Identity Theft It s A Good Life - 890 Words

Identity theft It’s a good life. I’m married, I have a good job, lovely kids, and nothing to worry about. The daily routine is pretty simple. I get out of bed, go to work, come back home, and the repeat. Turns out that this particular day wasn’t as simple as it normally is. On my way to work, I notice that my gas tank was low so I stopped by the gas station to fill up. After I swiped my card to pay for the gas, the screen had a message saying, â€Å"Card Declined.† This couldn’t have been right because I do all my payments. I enter the store in the gas station and complain to the man at the desk that this was some sort of mistake. At the end of the argument, I end up getting my card cut in half by the man at the counter and bolted out of the door with extreme anger. After all the trouble that happened earlier, I finally made it to work. I sit down in my office and let out a big sigh to relive all the stress. Here I am thinking everything is going alright, then my boss came rushing through the door yelling at me, â€Å"John, why are there police officers over here looking for you!?† Turns out they came to confirm to me that my identity was stolen. They handed me a folder that held information on the thief. The officer said, â€Å"a man by the name of Jordan Brooks, 5†11, age of 23, Caucasian male, has used over $20,000 on non-prescribed medications such as marijuana in Los Angeles, California.† The funny thing is that I live in Indiana so there was no way that I could ve done that. TheShow MoreRelatedIdentity Crimes : As Common As Death And Taxes1099 Words   |  5 PagesIdentity Crimes: As Common as Death and Taxes With the rise in the need for the convenience of online shopping and bill pay, identity theft has become a more prevalent issue around the world. Identity theft is a type of crime in which someone wrongfully obtains and uses another person’s personal data in some way that involves fraud of deception, typically for economic gain (Identity Theft). In 2009, approximately 13.9 million Americans were victims of some form of identity theft (Theoharis). StudiesRead MoreIdentity Theft Is Not A New Type Of Crime776 Words   |  4 PagesMerriam-Webster defines identity theft as the illegal use of someone else s personal identifying information (such as a Social Security number) in order to get money or credit. The United States Department of Justice says identity theft is, â€Å"The short answer is that identity theft is a crime. Identity theft and identity fraud are terms used to refer to all types of crime in which someone wrongfully obtains and uses another person s personal data in some way that involves fraud or deception, typicallyRead MoreSocial Media And Its Effects On Society908 Words   |  4 PagesHowever, to steals somebody s identity can potentially ruin lives even it s not completely noticeable. By pretending to be another person or a Copy Catfish s Nev Schulman might refer to these kind of people as may causes doctors to believe there are physiological issue and within a just a year 540 people are places in institutions have struggled with identification(empty lighthouse). One can argue that the psychological issues stem from other This episode of catfish is just one out of many exampleRead MoreEssay about Identity Theft in America1215 Words   |  5 Pagesour world, a person’s identity can be easily changed. Many Americans are effected by this problem today. Citizens, criminals, and the government all play a role in this process. However, many disagree as to whether identity theft should be allowed in our country. Based on the history of identity theft and relationships between American citizens, the government, and this issue, identity theft should be abolished in America. The history of identity theft began around the 1950’s, prior to when ourRead MoreIdentity Theft Is A Method Of Cybercrime1220 Words   |  5 PagesDana Rico ENG 102 Composition 2 Arguing Definition 9 February 2015 Identity Theft Today, in the twenty-first century, there have been so many new inventions with technology, changes in politics, fashion, social behaviors, and others. It takes a lot of common sense and education to know how this technological, intelligent world works now days. There are so many words and phrases for someone to know in order to understand how today’s generations work. Two important terms that I think someone wouldRead MoreComputer Fraud And Identity Theft1705 Words   |  7 Pagesmaintaining ones identity can be a challenge. In 2012 the United States population was 314.1 million people, in the same year, 75.6 percent of households reported having a computer. (Government Census, 2012) With this high population and electronic use, one could extrapolate that there is high risk for computer fraud and identity theft. For example consider these statistics in 2013, identity theft complaints accounted for 14% of all complaints. The most common form of reported identity theft was go vernmentRead MoreIdentification Theft And Identity Theft947 Words   |  4 PagesOur identity is what makes us unique. It is the individual character or personality of an individual, and when a person is a victim of identity theft, it is this distinct characteristic that is stolen Therefore the victims of identity theft often feel a deep sense of violation as they struggle to reclaim their good names. The government must implement better regulations to help put an end to this crime which is affecting millions of innocent Americans. Until then there are three important waysRead MoreProtecting Yourself from Identity Theft Essay1745 Words   |  7 Pagesin your name and it is your address. You may not believe it, but your identity has been stolen and now someone is out there posing as you, running willy nilly around town with your life in hand. The truth is, there is almost nothing you can do once your identity is stolen. How are you going to explain to a credit card company that you did not purchase anything when everything is in your name? This is what makes identity theft so effective, someone can go in, do large amounts of damage and disappearRead MoreIdentity Theft Essay1749 Words   |  7 Pagesin your name and it is your address. You may not believe it, but your identity has been stolen and now someone is out there posing as you, running willy nilly around town with your life in hand. The truth is, there is almost nothing you can do once your identity is stolen. How are you going to explain to a credit card company that you did not purchase anything when everything is in your name? This is what makes identity theft so effective, someone can go in, do large amounts of damage and disappearRead More Internet Fraud and Identity Theft Essay1176 Words   |  5 PagesInternet Fraud and Identity Theft The Internet is not just a medium for information; it is a tool for communication. Creating a new social sphere and environment, the Internet allows virtually anyone to be a participant. Chat rooms, discussion boards, instant messaging services and e-mail are all mediums that allow individuals to engage in communication. However, although the Internet is a public domain, individuals do not have to honestly represent themselves. Many individuals use false names

I Don t Think Kantha Pollitt, And Ann Ducille - 799 Words

For many members of my generation the Civil Rights Movement and the Feminist Movement seem somewhat like ancient history. Most of us are not naà ¯ve enough to believe that all of the ills of society have been cured and that racism and sexism no longer exist, but the larger portion of us would probably argue that in the 50 or so years since both of these movements took place great changes must have happened. While I don’t think Kantha Pollitt, and Ann duCille would entirely disagree with us, they both bring up several points that still certainly need addressing, especially when it comes to little girls experience of race and gender in our culture. In Kantha Pollitt 1991 article â€Å"The Smurfette Principle† she makes the argument that, like Smurfette who is surrounded entirely by only male characters, the majority of media in the United States is centered on male characters and the women and girls in those images are almost entirely supporting characters. To drive this point home she states, â€Å"Take a look at the kids’ section of your local video store. You’ll find that features starring boys, and usually aimed at them, account for 9 out of 10 offerings.†(Pollitt, 1991) In other words, despite women (and girls) comprising about half of the U. S. population, about 90% of the media available for children is geared almost directly towards boys. Additionally, when discussing the content of much of what is available, she states, â€Å"Boys define the group, its story, and its code of

Irving the Legend of Sleepy Hollow free essay sample

Having strong ties to a particular subject causes strong feelings on it. When you believe in something you are, in my opinion, more likely to see it or think you’ve seen it. In Washington Irving’s â€Å"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,† Irving tells a story of just this type of situation. Article Analysis In Greg Smith’s â€Å"Supernatural Ambiguity and Possibility in Irving’s ‘The Legend of Sleepy Hollow’,†, Smith makes many claims on the occurrences in the story. One of the claims that stuck out to me the most was how he talks about how rather or not the headless horseman was real was left as an open-ended topic. Diedrick Knickerbocker, the narrator of the story, never actually claims a solution to what happened to the Ichabod Crane and how he disappeared. Smith refers to the fact that at the end of the story, Knickerbocker states that â€Å"the old country wives maintain to this day that Ichabod was spirited away by supernatural means. We will write a custom essay sample on Irving the Legend of Sleepy Hollow or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page †(Smith par. 11). Smith also brings up the conversation in the â€Å"Postscript† in which a man is sharing the story of Ichabod Crane’s disappearance (Smith par. 12). The narrator of this part, who I believe to be Ichabod, ends the story by saying â€Å"Faith sir.. I don’t believe one half of it myself†(Smith par. 12). Another claim smith makes is that â€Å"Sleepy Hollow† might not have been as good of a story had Brom Bones been found guilty of being the horseman (Smith par. 8). Leaving the possibility of a supernatural event draws the reader in, opens up debatable topics and causes people to want to share their opinion on what they feel happened. Original Claim In Washington Irving’s â€Å"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,† a pedagogue school teacher lets his imagination of the supernatural and his desire for wealth get the best of him and he scares himself out of town. Brom pretends to be the Headless Horseman and is able to drive Ichabod out of town by using his fears, pursuit of power and rejection from Katrina against him. Brom Bones, who was in competition with Ichabod over the heart of Katrina Van Hassel, never admitted to having anything to do with Cranes disappearance, but seemed to know a lot about the situation. Bones would â€Å"look exceedingly knowingly whenever the story of Ichabod was related. † (Irving 775) If one knows nothing about a subject then they usually wish to acquire knowledge, not spread around false stories. I feel as if Brom was in fact the culprit who pretended to be the headless hessian. The atmosphere of the town in general also plays a large part in what the townsmen will believe in. They are somewhat brainwashed by all the folklore that is passed around by the people. Everything is haunted, â€Å"haunted fields, haunted brooks, haunted bridges, haunted houses,† (Irving 761). With so much of a spooky sphere around the town why would anyone think to believe in anything else? During the party, everyone shared ghost stories instead of â€Å"normal† party talk, (Irving 773). Ichabod had to leave the party and ride home in darkness with all these spooky thoughts on his mind. With the absence of other opinions the only thing you can think is that the headless horseman took Ichabod and added him to his body count. Another reason Brom is the Headless Horseman is because Ichabod is not around to share what really happened. The only thing they found was Ichabod’s hat, the horse’s saddle, and a smashed pumpkin. The pumpkin was most likely the head in which Ichabod thought was thrown at him knocking him off of his horse and into the brook. This is important because in the original tale, the horseman was looking for his head. Brom would not have known this because he, unlike Ichabod, did not have as much knowledge of the story (Irving 774-775). I believe Ichabod fled town after he was tricked so badly by Brom. He also had built up aggression about the fact that Katrina chose his foe over him and his dreams of wealth through marriage were ended (Irving 762). Ichabod let his emotions and imagination get the best of him and he scared himself out of town. Rather than go back and face the people he goes to New York and pursues odd jobs for happiness. His greatest achievement was being a judge in the Ten Pound Court, (Irving 775), as a way to feel the void of losing Katrina’s heart. In the end muscle out smarted the brian. Conclusion Smith talks about how the headless horseman could possibly be real and Ichabod could have experienced a ghost encounter. Though I do believe in the supernatural, I feel as if Brom Bones was the culprit.

