Spy Games - Creative Essay Essays - 9, Diver Down, DraftZoro 4 Eva

Spy Games - Creative Essay Being an international spy is no walk in the park. Death can be waiting for you around the corner or around the world. However when you're only 17 years old, death is the furthest thing from your mind. So here we were on a hot summers day playing international espionage. Of course to six of us playing, it was just another Saturday of playing spy. Myself, Tim Wolfe, David Sullivan, Peter Shore, Jennifer Strong (who was the only female to be amongst us) and Frank Robb made up the group. At this age it was suppose to be above us to play in these spy games. We were going to be graduating in a year or so after all. Thus keeping the game secret was good practice for all of us. It also meant lying to a lot of people as to why we were always busy on Saturdays. Mind you, we never considered it lying. We preferred to refer to it as clouding the truth. Many of us wanted to become employed in the intelligence area. So really, we though of it more as an act of deception. We took our game very seriously. In fact we never even referred to is as a game. Mostly because we were working our maneuvers on real people who didn't know we were just a group of teenagers pretending to be spies. Every week we'd have at least one meeting at my house to talk about how things were going. Sometimes depending on the case or goal we were pursuing, the meetings would run on into the late of night. I guess it could be said that I was leader of our group. The meetings were held at my house, and I was the one who brought together the present group of agents. In the theme of espionage, we referred to everyone as an agent. Never as a friend. However we preferred to think of our agency, which we had given the name of the Renegades, as a collective. That is, everybody had a say in what we did. My bedroom was in the basement of our house, and I had the entire basement at my disposal. Against the far wall was a room with my bed, stereo, and the usual stuff you'd find a bedroom. Perhaps the one difference being I had posters of famous spies on my walls rather than sports heroes. Igor Grouzenko is a good example. Outside my room was a large table where we held most, if not all, of our meetings. Thanks to a door located in the cellar, it made for easy access to the outside. In most cases my parents never knew we held meetings on into the dead of night. The door also made it easy to sneak out at night. Agents do their work best under the cover of darkness you know. Today our meeting was going to be a good one. Last Thursday we had decided to draw up entire new names and careers for ourselves. Agents usually have more aliases than friends, so we decided to change ours every month. It was kind of hard juggling school work and memorizing new alias information each month. Yet when we were out in the `real world' doing maneuvers it all seems worth it. The table was round, so there really was no one at the head of it. From left to right there was Tim, David, Peter, Frank, Jen, then myself. "I trust everyone had no problem coming up with a new alias" I asked. Everyone nodded in agreement. From there we went about the table saying who we now were and what our profession was. My alias was John Inglis, and I went to one of the local high schools. As a part time job I supposedly worked for McDonald's. Everybody's main story was that they went to high school. It helps give credibility to your story. Perhaps the only thing that varied from person to person was their name, and their part time job. After some more talking, we decided on our next target. We were going to find out how much money the local computer store takes in on a daily basis. Naturally they would not divulge such information to a bunch of teenagers. The way we go about gathering our information is the basis for our intelligence game. Finding out stuff about people and things which they'd rather have us not know. Since many of us had a chemistry test next morning, we kept the meeting

Affirmative Action Should be Eliminated essays

Affirmative Action Should be Eliminated essays Proponents of affirmative action argue that affirmative action is necessary to create a "level playing field" for all Americans because it is a way of redressing discrimination that persists in spite of civil rights laws and constitutional guarantees. Minorities and females still don't make as much money as men do and we live in a society that often has difficulty accepting individuals with different race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. "Operational needs" often present cases when affirmative action is required for effective job performance. One example of "operational needs" is a police force which has to interact with the community. Officers who belong to the same ethic group as neighborhood residents can function more effectively because of the hostilities and suspicions that often exist between members of different ethic groups. However, affirmative action really is all about quotas rather than eliminating race as a factor in the decision making process. And, quotas are unconstitutional because they violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment, equal protection under the law. The benefactors of affirmative action are predominately middle and upper class individuals that don't need any special treatment. "The most under-represented group of Americans at the nation's top colleges and colleges isn't blacks or Hispanics, but students from lower-income families." Even the Center for Equal Opportunity is opposed to affirmative action because it has been such an unfair windfall for wealthy minorities that are finding ways to take advantage of the system as summarized below: "According to the Code of Federal Regulations: "Individuals who certify that they are members of named groups (Black, Hispanic, Native American, Asian-Pacific, Sub-continental-Asian) are to be considered socially and economically disadvantaged." Unde...

Reflection paper about course Entrepreneurship101 Essay

Reflection paper about course Entrepreneurship101 - Essay Example In addition, I was hopeful that I would meet a good number of successful entrepreneurs, engage them in debate with an intention of having a clear understanding of their lives and work. In this course, we received a number of guest speakers who also included successful entrepreneurs hence my expectations were achieved. It is of significance to posit that I was also hopeful that I would gain relevant skills, knowledge, and abilities that would be necessary in my career as an entrepreneur. Subsequently, I was also hopeful that I would gain expertise on how I can apply my acquired skills and abilities in my areas of interest in entrepreneurship. I was able to achieve these through being actively engaged in learning, and engaging in dialogues with instructors. This course is intended to help students incorporate all modules comprised in liberal arts education such as critical thinking, comprehension of various situations, teamwork, and reflecting. As a result, I was optimistic I would comprehend how to integrate all these modules in learning. These expectations were all met. In my course, I was exposed to different aspects of entrepreneurship and asked to reflect what I have learnt, as well as how that could impact me and the society. Through this, I was able to comprehend how to integrate these modul es of liberal arts education What I liked most in this course is the structure and sessions. The structure involved a lot of interactions and lectures. I have always been able to learn more through engaging myself actively and also engaging in chats and discussions with lecturers and other instructors. Guest speakers helped break the monotony created by our lecturers. Having guest speakers is a new experience that all students look forward to. Guest speakers give first hand experiences in the work and the problems they have encountered in their work. Therefore, I liked it more learning various components and skills in entrepreneurship from

