Hugo Chavez: Love Him or Loathe Him? Essay -- Essays Papers

Hugo Chavez: Love Him or Loathe Him? Last week an incendiary press release exploded into the global headlines. A man by the name of Hugo Chavez ventured the claim that he had become an important target of assassination. Even more alarming, he proceeded to identify his assassin. It was none other than George W. Bush. "We have enough evidence," said Chavez, "that if anything happens to me, the person responsible will be the President of the United States" (â€Å"Defying U.S., Venezuela’s Chavez Embrace Socialism†). Who is Hugo Chavez? And why would he have the audacity to regard himself as a threat -- indeed, a lethal threat -- to the most powerful country on earth? And does he really believe he is so dangerous in the eyes of the United States that he would be viewed as a candidate for extermination? Hugo Chavez is the duly elected leader of a relatively small country on the northern coast of South America called Venezuela. It is a nation whose regional stature has, in the last twenty years, grown in influence in total disproportion to its size. The reason for Venezuela's increasing political clout is simple. It is the owner of vast reservoirs of liquid gold. It is perched on an enormous supply of oil. To a country like America, which is the world's largest consumer of fossil fuels by far, nothing could be more encouraging than to share geographical proximity with a nation so abundantly endowed with oil. Increasingly, however, a common neighborhood is all the U. S. shares in common with Venezuela. The two nations are clearly drifting apart, and at an alarming pace. The lightening rod in America's relationship with its South American neighbor is Hugo Chavez. In many recent pronouncements, the President o... ...lt;http://globalresearch.ca/articles/LAN407A.html>. -Niemeyer, Ralph and Lucila Gallino. â€Å"Interview With President Chavez.† Venezuela Analysis. November 2003 <http://www.venezuelaanalysis.com/articlese.php?artno=1055>. -Pike, John. â€Å"Venezuela.† GlobalSecurity. August 2004 <http://www.globalsecurtiy.org/intell/ops/venezuela.htm>. -Stelzer, Irwin M. â€Å"The Axis of Oil: China and Russia Find a New Way to Advance Their Strategic Ambitions.† Free Republic. February 2005 < http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1346965/posts>. -â€Å"Topic Area A: The Situation in Venezuela.† Model United Nations of the University of Chicago. <www.munuc.org>. -West, Andrew. â€Å"A Recipe for Economic Collapse in Venezuela: Hugo Chavez’s Anti- Capitalist Philosophy.† Capitalism Magazine. October 2000 <http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/fr/565966/posts>. Hugo Chavez: Love Him or Loathe Him? Essay -- Essays Papers Hugo Chavez: Love Him or Loathe Him? Last week an incendiary press release exploded into the global headlines. A man by the name of Hugo Chavez ventured the claim that he had become an important target of assassination. Even more alarming, he proceeded to identify his assassin. It was none other than George W. Bush. "We have enough evidence," said Chavez, "that if anything happens to me, the person responsible will be the President of the United States" (â€Å"Defying U.S., Venezuela’s Chavez Embrace Socialism†). Who is Hugo Chavez? And why would he have the audacity to regard himself as a threat -- indeed, a lethal threat -- to the most powerful country on earth? And does he really believe he is so dangerous in the eyes of the United States that he would be viewed as a candidate for extermination? Hugo Chavez is the duly elected leader of a relatively small country on the northern coast of South America called Venezuela. It is a nation whose regional stature has, in the last twenty years, grown in influence in total disproportion to its size. The reason for Venezuela's increasing political clout is simple. It is the owner of vast reservoirs of liquid gold. It is perched on an enormous supply of oil. To a country like America, which is the world's largest consumer of fossil fuels by far, nothing could be more encouraging than to share geographical proximity with a nation so abundantly endowed with oil. Increasingly, however, a common neighborhood is all the U. S. shares in common with Venezuela. The two nations are clearly drifting apart, and at an alarming pace. The lightening rod in America's relationship with its South American neighbor is Hugo Chavez. In many recent pronouncements, the President o... ...lt;http://globalresearch.ca/articles/LAN407A.html>. -Niemeyer, Ralph and Lucila Gallino. â€Å"Interview With President Chavez.† Venezuela Analysis. November 2003 <http://www.venezuelaanalysis.com/articlese.php?artno=1055>. -Pike, John. â€Å"Venezuela.† GlobalSecurity. August 2004 <http://www.globalsecurtiy.org/intell/ops/venezuela.htm>. -Stelzer, Irwin M. â€Å"The Axis of Oil: China and Russia Find a New Way to Advance Their Strategic Ambitions.† Free Republic. February 2005 < http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1346965/posts>. -â€Å"Topic Area A: The Situation in Venezuela.† Model United Nations of the University of Chicago. <www.munuc.org>. -West, Andrew. â€Å"A Recipe for Economic Collapse in Venezuela: Hugo Chavez’s Anti- Capitalist Philosophy.† Capitalism Magazine. October 2000 <http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/fr/565966/posts>.

