History of American Architecture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

History of American Architecture - Essay Example After World War II the style manifested itself in clean-lined, unadorned glass skyscrapers and mass housing projects. Modernist architects of the early and mid-twentieth century were politically idealistic and radical. Their architecture expressed their faith that modernisation and progress would bring a better world. Modern architecture is a term given to a number of building styles with similar characteristics, primarily the simplification of form and the elimination of ornament, that first arose around 1900. Around 1900, a number of architects around the world began developing new architectural solutions to integrate traditional precedents with new technological possibilities. By the 1940s these styles had been consolidated and identified as the International Style and became the dominant architectural style, particularly for institutional and corporate building, for several decades in the twentieth century. Some historians see the evolution of modern architecture as a social matter, closely tied to the project of Modernity and hence to the Enlightenment, a result of social and political revolutions. Others see modern architecture as primarily driven by technological and engineering developments, and it's plainly true that the availability of new building materials such as iron, steel, concret e and glass drove the invention of new building techniques as part of the Industrial Revolution. By the 1920s the most important figures in modern architecture had established their reputations. In 1932, the International Exhibition of Modern Architecture, curated by Philip Johnson and collaborator Henry-Russell Hitchcock drew together many distinct threads and trends, identified them as stylistically similar and having a common purpose, and consolidated them into the International Style. This was an important turning point. With World War II the important figures of the Bauhaus fled to the United States, to Chicago, to the Harvard Graduate School of Design, and to Black Mountain College. Modernism became the pre-eminent, and then the only acceptable, design solution from about 1932 to about 1984. Modernist architecture became popular, because the ideal of progress was so widespread during the mid-twentieth century. Its gleaming glass, steel, and concrete buildings helped to spread the faith that technology and planning could heal the sick, replace the slums with hygienic housing projects, and create affluence for all. What is Post-Modernism Postmodern architecture is an international style whose first examples are generally cited as being from the 1950s, and continues to influence present-day architecture. Postmodernity in architecture is generally thought to be heralded by the return of "wit, ornament and reference" to architecture in response to the formalism of the International Style of modernism. As with many cultural movements, some of postmodernism's most pronounced and visible ideas can be seen in architecture. The functional and formalized shapes and spaces of the modernist movement are replaced by

Airport Security Essay Example for Free

Airport Security Essay The department of homeland security has spent $40 billion rebuilding the aviation security system since September 11, 2001. Since then airport security has changed drastically, changed the whole world’s attitude towards airport security. The terrorist attack also showed the entire world how easily the old system was to manipulate and how much improvement airports need before they can truly be considered secure. The attacks forced the airline industry to renew and strengthen their focus on security. Many airports in the U.S. have introduced ethnic profiling since September 11, 2001 and the evidence shows this method has helped improve airport security. â€Å"The suspects who have since 9/11/01 been picked up are at least mostly Arabs† (Gale â€Å"Airport Security.† Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection). Security checks are not intended to embarrass or harm anybody; they are a necessary precaution to protect all passengers including Muslims. Not only does the TSA keep an eye on airline security around the globe, but also they have many different layers of security in our nation’s airports. The newest and most controversially is the full body scanner. These x-ray machines strip a person down to their birthday suit. Airport screeners are now federal employees. People are now having to wait longer to be able to pass thru security line to check in. many travelers get pulled aside for full body searches. There are 40 active full body scanners at 19 different airports, by the end of the year officials would like 500 in place. Today forty five thousand employees are working as passenger’s screeners in more than four hundred airports around the country. â€Å"Our top priority is the safety of the traveling public, and TSA constantly strives to explore and implement new technologies that enhance security and strengthen privacy protections for the traveling public†. (â€Å"TSA Takes Next Steps to Further Enhance Passenger Privacy.†) Though airport security was enforced, there was another incident. On Christmas December 25,2009, a twenty-three year old Nigerian named Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab attempted to detonate explosives aboard a Northwest Airlines flight traveling from Amsterdam to Detroit, Michigan. Abdulmutallab had hidden plastic explosives in his underwear, which had gone undetected during the passenger screening process. Abdulmutallab had also been identified as having connection to the terrorist organization Al-Qaeda less than two months before the attempted bombing, and his own father had contacted the American embassy in Nigeria to warn them of his son’s extremist beliefs. The only reason the bombing  Failed was because abdulmutallab did not properly activate the device, and other passengers aboard the plane subdued him. Two weeks after that incident Obama administration mandated extra scrutiny- including full body pat downs- for people flying into the United States from 14 mostly Muslim countries. Under the new rules, all citizens of Afghanistan, Algeria, Lebanon, Libya, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and Yemen must receive a pat down and an extra check of their carry-on bags before boarding a plane bound for the united states, officials said. Citizens of Cuba, Iran, Sudan and Syria- nations considered â€Å"state sponsors of terrorism† (â€Å"Airport Security† January 6,2010). Airlines are still responsible for checking passenger information against government-issued watch lists intended to flag potentially dangerous travelers. Two of the lists are often referred to as the â€Å"No-Fly† (â€Å"Airport Security† January 6,2010) list, are the â€Å"Terrorist Watch List†, (â€Å"Airport Security† January 6,2010) and travelers appearing on these lists are subject to more detailed search or in the case of the â€Å"No Fly† list, are denied the ability to travel. We should appreciate that the airport security is making our trip safe and secure. Any inconvenience people feel is unimportant compared with saving lives by preventing terrorist attacks.

James Joyces Eveline and Araby Essay -- Papers James Joyce

James Joyce's Eveline and Araby James Joyce uses similar themes and language devices in both 'Araby' and 'Eveline.' Although this is so, there are also important differences to be noted. Joyce wrote these stories over one hundred years ago but yet we can still relate to the issues covered in the modern world today. James Joyce could have written these short stories as an inspiration from his own background or based them on the events happening in Dublin at that time. These stories were written as a new century was beginning. The people of Dublin soon realized the sense of hope for the new century had faded due to the fall and death of Parnell. This relates to both of the stories as a sense of false hope is given in each. Joyce sensed exhaustion and emptiness in Dublin and these are also the emotional results in both stories. In 'Araby,' the story is written in first person narrative. This gives you a chance to get a detailed point of view of the boy's feelings. This makes you more emotionally involved in the story, as it becomes more convincing if you understand the range of emotions the boy is going through. On top of this, the story is written as though it were an event, which happened many years ago. It could have been a significant event in his life as it is very much portrayed in this way. In 'Eveline,' the narration is third person. Although the feelings are not expressed deeply, you can still get a sense of the emotions she was feeling. These emotions are expressed greatly through rhetorical questions. Themes are an important issue in both stories. Both stories contain the themes of blind love, religion, family, p... ... frequently in both. An example from 'Eveline' is, 'Why should she be unhappy?' This line shows that even though there is a third person narration, we can still experience her feelings. Both stories have a modern relevance that we can interact with. In 'Araby,' the boy experiences momentary infatuation and this is something everyone experiences in some point of their life. In 'Eveline,' she feels that she has to escape from her family and run away with the man of her dreams. Do many women not dream of this today? In conclusion, I think that both these stories were both very similar as the themes and language devices are essential in both. It has a very good relevance to the modern world and the writer conveys different advantages by using different narration techniques in both. Both stories were successful!

Effects of Watching Reality Tv

Aaliyah Tate English 105 Ms. LoBosco Effect of Reality TV Shows on Teenage Girls The beginning of reality television started in the 1940s. Allen Funt's Candid Camera went on air in the year 1948. Candid Camera was a hidden camera television series, which record people who are placed in embarrassing, ridiculous, and hilarious positions, and show their reactions. When people watch reality TV, they tend to think that what they are seeing is a true depiction of reality. Because of that, they tend to believe that what they see on TV is how life really is.Many reality TV shows are created without thinking about its consequences on the mindsets of viewers, especially young viewers. Media companies accept that they make these shows for profit and they do not care about the effects on people. The target audience for most reality TV shows is teens, mostly young girls. These shows have a positive or negative effect on the many viewers and participants. Reality TV didn’t really become pop ular until the early 2000s. Since reality TV is becoming more popular, girls are turning to these shows for entertainment value and life lessons. There are some positive effects of watching these shows.Girls who watch more of this genre of TV have more confidence in themselves, and also consider themselves mature, smart, funny and outgoing, and a good influence (http://technorati. com). Many viewers think that they can relate to the cast members on these shows. Girls receive inspiration and comfort from reality TV. Most teen girls are obsessed with being beautiful and getting a boyfriend. The way the women look on the shows is how girls want to be and look like (http://www. dailyherald. com). Cast members may be their selves but the things they do are scripted by producers that get teenagers attention.The drama, relationships, partying, and glamorous lifestyle that they portray is entertaining. Reality TV shows expose bad behavior, which make viewers think that what they see is acce ptable. In reality, it’s a false reality. Keeping up with the Kardashians, Bad Girls Club, The Real Housewives: The Series, Teen Mom, and Jersey Shore are the main reality TV shows that teens are watching. Most young viewers prefer to watch reality TV shows like those. Each of these shows portrays something which is unrealistic and unaccepted, but audiences don't realize the impact of these shows (http://www. deseretnews. com).Reality TV is not exactly just real life on camera. Although there are some shows that are more realistic than others, all of them are edited. Scenes are shot over and over for better effect. The shows are edited to make them more interesting and exciting. When viewers watch this sort of show, they believe that reality is filled with conflict and other negative events. The viewer may see exciting things happening to people in these shows and compare those things that are happening to their â€Å"normal† lives. Viewers often make a connection with the actors on screen, and then decide to act as the people they admire.The producers of these shows don’t care how they affect or impact on a person’s life. They try to make these shows look real as possible, even though they are scripted. They shoot scenes over and over until they are satisfied. Reality TV show producers are motivated by money and attention-grabbing drama. They fire cast members who don’t appeal to the audience as well as others. In result, they plot scenarios that will result in over-the-top arguments. â€Å"Bad Girls Club† is a perfect example of this. There is a house with seven girls who don’t know each other and they see what happens.The cast members usually have many arguments and fights. After the fight the girl who threw the first punch gets sent home. They are mostly the girls who do not appeal to the audience. The shows exhibit all the qualities that entertain young girls, and also those that can easily influence them. Young girls tend to think that what they see on TV is how their relationships and lives should be. Reality TV shows give a false image of reality. The people watching them are thinking that everything happening in the show is real. Reality shows show real people and how they react to different situations.Many people are fascinated with watching how people react to different environments and different people. It is unpredictable and surprising. Every episode people are tuned in and curious as to what is going to happen next, which keeps them watching week after week. They only show the glamour and success, but not the hard work and sacrifice that is put into achieving all of it. Most adults are able to distinguish reality from fantasy, however most teenagers are incapable of doing so. Reality TV is like passing a car wreck on the highway- we have to look.