Macroeconomics and Microeconomics - Macro4M Essay

Macroeconomics and Microeconomics - Macro4M - Essay Example The measure does not reflect the initial purpose as observed by economic policy makers. In that case, the output presented is not the actual output of the nation. In essence, it cannot tell the policy makers whether the economy produced more goods and services since the measure changes with prices and quantity. On the other hand, real GDP is adjusted for inflation or deflation. It measures GDP in constant prices. As a result, economic policy makers are able to identify the changes in the actual production of final goods (Boyes & Melvin, 2010, p.108). Indeed, it measures the quantity of goods and services a nation produces after eliminating the effects of price changes. Unlike nominal GDP which significantly reflects increased prices, real GDP indicates actual changes in the output. Economic policy makers would be more interested in more goods and services than higher prices in order to evaluate the economic status of the country. In fact, it is better to have nominal GDP rise due to higher output than due to higher prices. Economic policy makers want the nominal GDP to increase because of an increase in real GDP. If economic policy makers were to rely on the nominal GDP in determining national output, they would in many cases make ineffective decision. This is because, the large part reflected in the increasing output is as a result of price fluctuations. The actual output devoid of any influence is most important in national policy making. Therefore, they will always consider real GDP to be the reliable determinant of the output in order to make the most appropriate economic decision. Question two Gross domestic production (GDP) and other national income measure have been considered to be inadequate measure of social welfare (Elizabeth & UMAE, 2007, pp.20-25). This is because GDP measures all consumption, government spending and investments within a country plus exports, regardless of the citizenship of the investors or consumers. This measure counts air pollu tion, cigarette advertising as well as ambulances that clear the ways of bloodshed. It counts environmental destruction and the costs created by inhumane behaviors. The measure includes jails and correction facilities for the people who break the law. However, GDP does not include important social measures such as the health of the people, the quality of education, the beauty of culture, the strength of families. It does neither count the integrity of the leaders nor their intelligence. GDP does not measure the courage or wisdom of the people neither does it measure empathy nor devotion of the people. Essentially, GDP is a measure of many things but does not emphasize on the things that make life meaningful. There are conceptual problems noted with using GDP as a measure of social welfare that can be easily eliminated in order to make it a better measure of social welfare. First, the measure can be tailored to register monetary exchanges as well as social exchanges. Second, it shoul d not include commodities that lower social wellbeing such as weaponry and terrorism costs. The measure should place value on social practices like leisure-time and cultural qualities. Most important, GDP must not ignore the distribution of income and wealth within the society. This might include special consideration of the specific areas that can enhance comfortable living of the citizens such as offering employment opportunities.

Leading Public Relations Efforts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Leading Public Relations Efforts - Essay Example What made him influential among the masses was his understanding the need of the people and working accordingly, in the interests of the civil rights of the citizens. 2) The latest trends in marketing have been connecting with the customers emotionally so that they persuade the people to purchase the goods they are attached to. With this strategy, Kevin Roberts, CEO of Saatchi and Saatchi Advertising says "The brands that can move to that emotional level, that can create loyalty beyond reason, are going to be the brands where premium profits lie." Thus, clarifying that the premier goal of making profits can be achieved after establishing an emotional connection between the brands and the customers. 3) In both the above examples, the leaders left an impact of influence among the masses. The difference is that one persuaded the people towards their own interests, by making them understand their civil rights, and the other persuaded people as a marketing strategy towards more profit-making in their business. The times have also been different in both the cases, but talking of persuading the masses, both have had an iconic influence on the people. Both of them have been strategic leaders, by understanding the emotional levels of humans, they managed to gain their