Richard III And Lear II Essays - Shakespearean Histories

Richard III And Lear II From the very opening of the play when Richard III enters "solus", the protagonist's isolation is made clear. Richard's isolation progresses as he separates himself from the other characters and breaks the natural bonds between Man and nature through his efforts to gain power. The first scene of the play begins with a soliloquy, which emphasizes Richard's physical isolation as he appears alone as he speaks to the audience. This idea of physical isolation is heightened by his references to his deformity, such as "rudely stamp'd...Cheated of feature by Dissembling Nature, deformed, unfinished. This deformity would be an outward indication to the audience of the disharmony from Nature and viciousness of his spirit. As he hates "the idle pleasures of these days" and speaks of his plots to set one brother against another, Richard seems socially apart from the figures around him, and perhaps regarded as an outsider or ostracized because of his deformity. His separation from is family is emphasized when he says "Dive, thought's down to my soul" when he sees his brother approaching. He is unable to share his thought with his own family as he is plotting against them. Thus, we are given hints of his physical, social and spiritual isolation which is developed throughout the play. But despite these hints, he still refers to himself as part of the House of York, shown in the repeated use of "Our". The concept of Richard's physical isolation is reinforced in his dealings with Anne in Act I scene ii. She calls him "thou lump of foul deformity" and "fouler toad" during their exchange. Despite these insults, she still makes time to talk to Richard, and by the end of their exchange, she has taken his ring and been "woo'd" by him. After Richard has successfully gained the throne, he isolates himself when he asks the crowd to "stand all apart" in Act IV scene ii. And later, when Richard dreams, he is completely alone. Physical isolation in Richard's deformity wins sympathy from the audience as we pity his condition. But Richard uses his deformity as a tool against the other characters, to portray them as victimizing Richard. Thus the sense of tragedy is lessened by his own actions, even though his isolation may become greater as the play progresses. Richard's psychological isolation is conveyed through his lack of conscience in his murderous acts. Nowhere does he feel remorse for his murders, until Act V scene iii when he exclaims "Have mercy Jesu!" and "O coward conscience, how dost thou afflict me!". In this turning point, Richard's division from his own self is made clear from "I and I", and "Is there a murderer here? No. Yes, I am!" He has conflicting views of himself and realizes that "no creature" loves him, not even himself. We also never the "real" mind of Richard, for he is always playing a role, of a loving brother to Clarence, a lover to Anne or a victim to the others. We feel sympathy for Richard as he awakes in a vulnerable position and for the first time acknowledges the evil that he has done. But as he only reveals his feelings of guilt in the last act of the play, we do not see him in internal turmoil and thus the sense of psychological tragedy cannot be built upon. Socially, Richard is isolated from both the upper and lower classes of society. In Act I scene iii, Richard sarcastically calls Elizabeth "sister", and she contemptuously calls him "Brother of Gloucester" making a mockery of familial bonds. Margaret calls him "cacodemon" and "devil", and any unity that the characters have on stage is temporary and superficial. In act III, the citizens are said to be "mum" and "deadly pale", which gives a sense of quiet opposition to Richard's activities. Richard is thus separated from all around him. Temporarily, we see Richard and Buckingham share a kind of bond, as Richard calls him "My other self", "My Oracle" and "My prophet". But they part when Buckingham hesitates to kill the young princes when Richard says "I wish the bastards dead". This is the only time the audience sees Richard act with any other man, but we realize that it is for purely political purposes and that the union exists only while Buckingham remains useful to him. Our sympathy for Richard is limited as we see that he has no true friendships, and does not genuinely care for his family or friends. Thus even in his increasing isolation the sense of

The Sword In The Stone Essays - Merlin, , Term Papers

The Sword in the Stone The Sword in the Stone is a book about an adopted child named Wart. He is of royal blood and does not know this. One day when Wart is in the forest, he finds a magician named Merlin. Merlin comes home with Wart and agrees with Sir Ector, Wart's guardian, to become Wart's tutor. Merlin goes about educating Wart by transforming him into different animals. Through each transformation Wart experiences different forms of power, each being a part of how he should rule as king. The first transformation plunges Wart and Merlin into the castle's moat as fish. They proceed to meet the largest fish in the moat, who is the ruler. This fish takes what he wants because of his size. In a speech about power, he tells Wart that, "Might is right," and might of the body is greater than might of the mind. Because of the way the fish-king rules, his subjects obey him out of fear for their lives. Wart experiences this firsthand when the fish-king tells him to leave. He has grown bored of Wart, and if Wart does not leave he will eat him. The king uses his size as his claim to power, therefore his subjects follow him out of fear. In Wart's next transformation into a hawk, he soars into the castle's mews. All the birds in the mews have a military rank. Their leader is an old falcon, who Sir Ector keeps for show. The birds who rank below the falcon, hold her in highest regard because of her age. She applies her power over the other birds with no concern for their lives. In one instance, Wart is ordered to stand next to the cage of a crazy hawk who almost kills him. On the other hand, her seasoned age brings respect, since she had not been released once she outlived her usefulness as a huntress. This allows her to maintain a powerful grip over all the birds she rules through fear and respect. Next, Wart is transformed into an ant and posted within an ant colony. There is a single leader of the ants, and she is the only thinking individual in the whole nest. All the ants are manipulated and overseen by her. Each ant has a specific task, which it completes repeatedly. The absolute power exerted by the leader destroys all individualism, leaving the ants with no creativity. Instead, they use trial and error to complete tasks that should take only a small amount of thought. Wart sees this occur when an ant tries with difficulty to organize three cadavers in a small burial chamber, when a small amount of reasoning would have solved the problem quickly. The ants are of a collective mind, so that what one thinks, they all think. They go about their daily lives oblivious to the control the leader has over them. Wart's fourth transformation places him in a flock of geese. These geese are a peace loving race that never kill. There is one leader to a group who is called The Admiral. He guides them on their flight south for the winter. The Admiral receives his position because of his knowledge of the southern migration route. He is only elected if all the geese in the migration group agree he is capable of doing the job. During the flight the geese obey his choices, since he is their elected leader. But his power ends once they are back on the ground, where he is only looked upon as a respected elder. In the final transformation Wart visits the badger. The badger is a great philosopher who enjoys giving scholarly commentaries. While Wart is visiting him, he explains a story he has written on the creation of the animal kingdom's hierarchy. In his commentary he explains how man answered God's riddle and is awarded control over the animal kingdom. He lives a life of solitude because many other animals do not think at his level. They listen because he is old and experienced, and with this comes respect. Through each of the transformations, Wart sees different uses of power. Wart must choose how he will eventually govern his kingdom. The leaders he visits, govern in their own way, each retaining their power through different methods. When these are combined, the following picture of how a leader should or should not rule emerges: A leader should not attempt to rule his or her people through might and fear, as does the fisk-king.

How John Albert Burr Innovated Modern Lawn Mowing

How John Albert Burr Innovated Modern Lawn Mowing If you have a manual push mower today, it likely uses design elements from 19th Century black American inventor John Albert Burrs patented rotary blade lawn mower. On May 9, 1899, John Albert Burr patented an improved rotary blade lawn mower. Burr designed a lawn mower with traction wheels and a rotary blade that was designed to not easily get plugged up from lawn clippings. John Albert Burr also improved the design of lawn mowers by making it possible to mow closer to building and wall edges. You can view U.S. patent 624,749 issued to John Albert Burr. Life of Inventor John Albert Burr John Burr was born in Maryland in 1848, at a time when he would have been a teenager during the Civil War. His parents were slaves who were later freed, and he may also have been a slave until age 17. He didnt escape from manual labor, as he worked as a field hand during his teenage years. But his talent was recognized and wealthy black activists ensured he was able to attend engineering classes at a private university. He put his mechanical skills to work making a living repairing and servicing farm equipment and other machines. He moved to Chicago and also worked as a steelworker.  When he filed his patent for the rotary mower in 1898, he was living in Agawam, Massachusetts. Inventions of John Albert Burr The object of my invention is to provide a casing which wholly  encloses  the  operating gearing  so as to prevent it from becoming choked by the grass or clogged by obstructions of any kind, reads the patent application. His rotary lawn mower design helped reduce the irritating clogs of clippings that are the bane of manual mowers. It was also more maneuverable and could be used for closer clipping around objects such as posts and buildings. Looking at his patent diagram, you will see a design that is very familiar for manual rotary mowers today. Powered mowers for home use were still decades away. As lawns become smaller in many newer neighborhoods, many people are returning to manual rotary mowers like Burrs design. Burr continued to patent improvements to his design. He also designed devices for mulching clippings, sifting, and dispersing them. Todays mulching power mowers may be part of his legacy, returning nutrients to the turf rather than bagging them for compost or disposal. In this way, his inventions helped save labor and were also good for the grass. He held over 30 U.S. patents for lawn care and agricultural inventions. John Albert Burrs Later Life Burr enjoyed the fruits of his success. Unlike many inventors who never see their designs commercialized, or soon lose any benefits, he got royalties for his creations. He enjoyed traveling and lecturing. He lived a long life and died in 1926 of influenza at age 78.   Next time you mow the lawn, acknowledge the inventor who made the task a little easier.