Sinai Peninsula

â€Å"In 1956, Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal, a waterway marking the boundary between Egyptian territory in Africa and the Sinai Peninsula. Thereafter, Israeli ships were prohibited from using the Canal, owing to the state of war between the two states. Egypt also prohibited ships from using Egyptian territorial waters on the eastern side of the peninsula to travel to and from Israel, effectively imposing a blockade on the Israeli port of Eilat. Subsequently, in what is known in Egypt as the Tripartite Aggression, Israeli forces, aided by Britain, and France, invaded Sinai and occupied much of the peninsula within a few days. Several months later Israel withdrew its forces from Sinai, following strong pressure from the United States and the Soviet Union. Thereafter, the United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) was stationed in Sinai to prevent any military occupation of the Sinai. In 1967, Egypt reinforced its military presence in Sinai, changed the prohibition of Israeli shipping using Egyptian territorial waters and on May 16, ordered the UNEF out of Sinai with immediate effect. Secretary-General U Thant eventually complied and ordered the withdrawal without Security Council authorization. Subsequent to Egyptian actions, Israel attacked Egypt, Syria, and Jordan, starting the Six-Day War. Israel captured the entire Sinai Peninsula, and Palestine's Strip from Egypt, the Palestinian West Bank and East Jerusalem from Jordan (which it had ruled since 1949), and the Golan Heights from Syria. The Suez Canal, the east bank of which was now occupied by Israel, was closed. Israel expelled thousands of Egyptians from Sinai, and commenced efforts at large scale Israeli settlement in the peninsula, concurrently with similar settlement in the Gaza Strip, West Bank, and Golan Heights. Following the Israeli conquest of Sinai, Egypt launched the War of Attrition aimed at forcing Israel to withdraw from Egyptian territory. The war saw protracted conflict in the Suez Canal Zone, ranging from limited to large scale combat. Israeli shelling of civilian areas in the cities of Port Said, Ismailia, and Suez on the west bank of the canal, led to high civilian casualties (including the virtual destruction of Suez), and contributed to the flight of some one million Egyptian internal refugees. Ultimately, the war concluded in 1970 with no change in the front line. Upon becoming President of Egypt following the death in office of President Gamal Abdel Nasser, Anwar Al-Sadat sought a diplomatic solution to the conflict, offering peace and recognition to Israel in exchange for the Israeli withdrawal from all the Egyptian, Palestinian, and Syrian territory occupied in 1967, and a resolution of the Palestinian refugee problem. Israel rejected all of Egypt's proposals, with Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir insisting that Sinai was now part of Israel, and that it would be settled by Israelis. Consequently, Egypt and Syria began planning jointly for a military offensive to re-take their respective territories under Israeli occupation. On 6 October 1973, Egypt commenced Operation Badr to liberate Sinai, whilst Syria launched a simultaneous operation to liberate the Golan Heights, thereby beginning the Yom Kippur War (known in Egypt as the October War). Egyptian engineering forces built pontoon bridges to cross the Suez Canal, and stormed the supposedly impregnable Bar-Lev Line, Israel's defensive line along the canal. Though the Egyptians maintained control of most of the east bank of the Canal, in the later stages of the war, the Israeli military crossed the southern section of Canal, cutting off the Egyptian 3rd Army, and occupied a section of the west bank. The war ended following a mutually agreed-upon ceasefire. After the war, as part of the subsequent Sinai Disengagement Agreements, Israel withdrew from the Canal, with Egypt agreeing to permit passage of Israeli ships. The canal was reopened in 1975, with President Sadat leading the first convoy through the canal aboard an Egyptian destroyer. In 1979, Egypt and Israel signed a peace treaty in which Israel agreed to withdraw from the entirety of Sinai. Israel subsequently withdrew in several stages, ending in 1982. The Israeli pull-out involved dismantling almost all Israeli settlements, including the settlement of Yamit in north-eastern Sinai. The exception was the coastal city of Sharm el-Sheikh, which the Israelis had renamed as Ofira during the period of their occupation. The Treaty allows monitoring of Sinai by the Multinational Force and Observers, and limits the number of Egyptian military forces in the peninsula. † (Wikipedia, 2013) Problem Since Egypt and Israel were always fighting for the right to be at the Sinai Peninsula, they damaged it. Everyone is trying to have Sinai peninsula because of its important role when it came to power for trade in the sea. After a lot of years, Egypt finally came to make a peace treaty that said that Israel would have to withdraw from the entirety of Sinai. Israel did it, with the exception of the city of Sharm el-Sheikh. Causes Egypt and Israel wanted Sinai because of the trade they could gain if they had it for their country. Each wanted Sinai for the territory. Now days, there has been a lot of terrorist attacks because of the resentment of the poverty faced by many Bedouin in the area. Attacking the tourist industry was viewed as a method of damaging the industry so that the government would pay more attention to their situation. Since the 2011 Egyptian Revolution unrest has become more prevalent in the area including the 2012 Egyptian-Israeli border attack in which 16 Egyptian soldiers were killed by militants 3. Responsible People â€Å"The Egyptian Organization for Human Rights has denounced what it calls terrorist acts in Sinai in the early hours of Monday morning, blaming the Muslim Brotherhood for the violence in which civilians, including children, were killed and wounded. The organization blamed the Muslim Brotherhood for attacs which saw civilians, including children, killed Monday. The EOHR claimed Ikhwan leaders had aggravated the situation, by stating that â€Å"the situation in Sinai will calm down only if President [Mohamed] Morsy is reinstated. â€Å"† (Egypt Independent, 2013) Tripartite aggression: Because they invaded Sinai Peninsula Egypt government of that time: Because they nationalized the Suez Canal and began the war.

Essay on The company is Walmart Stores, Inc.Essay Writing Service

Essay on The company is Walmart Stores, Inc.Essay Writing Service Essay on The company is Walmart Stores, Inc. Essay on The company is Walmart Stores, Inc.It is important for any organization to have a code of ethics in order to guide employees how to behave in ambiguous situations and to share the principles of ethical behavior accepted in the organization. The purpose of this paper is to select a company, to identify whether this company uses a code of conduct, to analyze this code if it exists and to draft a code of ethics if the company does not have one.The chosen company is Walmart Stores, Inc. This is a multinational retailer operating in 27 countries and running chains of discount stores and warehouse stores. Walmart pays significant attention to ethics: the company has a Global Ethics Office which is responsible for encouraging ethical decision-making and resolving ethics concerns (Walmart, 2014).Walmart has a separate document named The Statement of Ethics. This document is meant to share attitudes and values that create an ethical workplace and expected standards of ethical conduc t. The document also helps recognize ethically questionable situations and prompts how to act in such situations. The document includes letter on ethics from Walmart CEO, guiding principles, employee responsibilities, approaches to reporting ethical violations, principles of leading with integrity inside and outside the company, community ethical principles and relevant contact information.With regard to code content organizing principles outlined by Berenbeim (1999), Walmarts code of ethics pays moderate attention to the role of business, does not pay much attention to company autonomy aspect and focuses strongly on three next principles global business practice, ethical decision-making procedures and ethical decision-making environment.Walmarts code of ethics satisfies the stylistic requirements to such documents (Berenbeim, 1999): it is easy to read, has sufficient detail (but not excessive detail), is graphically appealing, is relevant for the industry and market and is firmly grounded on Walmarts key values. Similarly to other codes of ethics, Walmarts code addresses such questions as security of proprietary information, environmental responsibility, employee privacy, substance abuse, employee privacy, etc.It is notable that Walmarts code of ethics largely addresses potential internal ethical issues such as conflicts of interests and potential community ethical issues such as safety, environment, international trade, public relationships, etc. In general, Walmarts code of ethics has all the necessary elements described by Berenbeim (1999) and can be viewed as an example of an efficient code of ethics.

War on Terrorism How to Cope with the Global Threat

War on Terrorism How to Cope with the Global Threat The war on terrorism is discussed as one of the most important and controversial questions concerning the global peace and development. The questions involve a lot of ethical and political issues which need the immediate solution because terrorist attacks become more frequent and crueler.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on War on Terrorism: How to Cope with the Global Threat? specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Terrorism is often defined as the crime against humanity, the actions of terrorists are unpredictable, and terrorist attacks cause deaths of thousands of innocent people globally every year. The war on terrorism developed by the global organizations and by the US administration is directed toward defending the civil population from the cruelty of terrorists and toward weakening the forces of terrorist leading to the absolute destruction of terroristic organizations. However, the US politicians can face the significa nt problem while choosing the approach to fight. Following the liberal visions, many politicians along with Barack Obama are inclined to focus on the war on terrorism which is not against the abstract evil, but against the concrete organizations and their goals. Although the threat of terroristic actions against the civil population can be discussed as the terrifying reality today, the war on terrorism should not be ‘blind’ and based on extremes and active aggressive actions against immigrants, Muslims, or representatives of the radical movements in the United States because the war on terrorism is the conflict of only political, military, and social organizations’ visions. The war on terrorism cannot be discussed as the war between the good and evil which end will result in the victory of one of the sides. Terroristic organizations have definite goals according to which their activities are organized. These goals are based on political and military aspects as we ll as social questions. That is why, the war on terrorism should also depend on these factors, preventing events when the civil population can suffer from aggressive actions and misbalanced strategies of the anti-terror organizations.Advertising Looking for essay on philosophy? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The terroristic attack at the Boston Marathon provoked the intensification and development of the further discussion associated with the war on terrorism and methods used by the US authorities to prevent the worsening of the situation. Following the blasts at the Boston Marathon, President Obama said that they would find the persons responsible for the attack and would focus on the reasons for the terroristic attacks (Eligon and Cooper). Later, the authorities focused on two suspects, the Tsarnaev brothers. The persons responsible for the attacks were found, but causes for the cruel actions against the public re main the key questions which are not answered adequately as any other similar questions associated with the terrorist attacks (Schmitt et al.). As a result, the waves of suspicion are coming again, leading to a lot of extreme actions and violating the privacy rights. In spite of the fact the war on terrorism is the priority of not only the US administration but also of the global community, the approaches to win the war should be chosen according to the principles of balance and justice. The war cannot be just because of its nature. The war on terrorism can follow the principles of justice if it is directed toward preventing terroristic actions rather than toward fighting terrorists as a result of military actions. On the one hand, the war on terrorism is the political and military problem that is why the rules of warfare can be used effectively. On the other hand, a lot of the civil people can become victims of the military actions and specific anti-terror strategies. Thus, the bal anced measures to prevent terroristic acts should be developed.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on War on Terrorism: How to Cope with the Global Threat? specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Nevertheless, there is one more challenge associated with the increased social and governmental suspicion. The war on terrorism should not become the cause for limiting the foreign and immigration polices. The threat of acts of terrorism should no be discussed as the reason for discriminating Muslims or violating privacy rights and civil liberties. Such actions as the implementation of cameras in the public places or limitations in relation to immigration and foreign policies should be discussed publicly with the help of polls and referendums (Schmitt et al.). It is rather difficult to develop the effective policy in relation to the war on terrorism because terrorists are not oriented to the peaceful regulation of the conflict. Thus, mi llions of people are at risk of becoming victims of the terrorist act every day. Paying more attention to suspicious persons and behaviours, authorities are inclined to prevent cruelty and mass killings of the civil population. However, it is important to control the intrusion into the private aspects of the people’s life. Today, many Americans agree with the balanced approaches followed by President Obama and Democratic Party in regulating the problems of terrorism. Although the question is rather controversial, and it is a challenge to assess this or that approach to overcoming the problem of the war on terrorism, it is important to concentrate on the clear idea that the war on terrorism should be developed, but with references to the effective methods.Advertising Looking for essay on philosophy? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The problem can be overcome if the situation of begging the question in the governmental discussions can be regulated appropriately (Kahane and Cavender 59). The other issue is the inconsistent visions of politicians in relation to the war on terrorism and approaches to develop the war. Thus, the strategy can be discussed as effective when politicians avoid their ‘blowing with the wind’, and the main state strategy is followed directly (Kahane and Cavender 55). Organization and consistence are the key factors in coping with the problematic questions. Security and peace can be achieved with the help of controlled and organized authorities’ actions and strategies. As a result, there are two rather opposite approaches to developing the war on terrorism. The supporters of the idea of active actions concentrate on effective military strategies and the persecution of Muslims. The followers of more peaceful methods discuss the ideas of decreasing the public privacy and limiting the immigration of Muslims in the USA. Two approaches can be discussed as rather provocative and cannot guarantee the positive results in the war on terrorism. Following this or that strategy, it is possible to intensify the conflict and provoke new attacks because civil liberties of many people can be violated. That is why, politicians should focus on the most balanced policy against terrorists which can protect the civil public and become the real threat for terrorists. To contribute to the effective results, the actions oriented to tokenism should be avoided. The combination of the mentioned approaches with references to the idea of the population’s protection and focus on civil rights and liberties can be used to regulate the conflict at the stage of prevention or at the military stage without threatening thousands of people. Eligon, John, and Michael Cooper. Blasts at Boston Marathon Kill 3 and Injure 100. 15 Apr. 2013. Web. Kahane, Howard, and Nancy Cavender. Logic And Contemporary Rhetoric: The Use Of Reason In Everyday Life. USA: Cengage Learning, 2006. Print. Schmitt, Eric, Mark Mazzetti, Michael Schmidt, and Scott Shane. Boston Plotters Said to Initially Target July 4 for Attack. 02 May 2013. Web.