US and US Government Formation Comparison

US and US Government Formation Comparison CONTENTS PAGE (Jump to) INTRODUCTION Communication strategy used by George Bush and Tony Blair [Similarities and Differences] LITERATURE REVIEW METHODOLOGY FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION Reformation of the Labour Party Labour gets new supporters The Tony Blair effect The Media – role of press, television and papers American Value system and Image – Differences between USA and UK- Social, Cultural, Political and Electoral CONCLUSION BIBLIOGRAPHY INTRODUCTION The political environment of two of the world’s leading countries has always held a degree of interest amongst researchers of international relations and politics. It has perhaps to do with the level of impact that the internal and external policies of these two governments have on the global economy. In this paper, we shall attempt to understand the differences and similarities between the political setups of the UK and the USA and follow the strategies and tactics of the elected governments over the past decade or so. At this stage, it is important to point out that there are many contrasting viewpoints on some of the decisions taken by the governments of these countries, hopefully; they can in their own way provide an all encompassing picture of the political canvas that surrounds these countries. On the one hand, we shall discuss in detail the formation of the Democratic government with Bill Clinton until the current Republican administration of George Bush. On the other side of the Atlantic, we shall visit a different piece of history where Tony Blair and the British Labour Party which has been in power over much the same period. Beginning with the UK, the Labour Party has been somewhat of a trendsetter. It has been in power in the UK since 1992 with its first elected leader as John Smith. 2 years later, with the passing away of John Smith, Tony Blair was elected as the leader of the Labour Party and has remained so ever since. The party has been in existence through the most part of the 20th century and it came into being on the backs of the large labour force during the advent of the industrial revolution in the UK. It has been seen as the voice of the people and responsible for many social causes such as the introduction of free education and healthcare (when it has been in power during various pockets of the 20th century). The NHS (National Health Service) was created by the Labour Party and is the lifeline on which the people of Britain are heavily dependent upon. Over the years, the Labour party has also been known to be the ‘People’s party’ – as the name suggests it represent s the needs of the people at all levels of society. Interestingly, Tony Blair in the Book – â€Å"The People’s Party† by Wright Carter (1997) mentions that the Labour Party is different from all other parties in Britain for 2 primary reasons. Firstly, it is a relatively new party that has been created over the course of the 20th century and imbibes the modern values and cultural needs of the people. Unlike other parties, it understands the contemporary needs of people and is proxy to the more recent callings of the nation. Secondly, the formation of the party did not take place in the City of Westminster. It was created as a result of the needs of the people in the countryside and in the small towns that lined the UK. The Labour Party was also renowned for bringing in a breath of fresh values and beliefs in comparison to the Conservative Party that had become to be known as the party which didn’t bring about changes to the degree required by the people. With Labour in power over the last decade, things have changed today. It all began very well with Tony Blair drafting policies that was well accepted by the people, but ever since; the Party has seen a steady decline in support over the years. A few years back, there were reservations that the Labour government could not take the country beyond a certain point. Soon after, Tony Blair’s uncompromising support of the US to enter the Iraq War was seen as a shot in the foot for the party. The people were divided in their sentiments on supporting Labour to take down the Saddam Hussein regime. In their opinion, it was correct to go into Iraq but through the United Nations and not as part of the US Taskforce. The few who believed otherwise b egan to change their minds after the invasion of Iraq when more and more British soldiers were killed in action. This created huge waves of disappointment in the UK and the support of the British people slowly left Labour. Whilst Tony Blair was re-elected in 2005, it was by the narrowest margin in the decade old history of the government. And even though Tony Blair finds himself in power, his position at the moment isn’t the best it could be. Moving on to the US side of elections and government policies, the most basic difference in the US is that it has adopted a presidential form of government as opposed to the parliamentary system in the UK. Bill Clinton, a democrat was voted into power in 1993. This was around the same time that the Labour party came into power in the UK. However, the political campaign was not a bed of roses for Clinton. His character was questioned with examples being cited from the Vietnam War of a ‘character issue’. At the same time, he was also personally attacked for alleged infidelity which both him and his wife – Hillary refuted and embarked on a campaign through television interviews and other media vehicles to reassure the American public that they had a strong and workable marriage. To add to this, just prior to the elections, the Clinton’s were involved in what came to be known as the ‘Whitewater Real estate’ scandal. Through trial in 1996, the partn ers in the venture were all convicted of fraud whereas the Bill Clinton was never accused of any wrong-doings on his part. The first real challenge that Clinton faced after being elected was to allow homosexuals in the armed forces. This was faced with a lot of resentment and he received considerable flak for allowing such a rule to prevail in the military. After much debate, it was agreed that homosexuality would not be used against the people serving in the armed forces – more like a ‘Don’t ask me and I wont tell’ policy. Internally, Clinton also faced problems with the issues of welfare reform, the prevention of crime and the healthcare system. The one area that Clinton really shone was on the international map. He instrumented many successes for the US and built valuable bridges for the country’s future. Some of these achievements included the showcasing of America as a friend to the Israel – Jordan peace program, an improvement in the re lations with Russian by proposing economic benefits to President Boris Yeltsin, tackling the instability and security issues in countries in Eastern Europe such as Bosnia and lastly, the improving of relations between the US and India, China and the Far eastern countries. The one significant area which was worked upon together with Tony Blair was the NATO intervention in 1999. Here, the 2 leaders worked to get the NATO to respond to the ethnic cleansing that was taking place in the Serbian capital of Kosovo. As a result, they were able to bomb Serbia for 78 days. However, Clinton did face some degree of criticism of holding back the troops to enter Serbia but was rewarded soon after since the President of Serbia did sign a peace treaty in the following months after the bombing campaign. And Clinton was re-elected and stayed in power till 2001. During his stint, he was popularly renowned for giving America its most prosperous period in terms of peace and economic well-being. The US faced its lowest ever period of unemployment, the highest home ownership in the history of the country and the lowest rate of inflation as well. The only slur on his tenure came in the form of the ‘Monica Lewinsky Scandal’ where he was allegedly involved intimately with one of the White House interns. It must be noted that Clinton was the first president to ever appear before a grand jury in an investigation. Over a period of time, the people of the US gradually forgot about this scandal and allowed him to move on with the governing of the country. On the whole, Clinton was remarkably adept at improving the American equation with a host of countries it had not done so in the past – South Africa, India, China and many more especially in the South East. (http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0760626.html) George Bush came into power in the year 2001 as the successor to Bill Clinton. However, he is a Republican and in a short space of time, came to have an impact on world politics and international relations in a way never conceived before. Bush’s tenure has been populated wit the fight against terrorism which began with the attack on the World Trade Centre on September 11th 2001. This has been somewhat of a 2 phased campaign against terrorism. Initially, it began with the hunt for Osama Bin Laden, the terrorist responsible for the September 11th attacks and the corresponding hunt to catch him in the country of Afghanistan. More recently, the campaign trail has focused its efforts on the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq. And this in turn, has divided the American public in their opinion on whether the act of entering Iraq was in fact, justified. The problems for Bush rose closer to the end of his first electoral period when many American soldiers were being killed in Iraq. The peop le of the US were growing more and more uneasy with the Iraq campaign and Bush was on the verge of losing his chances of being re-elected in the next election. Experts found that Bush had unfortunately concentrated his efforts and attention too heavily on the war against terror and people were getting tired of it. Additionally, the common man was looking to improve his / her standard of living and with unemployment rising and a stained economic scenario, Bush was looking like he might be in trouble. However, the primary strategy adopted by the Republican administration was to try and highlight the economic benefits that the Bush administration had created over the years and try and push into the background, the campaign against terrorism and the Iraq War. Add to this, the opposition