Hydraulic Fracturing For Natural Gas - Gasland Essay - 7

Hydraulic Fracturing For Natural Gas - Gasland - Essay Example One of the rhetorical strategies used in the documentary was the manner by which the narrator gathered pieces of evidence from people through verbal communication or speech. Through the journey, Josh Fox had interviewed an estimated number of about 20 individuals who were directly affected by the gas wells; and about 5 experts in the fields of environmental protection, public service, quality specialists, medical practitioner, and representative of the Environmental Protection Agency. The manner by which these individuals and experts provided testimonies to their verbal disclosures viably supported their arguments that since the oil and gas wells were drilled in their respective properties, their drinking water had been seriously contaminated. Aside from relaying the information verbally, most of the testimonies provided pieces of evidence in terms of showing the kind of water collected from their faucets; and even proving that when lit, water from the faucet ignites into flame. Like wise, some of the people who were interviewed explicitly indicated the negative impact of these wells; such as Debbie May who relayed that the drinking water initially tasted like metal and turned into murky brown. In addition, she also showed that her cat and horse exhibited shedding of their hair, as a result of being exposed to these gas wells. Thus, the people who provided verbal discourse were effective in appealing both through logic (through visual support) and emotions (by indicating health hazards and conditions which were experienced); as such, were effective in providing the needed proof to substantiate their allegations that the gas well was detrimental to their lives. Another rhetorical strategy used by Fox was the selection and choice of sound. It was evident that Fox was able to creatively incorporate background music, the sounds of machines, the sounds of the wind or water from the streams, the sound of children playing, and even an intermittent sound of silence. For instance, the documentary started with Fox playing the banjo and the end of the documentary also showed a man playing a musical instrument, which effectively integrates the whole creative work. Also, the sounds of the telephone ringing, the busy tone, and the background music of the answering machine were very effective in relaying the message that the narrator had been trying to collect different people and organizations to set the needed interviews for the documentary. These sounds and background music were all effective in appealing to the emotions of viewers. Sound and music provide an enhancing ability to emphasize an argument or a point being asserted. Likewise, background music, for instance, was instrumental in bridging one completed scene and used to transcend into a new issue or concern. The sounds actually enhanced and emphasized the arguments, as needed. Finally, the narrator also used the rhetorical strategy of visuals. Aside from the scenery and the people who were in terviewed, visuals also included graphics through stating relevant quotes, such as â€Å"water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink† (Moldovan) written in bold, white face and in all capital letters against a totally black background. In addition, graphics assisted in identifying the people who Fox interviewed, some with appropriate designations; such as Dr. Al Armerdariz, the Air Quality Specialist and Researcher at Southern Methodist University; Calvin Tillman, the Mayor of Dish, Texas; Wilma Subra, Chemist, First Responder, and MacArthur â€Å"Genius Award† Recipient; to name a few.        

Critically consider the ways in which economists have recognised the Essay

Critically consider the ways in which economists have recognised the psychological, social and corporate influences on consumer choice - Essay Example the use of a popular person like an actor or talk-show host/hostess. Social influences are often attributed to class and culture such as those associated with the consumption of luxury goods. Corporate influences are said to be one of the most influential because they invariably come from the very manufacturers and sellers of those goods. For example businesses adopt a variety of strategies or/and sales tactics including those associated with benchmarking products and creating brand loyalties through value creation (Hallberg & Ogilvy, 1995). Consumers have to make a choice between two or more goods before making an actual purchase. In a free market economy where price mechanism alone allocates scarce resources consumer choice is naturally assumed to be free from any influences because depending on the purchasing ability of the consumer he/she might decide to buy a good at its market price. However the contrary is much truer than this theoretical economic explanation to the consumer’s behavior. In the first instance in a free market economy the producer has an equal amount of freedom to use marketing tactics to attract the attention of the potential customer. Customers are influenced by a variety of sales tactics that producers use in order to increase sales volumes. Psychological, social and corporate influences are the most predominant among them. Economists identify psychological influences such as those related to emotions, impulse or/and ostentation. According to economists emotional involvement in consumer choice though might not be measurable, cannot be ruled out altogether (Luce, Bettman and Payne, 2001). As a result every consumer is assumed to be influenced by positive and negative emotional factors like personal memories associated with a product. Michael Jackson related merchandise and memorabilia for instance have such an emotional impact on many potential buyers because he is associated with the firmament of pop music. When

Which Character in the book Watchmen best captures 21st century Essay

Which Character in the book Watchmen best captures 21st century American politics Why - Essay Example America today is in a very unique kind of position because it found itself to be the sole remaining superpower of the world, and due to this unprecedented position, America exerts a big influence in world affairs. Paradoxically, America is also somehow limited on how much it can do because it is operating under some constraints by global forces outside its immediate control. An example is the spread of liberal ideology helped spread globalisation of trade and finance, which had in turn disseminated the American ideals of real representative democracy and the benefits of free market capitalism (that â€Å"a rising tide lifts all boats,† as famously stated by former President John F. Kennedy). However, America is now also under increasing scrutiny by other nations in the way it exercises this great power; it is a hegemonic kind of power and comes with it the great type of responsibility to exercise such power in a prudent and equitable manner. This may not be the case always or in all instances and other countries which also aspire to global greatness try to challenge American power in many ways other than a direct confrontational war. The burden is on America to exercise its great power in a fair manner to give justice to all world citizens but conversely, as the adage goes, absolute power can corrupt absolutely. This brief paper is a discussion of current American politics with a moral or philosophical underpinning in relation to a wonderful graphic novel by author Alan Moore entitled Watchmen. Discussion The Watchmen is a good example of a new literary genre called as the graphic novel. It is a new category of books recently considered as a legitimate art form in itself due to its growing popularity, with previous novels like A Contract with God (by author Eisner), Maus (by Spiegelman), followed by Watchmen (by Moore and Gibbons) and then also The Dark Knight Returns (by Miller). A graphic novel follows the conventions of a traditional novel but the sto ry is told through a series of comic-strip illustrations, hence the name graphic. It is told through dialogue and the subject matter can be either fiction or non-fiction as well. Watchmen is a graphic novel that tells a compelling story of power that is highly relevant today. Watchmen has many interesting characters in it like Dr. Manhattan, Rorschach, Nite Owl, Silk Spectre, the Comedian, and Ozymandias. However, it is Dr. Manhattan which best exemplifies the nature of American politics in the twenty-first century. The great power of Dr. Manhattan is very similar to the great powers of the United States of America as sole super power in a unipolar world. America as sole superpower has a lot of options available to it that is not available to lesser nations, and this power can be exercised either for good or bad, in a certain sense, with impunity if allowed. This makes America a terrifying country to oppose. It exercises its great powers according to its own logic and moral standard s which is shown by its preference or predilection for preventive wars (some political analysts termed it as pre-emptive wars). This was shown by the last Iraq war to topple Saddam Hussein for supposedly possessing the dreaded weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and executed him after a flawed trial for war crimes against humanity (Tucker 174).1 America is like Dr. Manhattan; it operates under its own rules and even worse, operates under a double-standard of morality when it comes to its conduct of international relations (Robichaud 14).2 Clearly, as stated earlier elsewhere, the big question centers on the political morality that America should be

