What Is An American Essays - Libertarian Theory,

What Is An American What Does American Mean? Websters Dictionary defines American as or its inhabitants. But is that all America and an American truly is? Is a person American simply because of geography? According to Identities, America is a confluence of cultures. Americans are people whose lives depict men and women who are trying to be as successful and robust as possible, this quest is symbolic to citizens of many other countries. This is why America illustrates the Statue of Liberty, a structure that symbolizes freedom throughout the world. America is composed not only of these peoples, but the cultures and the ways of life of these people. The Statue of Liberty symbolizes a fearless and powerful figure. Steinbeck agrees that Americans are fearless when he writes, Americans seem to live and breathe and function by paradox. Americans are fearless and risk taking, spending time and money doing things like skydiving, bungijumping, and other extreme sports. Ignoring in most cases the risk factors involved in such activities, believing that nothing is going to go wrong, that it will occur perfectly and flawlessly. This is a trait that many Americans have the refuse to believe that they are in danger. Most Americans believe that even though the limb they are on is weak, its strong enough for their safety needs. Americans daily routines are can also be described as fearless. Case in point for many is the commute to and from work. Most people speed and drive aggressively because they always are in a hurry. Americans have the idea of being perfect drives, for instance, and never making mistakes. The Statue of Liberty can also be described as fearless. The Statue of Liberty is what most people think of when asked what symbolizes America. First, the Statue of Liberty is a massive structure. Second, it is located on the edge of the ocean, able to endure all the elements the weather can throw at it. Third, it has one hand raised in a charismatic fashion, symbolizing fearlessness and powerfullness. Steinbeck writes no one can define the American Way of Life or point to any person or group who lives in it, but it is real nevertheless. The way an American lives their life differs from person to person. Two Americans from the same country, living on the same street, have different ways of practicing their religions, celebrating holidays, and pursuing their culture in general. Americans can act freely, just as the Statue of Liberty depicts freedom to Americans. The Statue of Liberty is a statue of freedom, giving Americans the right to live and practice their culture however they want. There is no such thing as a true American identity. According to the essay Identities, Identity has always been a difficult question nagging the collective American mind. No two Americans are the same, no two live in the same manner. One person cannot tell another how to live ones life; one person cannot define him/herself as living the American way of life. This is because the Statue of Liberty symb olizes to people all over that America is the land of the free. Americans are free to make their decisions about what it is to be an American and how one lives. According to Identities Americans have argued and wondered about who they are. The Statue of Liberty once was the first thing that immigrants saw when they came to America. However, there is no set of rules or guidelines on it that say what is to be American. No one person can tell another that he/she is not an American because there is no recipe on what attributes a true American has. In Whats Happening to America, John Steinbeck writes, we work to hard and may die under the strain. An American can often be termed a hard worker. The Statue of Liberty is a woman who works to escape the chains of tyranny. An American is also a hard worker, and many look to the Stature as a role model. The Statue is a huge structure that requires the work of many hard working Americans to maintain every year. In Whats Happening to America? Steinbeck also discusses the government. He writes We are