Debate: the Other Side and Morning Respected Judges

Thank You Molly! Good morning respected judges, my fellow contestants and members of the audience. Today we are indeed honoured and privileged to stand before you and speak against the common motion that â€Å"THE GRASS IS ALWAYS GREENER ON THE OTHER SIDE†. Hmmmm†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦not until you see my neighbour’s garden maybe then you will change your mind. First of all, what does the grass is always greener on the other side mean?It means that from your perspective, what other people have is always going to look better than what you have. It’s about being jealous of other people’s things and never being satisfied with who you are and what you have. I think each one of us is guilty of practicing â€Å"The grass is always greener† theory at various times in our lives; be it from moving schools, changing careers to pursuing new relationships. It happens most often when we are unhappy about some portion of our existence.The problem with following this pract ice is that once you arrive on the other side, we often find that it's drought conditions and there's nothing we can do and it’s too late to go back. In fact the statement â€Å"The grass isn’t always greener on the other side† originated from a story of goats that kept trying to reach the other side of a river and when they got there the grass was all dead and since there was nothing else to eat they all starved to death.This story symbolizes that sometimes you should not try to change your situation or location but instead to work with what you have. I really like a quote from the song Million Dollar Man by Cutlass that says â€Å"the grass isn't greener on this lonely side. † Meaning, don’t sacrifice everything and everyone trying to get a better life because you’re just going to be stuck wishing for what you had. Things might look good somewhere else and you want what others have because you think it’s better than what you have ho wever that is not necessarily the case all the time.Relationships are one area I am tempted to begin with since it governs a good proportion of our lives. Let’s say you spent a good part of your live with a man who you adore and love to bits. You share a lot of experiences together only to be dumped for someone who is prettier and allows him to watch football all day on Sunday. It won’t be long before he realises that this person has faults too. She might be cheating on him or cost too much to maintain (High maintenance). . As time goes on he starts to see the 2nd woman’s true colours.She's not as nice and doesn’t treat him as good as you did. The 2nd woman is shallow. The man starts to regret leaving you because his adventures are turning into misery. We can also apply this to the thousands of Africans migrating to the west in search of greener pastures. Most of these migrants are professionals understood to have sacrificed decent and respectable jobs ba ck in their respective countries under the illusion that life was going to be plain sailing overseas.For those that have had to stoop low, one can imagine the psychological effect and damage to one's ego, and the humiliation associated with a lowered social status. Some migrants have been forced into career changes, such as cleaning, security personnel, car park attendance, kitchen assistants, carers just to mention a few. Although some might have realised their dreams but the majority have seen their dreams washed away by the day and unfortunately is even harder to go back with all the expectation back home.Hundreds of them also loose their lives in transit. Is the grass really greener on the other side? Finally, I’m sure we all agree on the fact that you shouldn’t be envious of other people just stick to what you have because it’s probably much much better and you should be grateful and appreciate it as other people would rather be in your position and would d o anything to