Army of Ants essays

Army of Ants essays He was well aware of their power of adaptation, their sense of discipline, their marvelous talent for organization. Some might think that a well trained army of soldiers was the subject of this statement, not an insect of thumbs length. Ants are thought to be small, insignificant creatures that could cause no more harm than a ruined picnic and squashed without the slightest struggle, but not these ants. In the story Leiningen Versus the Ants, looking like something that comes from a horror film, the voracious ants ate everything in sight, including human flesh. But these ants seemed to have something else. An intelligence that only humans could possess and actions that were even more amazing. Organization and strategy hardly seem like an element that a swarm of ants would possess, but in this case, they had it. They separated their army into groups, with each taking a different course to try and enter the plantation. Such great intelligence could frighten anyone when it comes down to millions of razor jawed insects wanting nothing more than to immolate you until all that is left are your bones. Knowing that each time these creatures lose a battle, they get smarter, and could at any second come up with a massive plan, definitely adds to the suspense of the story, because you never know what the ants will come up with. The actions of these ants add even more horror to the story by showing their determination. Building bridges and sacrificing themselves for the rest of their army is shocking for creatures of their size and reputation. Just the act of building a bridge to get across a moat is something only a human should be able to do. The ants actually worked together, communicating with each other to accomplish this huge human-like task. Now the reader knows exactly what the ants are capable of doing, making the mystery of what they will do next a horrifying thought. ...