Dworkins Theory Of Law As Integrity

Dworkins Theory Of Law As Integrity Integrity in law essentially is a theory about the interpretation of the law. Dworkin proposed a view that the interpretation in the law should be guided by the concept of integrity. He believes that the basic issue of the Philosophy of Right is not a semantic one, but one that what is the best interpretation for legal practice. Because the proper goal of Philosophy of Right is to develop a way for the law to be the best explanation of the law; it is also because the behavior of judgment does not determine what the law is, but deciding on specific cases, this is also an explanatory practice. In Dworkins theory of legal interpretation, the law is an interpretational notion that the judge hearing the case is the process of interpreting the law. Nevertheless, what is the law? Law not only refers to the rules of the legal system, but also contains principles and policies, both of which are the basis for legal interpretation by the court or judge. In Dworkins argument, the judge appears to be beyond the rule of law, it seems that the judge is create law by interpretation, however, his legal view is law as integrity, that is to say, in addition to rules of the law, the principles and policies are hidden behind the rules. So the judgment and interpretation of the judge are still the application of integral law, not create law. Due to the existence of law as integrity; there is the only correct answer even in the hardest cases but not for legal loophole issue in his eyes. Integrity of the law can achieve protect without loopholes for disputes even if defects of language expressing, major changes in society, or lack of coordination of the law. II How to interpreting law as integrity? Dworkin believes that law is an interpretive concept. There are different methods of interpretation to this concept. Law as integrity is one. This interpretation admits that the law not only refers to specific legal rules, but also concludes a set of principle system which can prove the reasonableness of the law. These principles derived from an integral social that makes the law an organized whole. The participants of legal practice (including judges and lawyers) were interpreting the law constructively under the guidance of this principle to providing a theory that is best for current, past and future legal practice. Then give the significance of integrity to the legal practice, based on the understanding of the law, therefore applying the law to specific cases and acquire the right answers to the specific cases. Dworkin considers the internal point of view as that, the integrity of the legal interpretation is compliance with experience of law practice participants (including judges and lawyers), particularly must be appropriate for the hard cases that dont provide the right answers. With different popular views, Dworkin believes that when people argue what is the law there are no other motives to posture to hide their own desires; and not disputed at the edge of the ambiguous words as meaningless. It is misunderstanding of legal practice regardless of seeing them as a liar or fool. Interpretation as a constructive approach, law as integrity can overcome the defects of other two competitive interpretations which are conventionalism and pragmatism. Conventionalist strictly follow the past conventions and cant deal with hard cases that have no rules to apply- the judge does not sentence so that violated judges duties to create new law that may contradict with the belief of deciding cases according to the law. The law as integrity requires that the judge can develop the law through constructive interpretation under the law, thus it will combine the demand of stability and adaptability of the law. Dworkin successfully directed with the aid of the concept of integrity that: Legal pragmatism cant explain why people do not want to accept inconsistent treatment of solutions mean that the internal compromise  [1]  , while the law as integrity can be explained. In summary, the common ground of the two interpretation models: conventionalism and pragmatism is that they all stand there and have no law in front of hard cases; the judge can beyond the law when he has more than one choice however the litigant can only pray. Regardless of both conventionalism and pragmatism cant accept the judge was unlimited, but there is one possibility actually, namely judge may throw the coin to decide how to judge. The law as integrity is firmly opposed to this kind of attitude, it stands that even if the book recorded legal rules and instructions is silent, the sound of the law still existed, but is low with difficulty hears  [2]  . III What is law as integrity? At first, it is a third independent virtue or political idea that differs from the justice and fairness. It is common that contradiction between ideals in politics, integrity sometimes requires compromise with the other ideals. It can be found that the two virtues of justice and fairness sometimes against each other and we often have to choose one of them in order to decide which political agenda to support if we deny the integrity and make political activities relying on justice, fairness and due process of law. For example, it is believed that the rule decided by majority is the fairest possible decision-making process, but most people often make decision that is not justified to individual rights. Hence, These difficult questions arise because fairness and justice sometimes conflict. If we believe that integrity is a third and independent ideal, at least when people disagree about one of the first two, then we may well think that fairness or justice must sometimes be sacrificed to integrity.  [3]  , so various reasons, both practical and expressive, a community might have for accepting integrity as a political virtue  [4]  . Integrity as a virtue is required by the inevitable real world. In an ideal society, all citizens have equal respect, the restrictions and limitations by integrity are not needed; thus, it can be said that integrity can only relate to the second best justice, we do not live in an ideal world. Therefore, it needs the protection in system in order to determine what justice it is. Dworkin also said that: we accept integrity as a political ideal because we want to treat our political community as one of principle, and the citizens of a community as one of principle, and the citizens of a community of principle aim not simply at common principles, as if uniformity were all they wanted, but the best common principles politics can find. Integrity is distinct from justice and fairness, but it is bound to them in that way: integrity makes no sense except among people who want fairness and justice as well.  [5]  Obviously, Dworkin emphasized on the integrity relating to justice and fairness. Secondly, the integrity is a matter of principle. It is both legislative and judicial. As legislative principles, it tells legislators that the simple exchange of justice and fairness is wrong; restricting legislators what may be appropriate to expand or change the public standards. Dworkin said that Integrity is about principle and does not require any simple form of consistency in policy. The legislative principle of integrity demands that the legislature strive to protect for everyone what it takes to be their moral and political rights, so that public standards express a coherent scheme of justice and fairness.  [6]  As judicial principle, it tells the judges and lawyers to make their decision and arguments consistent with the existing legal system; or requires our judges, so far as this is possible, to treat our present system of public standards as expressing and respecting a coherent set of principles  [7]  . Dworkin is undoubtedly paying more attention to the integrit y of judicial principles to which the related idea is an important part of Dworkins Philosophy of Right. Integrity as a judicial principle means restriction and guidance to judges interpreting the law. In order to ensure consistency, Dworkin regards the judge as the author of the chain novel, the goal of many coauthor chain novels is that making it unfold logically for the characters and plot decided at beginning. The opus is like completed by one author. Each novelist aims to make a single novel of the material he has been given, what he adds to it, and (so far as he can control this) what his successors will want or be able to add. He must try to make this the best novel it can be construed as the work of a single author than, as is the fact, the product of many different hands. This calls for an overall judgment on his part, or a series of overall judgments as he writes and rewrites.  [8]  However the interpretation of each author may be diverse, but it is influenced by two factors. One is suit, in other words, his work should consistent with the work before; another is judgment, that is to say, he must judge which kind of interpretation is able to interpret the work best if many interpretations were consistent with the work before. The chain novels author creates a work like one person because of the two limits above. The judge should use the thought method such as chain novel when they understand and apply the law. He should consider the past decisions as a part of a novel to which he must interpret and continue; making judgment as accurate as possible based on integrity and the theoretical knowledge and values. When considers integrity, Dworkin also clears that how to deal with historical issues, which is one of the requirement about consistency. He said: Integrity does not require consistency in principle over all historical stages of a communitys law; it does not require that judges try to understand the law they enforce as continuous in principle with the abandoned law of a previous century or even a previous generation.  [9]  History is important in that the scheme of principle must provide reasonable reasons for past standing and contents of judgments; history is important for the law as integrity, but is only important in some respects. On the contrary, the integrity insists that: a horizontal rather than vertical consistency of principle across the range of the legal standards the community now enforces. It insists that the law- the rights and duties that flow from past collective decisions and for that reason license or require coercion- contains not only the narrow explicit con tent of these decisions but also, more broadly, the scheme of principles necessary to justify them.  [10]   In case Riggs v. Palmer  [11]  , it fully reflects the importance of the principle of legal integrity. Such as the judge comments that it should not interpret law in isolated historical background, but should be based on the general principles of law. Judges should make the interpretation of the law to consist with the general principles of law as far as possible when interpreting laws. It will be ridiculous that the murder becomes the successor is allowed. Law must respect a basic principle that a person cannot benefit from his fault. If the judge applies the law rigidly and decides the murder Palmer won the right of inheritance of his grandfather, so that they are violating the principles of justice and fairness contained by law. It indicates that the interpretation by the judge to law deeply manifests the judges legal awareness and his political and moral attitudes. Dworkin concludes that the opinion to any judge is a philosophy of law, even if his philosophy was hidden and no t disclosed, even if obvious inference is full of provisions and facts.  [12]  Jurisprudence is the general part of the trail and the silent preamble of any legal judgments. Laws empire is defined by attitude, not territory or power or process.  [13]   Therefore, Dworkin always stressed that the standard hidden behind the provisions when he rebuilding the law. In his view, the provisions of the law are always general and abstract in judicial practice, and cannot be concluded in every circumstance. This requires the judge to find the content behind the rules in the process of law interpreting; the hidden law may be abstract, some self-evident facts or some conclusions resulted from reasonable inference. Only find these hidden laws, the judge can clearly distinguish similar cases from non-similar cases to achieve the requirement of treat equally without discrimination. It can be seen that the legal interpretation in the eyes of Dworkin is actually an objectively rebuild of the law, the law is not just composed of a bunch of rules, it is a closed and perfect system, interpretation is only a rebuild to the question of this system. Dworkins theory of legal interpretation is full of idealism, however the realization of this ideal is based on certainty and provision of the law and capable judges, the judge cannot be arbitrary when they interpret the law. On the contrary, they are interpreting law constructively under the current scheme and scope of the whole law. In other words, his purpose is to make the interpretation become the best based on both current legal material and scheme. IV Misunderstanding to law as integrity After Law as integrity published on which the criticism has not been stopped. Law as integrity becomes the essential target criticized by the repudiator, but the majority of repudiators do not understand law as integrity correctly, how could they criticize this goal? Forbid judge create the law Dworkin indeed stressed that even if processing the case the law has not proved obvious answer to it, the judge should also resort to the law, confirming and carry out the rights stipulated by law, but should not resort to the factor outside the law, otherwise it constitutes a threat to the civil right. However, it is not equal to deny any creativity of the judge; it only denies the creativity of the judge without limit. The legal integrity interpretation is a constructive one. The elucidator is not a mechanical and passive main body. All interpretation is the process that seeks for significance. Looking from the external viewpoint, all significances are the elucidator endow with the object; that is why Dworkin talked about constructive interpretation, saying that: constructive interpretation is a matter of imposing purpose on an object or practice in order to make of it the best possible example of the form or genre to which it is taken to belong.  [14]   However, by looking at the intrinsic viewpoint, if participant describes the psychological activity when he is interpreting, it will be more accurate than the creation. As interpretation that cannot be understood randomly. The legal interpretation will always be limited by application goal (universal legal rule to apply in specific case) and tradition. These limits in fact are the prerequisite that the interpretation can be possible. Dworkin uses chain novel analogies to the restraint the judge receives in the judicial process. Different authors will make different decisions, but, his decision doesnt contain appropriate summary whether and how the content will be separated from the provided novel he is writing. The same with the author of chain novel, the judge also receives the restraint of the law. This is why Dworkin firmly believed that even if in hard cases, the goal of decision process is to find but not to create the right for both sides. The fact is that in his intrinsic viewpoint Dworkin described the judge is finding but not creating the law; however the critic listened that judge should find but not create the law. Actually none of the judge was separated the whole law values when he was judging the case. As it has discussed, Dworkins understanding of the judge is to find law but not to create law is not impractical. The best (no loophole) legal system The best legal system is inferred by the first opinion that is forbidding the judge to create the law, if the first understanding is wrong, this point is impossibly accurate. Regarding to law as integrity, actually the existence of the best legal system is simply not the essential premise. Dworkin indeed has written that All interpretation strives to make an object the best it can be,  [15]  and the judge must think of the past decision as part of a long story he must interpret and then continue, according to his own judgment of how to make the developing story as good as it can be.  [16]  But this only mentioned that the elucidator received the restraint in the interpretation process, the interpretation itself had some intrinsic or subjective requirements, simultaneously was really existed. This does not mean that this kind of interpretation requires its interpretation object be perfect. If this existing interpretation object is not perfect, for example, it is so chaotic that it cannot find any reasonable interpretation, and then the elucidator has to acknowledge his defeat and admit this as an impossible mission. But this was not the theory question, but the fact that understanding question, or is the realistic feasible question of method. Replying such question does not need to argue too much, it has a very simple answer: practice. It is important that one method will possibly be defeated, but it doesnt prove that this method cannot certainly succeed. The law has the integrity significance after the interpretation of the participant, it may be perfect in the eyes of the elucidator, and it is undoubtedly closed and changeless. It is just the reverse that constructive interpretation is a process reconsidering and readjusting continually. Dworkin divided the interpretation into three stages: preinterpretive, interpretive and postinterpretive or reforming stages.  [17]  According to the theory of Hermeneutics of philosophy, the interpretation process is not the unitary process, but the continually circulating process. Specifically, determining the scope of interpretation object needs to be taken at a certain degree, in order to distinguish the specific phenomenon from others that do not care about. Based on the finding in interpretive or postinterpretive stages, perhaps the elucidator will find that the scope or reason preceding stage definite will be inappropriate, there are some factors that dont need to consider originally, pos sibly these new factors in turn prove the reason of interpretive stage or conclusion of postinterpretive stage not to be inappropriate. Therefore, the elucidator must make the adjustment, and the interpretation will keep going after the scope and reason were adjusted. In this process, it has no invaluable thing; the adjustment takes place from the beginning to an end, keeping a procedure that gets rid of old thing and join new thing. When Dworkin emphasis law works itself pure  [18]  , it is precisely referred to the law that is developing unceasingly through the participant interpreting the law. The only right answer Dworkins theory supposed that the legal matter usually has the only right answer. But law as integrity is a method of legal interpretation; it does not guarantee to obtain any definite result. Hercules can always find the only right answer, but he is only an imaginary ideal character, the judge in reality is impossible to be as perfect as him. Therefore the actual result, which Dworkin acknowledged is that different judges may choose different results when they adopt the integrity law, he also admitted that none of the interpretation can pass examination, or it had two or more different interpretation passed the examination. But you cannot know in advance that you will reach that skeptical result. You must try first.  [19]  So, the law as integrity requires the judge be with a good attitude more than a good actual result, in other words, the judge should believe that there is an only right answer for him to seek for. Certainly, as a subjective judgment, the only right answer has the obvious weakness: lacking the external evaluation method and standard. While making a decision, does the judge believe that his choice is the best or does he randomly pick one from several options? This cannot be judged from an external standpoint. Therefore, this requirement of certitude extent is hard to become the requirement of institutionalization. However, such criticism is derived from external viewpoints, and it cannot deny the excellent significance to the participant. The tie of various answers pass the examination is hardly happened, if it does not suppose that the hard case has the right answer, it cannot start seeking the right answer; if it does not suppose the right answer, it will stop the premature to find the only right answer, leading to a stop which is too early so that the only solution, originally accessible, cannot be reached now. At last, it is also the most important Dworkin thought, this hypothesis is the essential part of the principle system based on Rights Thesis, and it is also the premise of judicial activities legalization: if the judge does not have the duty to make the right decision, what can endow to this decision with legal constraint. The questions about right and prove Dworkin said: we can have reason to think an answer right is different from the question whether it can be demonstrated to be tight.  [20]  This doesnt indicate that Dworkin did not provide the reason to his interpretation. If proof means that a thundering knock-down metaphysical demonstration, the reason is not the proof, this is decided by participants view and integrity interpretation method. The interpretation is based on participants view, this decides that it has no neutral standpoint; constructive interpretation imposes the significance to the object, it decides the interpretation result but does not have the objectivity. According to the viewpoint of law as integrity, propositions of law are true of they figure in or follow from the principles of justice, fairness, and procedural due process that provide the best constructive interpretation of the communitys legal practice.  [21]  This truth does not have the objectivity that resorts to the neutral third party rules, so it is controversial. However, this truth is different from individual preference. The law disputes do not have right answer such as moral and politic disputes. Because the law disputes of the participant also follow requirement of the rationality, discussing intrinsic view that is possible and meaningful. When Dworkin announced the dislike to checkerboard statutes, he asked what can explain this dislike, his answer is the integrity works.  [22]  This means to the intrinsic participant that the integrity is not a fantasy but power really exists. On the other hand, the integrity is an ideal that the requirement is not always satisfied. But this reality does not show that the integrity loses its significance, it can play a role of criticizing, and that is to say, it can evaluate the situation that is not satisfied as defect based on the requirement of integrity. This is precisely the people who participate in legal practice frequently do. It is the same to the only right answer and Hercules in the theory of law as integrity. This is consistent with what Dworkins argues: No doubt real judges decide most cases in a much less methodical way. But Hercules shows us the hidden structure of their judgments and so lays these open to study and criticism.  [23]   After all, the method of interpretation is different from scientific method. The significance cannot be proved through scientific methods. There is an easy misunderstanding that put the best (no loophole) legal system to the premise of forbid judge create the law. V Conclusion Different people with different purposes looking at the interpretation will get different views. Someone argued that the legal phenomenon is chaotic, contradictory and meaningless. But Dworkin did not stop arguing, he gave the law with some significance such as integrity. Law as integrity is standing in the position of the participant to interpreting the law in intrinsic viewpoint. It is important that it only can find some limits from the external viewpoint. However, there is one thing that should not forget, two different perspectives cannot replace with each other, and it should not require that finding the external thing by using intrinsic viewpoint. Even the critics should not use their own opinions to misrepresent the theory based on different views.