How the Netherlands Reclaimed Land From the Sea

How the Netherlands Reclaimed Land From the Sea In 1986, the Netherlands proclaimed the new 12th province of Flevoland but they didnt carve out the province from already existing Dutch land nor did they annex the territory of their neighbors - Germany and Belgium. The Netherlands grew larger with the aid of dikes and polders, making the old Dutch adage While God created the Earth, the Dutch created the Netherlands come true. The Netherlands The independent country of the Netherlands only dates back to 1815, but the area and its people have a much longer history. Located in northern Europe, just northeast of Belgium and west of Germany, the Netherlands contains 280 miles (451 km) of coastline along the North Sea. It also contains the mouths of three important European rivers: the Rhine, Schelde, and Meuse. This translates into a long history of dealing with water and attempts to prevent massive, destructive flooding. The North Sea Floods The Dutch and their ancestors have been working to hold back and reclaim land from the North Sea for over 2000 years. Beginning around 400 BCE, the Frisians were first to settle the Netherlands. It was they who built terpen (an Old Frisian word meaning villages), which were earth mounds upon which they built houses or even entire villages. These terpen were built to protect the villages from flooding. (Although there were once thousands of these, there are about a thousand terpen that still exist in the Netherlands.) Small dikes were also built around this time, usually being rather short (about 27 inches or 70 cm high) and made of natural materials found around the local area. On December 14, 1287, the terpen and dikes that held back the North Sea failed, and water flooded the country. Known as the St. Lucias Flood, this flood killed over 50,000 people and is considered one of the worst floods in history. A result of the massive St. Lucias Flood was the creation of a new bay, called Zuiderzee (South Sea), formed by floodwaters that had inundated a large area of farmland. Pushing Back the North Sea For the next few centuries, the Dutch worked to slowly push back the water of the Zuiderzee, building dikes and creating polders (the term used to describe any piece of land reclaimed from water). Once dikes were built, canals and pumps were used to drain the land and to keep it dry. From the 1200s, windmills were used to pump excess water off the fertile soil becoming an icon of the country in the process. Today, however, most of the windmills have been replaced with electricity- and diesel-driven pumps. Reclaiming the Zuiderzee Then, storms and floods of 1916 provided the impetus for the Dutch to start a major project to reclaim the Zuiderzee. From 1927 to 1932, a 19 mile (30.5 km) long dike called Afsluitdijk (the Closing Dike) was built, turning the Zuiderzee into the IJsselmeer, a freshwater lake. On February 1, 1953, another devastating flood hit the Netherlands. Caused by a combination of a storm over the North Sea and spring tide, waves along the sea wall rose to 15 feet (4.5 m) higher than mean sea level. In some areas, the water peaked above existing dikes and spilled upon unsuspecting, sleeping towns. Just over 1,800 people in the Netherlands died, 72,000 people had to be evacuated, thousands of livestock died, and there was a huge amount of property damage. This devastation prompted the Dutch to pass the Delta Act in 1958, changing the structure and administration of the dikes in the Netherlands. This, in turn, created the collective known as the North Sea Protection Works, which included building a dam and barriers across the sea. There is no wonder that this huge engineering feat is now considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers. Further protective dikes and works were built, beginning to reclaim the land of the IJsselmeer. The new land led to the creation of the new province of Flevoland from what had been sea and water for centuries. Much of the Netherlands Is Below Sea Level Today, approximately 27 percent of the Netherlands is actually below sea level. This area is home to over 60 percent of the countrys population of 15.8 million people. The Netherlands, which is approximately the size of the U.S. states Connecticut and Massachusetts combined, has an approximate average elevation of 36 feet (11 meters). This leaves a huge part of the Netherlands highly susceptible to flooding. Time will tell if the North Sea Protection Works are strong enough to protect it.

Theory and Practice of Ethics Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Theory and Practice of Ethics - Research Paper Example It cannot be achieved by advancements in science and metaphysics. There can be differences of opinion about what is good for the human beings collectively. It has given rise to many theories in ethics. This paper aims at studying the role of media and its responsibilities from the ethical perspective. With the advancement in technology the role and shape of media is also fast changing. Technological advancement has made information very much accessible to everyone via various means. With internet and telecommunication and other mass media sources information travels very swiftly and fluidly all over the globe. With this wide reach and access of mass media comes the responsibility. Thesis Statement: Is the media playing its role responsibly for the collective well being of human kind? The Importance of Media Media has a strong role to play in forming the opinions of the public. Hence it in a way moulds what is acceptable and what is not acceptable by the society. It has a strong influ ence in determining ethical boundaries of the society. Ever since its inception media has been a powerful tool in shaping and molding people’s perception but with the current mushroom growth of mass media its importance has increased manifolds. The outburst of internet has fueled it further taking it to new heights. Every individual now has access to loads of information and that too is so easily available just a click away. It has not only increased the role of media but also increased the importance of the opinion of the people. Now public opinion matters in almost all walks of life even in important policy decisions. Public opinion matters most in politics. This growth in mass media has made individuals very opinionated and now we have opinions about almost everything and that too is an informed one (Vivan, 2006). Ethical Issues Created by Media Media and politics are strongly interrelated. What we observe today is the emerging phenomena of mediatization of politics, growi ng role of E-Politics and governance. These days’ media is extensively used by governments, political parties and all other stake holders in forming opinion of the public. It includes traditional media as well as all the modern electronic forms such as twitters, websites, social networking channels etc. Recently we observed an example of the influence of media in politics in countries like Egypt, Jordan and Libya (Street, 2010). But the question arises here, is the media brought revolution justified? Is it ethical? Is it really in the interest of the citizens of the country? With this increasing trend of mediatization the important question is no more about assurance of independence of media from politics and society but the need is to ensure independence of politics and society from the influence of media. Mediatization is a two pronged process. At one hand media emerge as independent institution, with independent thinking based on its own logic with which all the other soci al institutions must adapt. On the other hand it has become an integral part of all the other institutions of society such as politics, work, religion etc. Increasingly all the activities of these institutions are performed with the interaction of the mass media. The impact of mediatization can be understood from the fact that a headline in the newspaper may change the voting behavior of the people in the elections. Is the media playing its role sensibly and responsibly? Are they raising the right

Intermodal Transportation in the US Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Intermodal Transportation in the US - Case Study Example Intermodal Transportation in the US Government involvement in the country’s intermodal transportation system, particularly in the cargo sector, would allow for continuous movement of products by a number of modes of transport. Congress approved the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) as a successor of ISTEA. This policy was not as far-reaching as ISTEA even though it continued the campaign for intermodalism and center on the ISTEA chassis (Konings et al., 2008). This regulation guaranteed the consideration of cargo mobility in the course of the planning procedure and offered more profound flexibility to fund intermodal stations that entail key and minor freeways, railway stations, sea terminals, and airports. Until this law was passed, the challenge of connectivity between and amongst intermodal stations was not a primary concern. If the federal government had prioritized efforts to solve this challenge, connectors to the country’s freeway system would have improved intermodal services and lowered freeway congestion. I also agree with the author that in a free market economy, the industry had been limited in their ability to deliver innovations in intermodal transportation. In the past 2 Â ½ decades, the movement of goods has been seamless only because of intermodalism in the cargo industry (Holguin-Veras et al., 2008).The most visible manifestation of intermodalism in a free market such as the United States is the increase in container traffic.