20 Surprising Facts About the Titanic

20 Surprising Facts About the Titanic You may already know that the Titanic hit an iceberg  at 11:40 p.m. on the night of April 14, 1912, and that it sank two hours and forty minutes  later. Did you know that there were only two bathtubs for third class passengers or that the crew had only seconds to react to the iceberg? These are just a couple of the interesting facts about the Titanic that were going to explore. The  Titanic  Was Gigantic The Titanic was supposed to be an unsinkable boat and it was built to monumental scale. In total, it was 882.5 feet long, 92.5 feet wide, and 175 feet high. It would displace 66,000 tons of water and it was the largest ship built up to that point in time. The Queen Mary cruise ship was built in 1934 and surpassed the Titanics length by 136 feet, making it 1,019 feet long. In comparison, The Oasis of the Seas, a luxury liner built in 2010, has a total length of 1,187 feet. That is nearly a football field longer than the Titanic. And Grand Luxuries for the first class passengers included a swimming pool, a Turkish bath, a squash court, and a dog kennel. The Ritz Restaurant on board was inspired by the famous Ritz in Londons Picadilly Circus. The grand staircase- there were several staircases- descended seven of the ships ten decks, and featured oak paneling and bronze cherubs. A replica of the staircase can be seen at the Titanic museum in Branson, Missouri. The Last Dinner The last dinner served to first class passengers at the Ritz Restaurant was a feast with ten sumptuous courses, featuring oysters, caviar, lobster, quail, salmon, roast duckling, and lamb. On board the Titanic were 20,000 bottles of beer, 1,500 bottles of wine, and 8,000 cigars, all for the first class passengers. Expensive to Operate The Titanic burned about 600 tons of coal each day to keep it powered. A team of 176 men kept the fires burning, and it is estimated that over 100 tons of ash were injected into the Atlantic each day the Titanic operated. The Canceled Lifeboat Drill Originally, a lifeboat drill was scheduled to take place on board the Titanic on the very day that the ship hit the iceberg. However, for an unknown reason, Captain Smith canceled the drill. Many people believe that had the drill taken place, more lives could have been saved. Only Seconds to React From the time the lookouts sounded the alert, the officers on the bridge had only 37 seconds to react before the Titanic hit the iceberg. In that time, First Officer Murdoch ordered, hard a-starboard (which turned the ship to port- left). He also ordered the engine room to put the engines in reverse. The Titanic did bank left, but it wasnt quite fast or far enough. Lifeboats Were Not Full Not only were there not enough lifeboats to save all 2,200 people on board, most of the lifeboats that were launched were not filled to capacity. If they had been, 1,178 people might have been rescued, far more than the 705 who did survive. For instance, the first lifeboat to launch- Lifeboat 7 from the starboard side- only carried 24 people, despite having a capacity of 65 (two additional people later transferred onto it from Lifeboat 5). However, it was Lifeboat 1 that carried the fewest people. It had only seven crew and five passengers (a total of 12 people) despite having a capacity for 40. Another Boat Was Closer for Rescue When the Titanic began sending out distress signals, the Californian, rather than the Carpathia, was the closest ship. However, the Californian did not respond until it was much too late to help. At 12:45 a.m. on April 15, 1912, crew members on the Californian saw mysterious lights in the sky. These were the distress flares sent up from the Titanic  and they immediately woke up their captain to tell him. Unfortunately, the captain issued no orders. Since the ships wireless operator had already gone to bed as well, the Californian was unaware of any distress signals from the Titanic until the morning. By then, the Carpathia had already picked up all of the survivors. Many people believe that if the Californian had responded to the Titanics pleas for help, many more lives could have been saved. Two Dogs Rescued The order was for  women and children first when it came to the lifeboats. When you factor in that there were not enough lifeboats for everyone on board the Titanic, it is a bit surprising that two dogs made it into the lifeboats. Of the nine dogs on board the Titanic, the two that were rescued were a Pomeranian and a Pekinese. Rich and Famous Among the famous people who died on the Titanic, the wealthiest by far was John Jacob Astor IV, who was worth over US$90 million, over two billion in todays currency. Others included the mining heir, Benjamin Guggenheim, and engineer Thomas Andrews, who oversaw the construction of the Titanic. The co-owner of Macys department store, Isidor Straus and his wife Ida, also died on board the ship. Corpses Recovered On April 17, 1912, the day before survivors of the Titanic disaster reached New York, the CS Mackay-Bennett, a commercial cable repair ship, was sent off from Halifax, Nova Scotia to search for bodies. On board, the Mackay-Bennett were embalming supplies, 40 embalmers, tons of ice, and 100 coffins. Although the Mackay-Bennett  found 306 bodies, 116 of them were too badly damaged to take all the way back to shore. Attempts were made to identify each body found. Additional ships were also sent out to look for bodies. In all, 328 bodies were found, but 119 of these were so severely degraded that they were buried at sea. No-one Knows All Who Died on the Titanic Although the official number of the dead on the Titanic was 1,503 (of the 2,208 on board, there were 705 survivors), over a hundred unidentified bodies were buried in Fairview Lawn cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Many people traveled under false names, and from so many different places, it proved impossible to identify even the recovered bodies. Sidney Leslie Goodwin, a 19-month-old boy buried under the marker unknown child was identified in 2008, after extensive DNA tests and a worldwide genealogical search. Dance Band on the Titanic There was an eight-piece band on the Titanic, led by violinist Wallace Hartley, who had to learn 350 songs in the songbook handed out to first class passengers. As the Titanic was sinking, they sat on the deck and played music, and all of them went down with the ship. Survivors reported that the last piece they played was either Nearer My God to Thee or a waltz named Autumn. The Fourth Funnel Wasnt Real In what is now an iconic image, the side view of the Titanic clearly shows four cream and black funnels. While three of them released steam from the boilers, the fourth was just for show. The designers thought the ship would look more impressive with four funnels rather than three. Only Two Bathtubs in Third Class While the promenade suites in first class had private bathrooms, most passengers on the Titanic had to share bathrooms. Third class had it very rough with only two bathtubs for more than 700 passengers. The  Titanics  Newspaper The  Titanic  seemed to have everything on board, including its own newspaper. The Atlantic Daily Bulletin was printed every day on board the  Titanic. Each edition included news, advertisements, stock prices, horse-racing results, society gossip, and the days menu. A Royal Mail Ship The R.M.S. Titanic was a Royal Mail Ship. This designation meant the Titanic was officially responsible for delivering mail for the British postal service. On board the Titanic was a Sea Post Office with five mail clerks (two British and three American) who were responsible for the 3,423 sacks of mail (seven million individual pieces). Interestingly, although no mail has yet been recovered from the wreck of the Titanic, if it were, the U.S. Postal Service would still try to deliver it out of duty and because most of the mail was destined for the U.S. 73 Years to Find It Despite the fact that everyone knew the Titanic sunk and they had an idea of where that happened, it took 73 years to find the wreckage. Dr. Robert Ballard, an American oceanographer, found the Titanic on September 1, 1985. Now a UNESCO protected site, the ship lays two miles below the oceans surface, with the bow nearly 2,000 feet from the ships stern. The  Titanics  Treasures The Titanic movie included The Heart of the Ocean, a priceless blue diamond that was supposed to have gone down with the ship. This was just a fictional addition to the story that was likely based on a real-life love story regarding a blue sapphire pendant.   Thousands of artifacts were recovered from the wreckage, however, and many pieces of precious jewelry were included. The majority were auctioned off and sold for some rather incredible prices. More Than One Movie Though many of us know of the 1997 movie Titanic starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, it was not the first movie made about the disaster. At least 11 have been made, depending on how you define Titanic movie. The very first movie made about the Titanic disaster was released in May 1912, a month after the disaster. It was a silent movie called Saved from the Titanic and it starred Dorothy Gibson, an actress who was one of the survivors. In 1958, A Night to Remember was released that recounted in great detail the ships fatal night. The British-made film featured Kenneth More, Robert Ayres, and many other notable actors, with over 200 speaking parts. There was also the 1953 Twentieth Century Fox production of Titanic. This black and white film starred Barbara Stanwyck, Clifton Webb, and Robert Wagner and was centered around a couples unhappy marriage. Another Titanic movie was produced in Germany and released in 1950. In 1996, a Titanic TV mini-series was produced. The all-star cast included Peter Gallagher, George C. Scott, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Eva Marie Saint. It was reportedly a rushed production designed to be released before the famous blockbuster film hit theaters the next year.