leader from the Democratic Party did not have the political clout to seriously challenge the Republicans. All these ingredients came together to ensure that George Bush was re-elected into power for the second election term. Ever since his second elected term, George Bush and his political policies have stayed relatively sublime in the eyes of the people and the media. What has never ceased to stir interest and conflict in the minds of the people of both the US and the UK is the relationship shared by the two leaders. Both Bush and Blair have been known to share similar political agendas and Tony Blair has received a lot of flak for supporting Bush on the Iraq War and other global political campaigns. The general consensus in the UK is that Tony Blair has not done justice to the UK by bending backwards to the demands of the US. This was once again, explicitly highlighted with growing number of deaths of British soldiers in Iraq. At the time of writing this report, the feeling shared by most people is whether the War on Iraq was justified in the first place and was there a need to go in to it supporting the US as opposed to entering Iraq as the United Nations. Unfortunately, the UK has been hit by a wave of terrorist attacks in the last few months and this has made the people much more uncomfortable in the security assurances by the Blair government. Going forward, the relationship between these 2 leaders is always going to be tested as the people of these countries learn to live through problems inflicting upon them. (http://www.whitehouse.gov/) People and Democracy have been long standing battles between governments and masses. There are a lot of issues which are of prime importance to the government for resurrecting their policies and objectives, the people on the other hand have to understand the impact of these policies to determine how they vote for the government and their representative. In the current scenario, the re lections of George Bush and Tony Blair took place amidst a lot of surprise, indignation, horror and laxity, while some people were expecting it, the others had nothing but stingy remarks about how uninformed people are about world issues to bring back leaders like Bush and Blair back in the lime light. The highlight and common issue which has plagued both these leaders has been terrorism and the Iraq war. It all started with the unfortunate 9/11 attacks on the twin towers. In his quest to prove to the American public his commitment to the people, Bush extended his powers to regimes in Iraq and other pla ces which were supposed breeding grounds for the likes of Osama Bin Laden and terrorism. Tony Blair in his quest to support the American government participated in the war at an equal footing. The people and democracy in USA and UK has harnessed a notion of fight against terror yet the public has been against the government’s initiatives. Communication strategy used by George Bush and Tony Blair [Similarities and Differences] Canvassing Approach and Messaging Public Meetings Agendas for these meetings – Iraq, Health, Taxation, Drugs, Education, Homeland Security, National Security and Environment Advertisements Press Relations Communication is a powerful tool which has been used many a times to gain power and win elections. The communication strategy can be based on various levels covering press releases, campaigns, canvassing, advertisement and mailers among other avenues. Even then the communication strategy used in USA differs a great deal from that of UK; this will be discussed and dissected later in another section. LITERATURE REVIEW Richards Paul(2001) in his book, How to win an election talks about preparation and planning, the different tribes of politics, planning a campaign, direct campaigning and indirect campaigning. Elections are probably one of the most components which differentiate a democratic society from a non democratic society. An election is what makes a democracy work when people truly have a right to vote and choose who is their representative and who would drive and support their. General elections decide which party goes ahead and forms a government and also how the politics and economy work for a country. There have been various attempts to increase interest in elections and their outcomes. In UK, the home office came up with a list of variations:- â€Å"Polling hours: variations in polling hours to allow different start or finish times. Polling days: moving polling to an alternative weekday or a day at the weekend or allowing voting over more than one day. Early voting: opening a limited number of polling stations in the period before polling day at accessible locations to allow any eligible elector to vote. Mobile polling: providing a mobile polling station which could take the ballot box to groups of voters, for example, by visiting residential and convalescent homes. Out of area voting: allowing electors to vote at any polling station in the electoral area, or even outside it All postal ballots: allowing an election to be held on the basis of postal voting only Electronic voting: supplementing polling booths and polling stations with automated voting equipment, telephone voting or online remote voting via the internet.† [Richards Paul (2001), p 20-70] No election can be fought in isolation; there are always background issues which have relevance to the election and campaigning. In September 2000 the British government almost came to a halt due to the widely proclaimed petrol price protests, yet no politician or government was prepared for this action and its repercussions. Candidates who are seen as rising stars could soon be biting dust; history is littered with example of failed careers as aspiring politicians have lost their claim to fame due to the unpredictable ways of elections. Elections have always been a ground of unpredictability and surprises, who would have thought that Winston Churchill after his brilliant win in the year 1940 would be miserably defeated in 1945. The conservatives suffered badly in the year 2001 when Tony Blair defeated them with a massive victory. One does not need massive knowledge about political theory and how it works to know that elections are random and unpredictable. The reason being, that ele ctions are all about people, people who decide who they want to vote for or who they want to disregard based on their perceptions. People are beyond scientific interpretation or calculations, how they react and what the do is beyond anyone’s understanding of the human psyche. Interestingly so the way people choose a brand of washing liquid is probably the way they choose their next political leader. Elections need a lot of research and manpower; there are strategists, campaigners, sociologists, pollsters who work on the way the votes would swing in a direction. There is intense study involved about the last elections and the way they panned, the way people reacted to the campaign and the activities undertaken by the previous government. Modern politics has become an art, the most unlikely candidate can sweep house, and how does one explain the theory behind the victory of George W. Bush? Although politicians will try to sway the way voters work but in a democratic society it is always difficult to understand what really make the people tick. A lot of incidents in political history show how elections can actually sway either way for any candidate and no amount of confidence can confirm the victory or loss in a campaign. In the April 1970, Prime Minister Harold Wilson was extremely fond of using a football metaphor, â€Å"If I were a football manager, on present form I would be more worried about job security than I am a prime minister†. Harold Wilson lost the elections in June, 1970, his confidence in his victory was based on real time facts like good poll ratings, sound majority in the House of Commons, media and peer opinion led him to think so. [Richards Paul (2001), p. 45-55] Yet the voters had other ideas in mind, despite all the facts pointing in the direction of a straight win, Wilson lost badly. So no matter how one campaigns, votes cannot be taken for granted as situations can change really fast. Election campaigns are a very expensive task, consuming hundreds of millions for resources like advertising, media, posters, television broadcasts, direct mail and canvassing. In short winning an election is a tough job and a risky business. Politics is similar to fashion, it runs of trends and fads which are hard to predict and adopt. Election campaigns are also dependent on unforeseen circumstances which can prop up anytime, scandals, loose press criticism, reports and issues which can blow the campaign in minutes. Campaigns are dictated by what Harold Macmillan calls â€Å"events dear boy, events†, they cannot be run with static rules, one need to get innovative and adapt to the current environment and what it seeks. A set of tactics is not what drives one to political victory; it’s the form of changing and learning from others mistakes and best known practices. As the soviet foreign minister said to Ernest Bevin, â€Å"the disadvantage of free elections is that you can never be sure who is going to win them†. [Richards Paul (2001), p 30-40] Richard Paul (2001, p. 65 75) says â€Å"Other than the artistry of the campaign, there is science too. There are components and buildings blocks of a campaign which are crucial to standing a chance. There are the techniques tested against real experience and real elections, and the accumulated knowledge of a thousand campaigns and campaigners. There are a plenty of representative politicians in office today all over the world who owe their positions of power not to have a better ideas or even a majority of support, but thanks to better organization. The result of the 2000 US presidential election was decided on the tiniest margins, was won by an organization – the ability to get out the vote†. This takes us to how much a campaign contributes in the election results and which way they go. Political choices are made by voters not just by weeks and months of campaigning. Neil Connock famously said that â€Å"elections are won in years, not weeks†, the voters get to decide whom they vote for based on a combination on reasons, one of them being a campaign which serves a reminder of what has been done in the