Beethoven, Symphony No.5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Beethoven, Symphony No.5 - Essay Example The word 'theme' and 'motif' have been used interchangeably. The first movement can be divided into the exposition section, the development section, the recapitulation and the coda. The first movement opens in c minor and finishes in c minor. There are two common themes which are introduced in the first movement and written throughout the symphony. The paper will analyze the first movement. The exposition section introduces the famous four note motif which is often referred to as the "fate motif". There are some who consider it an 8 note motif as it starts in C- and then goes immediately to C major. Throughout this movement the motif is never just four notes. There is always a duality. The first four notes are followed by a pause as though Beethoven is catching his breath. The second four notes which are also played by the winds and brass are also followed by a pause. This motif is used as the theme throughout the whole symphony. In the first section he opens the symphony with the fu ll string orchestra with the brass; then the string take the motif. We hear his strong Haydn influence. He uses Haydn's technique of contrapuntal use of the motif when the strings talk back and forth. There is a crescendo with the brass using the motif and changing keys to Eb major. He introduces a trumpet fanfare in the rhythm of the four note motif. It is followed by the strings. There is an introduction of a new theme with the strings and clarinets. This is a two note theme. The cellos still are able to play the four note theme. Knowing that Beethoven lived in the country, his joy of being able to hear the trumpets would have influenced his introducing the fanfare in the exposition section as he walked on the property singing to himself. We cannot call it pastoral but it is full of emotion and controversy from a man who realized he only had music in his head. In the development section, he interposes the harmonies and melodies of both themes. The instruments are separated where t he strings and woodwinds first start with the two note theme as they are going questioning each other; then go back and forth with one note. The four note theme is used to give an element of surprise: first by the brass then by the strings and woodwinds. The fate motif is used in a crescendo to build up to the recapitulation. In the recapitulation section, the orchestra is in the full forte with the four note fate theme. The timpani is the heart of this section. The strings answer but for the first time we hear the woodwinds playing the harmony ending the oboe solo which acts like a cadenza to the section. The strings build up in a crescendo to the trumpet and trombone fanfare with one bassoon, then the strings play with the woodwinds responding. The measures are played in staccato with the trombones, and strings repeating the chords of theme and the winds answering. In the Coda, the whole orchestra is playing the four note motif only to end the finale measure with the chords (V I V ) The ending on a fifth prepares the transition from the first movement to the 2nd movement. The first movement is the beginning of Beethoven admitting that he has a hearing loss. He shows to the world that it iwas fate and he would not let it deter from his composing. "The Fate Motif was fate knocking at the door"(Gibbs 2006) It has never been proven if Beethoven actually made the reference to his front door. His music is expressive jolting and full of severe emotions. Sometimes you can see yourself

Communism vs. Capitalism. My Ideal Government System Essay

Communism vs. Capitalism. My Ideal Government System - Essay Example The essay also shows the opinions of prominent figures of politics and economy regarding each government system. Both systems are compared on the basis of education, economy, employment and health standards. The bibliography comprises 6 sources. The most recent one published 2010. Introduction. Communism is a form of government where the resources and the means of production are controlled by the society and the government is headed by one party or the communist party. It was an idea developed by Karl Marx and supported by Stalin and others. For Marx, an ideal government was the one that ensured equality to all members of society without classes. Before then, the economy was controlled by the businessmen and factory owners commonly referred as bourgeoisies whose aim was to make a profit at the expense of the poor farmers who were referred as the proletariat. Capitalism, on the other hand, is characterized by the existence of classes in the society. The means of production is controlled by private individuals who own private property and the government is democratic in nature. The market forces determine what is to be produced and who is to consume the products depending on the wealth of individuals. The private owners thus make huge profits and invest it in machinery and more business investments while the poor continue being poor as they can’t afford to buy goods. A wide gap, therefore, exists between the rich and the poor in the society (Grant & Vidler, 19-25). Communist government is thus preferred as it reduces inequalities and classes in the society and is effective in transforming backward economies. A capitalist system of government is a free market economy where price of products is determined by market forces. The market also allocates the resources to members of society depending on one’s income. The government does not intervene in controlling the prices. In this situation, the owners of property whose aim is to maximize profit may set high prices for products or make goods unavailable so as to control demand and in turn raise prices. The poor consumers are therefore forced to cut consumption of some goods as they cannot afford leaving them to the rich t hus widening the gap between the rich and the poor. Inflation is inevitable due to rise and fall in prices of goods and services (Grant & Vidler, 22). On the other hand, a communist system of government is controlled by the state. It is a command economy where prices are determined by the government thus inflation is controlled. The state also distributes goods and services equally to the society (Schwartz, 292). The resources are distributed according to needs of each individual hence no chance of creating income and wealth inequalities in society; it exercises fairness and equality. The capitalist system is driven by self interest of the actors in the economy. Due to profit maximization objective by businessmen, they are not able to provide essential goods and services that do not make profit such as education and health (Grant, 6). On the other hand, the communist state is involved in provision of resources to all. It thus provides public and merit goods to the society among othe r goods hence individuals in a communist economy benefit from improved public transport, education, and health among others (Leslie, 223). The state also subsidizes basic foodstuffs thus making them affordable to all members of the society unlike in capitalist states where one’s income determines the bundle of goods to buy. Schwartz (292) argues that individuals in a communist state work according to ability. Thus, each individual who is of working age is given a job depending on the skills he/she possesses but the resources obtained are shared among the society according to the needs of each household. The economy hence operates at near or full employment, unemployment

Applicability of the Principles of Empowerment and Recovery of the Essay

Applicability of the Principles of Empowerment and Recovery of the Mentally Ill in Practice - Essay Example There are many types of mental illnesses including: bipolarity, depression, panic attacks, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and schizophrenia among others. 1.0 Scenario One afternoon, a man in his late 20s was brought in for medical attention. For the purpose of confidentiality, we shall name him Andrew (not his real name). Andrew could not keep still and he kept on moving from one point to another, talking to imaginary people. The people who brought him to the hospital were his colleagues at work, who claimed that he had become very hostile, attacking everyone at the office and accusing them of trying to ruin his life. They claimed that he had also started talking to himself and repeatedly saying â€Å"they want to kill me†. Andrew was immediately taken to the psychiatrist ward for examination, while I was instructed to get more information about his actions from his colleagues. The workmates told me that in last few months, they had observed some abnormal behavior in their col league, but had dismissed the actions. For example, he would show up at work late, looking tired and had started withdrawing from his workmates. They also claimed that he could no longer meet deadlines and that he often did substandard work. After the discussion with the patients’ colleagues, I called his family before going to check on the progress of the patient. The psychiatrist informed me that they had sedated him to ease his agitation. I explained to him all the observances noted by Andrew’s colleagues and the doctor suspected that this could be a case of schizophrenia. As we were talking, Andrew’s wife and sister came in looking very worried. The doctor explained the patient’s condition to them and asked them to offer any information they deemed useful. The wife explained how Andrew a father of two and an accountant had started acting weird about the same time the previous year. He would often withdraw from his wife and children, he would become ea sily agitated if the children did anything wrong, and would act unmoved even if the children cried for attention. The wife also explained how in recent days Andrew had become very attentive to the safety of his family, claiming that someone was out to harm them. He would lock all the doors and constantly look out through the window to see whether someone was watching them. Andrew’s sister also explained how as a teenager, Andrew had suddenly lost all zeal for life. He no longer engaged in activities he had previously enjoyed. She explained that Andrew stopped playing rugby; his social life degenerated and he became withdrawn from his family. He did not seem to have any direction in life; neither did he know what career he wanted. Meanwhile his family attributed all this to adolescence and hoped it would pass. They did not expect Andrew’s condition to deteriorate to the present situation; neither did they attribute it to a mental disorder. At this point it was absolutel y clear that indeed Andrew was suffering from undifferentiated schizophrenia. When Andrew woke up he was much quieter and seemed to act more normally, except that he denied ever doing all the things that his colleagues had pointed out. He was not ready to face up to the fact that he was mentally ill and was still in denial. According to Warner (2004) it is common for people suffering from schizophrenia to deny their mental condition. Later on, the psychiatrist asked if I wanted to be involved in empowering Andrew to recover from his illness and I was

Trading Simulation Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Trading Simulation Report - Essay Example A portfolio once built and left alone is of no use. Hence, I have decided to carry out a trading simulation and an in depth analysis of the four companies that have been chosen by me. As all four of these companies provide different products and services, it is almost obvious that different returns are expected from each of these companies. Although the portfolio had been developed keeping in mind mainly the long term aspects but analysing it a short term may give us an insight about the future. The four companies that had been considered, along with an introduction and a summary of their latest performance, are: Johnson & Johnson Pfizer Exxon Mobil Walmart Johnson & Johnson Johnson & Johnson is a multinational U.S based company. It was founded in 1886. It deals in pharmaceutics, medical devices along with the manufacturing of consumer packaged goods. Johnson & Johnson comprises of One of the world’s biggest and diversified medical devices company The 6th biggest company with respect to biologics and also with respect to consumer health. Ranked 8th with respect to the world’s biggest pharmaceutics company The headquarters of Johnson & Johnson is situated in New Brunswick, which is in New Jersey USA. The Johnson & Johnson family includes around about 275 operating companies around the globe. Johnson & Johnson employees around about one hundred and twenty eight thousand people in more than sixty countries. Pfizer Pfizer was founded in 1849. Its founding members included two cousins, namely, Charles Pfizer and Charles Erhart. Pfizer is the biggest pharmaceutical company with respect to the revenue it generates. Its headquarters in based in New York, USA while the headquarters of its research program is in Connecticut, USA. Although it has many research facilities around. Pfizer has acquired many renown and established pharmaceuticals on its way to success. The companies acquired include Pharmacia and Wyeth. The latter at its time, 2009, was considere d as the biggest merger since the Bellsouth and AT& T in 2006. Exxon Mobil Exxon Mobil is a Multinational oil and gas company based in USA. Its headquarters is in Irving, Texas. Exxon Mobil was actually formed through merger of Exxon and Mobil in1999. Exxon Mobil is believed to the world’s biggest traded company publicly in the field of Oil and Gas. Walmart The home office of Walmart is situated at 702 SW 8th Street Bentonville. Walmart is a multinational retail company. It basically operates through warehouses and departmental stores. It has around about 10,800 stores across 27 countries. It also operates through websites in 10 countries. It employees above two million people worldwide and is considered as the largest employees recruiting worldwide. It is also estimated that around about 245 million people visit its outlets worldwide on a weekly base. The company was founded in 1962 and is now the largest retailer of USA. Recent Performance According to the first quarter rep orts 2013 of Pfizer Profit of Pfizer has seen an increase of about 53%, that is, an increase from 1.78 billion dollars to 2.75 billion dollars a year before. Earnings per share experienced an increase of 14 cent from a year ago, that is, from 24 cents to 38 cents Adjusted earnings saw a decrease of 3 cents as compared to a year