Ralph Ellisons Invisible Man Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Ralph Ellisons Invisible Man - Essay Example Because he is black, the narrator automatically finds himself straddling racial barriers and prejudices yet he only begins to realize how he is regarded through the divisions of the equal rights movement by recognizing that he himself is "both sacrificer and victim." (p. 506). This description is apt for every social circle that has accepted him, for the narrator has either been a tool or a symbol in each instance; whether the gathering is white or black, the narrator is never a full member of any group, but only included until sacrificed in the interest of the group. Ellison reinforces this notion that the narrator is "a disembodied voice" (p. 581) by never offering any real description of him to the point of never even giving the character a name, even when it is changed. The narrator at one point ruminates about his history of humiliations, observing that "They were me; they defined me." (p. 508). Working form this basis, the narrator's degree of invisibility can therefore also be measured by them and, since they hinge upon racial issues, a closer examination of these instances and the people involved underscore the narrator's ultimate lesson. Likewise, the narrator is not the only "invisible character in the book, given that it applies to an outsider's view of another he is just the only one in the novel that suspects the enormity of the injustice. This paper will attempt to examine both these issues.. The racial strata are divided into four rough categories: bigoted whites, whites sympathetic to the black cause, blacks who seek to achieve solidarity across racial lines (equality with whites), and blacks seeking to uplift/aid their race without the help (or interference) of whites. The first and last tend to believe the absolute worst stereotypes about the other race, while the border categories are often to blinded by their intentions to realize the full ramifications of their actions. The most extreme case of bigoted whites occurs in the scene of the battle royal, where the prominent whites of the narrator's hometown gather to witness a cruel brawl. The narrator, invited to give a speech, is instead forced to box nine other men black men, all of them blindfolded. The fighter are paid after the fight with money scattered across an electrified rug and they must get repeatedly shocked in order to get their reward. When the narrator is finally allowed to deliver his speech, which in cludes such platitudes as "cultivating friendly relations with the southern white man" (p.30), under constant heckling form the audience, which results in his accidentally inserting the phrase "social equality." By assuring the crowd that it is a verbal slip, he is allowed to finish his speech and is rewarded with a briefcase and a scholarship to college. In this scene, the narrator and his peers are essentially invisible as individuals to the white gathering, who in turn allow their hatred and prejudices to erase their own identity. Both groups then become faceless and unidentifiable other than by the color of their skin. Yet is the white gathering who are evidently in control, for, not only do they demean the black men, they reward the blacks only for adhering to the expected social order what

Nantucket Nectars Case Study Memo structure Essay - 1

Nantucket Nectars Case Study Memo structure - Essay Example The analysis will be carried out by the use of the net present value method. The reason as to why the method has been used is the fact that the method makes use of discounted cash flows and there is a clearly decision criteria that should be used in the making of a decision. The present value for the future projected incomes for the company is equivalent to $20,662.79. That will mean that the decision that will be made by Nantucket Nectar should bear into mind the net present value obtained. That means if the company decides to float shares, the income should be greater than $ 20662.79, if the managers decide to sell the company, the best price should be greater than $20662.79. Nantucket Nectar should consider the bids that are been offered and the company should also calculate the amount of money that will arise from the initial public offer. The value that should be considered should be greater than $ 20662.79 and that will form the basis for making the decision since the best offer should be taken by the company. If none of the offers turn out to be more profitable, then the company should be maintained at its current state (Gerald et al,