Comparing A Separate Peace and The Catcher in the Rye Essay -- J.D. Sa

Comparing A Separate Peace and The Catcher in the Rye The coming of age novels, The Catcher in the Rye, written by J.D. Salinger, and A Separate Peace, written by John Knowles, both interpret the lives of adolescent boys journeying through their conflicts and inner confusion to reach the level of maturity. Salinger and Knowles both discern the literal ways a typical teenager grows up with the help of literary elements such as plot, setting, character development, conflicts, irony, symobolism, theme, and point of view. In both of the novels, the setting is taken place in an all boys’ school. The all boys’ school in A Separate Peace was named Devon High School, located in New Hampshire and the school in The Catcher in the Rye was named Pencey Prep, located in New York. By having both main characters being raised in a same type setting, they both can experience similarities that they might have to go through. However, each novel was set in a different timeline. A Separate Peace was actually written during the time of World War II, while The Catcher in the Rye was written after World War II. As a result, different time periods probably differentiated their lifestyles, which can produce unlike conflicts that the teenage boys might encounter. The protagonists in A Separate Peace, Gene Forrester, and The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Claufield, make them coming of age novels by the struggles that they come across as they grow up into becoming mature, adult like men. Gene Forrester attains his maturity by dealing through the confusion he has from cooperating with his best friend, Finny, and the guilt he inherits as he blames himself responsible for Finny’s death. On the contrary, Holden Claufield, in The Catcher in the Rye, illustrates his attainment of maturity by growing with the depression he possesses and his alienation from the people in the novel. The battle of Gene with himself and Holden with himself creates the similar major conflicts between the novels. In this case, Holden has it much more difficult in The Catcher in the Rye because he has to struggle with a great depression and he constantly tries to escape it through drinking, sexual intimations, his awful attitude, and attempts of being out going after he leaves Pencey Prep early. The cause of this depression is the death of his younger brother Ally. In the novel, he describes that h... ...p between Gene and Finny. On the other hand, J.D. Salinger’s theme in The Catcher in the Rye was developing through adolescence with depression and confusion in your life. Through the point of view of Holden’s place, his attitude and experience he went through discerned that stress was a big issue to him and struggling through depression as a teen and achieving maturity from it is something the most of us could relate to. Overall, both of the themes in the novels have something to do with social events in our lives and both of the themes became interesting appeals. J.D. Salinger and John Knowles both accomplished their description of their protagonists reaching their level of maturity through literary elements. They provided excellent examples of a teen growing up; and A Separate Peace and The Catcher in the Rye have at least one moral that one can rely on. In conclusion, the conflicts in the stories were things that I could actually relate to and I can expect to experience the same things that the characters experienced. Works Cited Knowles, John. A Separate Peace Holt, Rineheart and Winston, 1960 Salinger, J.D. The Catcher in the Rye New York: Bantan books 1951

