Personal experience in the war in Counter- Attack Essay

By considering one of the poems that you have read, explain how the poet presents their view of the conflict – ‘Counter-Attack’ Siegfried Sassoon presents his personal experience in the war in ‘Counter- Attack’ with raw brutal imagery of the battlefield, the numerous sensory feelings provoking terror and outrage at the war, coupled with the stark contrast of report-like statements to ultimately convey the futility of the conflict, and the massive waste of life. Sassoon immediately establishes the sense of emotional detachment in the conflict; the opening lines simply state that they had ‘gained (their) first objective hours before’, provoking horror at the fact that soldiers were forced to fight in inhumane conditions and ultimately were made to detach themselves from the terror of watching their friends being murdered. A semi-omniscient narration is maintained to establish the collective horror of the war, the fact that all soldiers would almost always face the same fate as the previous had and remains set throughout the poem as the contrast to the emotional detachment presented. The poet describes how at first even before the attack begins the soldiers are already ‘blind with smoke’, yet they are made to continue to work as soon as ‘dawn’ begins; all the soldiers are immediately forced to join in with the ‘clink of shovels’, a sign of the hard conditions of living in the trenches, while the militaristic onomatopoeia coincides with the perceived orderliness, such as the ‘bombers posted’ and ‘Lewis guns well placed’. The poet therefore establishes the horror of the almost methodical methods to which the war was fought, and that the death that would come later made to seem almost mechanical. Sassoon also emphasises that these soldiers are simply normal men, many whom are young and forced to fight when he describes how prior to the counter-attack, there was ‘a yawning soldier [kneeling] across the bank’; in order to keep their morale up, they are forced to become sardonic, sarcastically describing the weather as ‘the jolly old rain’, yet serving to reinforce the message that the conflict has forced people to become detached from their emotions and feelings. The horror of the battlefield is also clearly defined; Sassoon describes the average life in the trenches even before the counter-attack to be one ‘rotten with dead; green clumsy legs’. The use of ‘rotten’ inherently suggests that the battlefield is full of bodies, many of which are likely to be decomposing which only heightens the horror in which these soldiers must live their daily lives. They are in effect also forced to separate themselves from the sights; death is a normality in warfare, and the raw description of various soldiers ‘sprawled and grovelled’ along the trenches defines the sheer brutality they face. The men are reduced from strong, able men who were previously ‘high-booted’ to being helpless in the face of war, some even described as eventually dying ‘face downward’, a possible reference to the conflict only bringing doom to their lives. The battlefield is not only strewn with countless bodies, but also described as treacherous itself; the mud is personified as ‘sucking’ the fallen soldiers down into it with little remorse, creating a sense of the indignity of the soldiers’ deaths. The soldiers that are still alive are simply ‘[wallowing] like trodden sand-bags’, indication of the hopelessness and lack of control in the situation they face. They are also metaphorically ‘loosely-filled’, hinting possibly that these men are also physically as well as mentally exhausted, hence the soldier having ‘knelt’ against the bank. The sudden switch from the collection of soldiers to the single one in the second stanza points towards Sassoon’s idea of the wrongs of war; the stark reality that war costs numerous lives and each soldier is in effect a whole life, the one about to be lost in the war is as just as important. To describe the intensity of the conflict, the poet describes how this single soldier responds with such fear in that he becomes ‘mute in the clamour of shells’, simply reduced as he recoils from the initial shock of warfare. Yet rather than recovering from his initial shock, ultimately the soldier is described by Sassoon as helpless, as he ‘crouched and flinched, dizzy with galloping fear’, reduced almost to primal instinct when faced with such a large ‘strangled’ horror. The battlefield along with its weaponry ‘[spouts] dark earth and wire with gusts from hell’; the poet explains the terrible nature of the war, likened to hell wrecking its destruction onto the battlefield, and in the remnants of the carnage the soldier can only hear the ‘butchered, frantic gestures of the dead’ – an oxymoron to establish the fact that death on the battlefield is so sudden and brutal it is literally incomprehensible. Sassoon’s view of the conflict is described as being ultimately futile; the first stanza already indicates that there are numerous ‘bulged, clotted heads’ scattered throughout, grotesque imagery that also provides an ominous undertone to the counter-attack. These bodies are also described as ‘[sleeping]’ rather than the stark reality that they are dead, pointing to the normality of the situation. To add further to the futility, even the officer of the trench is ‘blundering’, somewhat dark comedy in the face of terrible times, and he continues only by ‘gasping and bawling’ in shock. In contrast to the ‘dead’ lifeless nature of the soldiers, it is the ammunition that is fully alive in this case; ‘bullets spat’ at them, ‘traversing sure as fate, and never a dud’, adding to the certainty of death in the conflict. The soldier Sassoon describes ultimately meets his fate in a spout of confusion indicated by the sudden ellipses in his thoughts: ‘and he remembered his rifle†¦rapid fire†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ Notably the soldier himself cannot remember to hold onto his own rifle – shock is combined with futility in that the soldier cannot arm himself and is therefore helpless, akin to almost all the other soldiers in the trenches. His fate is one that ends with him having ‘[bled] to death’. Heavy consonants throughout the line along with repetition emphasise the futile nature in which he dies: ‘Down, and down, and down, he sank and drowned’. The poem establishes Sassoon’s opinion of the conflict being one filled with horror, forced emotional detachment and ultimately the underlying futility of the war in the soldiers’ confusion and the mechanical killing presented. The poem never aligns with any set line structure in order to add to this confusion, and the poem is closed with the simple factual statement ‘the counter-attack had failed’, in line with the opening line to create a contrast and show the real brutal nature of war: people become numbers rather than the real human beings presented in the second stanza.

Balinese Trance Séance

The film â€Å"Balinese Trance Seance† centers on a medium named Jero Tapakan who has been a medium for 24 years. She became a medium after suffering a series of both physical and mental breakdowns and attributes her ability to contact sprits and deities to this. It appears that in Indonesia a person who can enter a trance and contact sprits and gods is a person held in high regard. The reason people of Bali utilize sprit a medium is because they may want information on how to perform a ritual properly so they do not suffer misfortune through supernatural means.They will also consult a medium before they build a home or on political disputes even for spiritual revenge from a vengeful spirit. For Jero to go into a Trance she begins by lighting an incenses and preparing holy water as well as offerings from the family members that are believed to carry the spiritual senescence of the person of whom they wish to speak to. However, it is explained that it is unknown what deity or s prit will come forth to communicate with the family. Before the Jero begins her clients do not consult with her and she is not giving any prior knowledge of the person or gods/goddess the family wishes to communicate with.To put her self in a trance she will cant and pray to the gods to grant her the ability to contact the sprits she, will also purify her self and all object offered with holy water. Jero prays to the gods of the sky, sea and the earth. Once in a trance Jero brought forth a deity that was angry that the family had not performed a ritual correctly and wished the family to have a public cremation to appease the god. When Jero was in her second trance it was explained that the ritual was for the grandson who had passed away off a disease and being that the doctors could not save him the family had suspected witchcraft.During the second trance another deity came forth an instructed the family to make offerings at the main home and by doing this all there sins will be red eemed. After this the family once again asked Jero to go into a trance to contact the sprit of they dead son and she did. This time the sprit of the boy come forth an explained to the family that it was a female member of the family that was the cause of his death. He stated that he was â€Å"pierced through the heart†.The boy went on to question the family as to why his mother was not present and the father explained that she was spiritually unclean and could not attend the ritual. The boy orders the family to make offering to brama, swiwa and wishna to help with his cremation. He also asked he father for permission to make the female responsible for his death sick but only if the father wished it. At the conclusion of the ritual the family plays the recording back for further explanation from Jero and the money and offerings are returned to the family and Jero only takes a small tip and food for her services.When Jero is shown herself on film she explains that once the spri ts enter her she blacks out and does not remember what is said she explains that she feels still and in a daze while in trance. She continues to explain that it is hard for her to get into the first trance but very easy to enter the state after this. I found this film very interesting because you see that although Jero makes a her living in this way she does not charge the family large amounts of money and gives them peace of mind and happiness in return.

The Oklahoma City Bombing Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Oklahoma City Bombing - Research Paper Example In early life, McVeigh spent the life of a Roman Catholic American, who was being bullied due to his tiny stature. Professor Douglas Linder associates McVeigh being bullied and his grandfather’s hunting skills with his weaponry interests (as cited in Rudkin, n.d., p.2). According to CNN, McVeigh consistently remained a conservative and registered Republican. He participated in American Gulf War after joining army (Michel & Herbeck, as cited in Rudkin, n.d., p.2).Hoffman (1997) explains that aspiring for US Green Beret McVeigh disapproved US involvement in Iraq and Kuwait (p.2). Rudkin (n.d.) further stresses that military is the only institution that conditioned McVeigh’s in-group and out-group perception and use of violence to take action against â€Å"other† or enemy(3).Which he utilized in attacking government in defense of Patriot Movement. Turk (2004) argues that McVeigh’s military engagements contributed his self-definition of a soldier and the idea of â€Å"collateral damage† inflicted on innocent (may be children) while performing his duty (p.279). Turk (2004) further highlights McVeigh’s failure in joining Green Beret unit. Responding to failures, McVeigh became increasingly interested in extremist literature, such as, â€Å"The Turner Diaries† (p.247). It was a novel by supremacist William Luther Pierce (Rudkin, n.d.p.3).According to Anti-Defamation League (ADL) it narrate a future of US federal government under Jewish control.ADL also revealed the presence of passages from â€Å"The Turner Diaries† in McVeigh’s car on the bombing day. Linder believed that McVeigh’s nescient extremism transformed into action after observing FBI’s Waco and Ruby Ridge operations. Linder further reveals that numerous non-combatant and children deaths in twin incidents motivated him to â€Å"strike back† (as cited in Rudkin, n.d., p.5). Rudkin (n.d.) believe that it was the depiction of McVeigh’s struggle against oppression of bureaucracy and a