have your life. I will sign off with few lines from one of my favourite songs â€Å"As long as you love me† Justin Bieber the grass ain't always greener on the other side, It’s green where you water it So I know we got issues baby but I'd rather work on this with you Than to go ahead and start with someone new† meaning even if you have problems in your life it doesn’t mean you should want to have someone else’s life. You can always work on these problems †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. do you agree? Well as a team we sure we all do and that’s the very reason why we are sticking with BS for a long haul as we believe the grass isn’t greener anywhere else. Thank you very much for your kind attention. I rest my case! ———————– debate speech

The Feasibility of Utillizing Basella Rubra

People nowadays use alugbati nightshade leaves for cooking and throw away the stems. Instead of throwing the stems, why not investigate a product from utilizing Basella Rubra (Alugbati) stems that will be a great help to the industry. Utilizing the stems of Basella Rubra is also practical and economical for the users. This kind of plant is abundant even found in backyards here in our country. It has spread throughout the tropical countries and one of the best tropical spinach widely adapted to a variety of soils and climates. Malabar n. has thicker tender stems. It is a good source of vitamins A, C and iron. The researchers decided to make Alugbati stems as a skin moisturizer because it possesses that commercial moisturizers have like: emollients. This helps the skin to be moisturized and soften. This study aims to produce and attempts to discover the capability of alugbati stems as a substitute for commercial skin moisturizer. It also aims to produce product that is less expensive and acceptable for people who has skin problems. Significance of the Study: This study is significant especially to persons that has a problem on dryness of the skin because they don’t have to buy an expensive skin moisturizer for there is already a substitute to it that is cheaper and environmentally friendly product. Statement of the Problem: Is it possible to make a skin moisturizer out of alugbati stems? Are there any properties of alugbati stems that can be used as a skin moisturizer? Hypothesis: It is possible to make a skin moisturizer out of alugbati stems and there are also properties of alugbati stems that can be used as a skin moisturizer. Materials and Equipments: The materials that will be use are clean containers, strainer, mortar and pestle, Alugbati stem, Glycerin, and perfume oil. Variables: The independent variables are: (1) Water (2) amount of Glycerin and (3) amount of perfume oil while the dependent variable is the Basella Rubra (Alugbati) stem. Procedures: The procedures in making a skin moisturizer out of alugbati stems are: (1) Wash the alugbati stem and sterilize the containers to be use. (2) Peeling the skin of the stem of alugbati using knifes or hands. 3) Pounding of the stem of the alugbati using the mortar and pestle. (4) Add a little amount of water then pound again until it becomes subtle. (5) Strain to separate the extract and the stem. (6) Cool it aside. (7) Add glycerin that will make it a moisturizer and perfume oil to enhance its fragrance. Review of Related Literature: Glycerin is a neutral, sweet-tasting, colorless, thick liquid which freezes to a gummy paste and which has a high boiling poi nt. Glycerin can be dissolved into water or alcohol, but not oils. On the other hand, many things will dissolve into glycerin easier than they do into water or alcohol. So it is a good solvent. Glycerin is also highly â€Å"hygroscopic† which means that it absorbs water from the air. Example: if you left a bottle of pure glycerin exposed to air in your kitchen, it would take moisture from the air and eventually, it would become 80 per glycerin and 20 percent water. Because of this hygroscopic