Should We Pay College Athletes Essay Example for Free

Should We Pay College Athletes Essay Should we pay college athletes? That is a big topic in NCAA sports right now. People think that college athletes work hard and that they deserve to get paid. Michael Wilbon is one of these people. At first he was against paying college athletes, but now he is all for it. He says that he is interested in seeing the people that make revenue share a little piece of it. Then you have people like a reporter from the Daily Evergreen. He is against paying the athletes. He states that when you are a student athlete it is student first and athlete second, and that if you start paying college athletes it will put being an athlete first. I strongly think that college athletes shouldn’t be paid for playing sports in college. Paying players to play sports in college can cause players to ruin their career, cause the NCAA to be one sided, and would take away scholarships. The first problem with paying college athletes is that it could ruin a college athlete’s future career. For example, what happens when you give a little kid money? They spend it on junk that they don’t need. So the same thing would happen with most young college athletes. Think about it, you’re giving a teenager straight out of high schools a bunch of money to come a play sports at your school. Teenagers are not responsible with money. A prime example of this happening is Josh Hamilton. Hamilton is a professional baseball player in the Major Leagues. He got drafted out of high school and signed a contract with the Tampa Bay Rays for nearly 4 million dollars. He got hooked up with the wrong people and ended up blowing all his money on drugs and tattoos. He even got kicked out of Major League baseball for a while. I think that this would happen to a lot of player in college if they got paid. Another problem with paying college athletes is that it will cause the NCAA to become one sided. It will make college sports just like professional sports. The colleges with the most money will have the best teams and the colleges with the least money will have the worst teams. The competition would disintegrate. Take a look at professional baseball for example. The highest paid team in the Majors is the New York Yankees, and they are also the best. The lowest paid team is the Kansas City Royals, and they are the worst team in baseball. New York has money to buy the best players out there, while the Royals don’t. They can’t get good players because of their budget. This is exactly what would happen if college athletes got paid. The college with the highest budget would get the best players in the country, while the college with the worst budget wouldn’t be able to get good players. This will make the same teams good and the same teams bad year in and year out. It would take all the competition away. The third and final reason that paying college athletes is a bad choice is that it would take away scholarships. Think about it, you are already paying college athletes to play by giving them scholarships. Why would you need to pay them more to play if they have a scholarship already? You wouldn’t. Which means that scholarships would be gone all together and that’s not fair to everyone else? What about the people that are non-athletes? They wouldn’t be able to get scholarships because they don’t play sports. This would cause the student population to decrease. Lots of people can’t afford to go to the colleges they go to. The only reason they can go is because scholarships allow them to. It’s not right to take away the opportunity for less fortunate people. So I think that paying college athletes is a bad idea. It could ruin a players career giving them a lot of money at a young age, like it almost did to Josh Hamilton of the Texas Rangers. It would also cause the NCAA to be uncompetitive and become exactly like the professional leagues. And lastly it would get rid of scholarships, which would take away opportunities of a lot of college students that are non-athletes Works Cited Chait, Jonathan. â€Å"Fixing College Sports: Why Paying Student Athletes Won’t Work† New York Magazine Mar.2012. Web. 29 Mar.2012 Hamilton, Josh, and Tim Keown â€Å"Beyond Belief† New York: Hamilton, 2008 â€Å"College Athletes Should Not Get Paid To Play† The Daily Evergreen Aug. 2011. Web. 29 Mar. 2012