The Multiple Benefits of Dual Language Assignment

The Multiple Benefits of Dual Language - Assignment Example Educators realize that dual language programs are the best way to go about this. Although according to the authors the legislation is flawed because it compares this years students with last years and it also does not give a timeframe. Thomas and Collier found that in the Houston, Texas, Independent School District the English learner students scored more highly than those in a transitional bilingual program. What they also discovered is that the scores for native speaking English students were also higher than those in the mainstream system. As a bonus, these English speaking students also scored higher in their chosen foreign language than those learning in standalone programs. Not only did students score higher grades, but they also picked up another language at the same time. Thomas and Collier found that native speakers who were in dual language programs saw improvements in both their native language and second language. This shows that the programs are effective in equipping students with the right skills to succeed. Native English speaking students can get just as much out of the programs as English learners

News letter Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

News letter - Assignment Example To be clear, it is the individual’s mental state, not the method, which counts towards attaining ASC. Still, for the sake of discussion, below are the methods that aid in altering the state of consciousness. 1. Relaxation – This involves free or unrestrained body movements. Unrestrained movements are believed to reflect free emotional expression. It is also believed that muscular blocks causes repression. 2. Massage – This is used for stress-related behavior disorders. It is believed to have an impact on the consciousness. The assumption believes that behavior is manifested in the physical body. Body structure is influenced by attitude. Changes in muscle thickness and length are also caused by emotions. 3. Dance – Every dance is believed to have an impact on consciousness as well. Special dances like the Tai Chi Ch’uan of China and the Sufi dance are thought to promote physical and mental health, and facilitate alteration of consciousness. 5. Breathing - Deep breathing aids in relaxation due to its rhythm’s connection with the mind. Its rhythm is dependent on the state of consciousness. Breathing control also allows an individual to control the mind.. 6. Expressive Techniques – Allowing expression of anger in controlled environment (anger therapy) also aids in relaxation and tension release (Grosklags, 2006, p 47). However, it has to be done with caution as overdoing it could result in more aggressive behavior due to more negative emotions. The second set of methods involves two social activities. The first one is the manipulation of social factors. This method involves total withdrawal from society and change in social functioning (McKay, 2006, p 21). The second method is alteration of social relationships. It is said that when people interact, there is a potential growth (McKay, 2006, p 23). From this viewpoint, maladjustment or suffering could result in greater maturity or development in the end. Changes in social values can aid in

Should workers have the right to strike, and should this right be Essay

Should workers have the right to strike, and should this right be restricted in particular contexts or for particular groups of - Essay Example However, if companies adopt a stakeholder model of corporate governance, the need to strike might be averted. The stakeholder model of corporate governance becomes relevant in the issue of a strike because the structure of the philosophy of governance, when geared towards a shareholder model becomes a microcosm example of survival of the fittest. Each member of a shareholder model is serving his or her own interests because the overall corporate culture is geared towards only protecting the interests of the owners at the expense of all other considerations. Improvements in employment conditions do not occur unless they are of a benefit to the shareholder’s interests. Layoffs and terminations are made liberally with high levels of turnover when the interests of all parties are usurped by an upward flow of actions that are geared solely towards the owners. In a stakeholder model of corporate governance, all parties, including the employees, are taken into consideration when maki ng the decisions that affect the company. Everyone’s concerns and needs are addressed, and most are met, in order for all to receive the benefits of the interests of the company. The Right to Strike The U.K. ... While the Constitution has since been signed, the issues were important enough that it delayed the U.K. in agreeing to all the terms within the document. Part of the regulations that define the right to work in the UK are structures on how a strike must be approached and voted upon. Although, as pointed out by Mr. Hendy during a debate in Parliament in 2009, all governments have restrictions on the right to strike, the British government has set up structures that limit those rights to a point that the international community has voiced objections that have had to be addressed (Great Britain and Dismore 2009, p. 25). Therefore, the debate over the right to strike has been an ongoing issues within the U.K. However, the right to strike extends beyond the laws that currently and previously structured the rights of the employee to protest his or her conditions within the work place. The right to strike is the right to help define how a social group, that group defined by the workers, has the ability to designate boundaries under which they will allow themselves to be used for the purposes of commerce. The right to strike is a legal concept, but it is also a human rights concept that must be considered when there are problems within the work place that are impeding the basic human condition. According to Amnesty International (2010) the right to strike is a human’s right’s issue that can be held as a standard in regard to the level of human rights that are available within a nation. When a country cannot afford its workers the rights to organize and protest conditions that are not conducive to the welfare of their lives. Issues such as fair wages and worker safety can create problems that must be

Correctional Theory in General & Nontraditional Onces Research Paper

Correctional Theory in General & Nontraditional Onces - Research Paper Example Nontraditional strategies like Electronic Home Monitoring and Day reporting have garnered prevalence in the judicial system. They are aimed at reducing the judicial expenditure and enhancing rehabilitation into the community. Analysis of recidivism and educational and vocational results illustrates the effectiveness of these strategies compared to traditional correction strategies. Introduction Criminal offenders are members of the societal system who needs protection and care from the very society that they threaten. For this reason, correction facilities such prisons and juvenile correction centers have been established to help in changing the offenders from their criminal ways into responsible and productive members of the society. Correction of offenders is essential to ensure that they refrain from their criminal endeavors and also to enhance a safer community where no one is threatened by their presence. Sociologists and criminology scholars have advanced various theories, both traditional and non-traditional to explain the evolution and importance of correction systems. Each of these theories has been advanced to support various goals and objectives of the correction process. The goals include advancing the principle of cost effectiveness and reducing rates of recidivism. Prevalent Competing Theories of Correction Rehabilitative strategy is one of the prevalent theories of correction. Rehabilitation is aimed at making the community a better place to live by changing the mindset of the offender and eliminating the factors that make an offender engage in crime. It is also aimed at reintegrating the offenders back into the community rather than eliminating them and excluding them due to their acts. Rehabilitative strategy is all round as it not only changes the individual, but also changes the society from which the individual lives. It is a strategy aimed at completely eradicating the proponents of criminal behavior (Cullen and Gendreau, 2000). Boot camp ( Shock incarceration) strategy as the name suggests is a correction strategy that resembles martial indispensable training. This correction program entails manual labor, emphasizes on forceful physical bustle, and any activity that was aimed at reducng free time that the inmates might have. This strategy also implies strict rules as pertains to the appearance and the conduct of the inmates. Intense verbal techniques are also utilized by the correctional officers, aimed at constructive changes by shuttering the in mates resistance (Parent, 2003). Difference in the Goals of these Correction Strategies Goals of rehabilitative strategy Firstly, it attributed breaking of the law to social and psychological factors that led the individual to breaking the law and these factors needed to be dealt with in a personalized approach. Secondly, it aimed at changing the factors that led each offender to committing crime. In addition, the rehabilitative program was aimed at individualizing the corre ction of each offender on a case after case basis. Consequently, this correctional approach aimed at incorporating discretion in the imposition of sanctions to offenders (Cullen and Gendreau, 2000). Goals of boot camps (shock incarceration) strategy Boot camps as strategies of correction had three main goals. To begin with, they were aimed at reducing operational cost. Consequently, they were aimed at reducing prison populations. They were also aimed at reducing recidivism (Parent,

Colonialism in Africa Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Colonialism in Africa - Essay Example The indigenous people in Africa reacted differently to European colonialism. Most of them were against the colonial powers since they saw it as a way of undermining their cultural values and practices. The colonial powers came with a new system of formal education and religion that Africans were not ready to adopt. The Europeans also introduced new systems of government that collided with the systems that governed the indigenous people. The chiefs and other leaders of the African communities lost their significance in their own land. Many African communities went into war with the Europeans to drive them out of their countries. Although there is a number of the countries that collaborated with the European rule, this was only based on a short-term basis after which they resisted. The major goal of the American Revolution is to attain the independence of America by fighting back the control by the British government. Initially, the colonies did not have problems with the British powers because there was no direct parliamentary control by the British. Following the Indian and French wars between 1754 and 1763, Britain lost huge amounts of money that had to be recovered. The colonial power imposed taxes on the colonies without their knowledge to pay for the huge national debt. This was the initial action that outraged the colonialists and the primary factor that led to the violent revolution that followed. From 1765 to 1783, the rebel colonialists in the American colonies rejected the aristocracy imposed to them by the British.

Six sigma theory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Six sigma theory - Essay Example and then compare them to the statistics of their performance after which a measure is undertaken to help determine the suitability of current study strategies. Remarkably, a student who employs the six-sigma theory is observed to not only forgo their previous strategies, but also measure previous success based on these strategies, which facilitate the identification of where the problem is in case of deteriorating academic results. An eminent observation also in real life application of six-sigma theory in academics is the fundamental aim of the theory, which involves the implementation of improved measurement-based strategies (Rojas 104). These strategies focus on the improvement of the existing measures that help a student design and implement changes to the unsuccessful study process. The students is also matches his/her performance to develop the requirements needed for implementing the new study process. Additionally, a student is able constitute and implement new control that prevent the problem of failing in certain course/subjects and uphold the results achieved from the achievements. Another observation in the application of the theory in academics is that students are able to reflect on their improved strategies to safeguard long-lasting success. Rojas, Alejandro J. Sustaining Student Achievement: Six Sigma Strategies And Successful Urban School District Superintendents. 1st ed. Los Angeles, California: University of Southern California, 2008.