quality, pure, 100 percent glycerin placed on the tongue may raise a blister, since it is dehydrating. Diluted with water, however, it will soften your skin. While people say this softening is the result of the glycerin attracting moisture to your skin, there is heated debate as to whether or not the glycerin has some other properties all its own which are helpful to the skin. Summed up, the current thinking is â€Å"We know glycerin softens the skin. Some people think its because it attracts moisture, but there could be other reasons. † Glycerin has lots of uses besides being used to make nitroglycerin (note: glycerin is not an explosive substance by itself. It has to be turned into nitroglycerin before it becomes explosive, so it’s safe to work with in your kitchen). Some uses for glycerin include: conserving preserved fruit, as a base for lotions, to prevent freezing in hydraulic jacks, to lubricate molds, in some printing inks, in cake and candy making, and (because it has an antiseptic quality) sometimes to preserve scientific specimens in jars in your high school biology lab. http://pioneerthinking. com/crafts/what-is-glycerin Moisturizers or emollients are complex mixtures of chemical agents specially designed to make the external layers of the skin (epidermis) softer and more pliable. They increase the skin's hydration (water content) by reducing evaporation. Naturally occurring skin lipids and sterols, as well as artificial or natural oils, humectants, emollients, lubricants, etc. , may be part of the composition of commercial skin moisturizers. They usually are available as commercial products for cosmetic and therapeutic uses, but can also be made at home using common pharmacy ingredients. Moisturizers prevent and treat dry skin, protect sensitive skin, improve skin tone and texture, and mask imperfections. ttp://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Emollient Alugbati is a plant used a vegetable. It is rich in calcium, Vitamin B (Thiamine, Niacin & Riboflavin) and Vitamin C. It is a laxative and has soluble fiber that acts like magnet to ingested fat and subsequently reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Regularly eating alugbati will help reduce degenerative disease. Red alugbati has the added property of higher amounts of xanthones, an antioxidant. It can also impro ve and regularlize bowel movement. B-complex vitamins help improve blood vessel strength. http://gonatural. com. ph/herbalblog/alugbati-scientific-name-basella-alba-basella-rubra-linn/ Alugbati is a succulent, branched, smooth, twining herbaceous vine, several meters in length. Stems are purplish or green. Leaves are somewhat fleshy, ovate or heart-shaped, 5 to 12 centimeters long, stalked, tapering to a pointed tip with a cordate base. Spikes are axillary, solitary, 5 to 29 centimeters long. Flowers are pink, about 4 millimeters long. Fruit is fleshy, stalkless, ovoid or nearly spherical, 5 to 6 millimeters long, and purple when mature. Constituents †¢ Phytochemical screening of various extracts yielded cardiac glycosides, saponins, tannins, flavonoids, terpenoids, carbohydrates, and reducing sugars. †¢ Study isolated Basellasaponins A, B, C, and D, oleanane-type triterpenes oligoglycosides, together with betavulgaroside 1, spinacoside C, and momordins IIb and IIc, from fresh aerial parts. †¢ Leaves yield saponin, vitamin A and B. †¢ Fruit yields mucilage and iron. Study of wild Basella rubra showed it to be abundant in carotene, middle in vitamin C, and low in nitrate. Nitrate in planted B. rubra is about twice that of the wild variety. Properties †¢ Aperient, demulcent, diuretic, emollient, laxative, rubefacient. †¢ Mucilaginous when cooked. Uses Edibility / Nutrition – Common market product, a popular leafy and stew vegetable, and a good substitute for spinach. – The green and purple cultivated varieties are preferable to the wild ones. – Both the young shoots and stems are eaten.