Material religion

Connection with the material world is inevitable for a person with all senses in tact.   Upon rising at 5:30am, one can watch the sun rise over the land, eat breakfast, listen the news, shower, and dress, put on jewelry, and maybe even find a few minutes to establish a connection with the Divine.   One great dialogue among contemporary social scientists today, is determining the place religion occupies in the material world: i.e., how does it influence the culture of a people?   Within the body of this paper, we will explore the influence of Buddhism on Chinese Culture, Christianity on American culture, and the role of the physical senses in one’s experience of the divine. For many years, spirituality and the material world were seen as two different spheres†¦one is governed by the tides of commerce while the other is inhabited by mysterious supernatural beings.   In the twentieth century, the rise of the natural sciences and Communism pushed religion into the background, however with the terrorist attacks of 9/11, conservative governments in many Western countries, and movies like The Passion of the Christ, the question of religion’s place in society had once again come to the foreground. Since the enlightenment period, sensory data was used to dispute claims of the existence of a super-natural world beyond this one.   Because one cannot hear, see, smell, or feel God, the angels, ghosts, or draw tears of blood from a statue through any normal means, many, especially in the academic community, dismissed these possibilities.   Is religion not extrasensory by its very nature, requiring the faculties of human intuition and faith?   Some might say that these human sensory deprivation entities have more spiritual advantages because they are not tempted by the physical world.   However, Clark argues that religion cannot exist without the input of the same senses used to disprove it. Calling upon the readers to imagine living without the imagery, musical, and gustatory rituals surrounding many religious ceremonies, she says that such a spirituality would never come into being, â€Å"Close your eyes and imagine a life without mediation.   You are blind, deaf, dumb, and unable to touch or smell anything in your environment.   The majority of us would find it difficult to cope with the loss of even just one of these senses.   Now pause and consider a religious life without mediation.   Even the least overtly sacramental faiths depend on visual, oral, and material culture in everyday life†(Clark, 123-4). Apparently, it is her argument that the religious and the material work together in a symbiotic relationship to form a coherent vision of reality for adherents.   Paintings of saints, prophets, angels, the crafting of temples and cathedrals, and symbols such as the Cross, Star of David, and swastika (in Buddhism) help to forge a material link to the spiritual realm. When Buddhism was first introduced to China, many of its symbols were adopted into the mainstream of Chinese culture.   For example, elaborate circular paintings called mandalas, had become objects of meditation, as did swastikas.   Many important figures such as Kuan Yin were venerated as bodhisattvas, enlightened beings that returned to the world repeatedly to help liberate all other beings from the wheel of death and birth before claiming this liberation for themselves.   These Bodhisattvas were extremely popular in China before the rise of Communism. The robes monks and nuns used to adorn themselves were immediately indicative of the Buddhist order, and the laity would support them, and visit the monastery for instruction in meditation,  Ã‚   â€Å"Images and relics allowed the ordinary person to experience Buddhism in a manner that was at once powerful and intimate, without the immediate intervention of learned intermediaries explaining what should be felt, what should be understood.   Sacred objects, perhaps more than any of the other types of Buddhist objects, rendered the religion tangible and proximate for any who wished it, from the most erudite of monks to the illiterate devotee†(Kieschnick, 24). Today, Asian philosophical systems such as yoga and Zen are marketed to American consumers through fitness classes, clothes (containing Sanskrit script such as the OM symbol), and books promising to help the reader with relationship dilemmas and career moves.   Today, more Westerners are embracing Eastern philosophy because of its dissemination through the popular culture of the Internet and the bookstore scene. Even in Christianity, a religion that traditionally eschews the trappings of materialism to embrace a life of simple service, iconographic images aids the faithful not only in making their religion more practical, but helping to connect strangers that share the same beliefs, â€Å"Religious objects function within complicated networks of beliefs, values, myths, and social structures. Clerical elites articulate the proper use of objects based on their understanding of scripture and religious traditions.   People relate to objects as if they were sacred characters, in spite of warnings against idolatry.   Religious artifacts may also function like tools they help Christians to acknowledge common commitments, delineate differences, express affection, or socialize children†(McDannell, 57). In the modern age, many people buy jewelry, t-shirts, and bumper stickers to share their beliefs with the world.   For example, since the 1980s, Christian Rock had gathered quite a following, and there are many radio stations in the area dedicated to playing Christian music.   To many children and young adults, attending religious institutions is a boring way to spend a Sunday (Friday, or Saturday) afternoon.   With the introduction of religion into pop-culture, people are viewing spirituality as a more socially desirable phenomenon. Works Cited Clark, Lynn. Religion, Media, and the Marketplace. NJ: Rutgers UP, 2007 Kieschnick, John The Impact of Buddhism on Chinese Material Culture. NJ: Princeton UP, 2003 McDannell, Colleen. Material Christianity: Religion and Popular Culture in America. CT: Yale

Mamma Mia! A Critique essays

Mamma Mia! A Critique essays Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus Mamma Mia! was the first musical that I have ever watched and it was one of the most exciting entertainment that I have ever experienced. Directed by Phyllida Lloyd, Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus have integrated their beloved lyrics and music to create a wedding musical about young love and love lost. The musical is set on a tiny Greek island where young Sophie, the bride, has invited three of her mothers (Donna) ex-lovers in order to determine which one of the men is her biological father. It is a simple love story with well-developed characters despite the fact that the real spotlight of this musical is the music and lyrics of ABBA. The Historic Orpheum Theather, a modern proscenium-stage theater, is the perfect venue for this musical. The cool blue tone lighting designed by Howard Harrison brought to live the atmosphere of sitting on a Greek island surrounded by the ocean. The lighting added depth to the musical as it moved the audience from morning to evening and brought the audience closer to the actors on the stage. It was simple lighting which allowed the audience to focus on the words and emotions of the actors. For the encore, the spotlight turned to the audience in order to engage it in joining the cast in singing and dancing to the forever popular Dancing Queen and the musical title, Mama Mia. The set designs centered around the inn that Donna runs and where Sophie wedding would take place. The musical scenes were set in the courtyard of the inn, a bedroom, or on a dock leading out to the Mediterranean. The scenes were simple and the costumes, except for the outrageous girl band outfits that Donna and her former band mates wore in the seventies, were simple. The simplicity of the set and the costumes all went along the theme of showcasing the music of ABBA. Mark Thompson, who was responsible for the produ ...

4 Underrated Skills Your Company Might be Neglecting

4 Underrated Skills Your Company Might be Neglecting According to Bruce Tulgan, Founder and Chairman of Rainmaker Thinking, companies that prioritize specific soft skills behaviors tend to have a stronger and more positive corporate culture. Take Disney or the Marine Corps: They prioritize outreach to young people and value qualities like loyalty and dedication. A profitable rental car chain has high profits and fast growth- according to Tulgan, it’s because they emphasize self-presentation, quality, initiative, and problem-solving. These results aren’t accidents; they’re what happens when an organization focuses on its priorities and emphasizes them throughout the company.AlignmentCompany branding should be consistent and accessible; slogans, images, messages that support the brand’s shared meaning- all should also be backed up by the prevailing company culture.ConsistencyAnyone who’s ever worked an office job has probably gone to a corporate retreat or summit session or company wide love fest, liste ned to keynote speakers, participated (more or less willingly) in breakout sessions, brainstormed, presented, and watched company leaders â€Å"synthesize takeaways† or revamp the mission statement. It’s inspiring and impressive and there’s no way it’s all just bluster, right?Except then†¦ nothing happens. It was a waste of everyone’s time and the company obviously has a lot more mouth than money to put with it. Don’t try to change corporate culture overnight, and definitely don’t come up with buzzwords that sound great but remain utterly detached from what you actually do and how your employees behave.AccountabilityEven if you oversee  the most Millennial crop of interns to ever sigh, check their phones, and make coffee at the rate it would take a burro to climb out of the Andes, it’s foolish to blame the â€Å"generation gap† entirely on them. Your company had a culture before they came along, and now that theyà ¢â‚¬â„¢re here, your company culture has to adapt. They may surprise you with innovation or rapid adaptations to change if you accept and value them as contributors to the team instead of the whippersnappers snapchatting in the break room.That said, it’s fine if your company culture involves no personal media at work- just make sure you’re not also insisting they maintain vibrant social media company profiles, because that contrast just makes you look petty.Self-AssessmentWhat do you value? How is that reflected in the work you prioritize, the people you support, and the work you produce? Would a newcomer to your company agree that there’s a positive culture? Is there cohesion? Retention? Is morale high or resigned? From your earliest stages of hiring interviews to your highest levels of company goal-setting, make sure you’re reinforcing the culture that you want to represent you and your brand.  How to Unlock the Power of Soft Skills  Read More at Hu ffington Post