The Handmaid’s Tale : A Product Of Debates :: Free Essay Writer

The Handmaid’s Tale : A Product Of Debates Often times a reader finds that a character in a novel resembles the author’s friend or a distant relative. There is almost always some connection to the author, his surroundings, or events in his life. The Handmaid’s Tale reflects the life of Margaret Atwood on a much stronger level. It is a product of debates within the feminist movement of the late 1970’s and early 1980’s. Atwood has been much a part of that movement. The defeat of the Equal Rights Amendment, the rise of the religious right, the election of Ronald Regan and many other historical events led writers like Atwood to fear the antifeminist movements. With these fears came the ideas the antifeminist could not only provide more gains for women but turn back the clock on the rights that they had already fought to receive. Atwood uses her novel to examine some of the traditional attitudes in the religious right which she finds threatening. At the beginning of the novel we are given this bible ref erence: Genesis 30: 1-3 â€Å"And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die. And Jacob’s anger was kindled against Rachel; and he said, Am I in God’s stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb? And she said, Behold my maid Bilhah, go unto her; and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her.† This is one of several passages that justifies a man to have sex and children by his servants. Atwood takes this idea and extrapolates from it outrageously. In her â€Å"Afterword† she tells the reader that the religious aspects, â€Å"go back to my study of the American Puritans.†(Atwood 316) The American Puritans founded a society different than democracy as we know it, a theocracy. Atwood said she found herself, â€Å"increasingly alarmed by statements made frequently by religious leaders in the United States; and then a variety of events from around the world could not be ignored, particularly the rising fanaticism of the Iranian monotheocracy.† (Atwood 316 ) During the 1980’s many people debated about the feminist attitudes toward sexuality and their attitudes toward pornography. Many different views were expressed. Some said that all erotica depicting women as sexual objects is demeaning. Others argued that pornography was bad but erotica could be g ood, that â€Å"although pornography is demeaning the protection of civil liberties is a greater good which requires the toleration of freedom for pornographers.

Compare and Contrast Poems ‘Still I Rise’ and ‘I Shall Return’ Essay

The poems I am comparing and contrasting are ‘Still I Rise’ and ‘I Shall Return.’ The main similarity between these poems is to do with the theme. They both talk about confidence and mental strength. The poets both have had very different upbringings, but have both been depressed at one point in their lives. The woman who wrote ‘Still I Rise’, Maya Angelou, was born in Saint Louis. Maya was sent to live with her grandmother after she was raped by her mother’s boyfriend. Soon after, she moved to San Francisco, to try to forget about her troubled childhood. She wrote the bestseller â€Å"I Know Why the Cage Bird Sings† as she travelled, and can now speak fluently in lots of languages. ‘Still I Rise’ is based on Maya’s childhood; being treated unfairly, but still coming back with confidence. The other poet was a man, Claude McKay, who was born in Jamaica. He moved to America and founded ‘African blood brothers.’ Shortly after, he moved to London where he died of a heart attack. His poem, ‘I Shall Return’ shows he wanted other people to be grateful for what they had, and to show he had happier times in his childhood. Also, it’s the start of your life; the only time you can control your future, which is a very important thing in this poem as I feel he wishes that he could have stayed in the happy place of his childhood, and that it could have changed his whole life. The way he talks about his recent pain â€Å"To ease my mind of long, long years of pain† and the way he uses repetition emphasises the fact he couldn’t get away from the pain. ‘Still I rise’ is about Maya Angelou’s history. When you read the poem, you feel she has had a bad past, even if you do not know anything about her. The main themes in the poem are about discrimination, and being ill-treated but still coming across as the stronger one. She repeats â€Å"I’ll rise† throughout the poem, showing she has high hopes for herself. Towards the end of the poem, she starts to say â€Å"I rise,† which shows she is happy with how she is now, and possibly happy with the way people treat her. The point in this poem is to show that Maya had personal problems, but wanted to show she had enough inner strength to write about them, and that she wanted someone to listen to what she had to say. The way ‘I Shall Return’ is written helps with how you interpret the poem. McKay wrote the poem in present tense â€Å"To laugh and love and watch with wonder-eyes†, but explains his dreams in the future tense â€Å"I Shall Return to hear the fiddle and fife†. This makes it obvious that his dreams aren’t yet fulfilled, but he hopes they will eventually. The theme is clear all the way through the poem. He repeats â€Å"I shall return, I shall return again,† to show his desire to return to the place of his happy childhood memories. McKay idealised his childhood, he ignored any imperfections and suggests his childhood was perfect. When he went to America, he noticed how much people didn’t respect their life, but this just made him realise how much he had, and he just let it go. The repetition he uses in the poem emphasises his longing to make people appreciate what they have. Another of the main comparisons is that both poems are very personal; they decipher the poets’ childhoods and longings in life. The poems uncover the poets’ history, present lives’, and what they desire in the future. The poems both have pastoral and natural imagery amongst them, â€Å"The forest fires burn† from ‘I Shall Return,’ and â€Å"Just like moons and suns† from ‘Still I Rise.’ This is a comparison; however, they explain them in a completely different context, Maya describing them as ‘on her side’ as she compares them with herself, turning the words into metaphors and using personification. Whereas McKay uses the natural imagery as a relaxing thing as he uses calm words such as ‘loiter’ and ‘bathe’ which makes this a contrasting point. The way the poets have done this is a brilliant way to get the poem flowing with different moods, whilst still getting their purpose across. Angelou talks in a relaxing style, but uses rhetorical questions. This makes her sound challenging and possibly even angry. McKay uses slight aggression and anger in ‘I shall return.’ He uses bold imagery to do this. He also talks about natural things like â€Å"forest fires burn† and â€Å"blades of the bending grasses† and uses personification to make them seem like bad things, like blades of knives, and the burning of flames. However, he does also express his ‘washed away’ feeling vaguely, â€Å"†¦the streams that bathe the†¦Ã¢â‚¬  shows he has a lot of respect for things that happen everyday and shows how much beauty they actually have. The poets make points and raise ideas about confidence whilst they talk about their childhood â€Å"Did you want to see me broken?† (‘Still I Rise’) makes a point of something that hurt her in the past, but now she shows she has enough strength to ask those questions she always wanted to know. That is similar in both poems, but talk in completely different attitudes, whilst explaining similar things. In my opinion, both poems are equally as good. ‘Still I rise’ uses very strong metaphors to bring back how Maya feels about black female history. â€Å"I’m a black ocean, leaping and wide, welling and swelling†¦Ã¢â‚¬  is a brilliant phrase, using strong personification. A â€Å"black ocean† takes the biggest thing on the planet, and uses black to make it seem mysterious. â€Å"Welling and swelling† could be annotated in two different ways; that black history is becoming more recognised as a big thing, or, the â€Å"welling and swelling† of a woman’s stomach when she is pregnant, emphasising the fact women play a big part in the world, that they are the ones who bring children into the world, and happiness. ‘I shall return’ is short but to the point. Claude takes beautiful things and ‘twists’ them, to make them seem they have a strong personality of their own. This poem is very effective with the way Claude uses very bold imagery. He takes things that people come across every day, but don’t take them into consideration in the way they should.