Evaluative Analysis of “Barn Burning”

William Faulkner’s short story entitled â€Å"Barn Burning† is a depressive manifestation of discrimination and oppression in the society. Many people especially slaves experienced in this kind of situation. Even if they were not convicted of any malicious act, they will become the prime suspect or the criminal of any unlawful actions towards the ruling class. Despite of the Abner’s character as a father and a worker contacted to the character of the main protagonist, Abner’s son. This story illustrated the circumstances and conflicts within the family in the eyes of a child.Sartoris loves his father so much but he could not tell his father how much because his father refuses to interact with his family due to successive problems in his work. In this case, the actions of the father always mould the situation of the family for he was the source of strength, weaknesses, failure, and success of everyone that gives unpredicted experience in each of the family members. â€Å"Barn Burning† is a story of a family who was being deprived in their society. Because the place was just a small county, every actions of each family or even a person were seen by everyone especially those in the ruling class.Abner Snopes, the father was suspected of burning the barn of his neighboring farmer. Despite of the fact that he was only suspected to do the unlawful action, he was already connoted as a â€Å"barn burner†. In a small place, they conduct a trial wherein they must know the reasons and evidences of burning the barn. They keep on asking Abner but he did not speak for his own yet, he almost remains silent and unpredictable. The Court of Peace dismissed the case and asked Abner to leave the county, which was the only way to â€Å"solve† the problem.Abner and his family went out the county. As they went away from their previous location, a new landlord and aristocrat went by their lives. Major de Spain owns the house they occupie d. He wants Abner to pay him a hundred dollars for the rent but Abner could not able to pay him that amount that is why de Spain told him to give him twenty bushels of corm from his farm to be the payment of their stay. Abner could not say anything because he knows that he has nothing to offer due to their lack of profit and their previous problem in their county.He did not accept what de Spain wanted but he did not also refused because he does not have any power over him. Satoris, Abner’s son did not want to pay de Spain because these were the only things they have. If they give it to de Spain, they will suffer more. Abner could not find a way, until one night while eating, de Spain’s rug partially burned. Abner did not know what to do; his temper went up again and releases his anger to his family especially to Satoris for it was always there to watch his actions. One day, they went to the Justice again.The Justice knew that de Spain’s rug burned because Satori s have told him, for the reason that Satoris think that it was the only way to defend his father from probable punishment due to accidental burning of the rug, but it does not happen. The Justice asked Abner to pay more than the bushels of corn because of the burned rug. Abner did not say anything that made the case dismissed again. Abner’s mind and heart was full of problems and heartache, which was seen by Satoris even if he refused to confess. Until one night, Abner decided to burn de Spain’s barn as his revenge to him for his inhumane actions towards him and his family.Abner runs toward the trees in the dark and went to de Spain’s barn. Satoris followed him but he could not find his father because of the darkness. He saw de Spain and warned him that his father would burn his barn. After de Spain heard Satoris’s confession, he went to the trees and find Abner with his horse. While Satoris was finding his father, he heard two shots of gun that made him think if this would be the assassination of his father or his brother’s gun whom to be his father’s accomplice. Due to tiredness, he did not saw his father. He went home when the sun rises and thinks of his father with fear, sadness, and revenge in his heart.Personally, I can say that the main protagonist in this story is Satoris because the story went on from his perspective as a child even if the author uses third person point of view. The narrator did not speak for the father but for the son who seemed to grow with unusual scenario and an irony of innocence and maturity within his heart and mind. After what had happened to his father, Satoris wants to comfort and give his father the strength but Abner refuses to communicate with his family especially with Satoris for he knew that he was just a child not knowing anything in the real world, which was the opposite of his recognition to his son.This scenario was seen throughout the story from the beginning up to the end that Abner did not give Satoris a chance to show his capability to help his father to minimize his circumstances. The words â€Å"get back into the wagon† were always the dialogue of Abner when he did not want Satoris to tell the truth. Aside from this, he only speaks to Satoris when he is mad as if Satoris and his family member were his punching bags. Punching bags means his way of releasing his anger by way of shouting and yelling at them. â€Å"You were fixing to tell them.You would have told him,† He didn't answer. His father struck him with the flat of his hand on the side of the head, hard but without heat, exactly as he had struck the two mules at the store, exactly as he would