Free Essays on Revenge At Its Sweetest

Revenge at its Sweetest Only a few slow moving tumbleweeds occupied the desert terrain. The endless plain of dust and hot dry dirt seemed to have no occupants; it was as if the ground hadn't been walked over for years. Suddenly, the seemingly endless silence was broken by a gradual fade into a chaotic rumbling sound. The sound grew more ferocious and eventually became unbearably loud. Just then in the distance behind a cliff, a cloud of dust appeared and out of it raced seven cars racing at insane speeds. It looked as if the cars had been built from scraps of hard iron and metal for the sole purpose was to fight against other contenders in this barren wasteland. In front of the pack was a sleek fast car, being pursued by six other cars, but one could tell the leading car was an extremely experienced driver possessing total control of the vehicle. The dark and mysterious figure behind the wheel of the leading car sported a helmet, and painted in red lettering on the side of the helmet was the name "MAX†. Max reached across the seat and pulled out a sawed-off shotgun, and after putting it out the window shot a round back at the following pack of cars. Immediately, one car at the back swerved dangerously and rolled several times before bursting into flames broadcasting pieces of shrapnel across the barren wasteland. The pack of cars was quickly approaching a deep canyon; they would have to break hard immediately to avoid careening over the edge of it. Max didn't slow down, Max slammed the accelerator to the floor and gave it a shot of Nitrous, and then with such extremity and determination the car screamed as if in pain as it lurched forward, faster than ever. Then the car leapt off the canyon's edge and became airborne. Gliding through the air without any control of the car didn't seem to faze Max at all. The car seemed to delicately touch down on the other side as if there was a bridge. The following pack ended up being oblitera... Free Essays on Revenge At Its Sweetest Free Essays on Revenge At Its Sweetest Revenge at its Sweetest Only a few slow moving tumbleweeds occupied the desert terrain. The endless plain of dust and hot dry dirt seemed to have no occupants; it was as if the ground hadn't been walked over for years. Suddenly, the seemingly endless silence was broken by a gradual fade into a chaotic rumbling sound. The sound grew more ferocious and eventually became unbearably loud. Just then in the distance behind a cliff, a cloud of dust appeared and out of it raced seven cars racing at insane speeds. It looked as if the cars had been built from scraps of hard iron and metal for the sole purpose was to fight against other contenders in this barren wasteland. In front of the pack was a sleek fast car, being pursued by six other cars, but one could tell the leading car was an extremely experienced driver possessing total control of the vehicle. The dark and mysterious figure behind the wheel of the leading car sported a helmet, and painted in red lettering on the side of the helmet was the name "MAX†. Max reached across the seat and pulled out a sawed-off shotgun, and after putting it out the window shot a round back at the following pack of cars. Immediately, one car at the back swerved dangerously and rolled several times before bursting into flames broadcasting pieces of shrapnel across the barren wasteland. The pack of cars was quickly approaching a deep canyon; they would have to break hard immediately to avoid careening over the edge of it. Max didn't slow down, Max slammed the accelerator to the floor and gave it a shot of Nitrous, and then with such extremity and determination the car screamed as if in pain as it lurched forward, faster than ever. Then the car leapt off the canyon's edge and became airborne. Gliding through the air without any control of the car didn't seem to faze Max at all. The car seemed to delicately touch down on the other side as if there was a bridge. The following pack ended up being oblitera...

Australia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Australia - Essay Example Despite these, Australia comes out a host of other diversified cultural practices. When meeting a person for the first time, the person is greeted with the right hand and people who are known to each other do not kiss and even hug when meeting; but talk generally about personal matters. Australian day, Anzac Day, Melbourne Cup Day, are some of the days that have national meaning in Australia. There are various ways in which the Australians behave in their day-to-day life as a society. Australia being a multicultural country encourages everyone to maintain and practice his/her cultural beliefs as it respects the rights of other individuals to do the same. Words such as â€Å"thank you† and â€Å"please† are used to show polite behavior; slang is also common among the Australians. There are no laws to govern the way an individual should dress although one has to wear specific clothes during the time of work. Invitations are usually spoken or written and when one is invited to an event, the individual responds via phone call or a

Hookah Bar Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Hookah Bar - Essay Example As such, it becomes necessary to consider the nature of business practices and the manner in which the businesses align with some of the dominant cultural practices in the region. In the field of entrepreneurship, it is important for business practices to align with aspects of the culture in order to avoid the mismatch between the nature of services and the dominant cultural practices that influence market trends (Lee-Ross and Conrad 60). The process of establishing a Hookah Bar in Denver will also require a study into the balance between the level of risk and rewards. This stage will involve the conducting of a thorough survey that will require the determination of a range of issues that affect the variables of profitability, revenue, expenses, and other factors that directly relate to the business. It will be important to consider the fact that some of the issues that affect the business are dependent on the costs of operation. Calculations will be conducted regarding the levels of overheads and other costs in terms of how they influence the factors of performance and sustainability of the market. As such, the business will be considered to be viable if the promise of rewards outweigh the kind of risks involved. Presently, the prospects of success are high given the fact that existing businesses have remained relatively stable for a long time. One of the most important factors that shall be considered when establishing the business is the creation of a strong client base. The establishment of a strong client base will require an assessment of the cultural aspects in the Denver population in order to determine the consumption patterns and other important factors that can help to strengthen the clientele. I will find out from the clients some specific information about their likes and dislikes in the existing businesses. The major objective will be to capitalize on the weaknesses of the existing players on the market to maximize on the gains reached by