An analysis of why economic sanctions are good Essay Example for Free

An analysis of why economic sanctions are good Essay A person may cause evil to others not only by his actions but by his inaction, and in either case he is justly accountable to them for the injury. John Mills OR Senator John Kerry once said We must retool our nation to prepare for the challenge we already face to maintain our position in the global economy. And this much is certain: America will not have national security without economic security. Therefore, I negate the resolution that: Resolved: Economic sanctions ought not to be used to achieve foreign policy objectives Definitions: Economic Sanctions- Economic penalties, such as stoppage of trade and financial transactions, imposed upon a country to force compliance with another countrys or UNs or WTOs demands. (businessdictionary.com) Ought- used to express obligation. Foreign Policy- the policy of a sovereign state in its interaction with other sovereign states. Objectives- : an aim, goal, or end of action. (In case of argumentation relating to resolve not confined to U.S.A) Sovereign- one that exercises supreme authority within a limited sphere. All unspecified definitions are from Merriam Webster Core Value: Societal Welfare- What is best for most of society Value Criterion- The neg shall prevail if I can prove that economic sanctions are a worthwhile method to achieve foreign policy objectives. But the aff shall prevail if, and only if he can prove otherwise C1: Smart economic sanctions are needed to compel foreign leaders. The resolution calls for a general ban on economic sanctions in dealing with foreign policy objectives. One of the foremost arguments against sanctions is the harm they may potentially bring. But these potential harms are mostly caused the imposition of broad, wide-ranging sanctions. But not all sanctions are harmful- there are good sanctions. The sanctions in the 21st century are targeted and narrow, not general. One of the common criticisms of economic sanctions is that they have injured civilian populations in the past. The problem with this line of reasoning is that it assumes that there is only one type of sanction to use, and that this type of sanctioning must necessarily hurt civilians. Most countries now understand that wide, indiscriminate sanction use may be counterproductive, so they take a smarter, tailored approach to economic sanctions that make sanctions more likely to achieve their policy objectives. Many countries now tailor their sanctions to specific goods. For exa mple, many countries place specific sanctions on narcotics related items or on materials that could be used to make weapons. These tailored sanctions still allow civilians to meet their basic needs, but also make it so that rogue states are unable to use their material resources to cause further harm. Additionally, economic sanctions are now being used to freeze assets and limit the travel of high ranking state officials, which puts pressure only on them to change their countrys policies. These smart sanctions create an opportunity for change without the harms that occurred from past sanctions. Another line of argument for the Neg is the toolbox argument: that the Affirmative would remove critical tools, including targeted sanctions, from the governments disposal. This would lead to a second dilemma, this time for the Affirmative: without the carrot and stick of economic sanctions, the government is left with a feather of non-economic sanctions and the bloody spike of war. C2: Economic sanctions are necessary foreign policy tools So what are the alternatives to sanctions? More diplomacy and military action. These have the problem of being two extremes meaning that there needs to be something in the middle. Diplomacy is the most obvious alternative. It would be lovely if all foreign policy objectives could be met simply by diplomacy but with contradictory interests, this is never going to happen in all cases. Many countries, particularly dictatorships but quite often also democracies such as the US, feel they can just ignore diplomacy if it is not backed up by anything more than a verbal lashing. Diplomacy needs something backing it up. At the moment this is the threat of some form of sanction (be it direct economic sanctions or more indirect be reducing the opportunities for that countries firms to operate in your market) or military action of some kind. Using military action as a threat can be extreme. How do you move between diplomacy and on to military action without something in the middle to show how serious your country is? If a country does not believe your threats, and you dont really want to attack him you have to be the one to back down. Providing economic sanctions creates a way of hurting him without having to go to the worse stage which is military action. Military action is the obvious hard alternative to sanctions. However it is not always possible. This could be because of domestic politics or because there is other significant actors in the international system who would react unfavorably to you engaging in military action, or else the consequences might be too severe. There are quite a few problems with military action apart from that it cant always be used due to politics. The most obvious is that it is an immense step up from diplomacy. The country you are going to attack needs to have done something serious to be able to justify an attack. Even if it is justifiable there are problems. Military action relies upon your country being powerful and being able to engage in military action whereas anyone can implement some form of sanctions and it is very costly. This is not only of course in terms of monetary cost to your country but also in lives lost and destroyed. There can also me many unintended consequences. You can intend the action to be a small police action but there is no guarantee that your opponent will see it that way so he may well strike back escalating towards full scale war. At the other extreme your actions my push a country towards falling apart and becoming a failed state. Yes it provides a very powerful tool for changing a states behavior- but most people would believe that it is not worth keeping the possibility of military action while getting rid of sanctions. Get rid of both and you essentially have no stick at all. States do not always respond to carrots you need to provide a big enough carrot that they can forgo a national interest after all. In the case of two interests being diametrically opposed then this cost could be immense. C3: Violation of Human Rights Natural rights of citizens are selfishly violated by corrupt leaders of governments. This impacts not only the natural rights of citizens from other countries; it also affects the natural rights of their own citizens. a. Citizens of countries oppressed by economic sanctions suffer when intended relief efforts are suppressed by their own government intercepting supplies. The citizens are never the target, but rather the behaviors of corrupt leaders. Natural rights of citizens are denied when a corrupt leader interrupts the harmonious relations and it becomes necessary to impose sanctions. Further, I extend my VPC in that when the naturals rights of other nations are infringed upon by these corrupt leaders, political justification demands punishment in the least destructive manner after diplomacy has failed. b. Citizens are justified to demand their natural rights which are being denied to them by the very government which is supposed to protect them. When corrupt leaders give in to decency and cooperate, the sanctions go away. Sanctions are nothing more than a legitimate form of punishment to achieve a defined and acceptable code of behavior. Natural rights of citizens are denied when a corrupt leader interrupts the harmonious relations and it becomes necessary to impose sanctions. Further, I extend my VPC in that when the naturals rights of other nations are infringed upon by these corrupt leaders, political justification demands punishment in the least destructive manner after diplomacy has failed. Possible Rebuttal: Although careful studies of economic sanctions have cast doubt on their effectiveness, 1 anecdote can be powerful rhetorical tools. A single important case that demonstrates sanctions potential allows advocates to argue that their cause is more akin to the success than to the failures. Frequently, advocates point to the case of sanctions applied in the mid-1980s against the apartheid regime in South Africa as just such a case. On the face of it, South African sanctions appear to have been successful. In response to the outrages of apartheid, many countries adopted trade and financial sanctions and a significant amount of foreign investment was withdrawn from South Africa. After the adoption of sanctions, South Africa experienced economic difficulty and numerous domestic actors commented on how the economic situation was untenable and required political change. By 1994, Nelson Mandela had been elected President of South Africa. He and other black leaders attributed to economic sanctions a significant role in bringing about the democratic transition.