strike either of them with any stick in order to kill a horse fly, his voice still without heat or anger: â€Å"You're getting to be a man. You got to learn. You got to learn to stick to your own blood or you ain't going to have any blood to stick to you. Do you think either of them, an y man there this morning, would?Don't you know all they wanted was a chance to get at me because they knew I had them beat? Eh? † Later, twenty years later, he was to tell himself, † If I had said they wanted only truth, justice, he would have hit me again. † But now he said nothing. He was not crying. He just stood there. â€Å"Answer me,† his father said. (Faulkner, n. d. ) This situation is one of the most significant interactions between the father and the son where we could see that a father will always be the authority while the son will always beneath the authority’s actions and words.However, it also shows that Satoris wants to tell his father to listen to him – to what he wants to say and what he wants to make him feel despite of everything but he could not because he knew that his father was already numb by all their tragic situations. Another issue emerged in the story is the formulation of family versus morality. The contradiction b etween family and morality evolved from the beginning and developed within the middle up to the end of the story. It was a circumstance for Abner because he was the connected between the two – he was the bridge to the interrelating and opposing factors within him.Abner wanted to gain his and his family’s morality after what happened to them in the county that is why he chose to went away from their place, but the life and survival of his family was in the county, it was very hard for him to decide as the father and the ruling power. The story also demonstrated how Abner became powerful within his family where his words would be the rule while within his landlord and the justice, he was nothing but a farmer – a low class farmer without eyes to see, ears to hear, and mouth to speak.If Abner's violation of his own code is the impetus for Sarty's breaking away, why didn't the whole Snopes family run defiantly to the de Spain's home? It is because this breach of stan dards comes at an impressionable stage of Sarty's life, while he still bares â€Å"the terrible handicap of being young, the light weight of his few years . . . not heavy enough to keep him footed solid in [the world], to resist it and try to change the course of its events† (220). This â€Å"handicap† allows him, unlike the others, to see the wrong committed by his father and to strive to prevent its disastrous consequences.Many issues are needed to discuss in the story that emerged and developed throughout the flow of the narrative such as political, social, cultural, and personal aspects of the characters. In terms of political aspect, the situation within Abner and the Justice happens in reality. The Justice depends on the ruling class or the elite rather than the people who need him like Abner and his family. His dismissal of the case signifies that Abner was just a small person who cannot pay the Justice’s job as the same as what his landlord used to do to win the battle in the court.This political issue shows that there is no hope for people like Abner who needs the help of law but they close their doors because Abner cannot pay them huge amounts like those others. Social problem in this story was seen through the problem of morality. Discrimination was taken place in this story in different angles such as the discrimination towards the capabilities of a child, the discrimination towards low class people, and the discrimination towards women.Discrimination towards children can be seen within the clash between the father and the son wherein, the son cannot show what he got because he was just a kid, which was shown by his father. Discrimination towards low class people can be seen within the clash between Abner and his landlord, wherein his landlord keep on telling him that he could not be able to rise from poverty because he was a â€Å"Barn Burner† and he will always be the barn burner as long as he lives. On the other hand, the discrimination towards women can be seen through the characters of Abner’s wife, sister, and his daughters.All of them have no voice in their family. They just keep on asking themselves what is happening without any confrontation between them and Abner. The character of Abner’s wife was weak as what the narrator illustrated wherein she only used to cry and to shout when Abner is doing something unusual, but there is no resolution within her – just an explosion of her feelings through tears and yell. Cultural issues also emerged within the family. Their family culture was seen when they went to their new house. All of them have their own tasks, from the father, the mother, the aunt, up to the children.However, the emergence of the conflict did not come from their tasks but from their own beliefs as individuals. Abner’s belief as a father did not match from the belief of the mother and his son Satoris but the same with his other son whom to be his acco mplice in the end. Despite of the fact that they are a family, their culture did not match from one another, which resulted more problems and conflicts between them. Personal issues were the primary problem in the story. All of the characters have their own problems, fears, and failures as individuals.Even if they get along as a family, they tend to clash because of their own perspectives and ideologies that are different from one another. Aside