Adaptive Optics for Vision Science Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Adaptive Optics for Vision Science - Term Paper Example Astronomers have come up with a system that improves on the optic systems; used to study space that can counter this distortion brought about by the front waves, a system known as â€Å"Adaptive Optics†. Adaptive optics refers to an astronomy technology that improves the performance of optical systems through reduction turbulence of the earth’s atmosphere distortions. Adaptive optic system purposes to correct deformations Caused by the turbulence of the earth’s atmosphere. This correction happens by using deformed mirrors that are controlled by a computer so as to compensate for the distortion by the incoming wavefront. The image obtained through this system is usually as sharp as the ones taken in space. The system allows observation of dimmer (faint) astronomical details of the corrected optical system that would possibly be observed from the ground. For the system to work effectively, it requires a bright reference star located close to the object being studie d. Astronomers do create artificial stars by shining a very strong laser beam into the upper atmosphere of the earth, in cases where an appropriate natural star is not available around the object of study (Hardy, 2010). Normally, light gets distorted as it passes through the wavefront thus preventing the formation of sharp images by a telescope placed on earth’s surface. The adaptive optic system eliminates this blurring effect of the atmosphere. The adaptive optics works by measuring atmospheric distortion in the light coming from the star or the other artificial source of light. Electronic signals are then sent to a deformable mirror that rapidly changes its shape to correct this distortion. This system has the ability to see hundreds of separate beams of light while looking at a single beam of light from a star even those that have been deviated due to atmospheric turbulence.