Marketing Strategies Used In Film Industry Bollywood Media Essay

Marketing Strategies Used In Film Industry Bollywood Media Essay Patiala House releases in Patiala, ironically the film has nothing to do with the princely state, Katrina Kaif in Lucknow studio of radio mirchi for Rajneetis Promotion, Silence is the promotion strategy for My Name is Khan a much talked film This paper investigates widespread marketing strategies used in Film industry popularly called the Bollywood both nationally and internationally. Film marketing is rapidly developing into a promising industry although the idea is its incipient stage in India. We have seen over the years that success of film now not only through its contents but varied integration of marketing strategies to promote the film. Today everyone in the film bazaar wants success but it is acquired by only those who have come out with some out of box strategy for their film. Films are much hyped before their release in the market so that they have great openings but some are bombed in few weeks and some are not even noticed due to lack of content. Films now are more than just an entertainment, but are a business. Marketing of a movie is not a new initiative it has its existence since films were introduced in India, but it is followed more rigorously in todays state of film affairs. The inception of this paper starts with introduction of the film industry followed with the strategies used to market the movies in the industry. This is also an interest area of the author, as being a movie buff. The other segment research will highlight the growth of this budding industry. The content of this paper also comprises with current inclination and variation that are common in the film industry. The methodology used in this paper has a literature review which will be the basis of the report. Due to non-availability of required data relating to the expenses on conventional and non-conventional media, the author has chose a case study approach. To indentify the consumption pattern of the consumer a research is conducted both with qualitative and quantitative analysis. The dissertation is ended with the inclusion of integrated marketing framework for Bollywood and the new means that for existing medium, those are being or could be deployed in the area of film marketing. Methodology: Before getting into details of film marketing the author highlights the area of conventional and non-conventional media and tactics to manipulate the viewers decision. Conventional media majorly includes Trailers and Commercials on Television, Posters, Radio promotion and Printed Ads etc. whereas, unconventional media comprises of SMS/MMS, Internet Broadband, BTL activities and events and social networking etc. In terms of number of movies produced India has the biggest movie industry. Around 800 movies are made and released of which 90% are bombed beyond the week at the box-office. (Indiaonestop, 2010) We can every day, every few hours, somebody, somewhere is launching a feature film in this country. (Bose, 2006) So its important for a film marketer to know which method or media would be appropriate for that particular film. While delineating conventional tactics for marketing films to the unconventional ones a clear example would be advertisement in theatre which is a conventional way but using technology or innovative techniques to market it qualifies to be an unconventional way of marketing. Taking in to consideration the number of flops annually the Bollywood gives, it is mandatory to understand the spending done on these mediums for promotion as it would give an insight to a new method which will be helpful for our dissertation. Film makers generally dont take into consideration what audiences want a few can be named as Ram Gopal Verma, Mani Ratnam etc. whose films like RGV ki Aag, Rakta Charitra and Raavan flopped in spite of having strong star cast. So in order to gauge consumer consumption pattern in terms of movie content, effects of promotional activities, change in the decision to watch a movie etc. (Chand, 2011) These factors will help in defining the timing of the movie to launched, content of the movie, Star cast, Publicity, unfriendly press and partner brands. Producers often forget the importance of the above factors in a hurry to give a clone of previous hits. All the film makers try to play safe, recover costs and try to move on and thus leave the impression to the general public that our film makers have run out of ideas. (Bose, 2006) Film makers these days are like businessman, they spread their losses by investing in several films simultaneously in the anticipation that at if one will work he can take care of the losses with it. A film-maker who has the resources and the ability to work and gamble on multiple projects is never let down by the law of probability. Mode of Study/Tools Used: A two pronged approach adopted in this report will help to understand all of the above and find a satisfactory answer for it. A secondary research will be conducted on the available data. A whole research framework will be gathered related to film marketing. This would not meet ones expectation entirely so we need a primary survey including both quantitative and qualitative analysis. Quantitative research would be done with the help of questionnaires targeting the urban crowds from the metros excluding the southern cities of India. Overseas city like Leicester and Wembley which has a number of Indian communities is also taken under the survey which will give a more holistic research. Approximately a sample of 50 respondents were targeted, though the number is too short for large topic like this; hence a figure ranging to 20,000 at a confidence level of 95% and percentage of 50% the confidence interval comes out to be approximately +/-3.5% which should be acceptable. Internet has been used as a medium to collect data from the respondents along with collecting data personally from the above mentioned localities in Wembley and Leicester. This medium saved cost and time. However response for the survey was not mandatory and it was completely at respondents discretion. The idea behind the selection of the metros for primary research is due to the beginning of the multiplex culture in these cities. Usual movie goers were targeted that includes families, teens, couples etc. The data obtained from this survey will be evaluated using factor analysis. This data will help us to understand the trend, interest of the consumers towards the unconventional media used to promote the films. As part of the research a case study of movie will be taken which was well marketed but bombed at the box office. This will give an actual scenario of the topic. Anticipated Output from the Research: Few questions would come up along with this dissertation: Whom should the producer communicate to? What appeals to whom? Which media reaches the most? What do the consumers want? Limitations of the Survey: This sample does not represent the entire India due to the limitation of the survey conducted in the taken geography. The area was chosen mostly as the region bestows majorly to the Hindi speaking population of the country. Another limitation is number of the respondents would be contacted through emails or social networking sites which leads to a possibility of fake response, half response or also data duplication. Review of Literature Overview: Hollywood has been dominant over the years in the international film industry but slowly Mumbai and Shanghai are emerging beyond providing the local language films and television into domestic and international markets. Los Angeles remains the largest cluster in the world with Mumbai following second in the lead. (PWC, 2010) Mumbai and Shanghais cluster increases between 2010 and 2040 while that of Los Angeles cluster decreases in size. This is because of shift of consumers towards alternative media options like video games and internet. (PWC, 2010) Indian and Chinese governments have realized the potential of the industry and so they are encouraging these industries to grow. However it is difficult to imagine a mainstream film audience opting for Chinese movies instead of Hollywood movies. In future this may change. In recent years Hollywood and Bollywood have realized the importance of regional cinema and so there is an increasing trend of dubbing popular movies of both the industry. E.g. Gurinder Chadhas latest film Its a Wonderful Afterlife was dubbed in Hindi and Punjabi. (PWC, 2010) As stated earlier the subject of this dissertation is to understand the Indian Film Industrys marketing strategies and its competitors. The aim of the literature review is to understand the method used for film marketing using conventional and nonconventional medium. Indian film marketing is in its incipient stage there is dearth of literature work. There are few reports and articles here and there which shed light on this subject. The literature review on the subject I found relevant to my research is as follows: Unraveling the potential: The Indian Entertainment and Media Industry, FICCI Frames, March 2006, by Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC) The report is published by FICCI and it looks as Entertainment and Media Industry as a whole but not only the film industry. However the overall percepts provided gives some important information for my research. Table 1: IRS 2005, Round 2 as quoted in Jagran Prakashan Prospectus filed with SEBI dated Feb 3, 2006 Urban India Films Reach in % age Reach in millions A1 30.6 2.43 A2 25.1 3.85 B1, B2 19.1 7.53 C 18.1 8.59 D 17.1 9.52 E1, E2 15.7 10.59 Source: Televisionpoint, Research, Media Industry, 2005 The above table shows how much penetration films have in the socio economic classes. It helps to target market segmentation and marketing campaigns according to the socio-economic classes and the reach of the medium. However the report shows the share of the film industry in the Indian economy which is not changing from 2005- 2010 as the share of film industry was 19 % in 2005 but has not increased in 2010. (FICCI, 2006) The report points out that film industry is among few growth drivers for the EM industry. Quoting directly from the report: Indians love to watch movies. And advancements in technology are helping the Indian film industry in all the spheres film production, film exhibition and marketing. The industry is increasingly getting more corporatized. Several film production, distribution and exhibition companies are coming out with public issues. More theatres across the country are getting upgraded to multiplexes and initiatives to set up more digital cinema halls in the country are already underway. This will not only improve the quality of prints and thereby make film viewing a more pleasurable experience, but also reduce piracy of prints. (FICCI, 2006) Faults Found Indian Film Industry is full of uncertainty and is unorganized. The outcome is bollywood has only 1% of share in the world film industry while at the same time US has 60% of the world revenue. (PWC FICCI, 2007) Table 2 Filmed entertainment revenues by country/region, US$ million, 2009 Country/region Revenue in US$ million Percentage of total USA 34,431 40.4 Japan 11,061 13.0 UK 5,599 6.6 Other Western Europe 5,151 6.1 France 3,763 4.4 Germany 3,646 4.3 Canada 3,330 3.9 Other Asia Pacific 2,681 3.1 Australia 2,562 3.0 Latin America 2,431 2.9 Italy 2,087 2.5 Central and Eastern Europe 1,982 2.3 India 1,899 2.2 Spain 1,688 2.0 South Korea 1,275 1.5 China 1,206 1.4 Middle East and Africa 345 0.4 Total 85,137 100.0 Source: PricewaterhouseCoopers, Global Entertainment and Media Outlook 2010-2014, June 2010 The above report shows the world film market is still dominated by the developed economies. (UK Film Council, 2010) In spite of Indian Film Industry having larger admissions ratio and population it still lags behind to Australia and Italy in terms of world market share. Films are today more than Art, its business. This showbiz business is the biggest money earner in the country. In last couple of years film industry has changed itself into fully professional business industry with innovative methods to promote a film. Time has changed and so are the promotional and marketing activities of a film. Awareness of film and its Star Cast is important in the competitive industry. (Merinews, 2010) Almost two to three movies releasing every Friday, to succeed the producer or directors have to something different to attract the audiences. Its all about creating brand identity. For e.g. during the release of 3 Idiots Amir Khan toured seven cities across India to connect to people and create an attention towards the movie. This proved to be very successful strategy and the movie broke all box office records. Today the actors have also understood the importance of marketing of a film. The author has found few gaps in the Indian Film Industry. Digital Movies Development in the digital technology will lead the industry in future. Digital movie assures to raise box office collections by increasing picture resolution, quality of the print and lower distribution costs. There are mixed reaction on the issue of piracy. Initiatives by producers like Bharat Shah and Manmohan Shetty have started initiative to increase digital cinemas. (Bose, 2006) Audiences distinguishing the promotions to be fake All promotion techniques like Coffee with the stars, Invitation to the premiere etc does not attract the audiences as they dont trust the promotional event. They simply think that at given sample of 10000 only 2-3 fans get a chance to meet the stars or invitation. Audiences do notice such events but percentage of participation is very low. Thus by using conventional medium to connect to people a major chunk of the pie rests untouched by the film makers. (Chand, 2011) BTL activities and its effects on films Below the line activities do engage the audiences with the campaign but at the end they fail to attract the audiences at the ticket booths and do not increase the ticket sales. A good here is of the film Aagey Se Right The campaign Win a Gun was woven with the story line of the film where the actor loses his gun in the film. It was launched online where the users could take home a gun by answering a simple question and the help the cop Waghmare, find his lost gun as well. The actor also visited seven cities of India and checked visitors purses and bags as a part of campaign. In spite of the innovativeness and spending on the campaign the film did not earn money to the producers. (Nautiyal, 2009) Competition from International Movies The international market is expected to grow at the pace of 18% annually with estimation at Rs. 7 billion but bollywood shares only 10% of its box office revenues in the international market. (PWC FICCI, 2007) There is a significant gap in the urban and rural demand due to growing middle class. The urban audiences demand Masala + Movies which cannot be met due to shortage of talent. Hence