from these, their personal issues increased because of their environmental issues or their issues within their environment such as the people around them. Through this, personal issues became the real point of attack of each character to establish their characterization. When it comes to the characters in the story, protagonists correlate one another in order to build their own depiction. However, the father made its character become part of each of the characters in the story.His actions and words manifest significantly towards the realizat ions and ideologies of other characters especially his family. His words became the rule; his scream was the echo of the house, while his face became the image of law in their house. â€Å"If you ain't going to tote, go on and set up the wash pot,† the first said. â€Å"You, Sarty! † the second shouted. â€Å"Set up the wash pot! † His father appeared at the door, framed against that shabbiness, as he had been against that other bland perfection, impervious to either, the mother's anxious face at his shoulder.â€Å"Go on,† the father said. â€Å"Pick it up. † The two sisters stooped, broad, lethargic; stooping, they presented an incredible expanse of pale cloth and a flutter of tawdry ribbons. â€Å"If I thought enough of a rug to have to git hit all the way from France I wouldn't keep hit where folks coming in would have to tromp on hit,† the first said. They raised the rug, â€Å"Abner, † the mother said. â€Å"Let me do it. † â€Å"You go back and git dinner,† his father said. â€Å"I'll tend to this. † (Faulkner, n. d. ) As a whole, all the characters in the story were mould based on the character of Abner.His weaknesses, strengths, failure, and success became their foundation to have their own perspective in life. Despite of the fact that they have encountered cultural, political, personal, and social issues, all of them are connected to the execution of Abner in different situations even the Justice and the landlord expose its character to make the life of Abner more miserable. Justification towards this issue can be seen throughout the story where all their eyes were set to Abner’s actions and expressions.Therefore, I can say that fatherhood is a sensitive responsibility towards family and morality. A man’s family always depends on his strategies and capabilities as the provider of his home. However, his capability to discriminate the strengths of his family members is a lso an emerging conflict for the reason that because of his power, he tends to dominate their own principles without recognizing that it may be the solution to their problem, which resulted failure, inconvenience, and miscommunication within the family. Works CitedFaulkner, William. â€Å"Barn Burning. † Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing. Ed. Laurie G. Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. Fort Worth: Harcourt, 1997. 216-30. Faulkner, William â€Å"Barn Burning by William Faulkner† (n. d. ) Retrieved on October 30, 2007 from http://www. nku. edu/~peers/barnburning. htm Meyers, Michael. The Bedford Introduction to Literature. Boston, MA: Bedford Books of St. Martin’S Press, 1999. ________. â€Å"Barn Burning:† Family vs. Morality. (n. d. ) Retrieved on October 30, 2007 from http://members. aol. com/danieledg1/barn. html

Edict the Expulsion of Jews (1492) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Edict the Expulsion of Jews (1492) - Essay Example Some conversos—Jews who converted to Catholicism—flourished in places of learning and commerce. However, many ruling Spanish—both secular and religious—viewed these Jews with deep suspicion heightened by the fact that some conversos were insincere. Some chose to save their social and commercial status by embracing the Catholic faith, but privately adhering to their Jewish practice and faith. The Alhambra Decree, or the Edict of Expulsion, was issued on March 31, 1492 by the joint Catholic Monarchs of Spain—King Ferdinand II of Aragon, and Queen Isabella I of Castile. Ferdinand and Isabella took seriously the reports that some crypto-Jews who were not only privately practicing their former faith, but were secretly trying to draw other conversos back into the Jewish fold. In 1480, the king and queen created the Spanish Inquisition to investigate these suspicions; under the authority of this new institution, thousands of converted Jews were killed within 12 years. It is not known how many, if any, had lapsed from their new Christianity, or were trying to convince others to do the same. The said decree was issued less than three months after the surrender of Granada—a vassal state to Spanish royals for more than two centuries. It was Juan de Coloma, secretary of the king and queen, who wrote it at the royalties’ command. Under the edict, Jews were only given four months and ordered to convert to Christianity or leave the country. However, Jews were promised royal "protection and security" for the effective three-month window before the deadline. They were permitted to take their belongings with them - except "gold or silver or minted money". In the edict, Jews were accused of trying "to subvert their holy Catholic faith and trying to draw faithful Christians away from their beliefs." The punishment for any Jew who did not convert or leave by the deadline was death. The punishment for a non-Jew who sheltered or hid Jews was the

JPMorgan Chase Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