Applicability of the Principles of Empowerment and Recovery of the Essay

Applicability of the Principles of Empowerment and Recovery of the Mentally Ill in Practice - Essay Example There are many types of mental illnesses including: bipolarity, depression, panic attacks, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and schizophrenia among others. 1.0 Scenario One afternoon, a man in his late 20s was brought in for medical attention. For the purpose of confidentiality, we shall name him Andrew (not his real name). Andrew could not keep still and he kept on moving from one point to another, talking to imaginary people. The people who brought him to the hospital were his colleagues at work, who claimed that he had become very hostile, attacking everyone at the office and accusing them of trying to ruin his life. They claimed that he had also started talking to himself and repeatedly saying â€Å"they want to kill me†. Andrew was immediately taken to the psychiatrist ward for examination, while I was instructed to get more information about his actions from his colleagues. The workmates told me that in last few months, they had observed some abnormal behavior in their col league, but had dismissed the actions. For example, he would show up at work late, looking tired and had started withdrawing from his workmates. They also claimed that he could no longer meet deadlines and that he often did substandard work. After the discussion with the patients’ colleagues, I called his family before going to check on the progress of the patient. The psychiatrist informed me that they had sedated him to ease his agitation. I explained to him all the observances noted by Andrew’s colleagues and the doctor suspected that this could be a case of schizophrenia. As we were talking, Andrew’s wife and sister came in looking very worried. The doctor explained the patient’s condition to them and asked them to offer any information they deemed useful. The wife explained how Andrew a father of two and an accountant had started acting weird about the same time the previous year. He would often withdraw from his wife and children, he would become ea sily agitated if the children did anything wrong, and would act unmoved even if the children cried for attention. The wife also explained how in recent days Andrew had become very attentive to the safety of his family, claiming that someone was out to harm them. He would lock all the doors and constantly look out through the window to see whether someone was watching them. Andrew’s sister also explained how as a teenager, Andrew had suddenly lost all zeal for life. He no longer engaged in activities he had previously enjoyed. She explained that Andrew stopped playing rugby; his social life degenerated and he became withdrawn from his family. He did not seem to have any direction in life; neither did he know what career he wanted. Meanwhile his family attributed all this to adolescence and hoped it would pass. They did not expect Andrew’s condition to deteriorate to the present situation; neither did they attribute it to a mental disorder. At this point it was absolutel y clear that indeed Andrew was suffering from undifferentiated schizophrenia. When Andrew woke up he was much quieter and seemed to act more normally, except that he denied ever doing all the things that his colleagues had pointed out. He was not ready to face up to the fact that he was mentally ill and was still in denial. According to Warner (2004) it is common for people suffering from schizophrenia to deny their mental condition. Later on, the psychiatrist asked if I wanted to be involved in empowering Andrew to recover from his illness and I was

Book review of Ethics on the Job by R. Pfeiffer and R. Forsberg Essay

Book review of Ethics on the Job by R. Pfeiffer and R. Forsberg - Essay Example This paper explores the strengths and weaknesses of the book as a reference for business and management students. Based on the book review, this book is best for undergraduate business, management, marketing, and other business-related courses, because it provides a brief overview of business ethics and provides pragmatic solutions to different business cases. Main Arguments The main argument of Pfeiffer and Forsberg (2005) is that when surmounting ethical challenges, employees and the management should use critical thinking in determining all conflicting rights and values, before choosing which ones have to be upheld. The decision for the resolution must consider different oppositions and diverse alternatives. Furthermore, Pfeiffer and Forsberg (2005) wants stakeholders to collaborate together in making long-term solutions. They are teaching business and management students to not have a myopic view of ethical dilemmas. ... They recommended the use of ethical principles, rights, and values in making the right business decisions, so that managers and employees can have the tools for making ethical decisions for different levels (i.e. management or individual levels). Strengths Content The first strength of the book is that it is a book on applied ethics. It does not focus on explaining diverse theoretical and philosophical approaches to ethical decision-making, but instead, it devotes itself to different cases that tackle diverse ethical scenarios. It provides numerous cases that will expose students to different kinds of individual, team, and organization-level ethical dilemmas. This way, Pfeiffer and Forsberg (2005) are training students on how to view and analyze different ethical challenges that they may face in real life. Through different cases, students will also become updated with emerging ethical issues, such as environmental, technological, and multicultural ethical concerns. They will underst and that global, regional, and national events and conditions also impact local business ethical problems. The second strength of the book is that it offers a workable decision-making framework for students. The RESOLVEDD strategy defines stakeholders and their conflicting principles, rights, and values, which is essential in understanding the problem at hand. A complete understanding of the problem can lead to a more comprehensive analysis of the ethical dilemma and will help determine more potential alternative solutions. Win-win solutions can be better viewed, when all conditions and stakeholders are considered. Ferrell and Ferrell (2009) highlighted the

How does Hamlet deal with the revengers r&amp Essay Example for Free

How does Hamlet deal with the revengers ramp Essay Revenge is defined as retaliation for an offence or injury; Hamlet has two main reasons for needing revenge, political and moral. Politically he has to kill Claudius for the offence of denying Hamlet, the heir to the Danish kingdom, his usurped crown. He also has a moral reason, as the son of a dear father murdered(II. ii. 581); he has a duty to extract revenge for the injury; and filially to protect his mother by ridding her of an incestuous and immoral marriage to a murderer. He has no doubt even to himself that he does have this dutiful role to perform, I know my course (II. ii. 596). To seek this revenge he would have to kill Claudius and his mother, for they are both guilty of having impure souls. But one of the very first internal conflicts Hamlet has is when the Ghost tells him nor let thy soul contrive Against thy mother aught. Leave her to heaven (I. iv. 85). This leaves him in great turmoil, as he can justify to himself the killing of Claudius, but not letting his mother live. He is so overcome with a sense of purity and morality, especially with concern to women, it does not seem right to him that something so tainted should be allowed to carry on in the world. He wants his perfect revenge, one that would satisfy his meticulously accomplished conscience, but he can not carry it out, so instead he declines it altogether, or at least puts it off in stages, until he can prove it to himself and can put it off no longer. He is willing to taint his own soul and so go to hell and enter a damnation possibly even worse than that in which the Ghost resides, which he tells Hamlet just to know about would, harrow up thy soul, freeze thy young blood, make thy two eyes like stars start from their spheres, thy knotted and combini d locks to part, and each particular hair to stand on end like quills upon the fretful porpentine (I. iv. 16). Yet he is willing to suffer all this for the sake of revenge in killing Claudius, to avenge his father, so to save his mother, to leave her to heaven (I. v. 86), when even he is not allowed this blessing. What he is giving up to be the dutiful son and revenge his fathers murder in comparison to what Gertrude is giving up leaves his worse off than her, even though she has been an adulterous wife. Therefore her being allowed to live on in sin is as wrong not only on her part, but also on Hamlets for allowing it to be. Hamlet knows what he is sacrificing of himself, his immortal soul, if he is to take on the revengers ri le. It is a heavy burden to carry, and not one that he is willing to undertake lightly, so he wants to be absolutely certain of Claudius guilt before taking action. For as certain as he is of the course of action that must be taken, the truth of the Ghosts words must be ascertained, for when Hamlet converses with him he does not know for certain if it is a spirit of health or goblin damned, bring with thee airs from heaven or blasts from hell, be thy intents wicked or charitable (I. iv. 40). So to affirm the facts for himself, Hamlet has the players perform the play and watches for Claudiuss reaction to his own murderous and incestuous actions being acted out before him. For Hamlet this is supposed to be a resolution, a confirmation of his suspicions before he can act, a catalyst to spur him on depending on the success of his experiment. Hamlet becomes angry and disgusted with himself; he cant understand his own lack of passion, even after proving to himself that Claudius is guilty. He is very aware of himself not crying in the rehearsal of the play, when the players are moved to tears over the story of the rousid vengeance (II. ii. 486) of Pyrrhus, Priam and Hecuba. As soon as he is alone, he bursts out O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I! Is it not monstrous that this player here, But in a fiction, in a dream of passion, Could force his soul so to his own conceit That from her working all his visage waned, Tears in his eyes, distraction in his aspect. And all for nothing He feels miserable at his deficit, he is forced to compare himself and he comes of he worse. What would he do had he the motive and the cue for passion that I have? Make mad the guilty and appal the free. He again feels this lack of justified fervour when young Fortinbras goes to battle to fight and possibly to die for a land that is acknowledged to be not worth the sacrifice we go to gain a little patch of ground that hath in it no profit but the name (IV. iv. 18). This is again someone showing emotion and action when there is not as much reason to do so as there is for Hamlet. When he is alone he sees what Fortinbras has done as being honourable and a rebuke of his own inaction, whereas before when talking to Fortinbras captain, he had been cynical as to the actions they were carrying out. He analyses himself as thinking too precisely on thevent A thought which, quartered, hath but one part wisdom and ever three parts coward (IV. iv. 41). He sees his need to think things through before acting as a deplorable weakness. Even he can see hat he is being weak minded and indecisive. But even when convinced he cant kill his uncle deliberately, in a rage he thinks he has killed him, but it was just Polonius. Having proved Claudius guilt, Hamlet now has to act, and yet does not act straight away, but postpones it, indicating that there are also other deeper subconscious reasons that could affect him. The death of his father at the beginning of the play and the hasty incestuous marriage of his mother upset him greatly and have led to his obsessions with death, decay, sin the body and its parts and with women, purity and the defiling of them. We can see this from speeches such as, O that this too too sullied flesh would melt Or that the Everlasting had not fixed His cannon gainst self-slaughter. (I. ii. 129) Frailty, thy name is woman. (I. ii. 146) For if the sun breed maggots in a dead dog, being a good kissing carrion have you a daughter? (II. ii. 181) Or in that sleep of death what dreams may come, When we have shuffled off this mortal coil in which Hamlet is clearly fixed on purity, women, death and suicide. Claudius being a murder and committing incest and yet still having the crown of Denmark and outwardly appearing to be just, honourable and a good leader (quote? ) could explain why Hamlet often confuses the order of society in his speeches. This can be seen when he calls himself a rogue and peasant slave (II. ii.547) when he clearly isnt, or when he calls himself unpregnant and likens himself to a whore in the same soliloquy, when he obviously is not. To Hamlet, Claudius is tainted and impure in mind and action, yet he is a good ruler of Denmark, a good king, and a good diplomat. He is efficient, confident, in control of affairs, in every way assured and poised. Hamlet identifies with Claudius in a way that restrains him from being able to kill him, hamlet has all the ability and the necessary desire, but Claudius has everything Hamlet wants, which leads to internal sub-conscious conflict on as well as his conscious conflicts. His mothers ability to alter the direction of her affection from one person to another so suddenly hurts Hamlet, as having to share her with his own father was difficult enough, but at least was understandable. He is now jealous that someone else holds such high regard in her affections but at the same time is disgusted with her for loving someone else. But as his jealousy is repressed, as he doesnt even admit to himself that he is jealous of his mothers lovers, all he feels is a deep sense of disgust towards Gertrude that helps him deal with his rejection. Hamlet could be suffering from the theory that Freud developed, the Oedipus theory. This states that as children, young boys feel great bitterness and resentment towards their fathers for making them share their mothers affections and for having sexual relations with their mothers which the young boys also desire, and so they view their fathers as rivals that they would rather have out of the way. These thoughts are repressed as a form of defence for fear that their fathers will realise what they are thinking. To compensate for this they resolve the complex by over identifying with their fathers and adopting many of their fathers attitudes. This could be used to explain Hamlets impediment and self-frustration towards his revenge. He tries to carry out the task, but he is held back in some way, because he cannot kill a person who he recognises as so like himself in what he wants to be like and wishes he could do. His desires towards his mother have been so long repressed that they are now repulsive to him, but yet her remarrying brings those thoughts to his attention. He sees someone taking the place of his father in her affections, the place that he has long coveted. The nature of this usurper, a relative, makes the link between the two even more incestuous in Hamlets mind and even more connected towards him. This, coupled with the fact that Claudius is able to gain his mothers affection by killing old Hamlet, ridding him, once again something that Hamlet has long wanted to do but repressed from himself, hinders Hamlet greatly from carrying out his revenge. When Hamlet discovers the identity of his fathers murderer his first instant reply is O my prophetic soul! My uncle? (I. v. 40). This does imply that unconsciously the idea had been in his mind and had suddenly been brought back to his awareness.