Competitive Advantage: CSR

Competitive Advantage: CSR CSR means that a corporation should be held accountable for any of its actions that affect people, their communities and their environment; it may require a company to forgo some profits if its social impacts are seriously harmful to the corporations stakeholders or if its funds can be used to promote a positive social good (Frederick, Post, Davis, 1992, p. 10). Tougher competition recently has compelled the firms to adopt something that is different from their rivals and has also put a pressure on the firms to examine their philanthropy and other social activities, by doing so the company can sometimes achieve a strategic advantage over its competitors (Burke Logsdon, 1996). David Vogel wrote There is a business case for CSR but it is much less important or influential than many proponents of civil regulation believe, CSR is best understood as a niche rather than a generic strategy: it makes business sense for some firms in some areas in some circumstances.There is a place in the market economy for responsible firms. But there is also a large place for their less responsible competitors (Vogel, 2006, p. 3). This essay will outline whether and how competitive advantage can be achieved by organisations through CSR. This will be done by critically discussing what CSR is? Further emphasising on how it gives an organisation strategic advantage over its other competitors. Various definitions of CSR have been given by various theorists, making the study of CSR even more complex. CSR activities have been posited to include incorporating social characteristics or features into products and manufacturing processes like aerosol products with no fluorocarbons or using environmentally-friendly technologies, adopting progressive human resource management practices like promoting employee empowerment, achieving higher levels of environmental performance through recycling and pollution abatement like adopting an aggressive stance towards reducing emissions, and advancing the goals of community organizations like working closely with groups such as United Way. Researchers are moving beyond just defining and identifying CSR activities, to examining the strategic role of CSR in organizations. (Mcwilliams, Seigel, Wright, 2006, p. 2) There are 2 types of approaches to CSR, the charity principle and stewardship approach. Charity principle is when the companies take on a social role just because they want to; its a charitable deed and has nothing to do with the profitability of the company. Stewardship approach is when companies act in interest of the people that are affected by the business decisions and policies to gain an advantage, it is in line with the Freidmans stakeholder approach explained further in the essay. Even today companies interpret CSR as normal day to day decision making process that dont need much expertise. Its true that CSR is influenced highly by the moral imperative. In some situations moral implications are easy to apply like filing accounts honestly, acting ethically but sometimes the company has to weigh its moral decisions with the impact it can have on the stakeholders which can be difficult. For instance, Googles entry in china has created a feeling of repulsion amongst its US customers towards censorship imposed by the Chinese government. Therefore in this situation one social benefit has to be weighed against another and also against the financial costs that would arise (Porter Kramer, 2006). It is important for the companies to understand that if the prevailing approach to CSR is changed and more emphasis is given on the importance of social responsibility like other core competencies of a firm, it can be discovered that CSR is more than just a cost, constraint or a charitable deed; it is a source of innovation, opportunity and competitive advantage (Porter Kramer, 2006). There are various situations under which an organization would undertake the CSR approach, When an organization wants to create an opportunity based on the societal trend or issue or when a organization seeks to solve a business problem that cant be solved within the traditional business boundaries or When an organization seeks to protect itself from a threat posed by a societal issue. or When an organization seeks to have a greater business and societal impact from its existing CSR program. (Milliman, Ferguson, Sylvester, 2008, pp. 30-31) Milton Friedman in an article to New York Times said that, the only social responsibility of a business is to increase its profit (Porter Kramer, 2002, p. 6). According to Freidman the only aim of an organization is to achieve profit on the other hand Freeman argues that a firm has responsibility towards the internal or external stakeholders of the firm which should be taken into account (Galbreath, 2009). Freemans Stakeholder theory basically describes what a firm should do or should not do in terms of their societal responsibilities and is more inclined towards CSR. More recently, the society expects companies to behave ethically and in a socially responsible manner, that means they expect the companies to not only be interested in their profits but also pay attention to the interest of the broader group of stakeholders like consumers, suppliers and society at large. There has been increasing societal pressures like negative media coverage on the companies that are socially inacti ve thus driving the companies towards CSR (Pater Lierop, 2006). But the way CSR is being practiced recently, what Freidman said is proving to be right, companies adopt for short term CSR objectives that are not coherent and diffused with the organizations mission. It is only to attain profit and earn the goodwill of its customers, employees and the local community. (Porter Kramer, 2002). Many companies adopted CSR not because they thought it was important for the company to survive but because of the media coverage and public reaction to the issues they were involved in. for example, Nike faced consumer boycott after New York Times reported that the labour was being abused by Nike in third world countries like Pakistan and Indonesia. Thats when Nike realised that it was time to act responsibly or at least act to be responsible to regain one of the four 4 Rs of CSR that the company was losing -Reputation. On the other hand some other companies were successful in understanding that society and businesses are interdependent. One of them would be Mr. Steven T.Bigari, owner a string of McDonalds franchises in Colorado Springs. Steven had a problem of high turnover rates amongst his front line workers affecting the profits of the firm (Fitzgerald, 2007). The problem persisted even after giving them pay incentives. Steven concluded that the traditional HR practices were not helping and therefore he decided to look into the matter deeper and tried to find out from the workers the reason for them not coming to work regularly. He found out that many of his low wage workers had number of personal life constraints like lack of transportation, child care etc which was the key reason of high turnover. Therefore Bigari started considering various methods of how these underlying societal issues affecting his business can be addressed. He developed programs with governmental organizations and NGOs to provide social service needed by his workers. This process took time but it also solved the problem which the traditional HR practice couldnt. Therefore by doing so, Steve was successful in achieving a much more reliable and productive workforce and also create a positive impact on the personal lives of his employees (Milliman, Ferguson, Sylvester, 2008). Thus this shows how CSR can be used to gain economic benefits for the company by also creating a social impact. Social and economic benefits are often seen as two distinct objectives but companies need to find out where these two objectives converge for their organization. This would enable them to acquire decent amount of economic benefits as well create a sustainable impact on the society. Competitiveness today depends on how efficiently the companies use their resources to increase productivity and exploit the opportunities. CSR has to be seen as a strategic resource which has to be exploited to gain competitive advantage out of it. Does social and environmental consciousness actually lead to competitive