this demand gap is filled by international movies. Hollywood is gaining a reasonable market share with the help of better marketing techniques. Their target audiences are young Indians which amount 50% of the population. (Kukenshoner et al 2008) Surmises The above holes found in the working of Indian film industry surmises to the statement that: Traditional marketing strategies are vieux jeu, and more and more innovative techniques are used to attract the audiences for the Friday. Bollywood and the World Film Industry:Â   With the rise of new mediums and change in economic scenario of India more attention is diverted towards bollywood at the same time other film cultures attempting to Bucolize Hollywood. (Desai Dudrah, 2008) Bollywood prides itself with being one of the largest film industries in the world in terms of producing the films. Some around 1090 films compared to 607 in the year 2006. (Jones et al, 2008) The current dominance of Hollywood is largely due to advancements in marketing techniques, innovative, good content and an effective distribution channel. In terms of commercial success Hollywood dominated the world market but other countries were still making culturally important movies. (Jones et al, 2008) France and UK were major competitors of Hollywood. Modern Motion Picture was invented in France. It loses its leading position against Hollywood with the invention of sound in the film. The demand decreased due to the less French speaking people over the globe. Since the creation of television and film, Britain has been thriving due the film as it is a key part and driver of the mix of creative industries. (House of Commons, 2003) The industry experienced a constant brain drain to the Hollywood. (Jones et al, 2008) Chinese film industry although compared to India is small but is very organized. One area bollywood has to work on if want to be successful in the world market is the length of the film. Even the best film has 20-30 minutes more length. If bollywood wants to succeed in the global market the industry will have to invest lot in marketing and distribution of the film. (Pillania, 2008) Nollywood a dark horse of Africa is the new word in the world market at least in India. The world was minted by their inspiring counterparts namely Hollywood and Bollywood. It is one of the fastest and largest growing industries with over 872 films in 2006 (UNESCO, 2006) The African market is dominated by Nollywood. Compared to Hollywood, Bollywood and other film industries the film making style is cost effective as it uses digital cameras instead of film and movies are made in mere a weeks time with the less than 15000 USD. Movies are released directly through DVDs or CDs rather than in Theatres. It does affect the quality of the film; making it difficult to export overseas. Few western directed documentaries have spread some knowledge of Nollywood in the West. A part of the industry is working to improve the current scenario. (Mazzocco, 2011) Tollywood is the combination of wood from Hollywood and Tolly from Telugu language also known as cinema of Andhra Pradesh. In 2008 278 movies were released. Hyderabad is the center of all the work done and studios of Tollywood. (Vikram, 2010) The South Indian film industries produce half of the total number of movies of India. Breakdown of films in different languages of India is shown below: Languages No. of Films Hindi 222 Tamil 151 Telugu 155 Kannada 109 Malayalam 64 Marathi 25 Bengali 49 Assamese 17 English 23 Others 877 (Source: Central Board of Film Certification, 2003) Bollywood has over the years created an synthetic culture that appeals to a specific audience in India while regional cinemas are still rooted to their culture and language. Few regional films have been so popular that they had bypassed Bollywood films at the box office by selling more tickets in their respective states. E.g. A Tamil Super Star Rajikanths Film named Shivaji broke all records of Tamil film industry and at the same time breaking Indias Box office records. Even though the film was played on only 12 screens it was the first non-Bollywood Indian film to make it to UK Top Ten. Bollywood is mistaken as Indian Cinema by many non-Indian commentators and also by some Indians but the fact is something different. The challenge to bollywood is not only from overseas but also from the regional movies. (Stafford, 2008) The Integrated Marketing Framework Understanding Film Marketing Publicity: The strategic importance of publicity of any film is undoubted. It is oxygen for everybody who is connected in the film industry. It keeps you in the attention and guarantees the longevity of your career. An important role is played by both media and non-media public relations. Although here Bollywood lacks good publicist like they have in Hollywood. Publicist have failed to keep with pace of growth by the industry in past years. Publicist are increasingly becoming a necessity as the number of publication seeking coverage are increasing along with the technology which is expand bollywood beyond the borders. (Parimal et al 2009) Public always has an craving for gossips about domestic crisis, romantic linkages with a star or a sensational filmi story. So it always makes a sense for a film-maker to give media some masala news about the plot of the film, release of the music, clarification on controversies, celebration parties or location of the shoots. Film awards also boost chances of the actor/actress to get new films. For e.g. Producer Bimal Roys movie named Bandini was released in 1966. The film was running according to the course and was about to be take off the theatres, when suddenly the movie was nominated for Film fare awards and Presidents Silver Medal. It a new lease of life to the movie and the movie was a hit miraculously. (Bose, 2006) If a movie successfully touches the public emotion it is bound to be a hit. This happened with movies like Gadar and Laagan. These films touched the patriotic sentiment of the common man so got mouth to mouth publicity and enjoyed greater success after the first week of release. It is said that people from villages with trucks full went to the cities to watch these movies. Especially, Gadar. Quality of movie along with good music played an important role in success of these movies. (Pandey, 2010) Partner Brands: Over the years bollywood have successfully partnered with brands like Tag Huer, Rolex, McDonalds, Maybelline, Exide battery, Coca Cola, Pepsi, Hutch, Bournvita, Zandu, Ultratech cement, Nikon and so on. For e.g. In the movie Taare Zameen Par, In the drawing competition the participants were shown using colors of Fevicryl. The same color prints were gifted by the elder brother of the main character Darsheel Safari. (S Roy et al, 2009) Few e.g. of the brands partnering with the films are as under: Film Name Brand Name Om Shanti Om Mukta Arts-Production House, HMV, Exide Battery, Filmfare Awards, Tag Heur Watch, Maybelline Chak de India EXIM Bank, Australian Trade and Commerce, Aaj Tak, McDonalds, Britannia Marie, ESPN, Puma Partner Coco Cola, Marie Claire, Zoom (Media Partner), Pepsi, Pizza Hut, Toyota, ESPN, Boost, Hutch, Sony Vaio, Phuket (Tourism), Starbucks, Mercedes, Kawasaki (Water Boat), Nokia 6600, BPL, DFL, Bournvita, Sony Erickson Mobile, Go air, Nikon, Calvin Klein Namaste London Spykar Jeans, Western Union Money Transfer, Streax, MTV, Kingfisher, Bharatmatrimony.com, Indiatimes.com, HP (laptop), Bailey (Packaged Water), Ford (Tractor), Sony Camcorder Source: (Product Placement in Bollywood Movies, pp 56) Content of the movie: Most modern films that are high in style and locations but low in content fail to click at the box office. The movie-goer however motivated is no fool and can see through the content of the movie within the first 15 minutes of the movie. Honesty is the best policy. Honesty to the medium and honesty to the audiences does pay off. Audiences always prefer innovativeness in the content. Five Film on the freedom fighter Bhagat Singh was made in 2001 simultaneously, but only the one with protagonist Ajay Devgan in the lead role was a hit at box office mainly because of its narrative style. There are many such instances in bollywood where narrative styles of the movie have won producers accolades. (Bose, 2006) Star Cast: Making a film is all about team work. It consists of actors, crew members, technicians and artistes who contribute their skills and reputation to create a brand value for the film. These people used to be employees of the production houses hired on monthly fixed salary in late 50s. Time passed and so changed the working of bollywood film industry. With the wipeout of the studio system freelancing became the norm of the industry where stars soon began to call the shots. Their association with the production team and banner determined their success and reputation in the industry. Today the focus shifting towards the stars, camps have come up where Shah Rukh Khan belongs to the Karan Johar Camp. Actresses like Urmila and Antara Mali belongs to Ram Gopal Verma camp etc. They may be lucky talismans or loyalists to their respective camps but together they constitute a winning team that every distributor would like to bet on. The star system of bollywood signifies their value by their impac t on the industry. Lorenzen and Taube (2008) stress that inclusion of stars in the movie play a major role in the success of the typical film of the bollywood at the same time acknowledging that mere inclusion does not guarantee the success of the film at box office. The second largest movie industry of India is Tollywood which also has the same star system. At international level Nollywood the movie industy of Nigeria also has the same star system where the power is hold by the marketers and distributors. In contrast to most European film industries, Nigerian film industry is run on very industrial terms. (Kerrigan, 2010) Timing of the movie to be launched: As such there is no rule that films have to be released on Friday but the general reason behind is Friday is the last day working day giving the audiences to spend rest two days in recreational activities. Watching a movie is one of them. Another reason for timing a movie release is people dont come to theatres if there are exams or festivals or world cup event. Given an example is the current release of the movie Yeh Faasle. The current hysteria of World Cup and Board examinations the film is not having audiences in spite of strong star cast. (Pattni, 2011) Planning Campaign of Film Marketing: Film marketing is nothing but how the filmmakers and marketers position their film in the mind of the audiences in order to increase the consumption of their film. (Kerrigan, 2010) A marketing process must address few factors like PEST, cultural and competition to fit in the market place. The timing of this process is very important; filmmakers have realized its importance. Film marketing is done at three stages namely corporate branding, promotions events and traders and distributors.(Chand, 2011) Planning for a Movie: Film marketing starts at the moment the idea of particular film making is conceived. The target audience is also decided for whom the movie is made for. So effective planning is needed to contain all the section you need to address. More than 50% of all movie theatre tickets are bought by 9% of the population. The films first two weeks does the business of around 78% in the given market place. (Smith, 2011) The two key factors of your film planning are Positioning and Target Market: Positioning: Positioning is how a product appears in relation to other products in the market (Tutor2u, 2011) The whole marketing and communication strategy of the film is depended on the positioning of the film. The film positions itself in the mind of the audience through positioning. A target audience is to be pin-pointed by the marketers to appeal them through positioning elements (Kalra, 2002) For e.g. In Dharmendras Barsaat the film was intended to be the refreshing love story with two new star faces. But no key elements were expressed convincingly in the film. Two star faces were created in the industry but the film didnt do well in the box office. (Chand, 2011) Targeting: Every movie differs from other and so is the genre of the movie. The film cant be a hit unless the film maker knows it target audience. It is important for the film maker to know what the target audience want, what they have rejected in past and their habits. Target audience is defined by age, class, gender etc while elements like movie goers, race, socio-economic status, urban and rural audience are additional. Targeting can be done on the basis of: Age Gender Education Religion Ethnicity Nationality Geography Medium of Marketing: Be interesting, or be invisible. Andy Sernovitz There are so many options for marketing that marketers are confused over it. There are many boulevards for marketing in India. Many marketing tools are used for single film in the industry. Lets look at the most used platforms to attract audiences at the theatres. In the past the marketing campaigns were usually done by billboards designed to fit in magazines, newspapers ads, integrated into television ads and the same in theater trailers. Over the years the style of bollywood has changed so is its campaigning style the conventional marketing through billboards, print ads, TV ads and trailers have changed their approach. In todays scenario film campaigning is more targeted at various online demographics that suits the audiences demands and is more specific. (Miller, 2011) Gupta and Gould (1997) stated product placement as incorporating brands in films in return of money. Regional movies are also at par with Bollywood in product placements. E.g. A Telugu movie named Jalsa had a Coca-C ola brand incorporated in it. (Roy Bhattacharya, 2009) Print Advertisements: In contemporary India advertisements play many roles. Print advertisement are the most used and old techniques to reach the audiences. Full page ads and half page ads in a newspaper like Times of India, Dainik Bhaskar etc were regular norms till date. These ads are now shifting towards internet which has photographs usually taken during the shoots. To make the ad more effective and increase its credibility quotes from critics are added to the advertisements. (Chand, 2011) The Indian print industry is expected to grow at 7.4% over the period of 2009-14 and an estimated of Rs. 230.5 billion in 2014 from the current estimate of Rs. 161.5 billion in 2009. (PWC, 2010) Television Appearances: It was started just as an experiment by Yash Raj but this idea seems to be accepted by all in the industry to promote their respective films. Currently this medium is taken by film makers very seriously. Before it was reality shows on TV and now it is serials. Bollywood has found their new mantra to publicize their upcoming movies. Both big and small TV stars benefit from this new arrangement as this is the be