Everything you know about the collapse of the soviet union is wrong Essay

Everything you know about the collapse of the soviet union is wrong - Essay Example Then, right before the century ends, one of the world’s nuclear superpower died a painful death – by its own hands. The USSR was a fruit of a revolution and through revolution it fell to the grounds, rotted away and disintegrated. The Collapse of USSR according to Leon Aron Successful revolutions bank on the element of surprise. Rebels and insurgents launch surprise attacks on government institutions while disillusioned or greedy government officials launch a coup d’etat in an attempt to snatch political powers by force. However, nothing beats the USSR when it surprised the whole world by its unexpected demise. Leon Aron, author of the article entitled, â€Å"Everything You Think You Know About the Collapse of the Soviet Union is Wrong,† discussed extensively that, "In the years leading up to 1991, virtually no Western expert, scholar, official, or politician foresaw the impending collapse of the Soviet Union.† He claims that even the Soviets themsel ves were not expecting the eventual demise of their country. Then he argued that observers and power players lacked the foresight to predict the demise of a big country and government despite the presence of many tell-tale signs that were available shortly after the election of Michael Gorbachev into power. Such signs which could have been used as a tool to gauge the health and viability of the country were all ignored totally by everyone include the â€Å"shortages, food rationing, long lines in stores, and acute poverty.† But then again, Peter Rutland, a distinguished professor at Wesleyan University was quoted as saying that, "Chronic ailments, after all, are not necessarily fatal." The author argued further that the arms race of the cold war as well as the war against Afghanistan took a huge toll on the Soviet Union’s coffers, draining much needed resources towards the maintenance of healthy soldiers on the battlefront as well as the strengthening of its arsenal, p articularly its nuclear capabilities. Aptly, he also acknowledged that a mere fiscal deficit will not warrant the disintegration of a country. A country can go bankrupt to the neck but still remain intact. As such, there is a need to also recognize the other â€Å"structural reasons – economic, political, social – why  the Soviet Union should have collapsed as it did.† However, Aron contends that the real culprit behind the â€Å"unexpected† demise of the nuclear superpower that also excels massively in the field of arts and the strategy game of chess is neither the people’s struggle for their basic subsistence nor the politician’s struggle for power. Rather, the former USSR imploded because of the citizen’s hunger for a moral government headed by a moral leader. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republic fell on its knees at the weight of its moral â€Å"sins†. No less than Gorbachev proposed for â€Å"a reappraisal of values a nd their creative thinking.† He admitted that moral decadence is gnawing at the foundations of the Kremlin much rapidly than any other issues it was facing. Hence, Gorbachev bravely declared that "we couldn't go on like that any longer, and we had to change life radically, break away from the past malpractices.† There is a need for moral change. And change they did. Union of Soviet Socialist Russia is no more. Critique: Leon Aron opened his paper by positing that the collapse of the former archenemy of

Subjects Unto the Same King Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Subjects Unto the Same King - Essay Example It will also define the reasons behind the success of the faction. The paper will conclusively confirm if the chosen group’s story is parallel to that of other people in the English Atlantic Empire. Massachusetts Bay Colony had a staunch position on authority. Its colonists championed the fact that the colony's charter entrusted them with the final authority in New England and that even the King’s appeal cannot deny them that privilege. This fostered a lot of conflict between them and the Indians while other neighboring colonies used this conflict to preserve or enhance their own power. Massachusetts enjoyed the support of three English colonies and the opposition of three other colonies. After the settling in the Massachusetts Bay, the colonizers demanded that the Indians recognize their superiority. This led to a struggle for authority that the Massachusetts won. Their success relied on many factors. First, there were divisions among the Indians in responding to the M assachusetts leaders’ demand. Some agreed, others sought power in other colonies and those who resisted were very few (Pulsipher 3). The lack of a common stand led to their defeat. The population of Massachusetts was incomparably larger than that of other colonies and specifically than that of Indians. ... The magistrates supported the Massachusetts and in one of such cases, the General court condemned the Indians for raising a complaint against the Massachusetts who had attacked them (Pulsipher 288). This favoritism led to the success of the Massachusetts. The lack of fighting tools such as guns and gunpowder also led to the defeat of the Indians. The English refused to give or even sell them this merchandise to the advantage of the Massachusetts (Pulsipher 325). The Indian soldiers were lowly paid and thus their morale was low in fighting with the well-equipped and paid Massachusetts. They actually dared to quit the struggle because of this dissatisfaction (Pulsipher 329). Additionally, Massachusetts got some external assistance from the French though this fact was highly disputed by the English and the French as recorded in the Francis Card declaration (Pulsipher 324). This support only strengthened the already strong side and thus catalyzing their success. Another factor that led t o the failure of the Indians was the lack of unity among the Indians and selling of Indians to slavery and defections of Indian commanders (Pulsipher 321). This weakened the Indian resistance and the hence the success of the Massachusetts. The double stands applied by the English in condemning Indian attacks and commending Massachusetts attack on slumbering Indians at Turner’s fall catapulted the Massachusetts struggle for maintaining authority (Pulsipher 318).The Indians experienced a language barrier which again favored the Massachusetts. All these factors contributed to the success of the Massachusetts in asserting authority over the Indians. However, even as the colonists won they paid heavily for the damage

Roma (Gypsy) music Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Roma (Gypsy) music - Essay Example The attack massacred the people and carried thousands of slaves. Although Rajput fought back, a number of people were displaced. At some point around the eleventh century, the ancestors of Romans made their way into Upper Hindus Valley from Gurjara where they spent some of the time in the region. Thereafter the ancestors of the Romans left India and penetrated into the Northwest China. From there, they followed the ancient trading route which led them to Persia, through Southern Georgia, Armenia and finally reached Byzantine Empire. By fourteenth century, they reached Romania from Byzantine capital (now Istanbul). Some groups also remained in Romania as they moved on both east and west. By the fifteen century, Romanians could be traced in areas such as West, the British Isles and Spain and at the east of Poland and Lithuania. The population is approximately 6 to 10 million people. According to some scholars, they migrated from India changed their original name from Dom (plural) to Rom (singular) and Roma (plural) (Yooors, pg. 14). Roman religious beliefs are deep rooted amongst Hinduism. Romans have a universal believe called Kuntari. On the contrary, everything must have its natural place such as, that birds fly and fish swim. Although hens do not fly, they are considered as not balanced as are frogs. The Romans has believed that there’s a possibility of becoming polluted in a number of ways that included breaking of taboos that involve the upper and lower halves of the body. According to the Romanians, a person who becomes polluted is considered out of balance and need restoration to purity through a trial before a tribunal led by elders. At that instance, one found guilty are isolated from the others and then reinstated. For severe cases of pollution, a Roman could be outlawed from the group forever despite rare nowadays. Exemptions are given to children until they

Why Purse a Master’s Degree Essay Example for Free

Why Purse a Master’s Degree Essay Due to the competitive marketing many are pursuing a higher education beyond their bachelor’s degree. My decision to purse a master’s degree has always been a personal goal, but with the change in the market I realized my bachelor’s degree would no longer be sufficient or marketable in a couple of years. Many would say that obtaining a master’s degree is only as valuable as how your current or future employer measures advanced education. There are many rewarding benefits of pursing a master’s whether for a personal goal, career change, or salary increase these are all convincing motives. This paper will explore the various motivations that resulted in my decision to purse a master’s degree. Initially a master’s degree will give me the added credentials needed to pursue a promotion or career change that I would not have been considered for with my current education level. The norm was that a company required you to have a bachelor’s degree to be considered as a candidate in the corporate world. This is no longer the case as employers are demanding candidates attain the life experience in conjunction with a master’s degree. Stronger economy and more company demands for management degrees have positively shifted the local and international market for candidates whom hold a MBA (Rebecca Kaplan (2008). â€Å"Demand for MBA on the Rise). This evidence confirms having a master’s degree significantly increases my marketability. Since only a small percentage of people in the United States have a master’s degree, holding one can put me ahead of the pack when competing for a job (â€Å"Jane Porter, (2006). â€Å"Forecast: MBA Hiring Up Again). Employers are leaning toward hiring more MBA candidates because they are looking for people with managerial and team experience (â€Å"Jane Porter, (2006). â€Å"Forecast: MBA Hiring Up Again). These facts indicates that companies value a higher education and are willing to provide more opportunities, greater compensation packages and greater chances for promotion. In 2007 Radford proclaimed an advanced degree will provide hopeful with a better professional network and insights into the working practitioners. Holding a master’s degree will also expand my knowledge in a specialized area and improve performance in many areas of my work and personal life. Following this path will allow me to utilize my bachelor’s degree foundation to gain a greater understanding and appreciation for my field of study. As a person high in conscientiousness, people may perceive me to contribute to a higher level of job performance. This personality trait is a strong focus behind my plans for a master’s degree. If I am going to be portrayed as person whom exerts greater levels of effort on the job, then I should have the knowledge and the degree to back my training and experience. Based on Jungian’s Personality Assessment, I am well suited for a management position. I am viewed as a person well organized who is open to learn new skills and updating current skills, which is a key area of interest for employers. A Master of Business Administration translates into salary increase, as with most fields. PayScale. com calculated the median salary by years of experience for a Bachelor of Business Administration and Master’s of Business Administration in the United States As noted in the below tables master’s degree holders makes an estimated 20k more in salary then a bachelor degree holder with the same years of experience. Median Salary by Years Experience Degree: Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) (United States) Median Salary by Years Experience Degree: Master of Business Administration (MBA) (United States) An earnings increase is only part of the benefits. A college education enriches your life in ways that cannot be measured by dollars. Education is power, Frederick Douglass. Personally, earning a master has always been a goal. I first considered earning my master’s degree recently after I received my bachelor’s, but felt I need to take a brain break and experience the corporate world. After gaining eight years of work experiences I felt it was time to give it a try. Learning of my employee’s tuition reimbursement policy for the master’s program I soon realized it was a win-win for me and the company. If the company is willing to invest in my education, I believe the company is quietly endorsing that a master’s degree is valued and expected for high-level professional. Consequently, the benefits I will receive from this degree will give me self-assurance to know that I have the collective resources of knowledge, effective decision-making and skill sets needed to be successful in my personal and professional life, (Gary Radford, (2005). Having a master’s will give me a sense of future employment security and will allow me to gain qualifications that I may have missed in my earlier education. The school of choice also heavily weighed on my decision. I debate for several months whether online or classroom format would be suitable for me. After speaking with the University of Phoenix enrollment counselor I was excited about the learning environment. I understood that taking courses online allowed the flexibility I needed to sustain a work-life balance. There was also the fact that I would be communicating with different individual who I could openly share experiences and gain valuable knowledge that can not always be taught from a book or a classroom setting. A master’s degree is a good investment the evidence is clear. Yes, it will take time, dedication, and money to complete my degree, but the return on my investment is all worth the effort. In addition, the increased sense of achievement, career opportunities, new circles of friends and networks along with the new ranges of skills I will gain are some of the major reasons that confirmed my decision. Whether personal or practical, a master’s degree can be both life affirming and career enhancing. As stated by Dr Bruce Lewis, an education beyond a bachelor’s will put you in a better position to help your family, your community and give you the kind of life you dream of having. The more education you pursue, the better career options you will have. Ask yourself the following questions: 1) Do I want more career marketability? 2) Do I want to earn a higher income? 3) Do I want to increase myself assurance and workplace confidence? 4) Do I want to enhance my current skilled set? If you answered ‘yes’ to any of the above of, then you too need to purse your master’s degree. Reference: Kaplan, Rebecca. (2008). Demand for MBA on the Rise. Receive May 7 from www. thedailypennsylvanian. com Lewis, Bruce. (2002). Received May 9, 2008, from http://teach. fhu. edu Porter, Jane. (2006). Forecast: MBA Hiring Up Again. Received May 8, 2008 from BusinessWeek. com O. P John, â€Å"The ‘Big Five’ Factor Taxonomy: Dimensions of Personality in the Natural Language and in Questionnaires,† in L. A. Pervin (ed. ). Handbook of Personality Theory and Research(New York: Guilford Press, 1990) pp. 66-110; and D. L. Formy-Duval, J. E Williams, D. J. Patterson, and E. E Fogle, â€Å"A ‘Big Five’ Scoring System for the Item Pool of the Adjective Check List,† Journal Of Personality Assessment, Vol. 65. 1995, pp. 59-76. Radford, Gary. (2007). Received May 7, 2007 from www. fdu. edu Median Salary by Years Experience Degree: Master of Business Administration (MBA) (United States) table. Retrieved May 7, 2008, from PayScale. com.