William Randolph Hearst Essay -- History, War

A. Plan of Investigation How greatly was William Randolph Hearst's propaganda concerning the Cuban insurrection involved in the decision of the United States to declare war on Spain in 1898? This question will be addressed in this investigation in an attempt to find the degree of influence that the publisher William Randolph Hearst had on a brief period of American foreign policy (and Cuban domestic policy) by his manipulation of the press, the emerging medium of the screen, and the lobbying of Congress. This will be done by reviewing the two opposing theories regarding Hearst's involvement; one claiming that he was one of the leading catalysts of the conflict, the other arguing that he simply manipulated the existing public opinion to make money. This paper will also analyze the historical evidence that may or may not point to Hearst's early steps towards the war, such as journalist George Creelman's account of the controversial Remington-Hearst telegrams, as well as W. Joseph Campbell's study of the factu ality of Creelman's narrative. The period of time being examined is from Hearst's papers' first calls for intervention in Cuba in 1893 to their coverage of the sinking of the USS Maine on 15 February 1898. It will not discuss anything that Hearst published in this time period advocating intervention in or covering the crises in the Phillipines and Puerto Rico. B. Summary of Evidence On the evening of 15 February 1898, the USS Maine, an American battleship stationed in Cuba's Havana Harbor, spontaneously exploded, killing more than 250 of its passengers. Two days later, despite the warnings of the Maine's commander Captain Charles Sigsbee that "public opinion (about the cause of the explosion) should be suspended until f... ... for description" (New York Journal 17 Aug. 1897). The paper detailed the story of her bold resistance to the advances of a Spanish officer, her imprisonment in a jail reserved for prostitutes and her eventual rescue by Journal correspondent Karl Decker (Thomas 179-184), who, according to fellow Journal writer Willis Abbot, actually bribed the prison guards to stage the rescue (Abbott 215-216). From 12 January to 20 January 1898, the Journal ran a series of cartoons ridiculing House Speaker Thomas Brackett Reed for openly opposing American intervention. On 25 January, the Maine arrived in Havana harbor, the first American boat to arrive. "Our Flag at Havana at Last," declared the Journal. Then, for almost a month the paper was quiet, finally interrupted by the mysterious explosion of the Maine. By that time, Hearst was riding a wave of papers and power to war.

Effects of Extramarital Affairs with Divorce on Middle Aged Women Essa

I interviewed Ann (pseudonym), who is a middle-aged woman who is a mother of three and has always been a happy, loving, and positive human being. However when I knew that I was going to interview her, I instantly knew that I was going to focus on the topic of how extramarital affairs (emotional and or sexual relationship a spouse has outside of their relationship) and divorce affects middle aged women. I chose this topic as the effects it has on a woman can be life-changing and can result in them becoming an entirely different person, and in the case of Ann it couldn’t be any more apparent. It is important to acknowledge that a divorce and the effect that it has is one subject matter, but a divorce caused by extramarital affairs is an entirely separate issue as it can have damaging short term effects, long term effects, and financial consequences. While divorce is not a primary process of aging, it is a secondary process that affects a large amount of women as they age in life. Understanding the basics of extramarital affairs such as the prevalence of them, who participates in them, and why they participate in them is the first step in understanding the effect they can have. There isn’t a known culture that accepts extramarital affairs (Jankowiak, Nell, and Buckmaster, 2002). Eric Widmer, Judith Treas, and Robert Newcomb (1998) published an article concerning attitudes on premarital sex, teenage sex, homosexual sex, and extramarital sex in 24 different countries. Their research consisted of surveying over 33,000 people. Their findings were very interested as while premarital sex gathered the strongest acceptance and homosexual sex gathered the most varied responses; it was extramarital sex that countries agreed on the mo... ...2002. "Managing infidelity: a cross- cultural perspective." International Journal of Psychoanalysis volume 87 (issue 2): (Retrieved from Questia on February 26, 2010.) Lauer, Robert and Jeanette Lauer. 2009. Marriage & Family: The Quest for Intimacy. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. Wiederman, Michael. 1997. "Extramarital Sex: Prevalence and correlates in a National Survey." Journal of Sex Research volume 34 (issue 2) 167-174. (Retrieved from EBSCOhost on February 26, 2010.) Widmer, Eric, Judith Treas, and Robert Newcomb. 1998. "Attitudes Towards Nonmarital Sex in 24 Countries." Journal of Sex Research volume 35 (issue 4): 349-358. (Retrieved from EBSCOhost on February 26, 2010.) â€Å"5% of Americans Addicted to Sex.† 2008. Times of India. Retrieved February 26, 2010 (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/World/5_Americans_addicted_to_sex/articleshow/3820228.cms).

Investigating Special Education Internet Resources Essay

Family Village For Families of Children with Special Needs – http://www.familyvillage.wisc.edu/websites.html This website offers a wide variety of resources for the community to use when trying to navigate around  the internet. It has sources such as Parent to Parent Matching, Mental health Websites, Diagnosis, and Internet resources. The Tulsa Area Alliance on Disabilities –http://208.112.118.116/disabili.html The website explains the benefits of early inclusion with students with and without disabilities. The website also breaks down the stages in which the person should be reaching milestones such as work and self-sufficiency. Tulsa Kids For Parents. For Families. For Life – http://www.tulsakids.com/October2011/Tulsa-Special-Needs-Resource-Guide. The Tulsa Kids for Parents webstie offers five pages facilities where children with disabilities can utilize for exercise, activities, cheerleading, horseback riding and many other events that students with disabilities can participate in. This site also provides churches, foundations, learning facilities and legal services. This can be very helpful when parents are searching for activities their child may be interested or therapeutic exercise. United Way – Tulsa Area United Way –http://www.tauw.org/Member_Agencies.asp The Untied Way provides a tremendous amount of support in the Tulsa area for people with disabilities. The United Way partners with agencies to provide support for services the New Leaf that provides residential living skills classes and vocational training. Parents  National Center for Learning Disabilities – http://www.ncld.org The NCLD website provides over 101 videos on different disabilities in order for parents to get an understanding of what type of disability their child may have. Not only does it provide facts about the disabilities it also provides true life stories from parents who have a child with a disability. Oklahoma Department of Human Services. http://www.okdhs.org/programsand services/dd/prvdrs/docs/providerlistab.htmlThe Department of Human Services is one of the most crucial services a parent can utilize. Having a child born with a disability is very expensive and the services the parents are offered are sometimes are life savers. Families can rely on free home visits  for therapy, vouchers for formula, free shots and wellness baby checkups. Wrightslaw –  http://www.wrightslaw.com/. Wrightslaw is a website that provides newsletters for parents to subscribe to concerning where to turn for Special Advocacy, Legal issues, revised regulations in education. This is a must to parents with a child that has a disability due to the fact that the website gets you headed in the right directs if a problem arises. The information is up to day on the No Child Left Behind Act. Students Funbrain – www.funbrain.com – This website provides interactive games such as connect the dots to create a picture of an animal or character. Funbrain is for all school age students and are arranged in different grade levels. KidsKnowIt Network – http://www.kidsknowit.com – The Kids Know It Network can be used as a homework helper by watching math videos on the problems a student may be struggling with. There are also bidoes on astronomy, biology, geology, history, math, memory and so much more. Teachers can utilize this website as an additional tool in the classroom. The great part about this website is it is free. Learn4Good – http://www.learn4good.com/kids/indes.htm – Learn4Good offers all ages Pre-k through 12 interactive games, lessons, math, reading, and can provide a report on student progress. At first I did not think students should be on this website but then took a closer look at what it had to offer the lower grades as well as the upper grades. Many times the older grades do not have enough educational websites to keep their interests or only geared to lower level learners. Starfall –  http://www.starfall.com – Starfall offers children a large variety of learning tools to begin students learning adventures for all ages. The  different categories range from learning their alphabet, colors, days, sounds to the students reading. My students with disabilities use this website when they come into the computer lab. Teachers  Department of Education http://www.ed.gov The Department of Education is one of the most valuable websites that keeps teachers and administrators informed of the changing laws in education. It provides resources for grants, professional development and funding. Do2Learn  http://www.do2learn.com Do2Learn is a must for teachers who teach children with autism. It allows you to print pictures of the child’s daily routine with flash cards. Self help toilet procedures, clothing, social behaviors and emotions. It offers over 2,500 pictures cards that can be printed. Most features on this site are free but there are some that you will need a subscription for. This website is a must for parents and teachers who work with Autistic students. Khan Academy  http://www.khanacademy.org Khan Academy is one of the most valuable websites for teachers to utilize as a resources tool. It offers 750 math videos that allows students to view a 3-5 minute video on the math problem that they are currently working. If students struggle with a certain step of a math problem they can view the video as many times as they may need. This is great as a homework helper. Learning Disabilities Association of America http://www.ldanatl.org/aboutld/teachers/index.asp The LDA can provide a path to understanding of many of the disabilities that teachers come in contact with every day. As an educator it is important to utilize resources that can provide definitions of their student’s disabilities. It provides signs, symptoms and strategies. National Association of Special Education Teachers  http://www.naset.org The NASET offers a wide range of resources for teachers such as Professional Development Courses, IEP Development Tools, E-Journals, IEP Golas, Objectives and Activities App. The most up to day features are  also avail and can be utilized form your ipad or iphone app. One very important feature about this website is that it provides handouts, printable forms and reports. No Child Left Behind  http://www.2.edu.gov/nclb.landing.jhtml The No Child Left Behind website offers resources for teachers and strategies that can be utilized in the classroom. Free special educational resources, bullying resources, are just some of the resources. The website also provides changes in the state standards, which is something that all teachers need to be aware of at all times.