Timeline of American Literature and Events Essay -- english colonies,

King James I granted the Virginia Company of London a charter to create an English settlement in North America in June 1606. Their goals were to find gold and determine a waterway which would take them to the Orient. The Virginia Company set foot on Jamestown on May 14, 1607 to form the Virginia English Colony. Approximately one third of the colonists survived the winter of the â€Å"Starving Time† in 1609, and fifteen years later in 1624, Virginia became a crown colony when the king dismissed the Virginia Company Charter due to the Algonquians attack which killed over 300 settlers. Jamestown only survived because of a last minute warning but burned down in 1698. Many colonists that survived celebrated May Day on May 1, 1628 with Thomas Morton dancing around a maypole, but the Plymouth Pilgrims were against this display of celebration, and Captain Miles Standish sent Thomas Morton back to England. Intolerance continued when Anne Hutchinson was forced to leave Boston beca use of her religious beliefs and influence to help establish Rhode Island in 1638. Five years later, Native Americans murdered Anne and her family. Quakers were the next to be forced to leave during the time between 1655 and 1656. Those that refused to leave suffered by being whipped or imprisoned, and the legislature ruled against Quaker services two years later. Parliament ordered the suspension of Quaker corporal punishment in 1661 after three years of Quakers being hanged for refusing to leave Massachusetts. English law in the colonies also severely affected slaves. Those who converted to Christianity and became legal residents of Maryland were granted freedom—until 1664. It was then that Maryland passed a law dictating servitude of life for black slave... ...rr/social%20studies/05/0101firstwi.html Quidor, J. (2011). In Encyclopà ¦dia Britannica. Web. 14 Nov. 2015. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/487273/John-Quidor Starwinar. (2010. Herman or Henry. Web. 29 Nov. 2015. http://starwinar.wordpress.com/daily-short-story/herman-or-henry/ The Virtual Union. (2011). Scrape T.V. the world on your side. Web. 18 Nov. 2015. http://scrapetv.com/News/News%20Pages/Health/Pages/Doctor-pioneering-use-of-Comas-on- demand-Scrape-TV-The-World-on-your-side.html Wikipedia. (2011). Mayflower compact. Web. 21 Nov. 2015. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayflower_Compact Wikispaces. (2011). The scarlet letter. Web. 25 Nov. 2015. http://amsu-english11-8.wikispaces.com/The+Scarlet+Letter WordPress. (2007). Young Goodman Brown. Web. 29 Nov. 2015. http://garble.wordpress.com/2007/11/27/young-goodman-brown/

Data Warehousing :: essays research papers

The company implementing the Data warehouse is Sears Roebuck & Co. Sears is in the retailing business selling ever thing from under garments to washing machines. The main reason why the company is implementing the DW is because it wants to maximize the use of its information in its credit data warehouse. The prior application processed steps sequentially one processor at a time thus not using the multiprocessor capabilities of its machine to process the huge quantity of data. Mining of data was too slow and could only be performed once a year, which produced inaccurate data for the Marketing department. Due to the meticulous process, other units of the company were barred from the data warehouse, which also cause dilemmas. Sears went to a consultant to solve the problem. The package chosen was the Torrent Systems Orchestrate Package. The reason for choosing this package is because the package fit the needs of the company to a match. It allows the company to convert its application from sequential to parallel by partitioning the data across the processors and running multiple, parallel instances of the application. The benefits from implementing the Orchestrate package is, the new program would examine account attributes like purchasing behavior and payment history, causing more lucrative targeted marketing campaigns and boosting sales and card balances. It will allow the job to be done at a fraction of the time of the prior system. In addition the new system increased the number of credit card accounts from 16 million to 22 million. Overall, from doing this case study I have learned that data mining and data warehouse’s are very important to all organizations especially very large organizations. DW’s help to further organize and use the data of the company to its fullest, which allows companies to operate more smoothly and efficiently. I gained a greater knowledge of DW’s and how they work and are used by organizations.

Observations in All Our Kin Essay -- Carol Stack

Carol Stack finds herself in a curious place as a young white woman venturing into a black neighborhood in hopes of alleviating negative stereotypes and bringing illumination into a semiosphere that is altogether ignored or even despised. While she defined her purpose as the attempt to â€Å"illustrate the collective adaptations to poverty of men, women, and children within the social-cultural network of the black urban family† (28), her methods are not merely those of an outside observer spouting back information, but truly that of an actively engaged participant. Staying true to the guidelines of participant observation studies, Stack did not attempt to isolate or manipulate the culture she saw, and instead of donning the lab coat, as it were, and playing the role of the experimenting scientist, or simply sneaking in, Stack was very human in her interactions and dealings, participating as actively as possible in peoples’ real lives in The Flats. (Hedrick). Twenty years ago, Stack sought to explain why the impoverished area was not subject to conventional judgment and evaluation by describing the primary differences between that society, and the more affluent culture that defines the standards. To say, for example, that the average black household is unstructured would be a misstatement. On the contrary, these households are elaborately structured, but in a more fluid manner than the conventional home. Typically, these subcultures are negatively defined – or judged by what they are not. Through this lens, The Flats appears to be a disheveled mess of rats scurrying for the next scrap of food. Walking into this situation, Stack had to prove the notion that â€Å"distinctively negative features attributed to poor families, that they are fat... ...their lifestyles or values, but merely funnel greater sums of money into bottomless, self-destructing pits† (23). If this is true, then certainly the American Dream wins out for virtue. Indeed, throwing money at a problem absolutely does not make it go away – but when families are legitimately struggling to make ends meet and goods are scarce, when they’ve established these complex chains of organized networks and trades, and when they can empathize with others in their situation and see the big picture beyond their own, one is left to wonder why Stack’s voice hasn’t been heard more widely, and why the residents of The Flats are still left to fight against the current in their own comparatively competent culture of exchange, and networks of all their kin. Stack, Carol B. All Our Kin : Strategies for Survival in a Black Community. New York: Basic Books, 1983.

Financial Management Questions Essay

Question 1:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Medwig Corporation has a DSO of 17 days.   The company averages $3500 in credit sales each day.   What is the company’s average account’s receivable?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Answer / Solution:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Accounts Receivable = Days Sales Outstanding * (Sales / Days)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   = 17 * (3500/1)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   = $59,500 Question 2: Discuss some of the techniques available to reduce risk exposures?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Answer:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Insurance is one of the simplest and most available ways to reduce exposure to risk.   It involves the transfer of risk to another company.   Depending on the amount and nature of the risk involved, risk retention by self-insurance might not be a practical option, especially if the cost of transferring the risk (insurance premiums) is reasonable enough to not add significant costs.   Risk transfer is not done always through insurance, however. Outsourcing some operations to a company who agrees to take on the risk involved is another type of risk reduction.   Some tasks are best suited for specialized companies, and large organizations might outsource such activities as customer support, software development and internal security. Derivative hedging is also an option, depending on the nature of the company.   Futures contracts, for example, reduce the risk of price fluctuations in a particular commodity, and are very useful to transfer it to a speculator.   A company producing commodities would benefit from this type of hedge.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Aside from transferring risks, a company might try to reduce risk by reducing the inherent cause of the risk.   Instead of hiring a single custodian for cash transfers, a company might hire another one to reduce the risk of employee theft.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The last method is to avoid the risk completely.   This will completely circumvent possible losses, but it also precludes any possible gains from taking on the risk.