past. Analyst David Butler echoes the idea of a campaign as a ritual. He says, â€Å"The campaign may to some extent be a ritual dance, a three-week repetition of well-aired themes, making no substantial net difference to the outcome. British elections are usually won over the long haul. A very large proportion of people vote out of loyalty, supporting the party that they and their parents too have always supported; those that change their minds are usually converted, not because of the final three weeks, but over the months and years because of an accumulated impres sion, positive or negative, and of the values and the performance of rival parties†. [Richards Paul (2001), p. 50 65] Politics in America has been an integral part of International Politics and it affects all nations. If we look at the American political and electoral process and their insightful history, it would help understand how democratic they are in their ways. Richard Maidment and Anthony Mcbrew (1993) in their book, â€Å"the American political process†, talk about liberal democracy in the American political system. The language of the current American politics can leave little doubt in our minds that it’s all about democrats and upholding the values and power of democracy where the public and voters stand the strongest. A very important factor which distinguishes the American society and the people also its political stance is the society. The lack of class consciousness in the American society, the heterogeneous religious and social environment also the lack of feudal system has made it into such a democratic society. The American attitude towards government politics has bee n very individualistic. The stress has always been on the American offices being run by a place of legality and enshrined in the view that this is what makes this society and political distinctive. The nation is so heterogeneous in its approach and outlook that it’s difficult to pinpoint the political culture. The American politicians have had a large share of history and legacy to deal with, the American history which needs the same culture to carry on. The politicians need to make their own choices of public policy options all of which need acceptance on a wider level within the system. It just means that the boundaries are being stretched and the politicians and political systems so that there is a room for more man oeuvre. George Bush had a lot to inherit and manage considering that they were taking over from the Reagan administration right at the beginning of his political career. In 1989, the relationship between the Soviet Union and the USA were brimming the brightest and that the time due to a lot of positive activity in Easter Europe the USA’s position was fairly strong. In this light of the American political system one does need to consider the importance of congress in the political arena of America. The congress has always been an important aspect of the American election and political arena. In 1985, Woodrow Wilson wrote of the congress: â€Å"It is unquestionably the predominant and controlling force, the center and source of all motive and of all regulative power †¦the legislature is the aggressive spirit†¦it has entered more and more into the details of administration, until it has virtually taken into its own hands all the substantial powers of government†¦I know no t how better to describe our form of government in a single phrase than by calling it a government by the chairman of the standing committees of congress (Wilson, 1956, pp.31, 44, 49, 52)† [Richard Maidment and Anthony Mcbrew (1993), p 110-140] Some years later another very distinguished gentleman who took great care in understanding the American society said, â€Å"Congress has been the branch government with the largest facilities for usurping the powers of the other branches, and probably with the most dispositions to do so. It has succeeded in occupying nearly all of the area which the constitution left vacant and unallocated between the second authorities it established. (Bryce, 1889, Vol.2, pp. 711-12)†. [Richard Maidment and Anthony Mcbrew (1993), p 140-180] Brian White, Richard Little and Michael smith (1997) in their book, Issues in World Politics, talks about the political environment across the world, states and statehood, trade money and markets, regions, development and inequality, arms and arms control, nationalism and ethnic conflict, environment and natural resources. An important aspect of today’s political systems and elections is the role media plays in keeping everyone informed. All the information that we now receive locally, nationally or internationally is thanks to media which may come in various forms like television, radio, newspaper and the modern internet communications. Information is now available free and easy unlike the olden days when a lot of places were thought to be remote and so information traveled slower than usual. All that has changed now, all the political issues and what affects the leaders from coming to power is all available on media. The media is playing an important role now where globaliza tion is making the world a smaller place. Someone like George Bush had to see CNN to understand the Iraq situation since it brought the latest news to the public. The elections use the television as a medium to get their message across to the public and let them know of the work being undertaken by them. All of the canvassing and public debates between political opponents are covered by television on a global scale so that countries across continents have complete up to date knowledge about the happenings. Elections in USA and UK the world super powers are an important place for international policies or national policies which will affect other countries that are in business/trade with them. The selection of the political leader is also an important cause since it determines the amiability or hostility of maintaining relationships with leaders of some countries. The two last most controversial elections have been that of George Bush in USA and Tony Blair in UK especially in the wak e of the much controversial Iraq war. A lot of movies, documentaries and new articles have since then been published trying to give the general public across continents a more varied and comprehensive insight into the election process and what tipped the scales in favour of the two most contentious leaders. The American president has been surrounded with controversy since the twin tour attacks and his rebuttal to that, the capture of Saddam Hussein and finally the Iraq war which is a dark reality which has still not ended. The civil disputes are ongoing between the army and anti social elements in that society trying to keep the dispute ongoing. USA has been at the helm of lot of international criticism; all this has been made possible due to the regular broadcasts and news items being provided by television and other media mediums. An interesting name in media who has brought a lot to the fore front and what George Bush has really set out to do is Michael Moore. His book, â€Å"Dude, where’s my country?† is an attempt to uncover some truth and factual information about George Bush, his strategies in the past, terrorism, the use of tax issues to buy the public vote and America the liberal paradise which is no more. The book is a poignant account of how much has changed in America the land of the free under the regime of George Bush who has worked on his terms and conditions against popular demands and International interventions. The history for this big calamity is set in the time when Bill Clinton was the USA president. He being a liberal did not use radical moves to counter attack everyone considered America’s enemy. Clinton was a popular leader by choice who really put USA up there as the world super power and not so by doing direct attacks on countries like Iraq and other nations who pr esented a threat to America’s prosperity. It was during the regime of Bill Clinton that one learnt in the 1990s how to fight all the wars yet keep the losses of the Americans to a bare minimum. Clinton closed down bases, reduced the number of troops, and funneled money into other projects which were indirect attacks on other nations but without jeopardizing the lives of many Americans. The Clinton era built America to become a high tech lean machine which is was really helped pentagon and the Bush government in fighting back the terrorist attacks. The book further goes on to pin the blames of the terrorist attacks in USA on George Bush and his former collaboration with the Bin Laden family. The book is highly controversial in nature as it makes factual claims about Bin Laden’s close association with America and with the Bush family. Despite all this being published openly in the wake of the attacks and the negative profiling George Bush underwent, he still came back successful in the next elections which followed. Is this a surprise or does it contain more fact about the truth in brainwashing the public voters into believing what one wants them to. George Bush in a very strategic move has used the war to win the elections; he has put the fear of public safety and the war against terrorism to pass more and more acts which give them control over public records, their activities and lives. The patriotic act is one such act which takes a bite out of American democracy and freedom of speech and action. George Bush has effect ively used the wars to tell the public that he won these for them and that all his actions are only to serve and protect the American public. Although there is democracy it’s more under pressure that people practice the same for the fear of prosecution under these new acts which give the government and officials more control over a citizens life. Some of the information in this book is insightful and frightening as it explores all the dirty facts which have been so far hidden from the public eye but the most inspiring fact is that the man embroiled in such controversy is once again been reelected as president of Unites states of America. The defense budget was increased drastically in the wake of these attacks and the office was in sync with these efforts given the attacks and the inkling of more such attacks in the future. Also George Bush has had a powerful ally in UK, Tony Blair who has