advantage? This is one difficult question to be answered. Toyota Found a new market in Japan with its environmentally sound product Toyota Prius and Body Shop gained an advantage over its competitors for its safe products. Toyota took advantage of the opportunity it got to pioneer innovation to benefit the society thus generating a competitive advantage for itself. The Toyota Prius is the first successful hybrid gasoline/electric vehicle that has produced competitive advantage and environmental benefits. The cars engine is hybrid and emits only 10% of the harmful gasses that the conventional engines produce and consume only half as much gas. The car was rated as the car of the year in 2004 by the motor trends magazine. The car is associated with the slogan, harmony between man, nature and machine (3rd Generation Prius, 2009). This innovation has given Toyota a strategic advantage over its competitors, one of the m being Ford who wants to acquire the technology from Toyota (Porter Kramer, 2006). Competitive advantage occurs through CSR when one company implements the strategies of CSR for the benefit of the company and a competitor fails to do the same (Filho, Wanderly, Gomez, Farache, 2010). Adoption of CSR also gives the company an opportunity to premium price its product also helping in the promotions of the product and attracting consumers which impacts positively on the companys financial performance (Mason Simmons, 2011). But there are other companies that have also failed in linking CSR with profitability. Therefore its hard to say whether CSR leads to competitive advantage directly but it most definitely supports the other core competences of a firm, indirectly giving a competitive advantage. Gaining a competitive advantage by only introducing Triple Bottom Line is difficult, instead a company should focus on developing an innovative model of Triple Bottom Line. When a consumer finds a product or a company that is more inclined towards the CSR objectives; it tends to give them an advantage over other firms in a number of ways. A few consumers are just more environmentally conscious and therefore if they find a product which is environmentally safe, they would prefer that one over the one that is not. It is important for the companies to develop a niche market for their products. For example, body shop has distinguished itself by long term social commitment. The company should think of its long term advantages like reputation, etc that can be achieved through acting responsibly socially than the short term interests than can cause harm to the society or environment. And this approach fits perfectly if the company gains cost advantage out of it. Nestle is a perfect illustration of how long term competitive advantage can be achieved through CSR. In 1962, Nestle was expanding in India and they got a permission from the government to build a dairy in Moga, when they started expanding in the region they realised that the farmers in India were facing problems like severe poverty, the farmers were living without the basic needs like electricity, adequate food, there was no proper transportation, telephones or medical care in the region. Farmers owned less than five acres of infertile land and kept only one cow that would produce milk sufficient for their own consumption only. The milk often got adulterated in transit because there was no proper refrigeration, transportation and way to test the quality of the milk. Therefore to solve this problem, nestle implemented CSR strategies and tried to build the factor and demand conditions in the area. Nestle built refrigerated dairy which was the collection point for milk from the farmers in town and trucks were sent from these dairies to the veterinarians, ergonomists to test the quality of the milk. Thus Nestle established a value chain similar to its value chain in its country of origin, Switzerland. The farmers were also trained and the sick animals were taken care off. This improved the productivity of the cows and also improved the working conditions in the area for the farmers. Initially when the company expanded in the area there were only 180 farmers supplying milk but today there are almost 75000 farmers involved with around 650 dairies in the region and the milk production has increased 50 times. Nestlà ©s working with the small workers gives them an advantage of saving the costs that they would have to incur if they had middlemen. Nestlà ©s CSR objective is part of their strategy and is adopted by them when they expand in other developing countries too (Porter Kramer, 2006). Also there are various standards like that can be used to create a positive impact on the stakeholders creating a strategic advantage for the company. There are various triple bottom line indicators like the GRI (global reporting initiative), ISO: 14000, ISO: 26000, EMAS (Eco-Management and Audit Scheme) that affect companys reputation to the customers, suppliers, competitors, the stakeholders basically. These standards help in developing good relations with the government. Also employees think that they are working in a company trying to save the environment thus increasing their commitment levels and increasing their chances to stay with the organization. Investors would also be interested because it would affect the share prices. EMAS and ISO dont give a full picture; these standards dont cover the social indicators whereas GRI gives a full picture covering all the triple bottom line indicators. Most researchers agree that CSR provides an organization with various advantages and is not only useful for the society but also for the organization. It provides with the societys favour and lowers the risks of business operations; forms the image of the corporation and improves its reputation; stimulates the organizations innovation and creative work; helps to find easier ways to attract external sources of sponsorship; broadens markets and makes situations for sales increase; helps to attract positively motivated employees, enhances the value of human capital; stimulates the organizations culture; lowers expenditures, stimulates production and income increase, enhances the efficiency of work (JuÃ…Â ¡Ãƒâ€žÃ‚ ius SnieÃ…Â ¡ka, 2008, p. 35). There have been debates that more and more companies have started adopting CSR and it has moved all the way to the boardrooms. This can be proved by around 360 CSR-related shareholder resolutions being passed by the companies in 2005. These shareholder resolutions range from issues relating to labour conditions and global warming and other social problems. Out of 250 large multinationals, 64% of the companies published their CSR reports either within their annual reports or separately as a sustainability report (Porter Kramer, 2006). Even the government has been stressing on the importance of CSR by making it mandatory for every publicly listed company to disclose its CSR related risks in the annual report. The businesses do know about these risks but they are not clear as to what has to be done to eliminate these risks and the response of companies have not been very strategic or operational. Companies come up with CSR reports but these reports dont really give an account of an art iculate or strategic framework of CSR activities of the company, instead it mentions uncoordinated CSR activities carried out by the company to show its social sensitivity. Therefore its important for the companies to turn to academic experts for advice and start thinking of CSR as a source of gaining competitive advantage (Porter Kramer, 2006). Companies know that addressing the societal expectations is important to keep their stakeholders happy but they are not aware about how to strategize it to gain competitive success (Galbreath, 2009). Companies are not liable for all the social, environmental problems that occur but it is about taking the responsibility to identify the problem that they can gain a competitive advantage from and act on them. As Porter Kramer(2006, p. 92) state, addressing social issues by creating shared value will lead to self sustaining solutions that do not depend on private or governmental subsidies. Thus it can be said that by linking businesses to the societal or environmental issues, a company can develop solutions that are socially responsible that provide an operational and competitive advantage (Fisher, et al. 2009).