Internet and television Essay

Internet and television are changing the face of political discourse. In his book, Amusing Ourselves To Death Neil Postman gives candid details of how television has shaped political conversation in the last 20 years but this has been overcome by the advent of internet technology. Television has changed much since 1987 in addition to advancements such as HDTV, DVR. News can be watched 24 hours across many networks. For example cable subscribers are able to watch over 1000 channels with the click of a button. Advertising has grown tremendously as ads jam programs in the form of product endorsements and normal commercials. The internet is not excluded from this change because it offers the users a simple way of accessing news and communication with many people all over the world. Each of these mediums represents a new era in which people try to become politically enlightened while at the same time minimizing the quantity of information they are able to consume (Postman, 13) Political discourse and the media have been changing over the years. Hume observes that, â€Å"the television commercial is a primary instrument of political discourse† (Hume, 27). This is true in the current media although some other instruments like The Daily Show are gaining political importance. Political programs should be placed on the same platform as political commercials instead of using them as the main source of political discourse. Although the commercials have a good impact this is reduced by the video recorders that give user the ability to navigate commercials to view programs that they like most. Internet has become a threat to the television since it is easy to get information easier using the internet. â€Å"Young people don’t buy newspapers or watch the evening news-even or perhaps especially, with cute Katie Couric reading it to them. Blogs are more fun to read and sometimes more reliable† (Leonard, 10). Bloggers have the ability to put emphasis on political candidates, policies and actions that have taken place. As such blogging offers the citizens a chance to comment on stories in a manner that permits freedom of expression. The media has continued to change political discourse significantly though television, internet and advertising. Currently advertisements, blogs and the 24 hour news and internet have a big impact on political discourse. According to a survey done by Pew Internet it was observed that â€Å"15% of all American adults say the internet was the primary source for campaign news during the election, up from 7% in the mid-term election of 2002? (Leonard, 2). Therefore, the Internet is a strong force in the changing shape of political discourse. The information that people find and share over the internet shapes their opinions and can assist them in becoming better citizens. Political information can be shared in a way that ties the emotions of the participants but the internet helps the people to form their own opinions. Hume posits, â€Å"new technology may facilitate a new type of citizenship commitment that combines exchange of information and evaluation, in which emotion and experience are not discounted but an accepted part of the processes of opinion formation† (2006, p. 305). In summary, political dialogue in the media has been transformed significantly by the new media. The availability of internet has helped people write blogs, surf for information that could not be easily found through conventional means. Television commercial as well as comedy programs are still abundant in the political discourse. Ellen Hume give a good summary of political discourse and its relationship with the media by saying, â€Å"The old media deliver the old politics† (1998, p. 207). From this observation one can conclude that the new media will give rise to new politics and continue to change everything as we know it now. Works cited Hume How novel technologies are changing the news. In C. Harper (Ed. ), What’s Next in mass communication. Original York: St. Martin’s Press. 1998 Leonard, M. ‘Fake’ news is as good as the real thing . Herald Times, p. B2. , E. 2007. Postman, N. Amusing ourselves to death. New York: Penguin books. 1985