Catcher In The Rye :: essays research papers

Catcher in the Rye Essay "I keep picturing all these kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody''s big but me. And I''m standing on the edge of some crazy cliff -What do I have to do, I have to catch them. I mean their running, and they don''t look where their going, so I must come out of somewhere and catch them."(Salinger,173) J.D. Salinger, in his timeless classic, The Catcher in the Rye, a novel depicting the complications of life as an adolescent, uses reality verses allusion, phoniness in society, and the loss of innocence as themes in his novel, to present the true inner character of Holden Caufield. Beginning to learn the truths of society and growing up, sixteen year old, Holden has a hard time adjusting to maturity. After the death of his younger brother Allie, his inability to remain in one school, and his ongoing dislike of many people and their morals, Holden has been driven to depression in which he dispenses to a psycoanaylgist throughout the novel. Through his novel, Salinger incorporated the theme reality verses allusion, to demonstrate how the mind of some adolescents are so unwilling to face the truths of society. As stated above, Holden wishes to accomplish an futile task, save children from growing up, and protect them from the corruption of adulthood. The following presents an example of Holden''s inability to grasp the differences between reality and allusion. "Somebody written ''Fuck You'' on the wall. It drove me damn dear crazy. I thought how Phoebe and all the other kids would see it, and then how they''d wonder what the hell it mean, and finally some dirty kid would tell them- all cockeyed, so I rubbed it out."(Salinger,201) Presented here, an another example on how Holden once again attempts to accomplish the impossible, save children from the words and instances that they are going to transpire no matter how hard someone desires to hide it. Holden allows himself to live in a state of unrealistic tho ughts, with the idea that change will forever be deleterious. Yet Holden seems frightened to admit to himself that change and development are a necessary part of reality. The only way one would be able to avoid change would be to die young, avoiding maturity, and maintaining innocence. Holden''s dislike towards change attracts his interest to the museum, because a museum continues to be never changing, the displays are forever set in stone, and preserved.