JPMorgan Chase - Essay Example However, losses also occur due to internal frauds and corruptions which lead to comparatively severe consequences. Due to this banking activities are administered by the security agencies like Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodities Futures Training Commission (CFTC). The prime responsibility of these security agencies is to look after the financial dealings within the banking sector and to investigate the losses and fraudulent activities. The summer of 2012 brought a very distinctive case forward in the history of financial gambling as a leading bank of United States of America was found to have a loss of $5.8 billion. The company officials reported that the loss occurred due to the poor investment decision made by the management with respect to trading. Later on this statement given to the CFTC inspectors was found to be false and the overall inspection showed some counter results. The bank officials working on trading investment left the bank soon after this event w hich raised a lot of questions to the investigating officers (Farrell, 2012). Role of SEC and CFTC in preventing high risk gambles When a bank or any other financial institution faces a loss due to gambling then the overall economy of the country has to bear its consequences since these two economic sectors act as the most significant structural blocks for any nation. In relation to this the role of SEC and CFTC also becomes substantial as they are the key forces behind the prevention of such activities. Their prime concern is to ensure that maximum protection is extended to the investors, rules are fairly followed by the banks, financial market is operating efficiently and lastly there is enough capital available to the banks and other financial institutions to carry on their activities (Schapiro, 2012). Among these the duty of protecting the investors safeguards high risk gambles. In addition to this, these agencies implement laws regarding the fraudulent activities reported by th e financial institutions. For instance, in the case of JP Morgan Chase the CFTC investigated the overall scenario and found that initial reporting made to the agency was falsified and that the real reasons behind the massive loss were in kept hidden by the Chief Investment Office (CIO). CFTC was responsible to look after trading and financial derivatives while on the other hand SEC supervised the bank’s financial disclosures from the stockholders so as to investigate the details of such a massive loss (Gary Shorter, 2012). Valid Contract Contracts are not just general agreements between two parties rather they are the legally supported documents which can be challenged in the court. The contracts are made to give legal assistance to an agreement so that in future if either of the parties commits an illegal activity then the other one can save itself from potential losses. Due to the legalities attached to contracts there are certain essential elements of a Valid Contract whic h makes it fully acceptable in courts and in legal institutions. Following are the essential elements of a Valid Contract (Elements of a Contract, 2013): Offer and Acceptance: First of all an offer is made by one of the parties which can be accepted or rejected by the second party. If the offer is accepted by the other party then the procedure moves on. The acceptance of the offer reflects the agreement of the other party regarding all the stated rules and regulations. Intention to build successful legal relations: A valid

What do you see as the advantages and disadvantages of being a native Essay

What do you see as the advantages and disadvantages of being a native speaker and a non - native speaker of English - Essay Example Through the global influence of native English speakers in cinema, airlines, broadcasting, science, and the Internet in recent decades, English is now the most widely learned second language in the world. Many students worldwide are required to learn at least some English, and a working knowledge of English is required in many fields and occupations1. According to Ethnologue (2000) English is spoken in 105 countries, it is the dominant or official language in more than 60 of the world’s 185 nation-states recognized by the United Nations. It has 55,000,000 first language speakers in the United Kingdom, 210,000,000 in the USA, 17,100,000 in Canada, 15,682,000 in Australia, 3,500,000 in South Africa, 3,213,000 in New Zealand. Native English usage concerns to the greatest extent the countries mentioned in the order: USA >>> UK > Canada > Australia > South Africa > New Zealand > Ireland > and other 98 countries. Although the available counts are very divergent, all of them agree on a greater number of non-native than native speakers of English in the world. Another factor which adds to the variability of English is hundreds of dialects (Katarzyna Dziubalska-Kołaczyk, 2005). Today, many countries have taken up English as their second language. As a result many young people and adults are involved in the study of English. Indeed this interest has lead to the popularity of this language to such an extent as it is considered to be an international language. Whereas today there are more native than non native speakers of English, in the coming decades the more and more non native speakers will take up English as an international language. In other words more bilingual speakers of English will use this language for several purposes particularly for cross cultural communications within there own borders. The use of English as an international language has been brought about by the continuing spread of English. This spread has resulted in a variety of