The Glass House :: essays research papers

Divorce is becoming more acceptable and normal. This is a problem and divorce should be decreased. All couples should be required to attend marriage counseliong before they are married. Couples attending marriage counseling could decrease this problem. Divorce then may stop becoming such a problem, and only happen when absolutely necessary after other steps have been taken and failed. Divorce means different things to different people, It can be defined as spousal separations, parental separation, or even separated families. Many different things can cause divorce. Some of theses causes may be financial issues, religious beliefs, sexual issues, educationl background, or even bad habits. Theses are just a few causes and definitions of divorce. Divorce affects all different types of people in different way. It can occur in any family, no matter what the background is. When divorce does occur, it effects everyone involved. Children are torn between parents, They often grow up with unresolved issues and tension toward their parents. Many children of divorced parents grow up thinking that divorce is acceptable and use it asa way out of any marital problems. Spouse are also affected by divorce. Some become vert depressed, and others may even try to kill themselves. Many spouses are shocked when a divorce is finalized and they do no tknow how to go on without the other "half". It is almost like a devastated spouse is in mourning. On the other side the spouse that asked for the divorce also may feel heartache. Yet relief comes in knowing that he or she will not have to put up with the othe spouse. This person may still remeber those happy times the couple had, but he or she has gained some freedom. Some people do praise divorce and would completely disagree with this discussion. They are the one that make a living off of divorce. These people have industrialized divorce. So, of course, those people that make their living off divorce see nothing wrong with two kids bouncing between parents and even a ex husband trying to kill himself after twety years of marriage. Those that agree with divorce want it to become normal. They are the people that want it to be used as a way to end all marital disagrements.

Work Hard Play Hard

Jonathan White Professor Caldwell English 201 28 September 2012 Work Hard; Play Hard Work hard. Play hard. Two completely different things but they should coincide. So many people these days get by with the smallest amount of effort, and so many people play too much. An equal balance of the two makes for a high-quality pleasurable life. The harder you work the more you deserve to play, and trust me; you’ll feel better about it. Hard workers in this day and age can sometimes be very hard to come around. There are so many younger people that grow up getting almost everything handed to them.This, from the get go, doesn’t instill good work ethics in a person growing up. The younger generation needs to learn how to earn a good living in order to pass it on to future generations. I think hard work is challenging one’s self. What’s the point of living without a challenge? That’s a boring life if you ask me. Everybody wants to live a life that’s bett er than their surrounding citizens. That goal can be reached by working hard. Most people will do what’s easiest and avoid hard work. That is precisely why you should do the opposite.The easiest opportunities of life will be attacked by crowds of people seeking what’s easy. The much tougher challenges will usually see a lot less competition and a lot more opportunity. When you discipline yourself to do what is hard, you gain access to a field of results that are refused to everyone else. The willingness to do what is difficult is like having a key to a unique private treasure chest. The nice thing about hard work is that it’s universal. It doesn’t matter what industry you work in, hard work can be used to achieve positive long-term results no matter what the specifics are.If you work hard it will pay off. The greater your capacity for hard work, the more opportunities you will find yourself confronting. The deeper you can dive, the more treasure you can p ossibly find. There are so many different things that require hard work. Being healthy is hard work. Finding and then maintaining a successful relationship is hard work. Raising children is hard work. Becoming and staying organized is hard work. Setting goals, making plans to achieve them, and staying on the right track is hard work. Sometimes even being happy is hard work. As I stated earlier, if you work hard you DESERVE to play hard.You’ve earned the right to a weekend in Vegas, or a week on the beach in Cancun. Sometimes not having a good mix of work and play can lead to disaster. Everyone needs to relieve stress sometimes and one of the best ways to do it is to play hard. Take some time off once and awhile and do something new and exciting. I’m not saying go do something dangerously suicidal but maybe thrilling that’ll get your adrenaline pumping. Don’t let your life get 100% work orientated. Spend time with your friends and families, these things ar e important and everybody needs them.You’ll regret it in the future if you do not. Keep a good balance between everything and try your best to keep it that way. Working and playing coincide and should be kept equalized, but they should also be kept separate. When you are working hard, don’t play. When you’re playing hard, don’t work. It’s very simple but sometimes it can be hard not to forget. If you remember everything I’ve said and apply it to your own life there will only be success headed your away. Everybody around you will notice and you will be appreciated for it no doubt.You may also find that things will come a lot easier than they did prior. Most importantly, you will be proud of yourself. There is no better feeling than having the people that you are surrounded by proud of you except for the feeling of being proud of yourself. It’s like the feeling of reaching the top of a massive hill covered in snow. You can look down and see all that you have accomplished and say to yourself. â€Å"Wow, I did that. † Now the hard work is over. Take a deep breath, and slide down to the bottom. That was fun! Work hard, play hard. Work Hard Play Hard Jonathan White Professor Caldwell English 201 28 September 2012 Work Hard; Play Hard Work hard. Play hard. Two completely different things but they should coincide. So many people these days get by with the smallest amount of effort, and so many people play too much. An equal balance of the two makes for a high-quality pleasurable life. The harder you work the more you deserve to play, and trust me; you’ll feel better about it. Hard workers in this day and age can sometimes be very hard to come around. There are so many younger people that grow up getting almost everything handed to them.This, from the get go, doesn’t instill good work ethics in a person growing up. The younger generation needs to learn how to earn a good living in order to pass it on to future generations. I think hard work is challenging one’s self. What’s the point of living without a challenge? That’s a boring life if you ask me. Everybody wants to live a life that’s bett er than their surrounding citizens. That goal can be reached by working hard. Most people will do what’s easiest and avoid hard work. That is precisely why you should do the opposite.The easiest opportunities of life will be attacked by crowds of people seeking what’s easy. The much tougher challenges will usually see a lot less competition and a lot more opportunity. When you discipline yourself to do what is hard, you gain access to a field of results that are refused to everyone else. The willingness to do what is difficult is like having a key to a unique private treasure chest. The nice thing about hard work is that it’s universal. It doesn’t matter what industry you work in, hard work can be used to achieve positive long-term results no matter what the specifics are.If you work hard it will pay off. The greater your capacity for hard work, the more opportunities you will find yourself confronting. The deeper you can dive, the more treasure you can p ossibly find. There are so many different things that require hard work. Being healthy is hard work. Finding and then maintaining a successful relationship is hard work. Raising children is hard work. Becoming and staying organized is hard work. Setting goals, making plans to achieve them, and staying on the right track is hard work. Sometimes even being happy is hard work. As I stated earlier, if you work hard you DESERVE to play hard.You’ve earned the right to a weekend in Vegas, or a week on the beach in Cancun. Sometimes not having a good mix of work and play can lead to disaster. Everyone needs to relieve stress sometimes and one of the best ways to do it is to play hard. Take some time off once and awhile and do something new and exciting. I’m not saying go do something dangerously suicidal but maybe thrilling that’ll get your adrenaline pumping. Don’t let your life get 100% work orientated. Spend time with your friends and families, these things ar e important and everybody needs them.You’ll regret it in the future if you do not. Keep a good balance between everything and try your best to keep it that way. Working and playing coincide and should be kept equalized, but they should also be kept separate. When you are working hard, don’t play. When you’re playing hard, don’t work. It’s very simple but sometimes it can be hard not to forget. If you remember everything I’ve said and apply it to your own life there will only be success headed your away. Everybody around you will notice and you will be appreciated for it no doubt.You may also find that things will come a lot easier than they did prior. Most importantly, you will be proud of yourself. There is no better feeling than having the people that you are surrounded by proud of you except for the feeling of being proud of yourself. It’s like the feeling of reaching the top of a massive hill covered in snow. You can look down and see all that you have accomplished and say to yourself. â€Å"Wow, I did that. † Now the hard work is over. Take a deep breath, and slide down to the bottom. That was fun! Work hard, play hard.