In Someone Elses Eyes :: War Essays

In Someone Else's Eyes Many young people develop our concept of war through our schooling and the media. We had no knowledge of what war is first hand until the current "war on terrorism." Still the majority of us have not seen warfare up close; we have not felt the many emotions that warfare carries with it. For many individuals war brings pain and suffering, while for others it brings freedom and liberation. According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, war is "an actual intentional and widespread armed conflict between political communities"(Orend). This definition is flexible enough to include civil wars while not too broad to exclude conflicts in trade. There are several positions that one can hold when it comes to war. The three main positions held are political realism, just war theory, and pacifism. Political realists believe a country should go to war if it is in their national interest. Just war theorists' believe that war is okay in certain situations as long as the country follows the "rules of war." Pacifists believe that war is never okay and is always wrong. For my Honors 103 class at California State University San Bernardino I was required to interview a war Veteran. Going into this interview I believed in the just war theory. This interview only reinforced my beliefs. Only those who have experienced war first hand truly understand war. The closest I can come to this understanding without participating in war myself is to learn about those experiences from people who have been through them and try to put myself in their shoes, to try to experience war through them. This will give me the foundation needed to understand war and what comes along with it. I hope to do this by sharing with you my experience interviewing a war veteran. I interviewed Leo Maas, a former soldier who fought for our country in both World War II and in the Korean War. The experiences he shared with me were unexpected. He put war into a new light for me. When Leo joined the Navy, he was only 17, and the WWII had yet to begin. Before the war had even begun, he saw the tragedy that it could bring. He spent some time on a crash crew at a flight school, and there were plenty of accidents. So at an age when many teenagers' problems are who to take to the prom, this young soldier had to pick up what was left of these young pilots. In Someone Else's Eyes :: War Essays In Someone Else's Eyes Many young people develop our concept of war through our schooling and the media. We had no knowledge of what war is first hand until the current "war on terrorism." Still the majority of us have not seen warfare up close; we have not felt the many emotions that warfare carries with it. For many individuals war brings pain and suffering, while for others it brings freedom and liberation. According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, war is "an actual intentional and widespread armed conflict between political communities"(Orend). This definition is flexible enough to include civil wars while not too broad to exclude conflicts in trade. There are several positions that one can hold when it comes to war. The three main positions held are political realism, just war theory, and pacifism. Political realists believe a country should go to war if it is in their national interest. Just war theorists' believe that war is okay in certain situations as long as the country follows the "rules of war." Pacifists believe that war is never okay and is always wrong. For my Honors 103 class at California State University San Bernardino I was required to interview a war Veteran. Going into this interview I believed in the just war theory. This interview only reinforced my beliefs. Only those who have experienced war first hand truly understand war. The closest I can come to this understanding without participating in war myself is to learn about those experiences from people who have been through them and try to put myself in their shoes, to try to experience war through them. This will give me the foundation needed to understand war and what comes along with it. I hope to do this by sharing with you my experience interviewing a war veteran. I interviewed Leo Maas, a former soldier who fought for our country in both World War II and in the Korean War. The experiences he shared with me were unexpected. He put war into a new light for me. When Leo joined the Navy, he was only 17, and the WWII had yet to begin. Before the war had even begun, he saw the tragedy that it could bring. He spent some time on a crash crew at a flight school, and there were plenty of accidents. So at an age when many teenagers' problems are who to take to the prom, this young soldier had to pick up what was left of these young pilots.

Othello Plot Points Essay

Othello’s Ensign, hates him cause he’s black, wants Cassio’s job, believes he would be better Cassio- Innocent Party, gets a job as Othello’s Lieutenant, gets into a fight and his stripped of rank, but goes to Desdemonia to try and win back Othello’s favour Roderigo- Loves Desdemonia, is persuaded by Iago to attempt to kill Cassio, is murdered by Iago to remain silent (d) Emilia- Married to Iago, gives iago the handkerchief that convinces Othello that Desdemonia and Cassio had a relationship (d) Plot Othello marries Desdemonia in secret. However Roderigo goes to her father and blows their cover. Othello is forced to defend himself from accusations of witchcraft. News of a Turkish invasion of Cyprus reaches Venice, and Othello, with Cassio his new Lieutenant, and Iago, his ensign, are deployed to Cyprus to defend against the Turkish fleet. Desdemonia is allowed to accompany Othello, and Emilia, Iago’s wife, accompanies her as her attendant. Th e enemy fleet is destroyed by a storm. Othello calls for a celebration, during which Iago gets Cassio drunk, who causes a fight. Othello strips him of his rank, and blames him for the disturbance caused by Iago. However, Iago tells Cassio to go to Desdemonia, and convince her to try to plead his case. Whilst Cassio does this, Iago goes to Othello and hints that Cassio and Desdemonia are having an affair. For the rest of the film, â€Å"Honest Iago† controls the actions of the characters, turning Othello against his wife and Roderigo against Cassio so that, at the end of the play, Roderigo attempts to murder Cassio, while Othello smothers his wife after accusing her of betraying him and having an affair with Cassio. Roderigo fails, and after he is identified as Cassio’s attacker Iago murders him, claiming to have been overcome with rage, but really silencing to cover his involvement. Othello then murders his wife, however Emilia walks in calls for help. As the truth comes out, Othello realises his wife was innocent. Iago murders his wife after she reveals what he has done. He is then captured and brought before Othello, who stabs him but does not murder him, saying he would prefer Iago live in pain for the rest of his life than die. Othello then kills himself out of guilt at what he has done. Iago is hauled off to be tortured, and Cassio is made Governer of Cyrpus. The end.