How Do I Love They

A readers’s first guess at Elizabeth Barret Browning’s poem. â€Å"How I love thee† would be that it is a love poem. This assumption is correct as a love poem is a lyric, i. e. an expression of feelings, and thoughts by a speaker in a personal and subjective fashion. In this poem literary devices and language strongly used to assist the reader is the correct comprehension of the theme of the work. In this poem the theme is love. This theme is approached with a question, â€Å"How do I love thee? † This abrupt question is rhetorical. Let me count the ways,† The author is not going to literally count the number of ways that she loved this person, but she is attempting to define love, and her love for the other for the other person. The next few lines are descriptive. The author attempts and seemingly effectively explains the love that she feels. From the authors words readers can see that this love is real, and not an infactuation. Through out the poem Elizabeth uses examples to explain her love, she tries to symbolize her love with life happenings. I love they with the passion put to use In my old griefs. † At the conclusion of the poem Browning says â€Å"I shall love thee even better after death. † From the tone of this line it sounds as though she thinks that some how she has failed in her demonstration of love and promises to exhibition of her emotion greater after their death. Two of the literary devices used in this poem are point of view, and description. In this poem the point of view used is first person. This allows the reader to hear and feel the passion poem as directly and originally intended by the author. Through out the entire poem Browning is directly is directly telling her inner most feeling for another. It is not an observer telling how they think that she individual feels. The effective use of this literary device better helps reader’s relation to and interpretation of the poem. Another literary device used is description. This device is strongly used in the poem from line two onwards. Though the lady is seemingly unsuccessful in describing the love, description is still a major factor. † I love thee freely. As men strive for right. This description reveals that she loves him as strong as a person would struggle or push for his or her beliefs. In essense she is a martyr of her love for him. Language is another important element in the poem. Elizabeth’s skill with punctuation is this is evident though out her work. She has effectively used punctuation through out her poem to greatly aid the reader in their comprehending, â€Å"I love thee to the depth and breath and height My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight For the ends of being an ideal grace. The pause after reach is pertinent to the true meaning of the quote, a use of a period at that same spot would change the meaning of the poem to be the limits that her soul can reach at anytime due to any emotion. Whereas with the pause it reads the limits of her soul when she feels useless. Another example of punctuation is in the first line of the poem â€Å"How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. † The use of the question marks slightly throws the reader off. At this point the reader cannot know whether this is a rhetorical question. The opening line might seem to be and impossible or stupid attempt to define the concept of love, but the next sentences settles the mind, as readers see it’s an out loud thought which she answers. Conclusively Elizabeth Barrett Browning,s poem is an effective use of the literary devices point of view and theme, and also her language. These elements in the poem helps the reader to understand what could have easily became a complex piece of work.

Graphics Communications Industry Essay

Graphics Communications Industry, according to the College of Technology at the University of Houston, is defined as the processes and industries that create, develop, produce, and disseminate products utilizing or incorporating words or pictorial images to convey information, ideas, and feelings. Its products make possible learning, enjoyment, enthusiasm, and business. These products like books, magazine, maps, invitation, etc. are part of people’s daily life. Graphic Communications includes those market sectors that exploit the technologies of printing, publishing, packaging, electronic imaging, and other associated industries. They are often referred to as the graphic arts, print, or imaging industries. Graphic communication companies are entrepreneurial and innovative. Ideas are created on the computer and carried through different stages that can include the Internet as well as printed forms of several types and variations. Due to the emerging technological advances, companies in the business have expanded services such as creative design, e-commerce, web page design and hosting, mailing, fulfillment, and a multitude of services that provide parallel marketing beyond the major printing activity. (Education Summit for the Graphic Arts 1) The field of Graphic Communications is obviously a technology-based system. It includes the developing technologies of computer-age press, image generation, data repurposing, designing and posting internet web pages, interactive multimedia, digital photography, electronic digital imaging, and desktop publishing. Furthermore, it offers a lot of career opportunities. Thus, it contributes a lot to the economy. It needs millions of people in a range of challenging technical, creative, or professional activities. They vary from small companies with a few workers to large plants with several hundred people on multiple shifts. Almost all companies have acquired modern computerized equipment and stay updated with technology changes taking place in the industry. The top ten leading states in total number of graphic communication employees are California, Illinois, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Ohio, Wisconsin, Minnesota, New Jersey, and Michigan. (Education Summit for the Graphic Arts 1) REFERENCES: â€Å"Graphic Communications Industry. † (2006). College of Technology, University of Houston. 7 April 2009 †¹http://graphics. tech. uh. edu/industry/industry. php†º â€Å"The GraphicCommunication Industry: A Quick Overview. † (April, 2008). Education Summit for the Graphic Arts. 7 April 2009 †¹http://teched. vt. edu/gcc/HTML/CareerInfo/PDFs/GraphicCommunicationOverview. pdf†º