Jack Kevorkian essays

Jack Kevorkian essays When there is any discussion of assisted suicide in the USA, one name seems to pop up more than any other, Dr. Jack Kevorkian, also commonly known as Dr. Death. Kevorkian himself has assisted more than 200 assisted suicides in the US since 1990. Also since 1990 Kevorkian has been tried for several murders stretching from assisted suicide, only recently did Kevorkian actually got convicted of second degree murder and now is in a federal prison in Kevorkian, born in Pontiac, Michigan, was educated at the University of Michigan School of Medicine with a specialty in Pathology. What he learned at school, prompted him to be a big Euthanasia proponent. He has written several essays and articles such as The Last Fearsome Taboo: Medical Aspects of Planned Death. Kevorkian was convicted of 2nd Degree murder in Pontiac, Michigan, the same place where he received 3 acquittals and one mis-trial . In the case of 1999, Kevorkian assisted a man who was dying of Lou Gherigs disease. He had the injection of his chemicals into the mans body on video tape. Kevorkian then went on the show 60 Minutes, showing his video. On the show he dares the DA to press charges and even has enough confidence in what he did that he was his own lawyer in the murder case against him(which almost is never successful). In A Case Of Assisted Suicide, Kevorkian tries to to give clear explanations of his work, such as the requirements to be eligible to his so called Medicide or The Death Machine. His main point and argument is that people who are suffering from physically terminal diseases, such as Lou Gherigs Disease and from Mentally terminal diseases such as Alzheimers disease should have someone they can go to to ease family and obviously the patients own mental and physical anguish. The popular belief about kevorkian is that he likes killing people, ...