Free sample - Saboteur. translation missing

Saboteur. SaboteurAt first glance, Mr. Chiu's revenge was neither justified nor proportionate.   Mr. Chiu had no moral right to infect innocent people with hepatitis. Besides, he indirectly killed six people including two children. The non proportionality of his revenge was illustrated by the number of infected people. Thus, on the one side we see two men who were tortured but still were alive and could continue to live. On the other side there are two actually innocent children and eight hundred infected who suffered for the crimes of the local police. In addition, it is not obvious that those policemen that had maltreated Mr. Chiu and Fenjin were affected by infection and became the victims of Mr. Chiu's revenge. The cruelty of his actions is non human. Perhaps, it is explained by the fact that Mr. Chiu's colleagues â€Å"joked about his flesh, which they said must have tasted nonhuman to flea† (Jin). Consequently, we may see that his revenge was blind and caused not by the wish to conduct justice but by his inability to resist local police as actually all facts were fabricated against him and he had no chance of successful outcome in case of court claim. Nevertheless, could Mr. Chiu be really affected by such primitive emotions? He continued to think about his paper on the nature of contradictions even being in the prison so his mind was clear all the time. Besides, he was â€Å"an expert in dialectical materialism† so he could easily find all pros and contras of his actions and those arguments must have been rather sophisticated. Can we find any justification for his actions? Actually, there is at least one possible. Local police based its charges on the evidences of people who crowded around Mr. Chiu at the moment of his quarrel with two policemen. Each of those witnesses was a liar and they made Mr. Chiu and his friend suffer and threatened his life. From this point of view not only policemen were criminals but also other simple people were so. Their criminality reflected not only in the false evidences but also in their inability to resist local police and to set fair authorities. Policemen were not an alien element of that society as they originated from it and actually were a part of the society and the monster created by that weak-hearted society. Hence, Mr. Chiu's revenge was justified as he punished the same society which had indirectly led to his sufferings. Was it right to kill those two children? As for me, neither wish for justice may be justified by the child's tears but we shall try to look at it from China's cultural perspective. The history of China is full of examples when not only the family of delinquent official but also the families of his relatives were executed. Thus, the idea was that children were responsible for the crimes of their parents. The reason of such cruelty was not only the wish to exclude the possibility of relatives' revenge but also to eliminate those social factors that led to offense. In case of Mr. Chiu such social factor was an absence of will and conformism of the locals who had not resisted the police but upheld its actions. Hence, Mr. Chiu had revenged in the spirit of Chinese traditions and it may be justified and may be found to be proportionate in the light of that society's ideas but not the society recognizing the importance of human rights. Nevertheless, even in such case, Mr. Chiu's actions lac ked a very important element. It may be presumed that revenge is a sort of justice. Both Utilitarian and Natural Law theories of justice indicate that there shall be a connection between the crime and the punishment. Natural law theory says that offender shall understand that he or she is punished for the specific crime he or she committed and Utilitarian theory claims that punishment shall influence the offender and other people in the way to preclude repetition of the crime (West). Were any of such motives present in Mr. Chiu's actions? None. Affected people could not know the reason of the disease, they didn't understand that it was a punishment for their conformism and consequently did not change their behavior. Hence, Mr. Chiu's revenge may not be justified from any point of view and I consider it to be a blind cruel revenge caused by his powerlessness.