Injustices on US Children essays

Injustices on US Children essays Injustices on American Children: Lack of Equality in Funds Allocated by the Local, State, and Federal Governments In the continuously changing society of todays world, the existence of discrimination based on age, gender, race, or prosperity is a constant. Over the years the government and its courts have tried to develop laws and amendments to end these forms of discrimination. One issue of public opinion is that of the discrimination that occurs within the public school systems involving the cyclical patterns of discrimination based on wealth and race. Jonathan Kozols book, Savage Inequalities, describes the struggle of children in unprivileged inner city schools and their battle with the public school system. The less wealthy, inner city students do not receive adequate schooling compares to that of the wealthier, suburban students due to their dependence on aid from the local governments, the segregation that results from this factor, and the lack of resources allocated to the schools. Public schools rely on local governments for their source of money and materials. Schools receive the majority of their funds from property taxes (OConner 139). In the inner city schools, most of the time parents do not have enough money to raise additional funds to improve the condition of the schools their children are attending as do the parents of higher class suburban schools. Without money received from these taxes, very little additional money would be allocated to the inner city school systems. Kozol expresses his feelings of this inequality in the system that is the basis for funding public schools by saying, The richer districts- those in which the property lots and houses are highly valued have more revenue, derived from taxing land and homes, to fund their public schools (Kozol 121). In effect, the less wealthy have little to no chance at achieving more governmental aid because the funds...

American Progress Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

American Progress - Term Paper Example It was a rationalization that growth and western movement was to help in spreading of Christianity. The advocates of Manifest Destiny were guided by the themes of virtue, mission and destiny. The American progress painting shows a translucently and unsteady dressed America floating westwards through the air with the star of empire on her brow. Behind her are the cities of the East, the wide Mississippi and her route is westward. On the right of the picture is a city, schools, steam trains and churches over which beams of illumination are streaming and lighting the air representing progress. The theme of the painting depicts general confusion. She carries a school book of her national enlightenment testimonial on her right hand while her left hand is used to trail slender wires of the telegraph for binding the nation. Her advance causes the fleeing of Indians, wild horses, buffaloes and bears disappearing in the tempest and waves of the pacific coastline. They are fleeing the amazing vision of the star is too much for them. The assumption is that they are of the same class thus dehumanizing the natives into animals which make their dislocation more pleasant. Everything in the east is arranged in order unlike the territory towards the Rockies is engulfed in black clouds of lack of knowledge and uncivilisation. Next to the forefront are homesteaders moving on plains, breaking the lawn and their backs in bringing an unfriendly terrain under nurturing. The picture portrays the whole splendid immigration of the savage waste by the development. It also hints at the past, lays out an unbelievable version of a developing present and the vision of the prospect. The painting is divided into four main parts which are: heaven above, the earth below, right and left and are divided into positive, superior, negative, weak, powerful, conscious. Spiritual light, undeveloped and primal darkness. The painting of the American history portrays the east as a place that was void of an y evils as it is brought out as a civilized place symbolized with clearness as compared with the west which was symbolized with darkness. John Gast’s painting of the American history omitted the coin history. With the civilization of America was to be determined by economic growth as it was the back bone of the developments in the whole world. The manifest Destiny led to the standards of living improving but this meant low wages, long working hours and poor working conditions as growth in the economy affected all aspects of the American structure. Latest developments and opportunities were always associated with new societal tribulations. The painter avoided highlighting the evils in the history of America which define the Americans. Racial terrorism engineered by the Ku Klux Klan who engaged in intimidation, physical violence, lynching, genocide and other forms of evils. The painting is called the magnificent destiny but there is the omission of God in the picture. The paint ing shows a woman carrying an extension of the telegraph from the east heading to the west. Though this shows civilization, the pony riders lost their jobs as they were replaced by the telegraphs. The picture of a half naked woman is symbolical in the sense that the woman has to some degree covered herself. This action of covering herself might mean that

Response Paper #3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Response Paper #3 - Essay Example Before delving into the niceties of legal theory, it will serve us to first review the components of the statute that appellant Omeira stands convicted of contravening and, thereafter, applying those same components to the facts of the case. Simply stated, section 901.34(1), Wessex Code, the Native Art Protection Act (or NAPA), forbids export of native works of art produced before 1920 and worth more than 100,000 pounds. The statute is quite specific. It does not address such matters as forgery—indeed a forged work of art (e.g., unlawful export of an ostensible work by the celebrated 15th century Wessex master Harpo that was actually produced in the studio of the less appreciated 17th century Wessex sculptor Groucho) might well satisfy the three desiderata of the Act. The Act, however, does establish three elements that must be present for the Act to be applicable in a specific case. First, the work of art in question must be of Wessex origin. Second, it must have been produced before 1920. And, third, it must be appraised at more than 100,000 pounds. We may apply these specific desiderata to the work in question, Seminole Falls, ostensibly the work of the 18th century Wessex master Decameron, but now known to be a modern forgery—the product of Belgian landscape artist Flammarion, to determine if the Act has been violated. First, Seminole Falls is not of Wessex origin. Evidence, bordering on the conclusive, points to its production in Flammarion’s Antwerp studio. Second, Flammarion did not establish himself as a prominent landscape painter until the mid-1960s. Therefore, Seminole Falls could not have been produced before 1920, a requirement necessary to implicate the Act. Finally, third, the value of the work has been established as less than 100,000 pounds. As our brother, Justice Newson, succinctly described it, â€Å"An expert from the Arts Council inspected the painting and