Bloodlines Chapter Two

A COUPLE OF PEOPLE GASPED, no doubt over Keith's use of the term â€Å"vamp lover.† Neither word was that terrible in and of itself, but together†¦ well, they represented an idea that was pretty much anathema to all that the Alchemists stood for. We fought to protect humans from vampires. Being in league with those creatures was about the vilest thing any of us could be accused of. Even while questioning me earlier, the other Alchemists had been very careful with their choice of language. Keith's usage was almost obscene. Horowitz looked angry on my behalf and opened his mouth as though he might make an equally biting retort. After a quick glance at Zoe and me, he seemed to reconsider, and stayed silent. Michaelson, however, couldn't help himself from muttering, â€Å"Protect us all.† He made the sign against evil. Yet it wasn't Keith's name-calling that really set me off (though that did certainly send a chill through me). It was Stanton's earlier offhand comment. We know you requested Zoe. Keith had requested Zoe for this assignment? My resolve to keep her out of it grew by leaps and bounds. The thought of her going off with him made me clench my fists. Everyone here might think Keith Darnell was some kind of poster child, but I knew better. No girl – let alone my sister – should be left alone with him. â€Å"Keith,† said Stanton, a gentle warning in her voice. â€Å"I can respect your feelings, but you aren't in a position to make that call.† He flushed. â€Å"Palm Springs is my post! I have every right to dictate what goes on in my territory.† â€Å"I can understand why you'd feel that way,† said my father. Unbelievable. If Zoe or I had questioned authority like Keith had, our father wouldn't have hesitated to tell us our â€Å"rights† – or rather, he'd tell us that we had none. Keith had stayed with my family one summer – young Alchemists sometimes did that while training – and my father had grown to regard him like the son he'd never had. Even then, there'd been a double standard between Keith and us. Time and distance apparently hadn't diminished that. â€Å"Palm Springs may be your post,† said Stanton, â€Å"but this assignment is coming from places in the organization that are far above your reach. You're essential for coordination, yes, but you are by no means the ultimate authority here.† Unlike me, I suspected Stanton had smacked a few people in her day, and I think she wanted to do that to Keith now. It was funny that she would become my defender, since I'd been pretty sure she didn't buy my story about using Rose to advance my career. Keith visibly calmed himself, wisely realizing a childish outburst wasn't going to get him anywhere. â€Å"I understand. But I'm simply worried about the success of this mission. I know both of the Sage girls. Even before Sydney's ‘incident,' I had serious concerns about her. I figured she'd grow out of them, though, so I didn't bother saying anything at the time. I see now I was wrong. Back then, I actually thought Zoe would have been a far better choice for the family position. No offense, Jared.† He gave my father what was probably supposed to be a charming smile. Meanwhile, it was getting harder and harder to hide my incredulity. â€Å"Zoe was eleven when you stayed with us,† I said. â€Å"How in the world could you have drawn those conclusions?† I didn't buy for an instant that he'd had â€Å"concerns† about me back then. No – scratch that. He'd probably had concerns the last day he stayed with us, when I confronted him about a dirty secret he'd been hiding. That, I was almost certain, was what all of this was about. He wanted me silenced. My adventures with Rose were simply an excuse to get me out of the way. â€Å"Zoe was always advanced for her age,† Keith said. â€Å"Sometimes you can just tell.† â€Å"Zoe's never seen a Strigoi, let alone a Moroi! She'd probably freeze up if she did. That's true of most Alchemists,† I pointed out. â€Å"Whoever you send is going to have to be able to stand being around them, and no matter what you think of my reasons, I'm used to them. I don't like them, but I know how to tolerate them. Zoe hasn't had anything but the most basic of instruction – and that's all been in our home. Everyone keeps saying this is a serious assignment. Do you really want to risk its outcome because of inexperience and unsubstantiated fears?† I finished, proud of myself for staying calm and making such a reasoned argument. Barnes shifted uneasily. â€Å"But if Keith had doubts years ago†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Zoe's training is still probably enough to get by,† said my father. Five minutes ago, my father had endorsed me going instead of her! Was anyone here even listening to me? It was like I was invisible now that Keith was here. Horowitz had been busily cleaning and putting away his tattooing tools but looked up to scoff at Barnes's remark. â€Å"You said the magic words: ‘years ago.' Keith couldn't have been much older than these girls are now.† Horowitz shut his tool case and leaned casually against the wall, arms crossed. â€Å"I don't doubt you, Keith. Not exactly. But I'm not really sure you can base your opinion of her off memories from when you were all children.† By Horowitz's logic, he was saying I was still a child, but I didn't care. He'd delivered his comments in an effortless, easy way that nonetheless left Keith looking like an idiot. Keith knew it, too, and turned bright red. â€Å"I concur,† said Stanton, who was clearly getting impatient. â€Å"Sydney wants this badly, and few would, considering it means she'll actually have to live with a vampire.† Want it badly? Not exactly. But I did want to protect Zoe at all costs and restore my credibility. If it meant thwarting Keith Darnell along the way, then so much the – â€Å"Wait,† I said, replaying Stanton's words. â€Å"Did you say live with a vampire?† â€Å"Yes,† said Stanton. â€Å"Even if she's in hiding, the Moroi girl still has to have some semblance of a normal life. We figured we'd kill two birds with one stone and enroll her in a private boarding school. Take care of her education and lodging. We would make arrangements for you to be her roommate.† â€Å"Wouldn't that mean†¦ wouldn't that mean I'd have to go to school?† I asked, feeling a little puzzled now. â€Å"I already graduated.† High school, at least. I'd made it clear a number of times to my father that I'd love to go to college. He'd made it equally clear that he didn't feel there was a need. â€Å"You see?† said Keith, jumping on the opportunity. â€Å"She's too old. Zoe's a better age match.† â€Å"Sydney can pass for a senior. She's the right age.† Stanton gave me a once-over. â€Å"Besides, you were homeschooled, right? This'll be a new experience for you. You can see what you were missing.† â€Å"It would probably be easy for you,† said my father grudgingly. â€Å"Your education was superior to anything they can offer.† Nice backhanded compliment, Dad. I was afraid to show how uneasy this deal was making me. My resolve to look out for Zoe and myself hadn't changed, but the complications just kept growing. Repeat high school. Live with a vampire. Keep her in witness protection. And even though I'd talked up how comfortable I was around vampires, the thought of sharing a room with one – even a seemingly benign one like Jill – was unnerving. Another woe occurred to me. â€Å"Would you be an undercover student too?† I asked Keith. The idea of lending him class notes made me nauseous again. â€Å"Of course not,† he said, sounding insulted. â€Å"I'm too old. I'll be the Local Area Mission Liaison.† I was willing to bet he'd just made that title up on the spot. â€Å"My job is to help coordinate the assignment and report back to our superiors. And I'm not going to do it if she's the one there.† He looked from face to face as he spoke that last line, but there was no question who she was. Me. â€Å"Then don't,† said Stanton bluntly. â€Å"Sydney is going. That's my decision, and I'll argue it to any higher authority you want to take it to. If you are so against her placement, Mr. Darnell, I will personally see that you are transferred out of Palm Springs and don't have to deal with her at all.† All eyes swiveled to Keith, and he hesitated. She'd caught him in a trap, I realized. I had to imagine that with its climate, Palm Springs didn't see a lot of vampire action. Keith's job there was probably pretty easy, whereas when I'd worked in St. Petersburg, I'd been constantly having to do damage control. That place was a vampire haven, as were some of the other places in Europe and Asia my father had taken me to visit. Don't even get me started about Prague. If Keith were transferred, he took the risk of not only getting a bigger workload but also of being in a much worse location. Because although Palm Springs wasn't desirable for vampires, it sounded kind of awesome for humans. Keith's face confirmed as much. He didn't want to leave Palm Springs. â€Å"What if she goes there, and I have reason to suspect her of treason again?† â€Å"Then report her,† said Horowitz, shifting restlessly. He obviously wasn't impressed with Keith. â€Å"The same as you would anyone.† â€Å"I can increase some of Zoe's training in the meantime,† said my father, almost as an apology to Keith. It was clear whose side my father was on. It wasn't mine. It wasn't even Zoe's, really. â€Å"Then, if you find fault with Sydney, we can replace her.† I bristled at the thought of Keith being the one to decide if I had faults, but that didn't bother me nearly as much as the thought of Zoe still being tied to this. If my father was keeping her on standby, then she wasn't out of danger yet. The Alchemists could still have their hooks in her – as could Keith. I vowed then that no matter what it took, even if I had to handfeed him grapes, I would make sure Keith had no reason to doubt my loyalties. â€Å"Fine,† he said, the word seeming to cause him a lot of pain. â€Å"Sydney can go†¦ for now. But I'll be watching you.† He fixed his gaze on me. â€Å"And I'm not going to cover for you. You'll be responsible for keeping that vampire girl in line and getting her to her feedings.† â€Å"Feedings?† I asked blankly. Of course. Jill would need blood. For a moment, all my confidence wavered. It was easy to talk about hanging out with vampires when none were around. Easier still when you didn't think about what it was that made vampires who they were. Blood. That terrible, unnatural need that fueled their existence. An awful thought sprang into my mind, vanishing as quickly as it came. Am I supposed to give her my blood? No. That was ridiculous. That was a line the Alchemists would never cross. Swallowing, I tried to conceal my brief moment of panic. â€Å"How do you plan on feeding her?† Stanton nodded to Keith. â€Å"Would you explain?† I think she was giving him a chance to feel important, as a way of making up for his earlier defeat. He ran with it. â€Å"There's only one Moroi we know of living in Palm Springs,† said Keith. As he spoke, I noticed that his tousled blond hair was practically coated in gel. It gave his hair a slimy shine that I didn't think was attractive in the least. Also, I didn't trust any guy who used more styling products than I did. â€Å"And if you ask me, he's crazy. But he's harmless crazy – inasmuch as any of them are harmless. He's this old recluse who lives outside the city. He's got this hang-up about the Moroi government and doesn't associate with any of them, so he isn't going to tell anyone you guys are there. Most importantly, he's got a feeder he's willing to share.† I frowned. â€Å"Do we really want Jill hanging out with some anti-government Moroi? The whole purpose is to keep them stable. If we introduce her to some rebel, how do we know he won't try to use her?† â€Å"That's an excellent point,† said Michaelson, seeming surprised to admit as much. I hadn't meant to undermine Keith. My mind had just jumped ahead in this way it had, spotting a potential problem and pointing it out. From the look he gave me, though, it was like I was purposely trying to discredit his statement and make him look bad. â€Å"We won't tell him who she is, obviously,† he said, a glint of anger in his good eye. â€Å"That would be stupid. And he's not part of any faction. He's not part of anything. He's convinced the Moroi and their guardians let him down, so he wants nothing to do with any of them. I've passed a story to him about how Jill's family has the same antisocial feelings, so he's sympathetic.