The Vietnam Conflict The Vietnam War was a long and

The Vietnam Conflict The Vietnam War was a long and The Vietnam Conflict The Vietnam War was a long and frustrating experience for the American people. Even before the United States involvement began, North and South Vietnam were in conflict with each other. ?When Vietnam was divided in 1954, many Viet Minh who had been born in the southern part of the country returned to their native villages to await the 1956 elections and the reunification of their nation?(Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 99). When the elections did not take place as planned, these Viet Minh sought to overthrow Diem?s government (Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 99). ? The Viet Minh were greatly aided in their efforts to organize resistance in the countryside by Diem?s own policies, which alienated many peasants? (Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 99).Beginning in 1955, the United States created the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) in South Vietnam. Although Diem was not liked by the U.S. he was the only man that the United States had out there, so they had to back him (Karnow 214).Scene of Viet Cong terrorist bombing in Saigon, Re...Using these troops, Diem took land away from peasants and returned it to former landlords, reversing the land redistribution program implemented by the Viet Minh. Many villagers were moved from their homes to controlled settlements in order to stop Communist activity. Diem also drafted their sons into the ARVN. ?By the late 1950s police-state measures directed against anyone who disagreed with the prevailing edicts of the Diem Regime forced all opposition into the agonizing choice of self-imposed exile (if rich), total silence (if less fortunate and thus forced to remain in Vietnam) or armed 2 resistance? (Fall 138). By 1959, however, opposition to Diem was so widespread in rural areas that the southern Communists formed the National Liberation Front (NLF), and in 1960 the North Vietnamese government gave its formal sanction to the...

Analytical report of a case study-Operation Management Essay

Analytical report of a case study-Operation Management - Essay Example rt has successfully come up with suggestions as to how Grandiose must streamline its operations in order to minimise the requirement of disposable funds and at the time optimise the available space. Tenets of inventory management have been cited throughout the report in order to reinforce the recommendations. It has been suggested that Grandiose should undertake an extensive consumer research in order to envision the demands that it may face in the near future and hence plan its inventory accordingly. Simultaneously, it should also create long lasting associations with the automobile manufacturers and make use of the fact that manufacturers are enhancing their participation in supply chain relationships with dealers and customers. Grandiose Motors have turned a new leaf in its corporate history by becoming an auto supermarket wherein it will sell multiple brands of automobiles at the same location. The new dealership will be selling a line of Nissans, Toyotas and Volkswagens – premium cars that have been luring customers for years. However, it has been observed that the company is strained by woes pertaining mostly to operational constraints such as deployable funds, space and seasonality of purchase items. Based on a case study that describes the operations management at Grandiose, this report will aim at recommending to its CEO, Mr. Felix Fabulous the structural aspects that will help in bettering the purchasing as well as inventory functions in the context of the company’s dealership network. The report will also make attempts to outline the differences that may arise between policies and procedures pertaining to purchasing as well as inventory management. This area is found to be vital becau se automobile dealers characteristically purchase different types of materials and service parts. Finally, the report will try to throw light upon the areas of inventory management and supply chain management to evaluate how these may reduce the investment as well as

Chapter 8. WE TAKE NOTHING BY CONQUEST, THANK GOD Assignment

Chapter 8. WE TAKE NOTHING BY CONQUEST, THANK GOD - Assignment Example Though now when everything is forgotten, and it seems absolutely habitual and reasonable that these states belong to the US as they have become its pride and attraction. While several centuries ago these events caused numerous human victims and provoked serious disputes in the society. The question if this expansion can be considered justified or it is only a byproduct of the growing America`s pride and ambitions was raised in the society. Is there any way to persuade society and church that annexing the territories belonging to other nation is a necessary step for the country? Of course, there is! Such mechanisms as provoking revenge, manipulating socialoseopinion, and telling lies worked in the circumstances and will work as long as the human race exists. I was impressed by the thoughts of Colonel Hitchcock who managed to show the essence of this conflict and express the ambiguity of this choice for the nation: â€Å"I have said from the first that the United States are the aggressors. . . . We have not one particle of right to be here. ... It looks as if the government sent a small force on purpose to bring on a war, so as to have a pretext for taking California and as much of this country as it chooses, for, whatever becomes of this army, there is no doubt of a war between the United States and Mexico. . .. My heart is not in this business ... but, as a military man, I am bound to execute orders†. So after the horrible and cunning provocation which lead to the murder of the American General the country started acting more violently and forcefully. That was the time when the concept of the â€Å"manifest destiny† appeared and Americans felt the right to decide whom to live and whom to die. It is strange how the feeling of superiority can infect even religious people. The following quote evoked strong paradoxical feelings in me: â€Å"The Reverend Theodore Parker, Unitarian minister in Boston, combined eloquent criticism of