Essay on Critical Thinking and Writing

Critique on the Importance of Critical Thinking and Critical Writing in the Social Sciences Critical thinking is defined as the most objective way to interpret, analyze, explain or evaluate a specific topic or conflict. An easy way to explain critical thinking is as an intelligent way that judges use in court to sentence people as guilty or innocent. The way judges use critical thinking at court is by asking lawyers from both sides of the case to show him whatever factual evidence they have so that he or she can take the best decision on the case.Basically the side who should win the case is the one that has sufficient evidences to prove to the judge whatever statement they are making. There is no way a lawyer should win a case only by expressing his or her opinions before the judge; that wouldn’t be an objective way to try to win the case. Critical thinking is the most rational way to react to any matter. By using critical thinking on a daily basis people from any environment are able to take better decisions than by using any non-critical thinking method.For example when someone is offered drugs for a first time; with the use of critical thinking that person can analyze whether to take it or not. The person can look at the advantages and disadvantages of taking the drug in order to make the best decision for him or her. A non-critical way of looking at it would be if the person tries the drug only because he or she is offered. Basically to not think critically means to not make the use of intelligence to analyze or evaluate any matter before making a decision. In writing about a topic or conflict the use of critical thinking is very important in order to get the best conclusion possible.The first thing the writer looks for are what the two sides of the conflict are. There is no way someone can write a good paper if there is no factual evidence to support both sides of the conflict in order to make a conclusion. A good paper is based on evidence rather than pure subjective claims or opinions. A writer who gives pure opinions on a paper does not make the use of critical thinking to write it because in order to do so he or she needs to analyze evidences to support his or her conclusion about it.

Facebook Sextortion Essay

Sextortion is the latest cybercrime used against children—it a form of sexual exploration one uses guilt, power, or knowledge of certain secrets, to force another person into having sex or performing sexual favors. â€Å"Christopher Patrick Gunn was indicted Thursday by a federal grand jury in Montgomery with two counts of production of child pornography, three counts of interstate extortion, and three counts of using a facility of interstate commerce in furtherance of unlawful activity† (Shyyock, 2012). If convicted he could spend up to 100 years in the federal prison and $500,000 in fines with a lifetime supervised release. Christopher Patrick Gunn was using facebook (social networking site) to extort young girls. He would create phony profiles on facebook then he would send out facebook request to the young girls. Profiles that he used consisted of â€Å"The Justin Bieber Ruse† (when using Justin’s profile Gunn would promise the girls concert tickets), â€Å"The New Kid Ruse,† â€Å"Daniel Rodgers,† Dalton Walthers. â€Å"Tyler Mielke† and â€Å"Jason Lempke. † Once the young girls would accept his friend request they were able to use an internet-base interactive video chat service—like Skype. He would gain their trust so then he would proceed to ask personal questions (bra size, sexual status, etc) once he gathered enough information Gunn would request topless photos. If the girls refused he threatened to divulge the intimate conversations to the principle or place it on Facebook for the public to hear. In order for the prosecution to successfully prosecute Christopher Patrick Gunn the investigation that began in April 2011 after complaints were made from female students at Prattville Junior High School that they were receiving inappropriate picture solicitation request from a Facebook profile, police, crime scene investigators and criminalist have to provide strong evidence about the committed crime. As a result of the complaint filed pertaining to child victimization police rendered immediate action. Since the alleged crime was committed with computers and the Internet the detectives were able to use a computer command—traceroute that is provided with most operating systems. Traceroute is a utility that can detail the IP path (Internet Protocol–an address that is unique to a computer) packets that travel between two systems. It can also provide network affiliations, and their geographic locations. After executing this command the detectives were able to get an account and address leading to Gunn’s Montgomery home. The next step was to obtain a warrant to go to the home to retrieve any evidence pertaining to the crime. So the planning of the crime scene investigation was initiated after the warrant had been granted. Once at the crime scene the detectives knew that physical evidence must be obtained using the proper procedures and the correct techniques because how the crime scene is investigated can make or break the case. The crime scene was immediately secured—â€Å" controlling the movement of those at the crime scene also involves ensuring that no one touches, moves, or affects any potential evidence before the scene is thoroughly documented and processed. (Buckles, 2007) A report was started containing date, time of arrival, visibility, lighting and the weather. The computers were seized –documenting the computer activity, components, and other devices. Detectives determined the status of the computers by looking for signs indicating if they were on, off or in sleep status. With the status being determined it allowed for the contents of the screens to be annotated in the report along with photographs of the monitor screens. In the event that the computers were off, the report would state the status, photographs would be taking, sketches of all wires, cables, and other peripheral devices connected to the computer would be drawn. Labels would be placed on all power supplies, wires, cables, and other peripheral devices that indicate where they were occupied on the computer photographs would be taken once more. Most computers if the power is disconnected it will preserve vital information like who was last logged on, what time, last program used and last known computer commands used. The packaging of the computers would consist of taking the power supplies from the wall outlet and computers disconnecting all wires, cables, and peripheral devices securing them. Tape would be placed on the power buttons– the CD or DVD drives would be retracted this information would be annotated in the report if they are empty, were not checked, or contained disk. Then tape would be placed on the trays ensuring they remain closed. Included in the report would be the make, model, serial numbers, and any user-applied markings or identifiers. Preparations to package the computers would be in accordance with the agency procedures to prevent damage or alterations during transportation and storage a detailed log of the contents would accompany the package. However, if the detectives came upon a crime scene that revealed the suspected crime or parts of it (i. e. chat room activity, instant messaging windows, child pornography) on the computer screen the detectives would have halted the data evidence capture. A telephone call would have been made to request assistance from more experienced personnel in retrieving volatile data capture and preservation. The computer would have been left connected to the power supply due to the evidentiary value is in plain view. The detectives would have kept the scene secured awaiting expertise. But the search for other evidence would continue. Things such a passwords, software manuals, text or graphic materials printed from the computer would aid in the investigation and should be documented and retrieved with less handling in accordance with departmental guidelines. In addition to the computers a cell phone was recovered as digital evidence it too would have been documented, photographed, and received by experts to preserve its integrity. The power supply along with adapters were labeled, logged and would have been collected in accordance with procedural guidelines pending forensic examination. â€Å"One of the final steps in the crime scene investigation process, prior to releasing and exiting the crime scene, is to conduct a debriefing. † (Buckles, 2007) During this debrief it would give all parties involved a chance to verify completion and revisit if what was planned actually took place. It is also a time to gather all pertinent reports and other documentation gathered during the investigation—so that the lead investigator could compile all documents into a central case file. Lastly, to safeguard that all evidence that was collected a â€Å"final survey and post-investigative walk-through of the crime scene is needed before releasing and exiting the scene. † (Buckles, 2007) Once the scene has been exited the evidence would be taken and released to the computer forensic team so that they may obtain possession of the computer, all networking mappings from the system, and external physical storage devices. They will use tools and software suites to electronically identify what data could be recovered — bit – stream copies, log files, photos, cookie information, URL redirection, and E-mail headers. The forensic analyzer would generate a report including: name of investigator, list of router evidence, document of the evidence and other supporting items, tools used, list of devices and setups used in the examination, brief description of the examination steps, details on the findings—information about the files, internet-related evidences, data and image analysis and conclusion of the investigation. Hence the evidence that was collected by the Montgomery Police Department along with other investigators from the surrounding states corroborated and determined that Gunn had also committed crimes against young girls in their jurisdictions. The FBI was able to develop evidence that showed that Gunn was the person behind all the criminal conduct. In fact, the FBI has reason to believe that Gunn may have targeted hundreds of other girls in various states across the country, with some as young as 9 and 10 years old† (Weissman, 2012). In conclusion the electronic evidence that needed to be collected were the computers, cell phones, images and videos of child pornography, along with any other pertinent evidence like passwords, software manuals, text or graphic materials printed from the computer that could be used to solidify a conviction. Legal requirements for crime scene documents to be admissible as potential evidence in court must be obtained in a manner, which ensures true accuracy and validity. The constitutional rights of the perpetrator also present challenges. The prosecutors have to ensure that the experts who have examined the data do not breach client-attorney privileges and other privacy issues related to the digital evidence. The chain of custody is very important in ensuring a successful prosecution. Even though the evidence is strong other challenges need to be overcome like the presentation of the evidence discovered. Prosecutors do not typically know how to present electronic evidence to a jury. They need to understand the basics of electronic evidence so that they will not confuse the jury with computer jargon, or bore them with the expert’s testimony because it is delivered in an advanced technical manner. The prosecutors need to give the jury a basic foundation so that later they will understand the more technical issues. The prosecution should use a combination of oral testimony and demonstrative vidence so that the jury and the judge will understand later in the trial when expert witnesses are testifying. The prosecution has an obligation to present his/her case; the demonstrative evidence should be used to subconsciously condition the jury to believe your expert is knowledgeable and credible. The understanding will enable the jury to believe/not to believe the expert’s ultimate conclusions. If the prosecutor and the computer evidence collected were gathered in accordance with the departmental guidelines the prosecution will be successful.