† â€Å"You're right to be wary, Sydney,† said Stanton. There was a look of approval in her eyes, like she was pleased at having defended me. That approval meant a lot to me, considering how fierce she often seemed. â€Å"We can't assume anything about any of them. Although we also checked out this Moroi with Abe Mazur, who concurs he's harmless enough.† â€Å"Abe Mazur?† scoffed Michaelson. He scratched at his graying beard. â€Å"Yes. I'm sure he'd be an expert on who's harmless or not.† My heart lurched at the name, but I tried not to show it. Do not react, do not react, I ordered my face. After a deep breath, I asked very, very carefully, â€Å"Is Abe Mazur the Moroi who's going with Jill? I've met him before†¦ but I thought you said it was an Ivashkov who was going.† If Abe Mazur was in residence in Palm Springs, that would alter things significantly. Michaelson scoffed. â€Å"No, we'd never send you off with Abe Mazur. He's simply been helping with the organization of this plan.† â€Å"What's so bad about Abe Mazur?† asked Keith. â€Å"I don't know who he is.† I studied Keith very closely as he spoke, looking for some trace of deception. But, no. His face was all innocence, openly curious. His blue eyes – or eye, rather – held a rare look of confusion, contrasting with the usual know-it-all arrogance. Abe's name meant nothing to him. I exhaled a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding. â€Å"A scoundrel,† said Stanton flatly. â€Å"He knows far too much about things he shouldn't. He's useful, but I don't trust him.† A scoundrel? That was an understatement. Abe Mazur was a Moroi whose nickname in Russia – zmey, the serpent – said it all. Abe had done a number of favors for me, ones I'd had to pay back at considerable risk to myself. Part of that payback had been helping Rose escape. Well, he'd called it payback; I called it blackmail. I had no desire to cross paths with him again, mostly because I was afraid of what he'd ask for next. The frustrating part was that there was no one I could go to for help. My superiors wouldn't react well to learning that, in addition to all my other solo activities with vampires, I was making side deals with them. â€Å"None of them are to be trusted,† my father pointed out. He made the Alchemist sign against evil, drawing a cross on his left shoulder with his right hand. â€Å"Yes, well, Mazur's worse than most,† said Michaelson. He stifled a yawn, reminding all of us that it was the middle of the night. â€Å"Are we all set, then?† There were murmurs of assent. Keith's stormy expression displayed how unhappy he was at not getting his way, but he made no more attempts to stop me from going. â€Å"I guess we can leave anytime now,† he said. It took me a second to realize that the â€Å"we† meant him and me. â€Å"Right now?† I asked in disbelief. He shrugged. â€Å"The vampires are going to be on their way soon. We need to make sure everything's set up for them. If we switch off driving, we can be there by tomorrow afternoon.† â€Å"Great,† I said stiffly. A road trip with Keith. Ugh. But what else could I say? I had no choice in this, and even if I did, I was in no position to turn down anything the Alchemists asked of me now. I'd played every card I had tonight, and I had to believe being with Keith was better than a re-education center. Besides, I'd just fought a hard battle to prove myself and spare Zoe. I had to continue showing I was up for anything. My father sent me off to pack with the same briskness he'd ordered me to make myself presentable earlier. I left the others talking and scurried quietly up to my room, still conscious of my sleeping mother. I was an expert in packing quickly and efficiently, thanks to surprise trips my father had sprung on me throughout my childhood. In fact, I always had a bag of toiletries packed and ready to go. The problem wasn't so much in speed as it was in wondering how much to pack. The length of time for this assignment hadn't been specified, and I had the uneasy feeling that no one actually knew. Were we talking about a few weeks? An entire school year? I'd heard someone mention the Moroi wanting to repeal the law that endangered Jill, but that seemed like the kind of legal process that could take a while. To make things worse, I didn't even know what to wear to high school. The only thing I was certain of was that the weather would be hot. I ended up packing ten of my lightest outfits and hoped I'd be able to do laundry. â€Å"Sydney?† I was putting my laptop in a messenger bag when Zoe appeared in my doorway. She'd redone her braids so that they were neater, and I wondered if it had been an attempt to impress our father. â€Å"Hey,† I said, smiling at her. She slipped into the room and shut the door behind her. I was glad she'd come to say goodbye. I would miss her and wanted her to know that – â€Å"Why did you do that to me?† she demanded before I could get a word out. â€Å"Do you know how humiliated I am?† I was taken aback, speechless for a few moments. â€Å"I†¦ what are you talking about? I was trying to – â€Å" â€Å"You made me sound incompetent!† she said. I was astonished to see the glint of tears in her eyes. â€Å"You went on and on about how I didn't have any experience and couldn't handle doing what you and Dad do! I looked like an idiot in front of all those Alchemists. And Keith.† â€Å"Keith Darnell is no one you need to worry about impressing,† I said quickly, trying to control my temper. Seeing her stormy face, I sighed and replayed the conversation in the study. I hadn't been trying to make Zoe look bad so much as do whatever I could to make sure I was the one sent away. I'd had no clue she would take it like this. â€Å"Look, I wasn't trying to embarrass you. I was trying to protect you.† She gave a harsh laugh, and the anger sounded weird coming from someone as gentle as Zoe. â€Å"Is that what you call it? You even said yourself that you were trying to get a promotion!† I grimaced. Yes, I had said that. But I could hardly tell her the truth. No human knew the truth about why I'd helped Rose. Lying to my own kind – especially my sister – pained me, but there was nothing I could do. As usual, I felt trapped in the middle. So, I dodged the comment. â€Å"You were never intended to be an Alchemist,† I said. â€Å"There are better things for you out there.† â€Å"Because I'm not as smart as you?† she asked. â€Å"Because I don't speak five languages?† â€Å"That has nothing to do with it,† I snapped. â€Å"Zoe, you're wonderful, and you'd probably make a great Alchemist! But believe me, the Alchemist life†¦ you don't want any part of it.† I wanted to tell her that she'd hate it. I wanted to tell her that she'd never be responsible for her own future or get to make her own decisions again. But my sense of duty prevented me, and I stayed silent. â€Å"I'd do it,† she said. â€Å"I'd help protect us from vampires†¦ if Dad wanted me to.† Her voice wavered a little, and I suddenly wondered what was really fueling her desire to be an Alchemist. â€Å"If you want to get close to Dad, find another way. The Alchemist cause might be a good one, but once you're in it, they own you.† I wished I could explain to her how it felt. â€Å"You don't want this life.† â€Å"Because you want it all for yourself?† she demanded. She was a few inches shorter than me but filled with so much fury and fierceness right now that she seemed to take up the room. â€Å"No! I don't – you don't understand,† I finally said. I wanted to throw my hands up in exasperation but held back, as always. The look she gave me nearly turned me to ice. â€Å"Oh, I think I understand perfectly.† She turned around abruptly and hurried out the door, still managing to move quietly. Her fear of our father overpowered her anger at me. I stared at where she'd been standing and felt terrible. How could she have thought I was really trying to steal all the glory and make her look bad? Because that's exactly what you said, a voice inside me pointed out. I supposed it was true, but I'd never expected her to be offended. I'd never known she had any interest in being one of the Alchemists. Even now, I wondered if her desire was more about being a part of something and proving herself to our father than it was about really wishing she'd been chosen for this task. Whatever her reasons, there was nothing to be done for it now. I might not like the heavy-handed way the Alchemists had dealt with me, but I still fiercely believed in what they were doing to protect humans from vampires. And I definitely believed in keeping Jill safe from her own people if it meant avoiding a massive civil war. I could do this job and do it well. And Zoe – she would be free to pursue whatever she wanted in life. â€Å"What took you so long?† my father asked when I returned to the study. My conversation with Zoe had delayed me a couple minutes, which was two minutes too long for him. I didn't attempt to answer. â€Å"I'm ready to go whenever you are,† Keith told me. His mood had shifted while I was upstairs. Friendliness oozed from him now, so strongly that it was a wonder everyone didn't recognize it as fake. He'd apparently decided to try a more pleasant attitude around me, either in the hopes of impressing the others or sucking up to me so that I wouldn't reveal what I knew about him. Yet even as he wore that plastic smile, there was a stiffness in his posture and the way he crossed his arms that told me – if no else – that he was no happier about being thrown together than I was. â€Å"I can even do most of the driving.† â€Å"I don't mind doing my share,† I said, trying to avoid glancing at his glass eye. I also wasn't comfortable being driven by someone with faulty depth perception. â€Å"I'd like to speak to Sydney in private before she goes, if that's all right,† my father said. No one had a problem with that, and he led me into the kitchen, shutting the door behind us. We stood quietly for a few moments, simply facing each other with arms crossed. I suddenly dared to hope that maybe he'd come to tell me he was sorry for how things had been between us this last month, that he forgave me and loved me. Honestly, I would've been happy if he'd simply wanted a private, fatherly goodbye. He peered down at me intently, his brown eyes so identical to mine. I hoped mine never had such a cold look in them. â€Å"I don't have to tell you how important this is for you, for all of us.† So much for fatherly affection. â€Å"No, sir,† I said. â€Å"You don't.† â€Å"I don't know if you can undo the disgrace you brought down on us by running off with them, but this is a step in the right direction. Do not mess this up. You're being tested. Follow your orders. Keep the Moroi girl out of trouble.† He sighed and ran a hand through his dark blond hair, which I'd also inherited. Strange, I thought, that we had so many things in common†¦ yet were so completely different. â€Å"Thank God Keith is with you. Follow his lead. He knows what he's doing.† I stiffened. There was that note of pride in his voice again, like Keith was the greatest thing walking the earth. My father had seen to it that my training was thorough, but when Keith had stayed with us, my father had taken him on trips and lessons I'd never been part of. My sisters and I had been furious. We'd always suspected that our father regretted having only daughters, and that had been proof. But it wasn't jealousy that made my blood boil and teeth clench now. For a moment, I thought, What if I tell him what I know? What will he think of his golden boy then? But staring into my father's hard eyes, I answered my own question: No one would believe me. That was immediately followed by the memory of another voice and a girl's frightened, pleading face staring at me with big brown eyes. Don't tell, Sydney. Whatever you do, don't tell what Keith did. Don't tell anyone. I couldn't betray her like that. My father was still waiting for an answer. I swallowed and nodded. â€Å"Yes, sir.† He raised his eyebrows, clearly pleased, and gave me a rough pat on the shoulder. It was the closest he'd come to real affection in a while. I flinched, both from surprise and because of how rigid I was with frustration. â€Å"Good.† He moved toward the kitchen door and then paused to glance back at me. â€Å"Maybe there's hope for you yet.†