5 Key Events in Affirmative Action History

5 Key Events in Affirmative Action History Affirmative action, also know as equal opportunity, is a federal agenda designed to counteract historic discrimination faced by ethnic minorities, women and other underrepresented groups. To foster diversity and compensate for the ways such groups have historically been excluded, institutions with affirmative action programs prioritize the inclusion of minority groups in the employment, education and government sectors, among others. Although the policy  aims to right wrongs, it is among the most controversial issues of our time. But affirmative action is not new. Its origins date back to the 1860s, when initiatives to make workplaces, educational institutions and other arenas more inclusive to women, people of color and individuals with disabilities were set into motion.  Ã‚   1. The 14th Amendment Is Passed More so than any other amendment of its time, the 14th Amendment paved the way for affirmative action. Approved by Congress in 1866, the amendment forbade states from creating laws that infringed upon the rights of U.S. citizens or  denied citizens equal protection under the law. Following in the steps of the  13th Amendment, which outlawed slavery, the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause would prove key in shaping affirmative action policy. 2. Affirmative Action Suffers Major Setback in Supreme Court Sixty-five years before the term â€Å"affirmative action† would come into popular use, the  Supreme Court  made a ruling that could’ve prevented the practice from ever launching. In 1896, the high court decided in landmark case  Plessy v. Ferguson  that the 14th Amendment did not prohibit a separate but equal society. In other words, blacks could be segregated from whites as long as the services they received were equal to those of whites. The Plessy v. Ferguson case stemmed from an incident in 1892 when Louisiana authorities arrested Homer Plessy, who was one-eighth black, for refusing to leave a whites-only railcar. When the Supreme Court ruled that separate but equal accommodations didn’t violate the constitution, it paved the way for states to establish a series of segregationist policies. Decades later, affirmative action would seek to readdress these policies, also known as Jim Crow. 3. Roosevelt and Truman Fight Employment Discrimination For years, state-sanctioned discrimination would thrive in the United States. But two world wars marked the beginning of the end of such discrimination. In 1941- the year the Japanese attacked  Pearl Harbor-   President Franklin Roosevelt  signed Executive Order 8802. The order prohibited defense companies with federal contracts from using discriminatory practices in hiring and training. It marked the first time federal law promoted equal opportunity, thus paving the way for affirmative action. Two black leaders- A. Philip Randolph, a union activist, and Bayard Rustin, a civil rights activist, played critical roles in influencing Roosevelt to sign the groundbreaking order.  President Harry Truman  would play a crucial role in strengthening the legislation  Roosevelt  enacted. In 1948, Truman signed Executive Order 9981. It prohibited the Armed Forces from using segregationist policies and mandated that the military provide equal opportunities and treatment to all without regard to race or similar factors. Five years later, Truman further strengthened Roosevelt’s efforts when his Committee on Government Contract Compliance directed the Bureau of Employment Security to act affirmatively to end discrimination. 4. Brown v. Board of Education Spells End of Jim Crow When the Supreme Court ruled in 1896 case Plessy v. Ferguson that a separate but equal America was constitutional, it dealt a major blow to civil rights advocates. In 1954, such advocates had an entirely different experience when the high court overturned Plessy via  Brown v. Board of Education. In that decision, which involved a Kansas schoolgirl who sought entry into a white public school, the court ruled that discrimination is a key aspect of racial segregation, and  it therefore  violates the 14th Amendment. The decision marked the end of Jim Crow and the beginning of the country’s initiatives to promote diversity in schools, the  workplace  and other sectors. 5. The Term â€Å"Affirmative Action† Enters American Lexicon President John Kennedy  issued Executive Order 10925 in 1961. The order made the first reference to â€Å"affirmative action† and strove to end discrimination with the practice. Three years later the Civil Rights Act of 1964 came about. It functions to eliminate employment discrimination as well as discrimination in public accommodations. The following year,  President Lyndon Johnson  issued Executive Order 11246, which mandated that federal contractors practice affirmative action to develop diversity in the workplace and end race-based discrimination, among other sorts. The Future of Affirmative Action   Today, affirmative action is widely practiced. But as tremendous strides are made in civil rights, the need for affirmative action is constantly called into question. Some states have even banned the practice. What’s to  come of  the practice? Will affirmative action exist 25 years from now? Members of the Supreme Court have said they hope the need for affirmative action is unnecessary by then. The nation remains highly racially stratified, making it doubtful that the practice will no longer be relevant.

Reflection Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 12

Reflection - Assignment Example Despite the fact that modern family live a non-traditional lifestyle, family members tend to feel guilty of not undertaking their expected roles in the family as expected by tradition (McCormick 193). Traditional lifestyle can be as a result many factors and can be practice in any family. Fathers can take cares of babies, a roles supposedly played by mothers, even though they don’t have the experience. Fathers finally enjoy the experience even though its time consuming and requires personal dedication. Just as David did not have the experience of taking care of the babies, he loved the experience as it enhanced his bond with Nicholas. The insight gained from the story will help me to write an interesting essay. Am thinking of writing an essay about happy family and its impact on both the society and family members. I chose the photo as it portrays a happy family, which is the theme of my essay. Hope it will be interesting to you

American History Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

American History - Term Paper Example Unequal conditions among the blacks and the whites were rampant in almost every sector and part within the country. Considering that the blacks received unfair treatment than their white counterparts, the demonstrations were justified. Considering the cause of reasons behind these protests, i would advice that it is right to support the demonstration as opposed to the white students during that period who failed to support their fellow black students’ demonstrators. The next incidence that occurred in the following year relates to the Weather Underground Organization formation. The organization founded at Ann Arbor branch of Michigan University aimed at achieving a democratic society by students. The primary objective as evidenced through the naming of the faction as Students for a Democratic Society was to work as a radical left wing that would materialize and succeed in overthrowing the American government. October 8, 1969 characterized the first demonstration organized by t he group in Chicago that was deliberate to coincide with the trials of Chicago eight. The group embarked on bombing demonstrations, jail breaks among other ill forms of demonstrations. The attacks mostly focused on government buildings as well as various banks while evacuation warnings were also given to others. It is important to note that these students’ demonstrators grew to become criminals over time and facilitated bombings or became parts of bombings after their engagement in 1969. Although the authorities failed to engage them forcefully to abandon their demonstrations, deaths among the students were reported on various occasions. My opinion relating to such engagements falls against joining such students owing the acts of violence the group engaged in, it is ill-advising for any student of the current multi-cultural and civilized U.S to participate in such demonstrations. From