Evangelium Vitae or the Gospel of Life Essay

Imagine yourself, man or woman, feeling as though you’re in love with somebody. You feel not only a great obligation, pressured by society, but an urge to be sexually active with this individual. You go along with this urge, and the next thing you know, you’re expected to have a child as a result of your actions. You’re young, naà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ve, scared, poor; whatever the situation may be. You don’t know what to do. You’ve never thought that you would ever put yourself in this situation and you’re extremely frightened. You have heard about some people that have had abortions before, and they turned out to be fine. You have also heard that you can get an abortion in secret and on top of that for free, while also being completely legal. On the other hand, you have been raised to be pro-life and to never even think about having an abortion. You have to make a choice. Do you have the ethics, morals, and in essence, the faith to make the right choi ce; the right choice of course being the realization that abortion, in actuality, is murder, and to go against that sin and to have the child. I reflected upon these questions and asked myself if I had the faith myself to make the right choice. I wondered if I would really, truly be able to make the right decision. I thought that I could decide on the right thing, but I still didn’t fully understand everything about why the church teaches this. After doing research about this topic I got much better insight about understanding fully why we believe this. I don’t believe this now. Just because I’m supposed to, but I now believe this because I understand the wisdom and knowledge put forth to this subject over thousands of years. I know now that, besides not even getting into the situation itself, but that I would be able to make the right choice if I, or somebody I knew, was ever involved in a situation like that. I would be able to make the right choice and back up my conscience with knowledge. â€Å"I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly† (Jn 10:10). These words are the epitome of the revealed truth of God. It reflects all that we believe about life, death, and the power of the sanctifying Spirit. This eternal life, the life in which we are all called to live and protect, is the good news of Jesus Christ. It is at the dawn of our salvation, calling us to live righteously. In the first Chapter of Evangelium Vitae, or the Gospel of Life, written by Pope John Paul II in 1995, we see the good news of Jesus Christ itself. It reflects upon the present day threats to human life. Along with it, there is a parallel with the story of Cain and Abel, which is the root of violence against life. In today’s society, there are extremely numerous amounts of threats to human life, which the Gospel of Life spells out. It is impossible to catalogue the vast array of threats to human life because there are so many different forms. These forms are, much of the time, hidden. The most obvious is the legal right itself to perform certain procedures that are immoral and against our beliefs. Violence against life does not just include abortion. Violence against life can be a number of differing subjects. Euthanasia, murder of any type, slaughter, war, genocide, etc. are major types of violence against life as well as abortion. Furthermore, there are threats in today’s society, such as children forced into poverty, malnutrition, and hunger because of unjust distributing of resources between social classes. This goes along with violence of wars, which much of the time is bloody. There is also the spreading of death caused by reckless tempering with the world’s ecological balance, by the criminal spreading of drugs, or by the promotion of certain kinds of sexual activity, which is socially unacceptable, but also the many diseases that go along with this is dangerous and a threat to one’s life. The problem with our society today is that the immoral and life-threatening acts which are acted out are no longer considered unjust â€Å"crimes† anymore. They are, in today’s society, considered â€Å"rights†. This example can be shown through the acts of being pro-life or pro-choice. A pro-choice individual may feel that they have a right to choose what is good for them. The truth is veiled and hidden from them. It is not necessarily their fault that they do not know what they’re doing is wrong and sinful, but it can be a problem that lay within our culture. Our culture hides the sin and makes the woman believe that it is her right to choose what she wants. She doesn’t realize that it is really a crime that she is committing. She doesn’t understand that it is not her right to choose what she desires; it is God’s choice to choose what is right for her. By directly disobeying the Lord, She is committing a serious sin. Our culture, through our government, is hiding this and underplaying this sin by disguising it with words that have fallacious euphemisms as â€Å"rights† instead of â€Å"crimes†. At this basis, we find the source of the predicament our society is in today. Our culture openly practices these things, causing the immorality of it to be disguised or hidden. This is an â€Å"eclipse† of sin, which is very alarming in my eyes, to our culture today. We are headed in the wrong direction, a direction where justification, acceptance, and the proliferation of wrongdoings is becoming more and more prevalent from decade to decade. Human beings today attack life as if it were nothing and this spreading can crash our culture into a spiral fall into sin and ultimately spinning out of control into hell. The fact that attacks on life are spreading greatly and are receiving great support from the general culture is a powerfully despondent thought. This is also supported by broad, widespread legal approval of the involvement of certain sectors of health-care personnel. The reality of it is, the twentieth century will have been an era of massive attacks on life, or endless series of war, and a continual tacking of innocent human life, unless we put an end to these sins and make it known the evil, depravity, and corruption of these ideals. The two most flagrant enemies of present day threats to human life are abortion and euthanasia. Abortion is well-known, and is the work of the devil himself. Many have a feeling of constraint when talking about abortion because it is such a touchy subject. The fact of the matter is abortion is killing. It is paralleled with how Cain rose up against his brother and killed him. It is the same as taking a gun and shooting your baby daughter, brother, son, sister, mother, father, anybody. It is a complete sin, attacking God himself. For the Jewish people, blood is the source of life, and life, especially human life, is in the hands of God and belongs to God alone. By this fact, when one attack’s life, he or she in some way is attacking God himself. Just as Cain tried to justify his means of killing his brother and hiding it by saying â€Å"Am I my brother’s keeper?† many justify their means of killing and hiding it by acting naà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ve toward the subject. Cain does not like to think about his brother that he killed and refuses to accept responsibility for it. This can be the same way that we, in society as a whole, refuse to accept responsibility for our brothers. Again, just as God did not leave the crime of Cain unpunished, he also punishes us, accept our price we will pay in the heavenly kingdom. Euthanasia goes along with these hidden crimes of violence. Euthanasia is murder as well, just as is abortion. Our culture tends to include the lack of solidarity towards the weakest members of society. We sometimes have a misleading thought that pain and suffering should not be associated with death. We think that just because one is able to end a life to avoid suffering that he or she should avoid it. We think that, if the life would require greater recognition or time, that love is considered useless, and is actually considered a burden. This leads to the rejection of the life. A person who, because of a certain illness, being handicapped, or just because they are existing, makes one think that it compromises the well-bring or life-style of those who are living without assistance. This is a lie from the devil and you cannot fall into his trickery. Sometimes, the Catholic Church is accused of being pro-choice, and pro-abortion, just because it is against the use of contraception. This may be that many people use contraception with a view to stop the temptation of abortion. In fact these thoughts themselves strengthen this temptation when an unwanted life in conceived because of its negative values that go along with it. The pro-abortion culture is especially strong when the Church teaches that contraception is bad. When reflecting on these two acts, the church teaches that contraception and abortion are two different and distinct evils. Contraception is a contradiction to the real truth of sexuality as an act of proper conjugal love of a married man and woman. It is opposed to the virtue of chastity in marriage and it warps the minds of individuals to make them believe that, just because they can have intercourse without being married means that they should. Abortion on the other hand destroys the life of a human being. It directly disobeys God’s commandment â€Å"You shall not kill.† Life starts at the moment of conception, not when the baby starts to grow. But, even though these two ideas are evil, they are still closely connected as â€Å"fruits of the same tree†. Contraception and abortion are practiced with the pressures of your peers, real life situations, and a society that accepts these things are â€Å"normal†. These things have to be taught from the beginning that they are wrong. Another present day crisis that is used against life is the demographic question. There are many different parts of the world with different cultures, but it is still a sin to kill, no matter where the killing is taking place. In some poorer countries over-population occurs. Programs of cultural development and distribution of anti-birth policies are being formed. Contraception, sterilization, and abortion are certainly part of the reason why in some cases there is a very steep decline in the birthrate. It is not hard for these cultures to use the methods that attack lives when there is a situation of â€Å"demographic explosion†. An example of where this is prevalent is China. China has a one-child policy of birth planning. The Chinese government puts it under the pretext of a â€Å"Family planning policy†. It officially restricts the number of children married couples can have to one. A spokesperson of the Committee on the One-Child Policy has said that about 35.9% of China’s population is currently subject to the one-child restriction. The Chinese government introduced this policy to alleviate social, economic, and environmental problems in China. Authorities claim that the policy has prevented more than 250 million births from its implementation to the year 2000.1 This goes against everything we believe. This is because of the negative economic and social consequences the policy introduces, such as forced abortions and female infanticide, which is the probably cause of China’s significant gender imbalance. This shows that the government is a huge concern for the future of our culture. The Pharaoh of the Old Testament did the same thing. He ordered that every male child born of the Hebrew women were to be killed (Ex 1:7-22), due to the increase of children in Israel. These sins are very prevalent throughout our world and for the sake of our future, need to be stopped. God asks Cain, â€Å"Where is your brother Abel?† Cain answers â€Å"I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?† (Gen 4:9). The answer to this is yes. Each of us has a moral obligation to take responsibility for watching over our brothers. This is because God instructs us to watch over our brothers. He gives us the freedom to choose to watch over our brothers. Humanity today is given great freedom, and we need to use our freedom wisely. We cannot waste our freedom by being tricked into sin. We need to watch out for the other side of freedom that we do not know about. This is the freedom that destroys ourselves and becomes the factor leading to the destruction of others. It no longer recognizes and respects its essential link with the truth. When our freedom is used to follow others, our freedom is dead. When our freedom is used to follow the Lord, our freedom is living. If we follow the will of others all the time, we tend to just look for the easy way out of things, and much of the time we look for the thing that will be more helpful to us. This is a selfish way to live, and if we always live in this way, we will not live in eternal happiness with the one who gave us this freedom to begin with. Our life was given to us by the Lord. With this life we are given a freedom to choose and make the right decisions. Sometimes our society and culture may lead us down the wrong path, and hide the truth about what is right and what is wrong. What we don’t understand is that this is really Satan trying to do his work and cause us to sin. He doesn’t want us to achieve total happiness with our Creator. He wants us to suffer with him, so he makes up lies, and covers up the truth to cause us to sin. Our society as a whole needs to realize these things. Our present culture needs to realize that life is not in our hands, but in the hands of God our Creator, and that he wants us to spread the truth about life and the truth about present day threats to human life. 1 1 Rosenberg, Matt. â€Å"China One Child Policy – Overview of the One Child Policy in China.† Geography Home Page – Geography at About.com. 14 May 2009 .