a political agenda.2 Many similarities come up when discussing Whitewater and Watergate. The scandals may be separated by two decades, but much irony is evident when they are compared. For example, in 1974, Hillary Rodham was employed as a lawyer by the House Judiciary Committee's impeachment inquiry, along with Bernard Nussbaum, former chief counsel at the Clinton White House.