Thursday, October 31, 2019

Essay on the movie ti kill a mockingbird Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

On the movie ti kill a mockingbird - Essay Example There is no denying the fact that â€Å"Early on in the history of American South, the institution of slavery established race as one of the dominant influences shaping Southern culture (Beck, Frandsen & Randall 121)†, whose diluted remnants can still be traced in the contemporary Southern life. In that context this movie is primarily concerned with the dynamics of the race relations in the South. To a great extent the movie traces the conflict and friction accompanying the change in social perceptions pertaining to the notion of race in the South. The fictional character of Tom in the movie To Kill a Mockingbird emerges as a symbolic representative of the injustices inflicted on a section of the Southern society, a direct outcome of the Southern notions of race. The movie elaborately delineates the race based bifurcation of the Southern society, which happened to be all encompassing, including within its ambit all the salient aspects of the Southern social life, like habitati ons, religion, mannerisms, language, food, politics and sadly justice also. Class is an important concern in this movie as social class has traditionally commanded immense importance in the essentially agrarian Southern culture replete with â€Å"an abundance of myths and stereotypes about the poor and the wealthy (Beck, Frandsen & Randall 46)†. In that sense, this movie allows the audience to glance over a range of class affiliated stereotypes like the conservative Mrs. Dubose, and the Cunninghams and the Ewells belonging to the lower class, from the relatively balanced perspective of Jem and Scout. The movie in a way visually presents the complex interplay between the Southern notions of class and race, with those at the receiving end of the system trying to seek a common space. For instance, when Scout embarrasses the poor Walter Cunningham, she is severely reprimanded by her black cook Calpurnia. However, it does need to be mentioned that when

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

MGMT 670- STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

MGMT 670- STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT - Case Study Example The DVD had in reality created a wave among the Americans and it has been estimated that during the year 2008 more than 85 percent of the US households had this player. Apart from this, individuals could also very well subscribe for movie DVD’s and get them delivered to their home, by joining subscription services like the Blockbuster and Netflix companies. The advent of the internet into the homes have created a new platform, which has enabled people to watch downloadable movies. Many downloadable sites are available over the internet like the Netflix, Blockbuster, which allow the people al over the world, to either watch movies online or download them to their personal computers. (Thompson 2008) Home Movie Rental Business and Economic characteristics 1. The future movie experience for the worldwide audience is going to get concentrated on the home viewing category, since more and more famous companies like the Netflix and Blockbuster are on the path of streaming movies, dire ctly to the viewers big screen televisions. This could result in the start of an era, that could well enable the viewer’s world over to watch movies online or through the televisions, by subscribing with their satellite or cable operators. 2. Though most of the movie companies in the past have been much reluctant when it came to the provision of the video on demand because of the inherent threat of piracy, still some companies have changed their stance ever since. They feel doubtful about the extent of the profits, that they could very well acquire from such a business model and hence they have shown a positive bias with regards to the streaming movies online that cannot be pirated. . 3. The online movie download and streaming facilities with the increase in the internet service the world over, have made the online movie rental business quite attractive. (Thompson 2008) Competition in the Movie Rental Industry Thus the question now boils as to how the entertainment industry i s going to move forward in the coming years, with more and more breakthroughs taking place every day. Indeed this has made the competition much tougher between the various companies in the US and the foremost among them have been the Netflix and the Blockbuster companies, which have been very much in the forefront, when it comes to the entertainment segment and in the business of providing their viewers with unique entertainment and movie viewing experiences. (Thompson 2008) Netflix Driving Forces The year 2008 as already mentioned before had indeed become an important year, which had marked a change in the way people started to watch movies through rental videos. It started the subscription era of movies with the advancement of internet technology and the largest online subscription company turned out to be Netflix. Netflix Key Success factors The uniqueness that can be attributed to the Netflix success, can very much be attributed to the business model that it pursues for marketin g its movies online. This is because Netflix through its online portal very well gives its subscribers the same kind of benefits that they get, when they visit their nearest online video stores. They can pick from a wide variety of movies that are offered on the Netflix website and at the same time save valuable time, in case they had to rent it from their nearest rental video store by physically walking in and picking out the video. The distribution and the fast mail delivery system of providing the customers with

Sunday, October 27, 2019

The Role Of God In Rene Descartes Meditations

The Role Of God In Rene Descartes Meditations In this essay I am going to argue that God plays a significant role in Renà © Descartes Meditations, as he argues for Gods existence using different arguments, however I find him to be incorrect in his conclusions, and I find he is not entitled to appeal to Gods existence in this way, and all of his arguments are either fallacious or unsound. In his meditations discuss his thoughts concerning the human mind body, true false, the essence and existence of material things and the real distinction between mind and body. As I previously said, God plays a significant role to Descartes Meditations, including the proof of Gods existence. Descartes goes through numerous proofs of Gods existence through-out his Meditations, starting in Meditation 3 and continuing onto the end. This is the first role God plays in Descartes system as it is like a building block, an essential part of the structure of the system, as he uses the idea of God (specifically a non-deceiving God) to prove conclusions and dispel any other doubts he may have. He dispels the evil-demon doubt through the proof that a benevolent God exists. He also uses God within the clear and distinct perception proof. In Meditation three Descartes states that there are three types of ideas: innate, factitious or adventitious. Innate ideas are ideas built into our minds from birth, factitious ideas are invented ideas we have produced from our imagination and adventitious ideas are from experience in the outside world. Descartes argues that God cannot be a factitious or adventitious idea and the idea of God must be built into our minds from birth: I did not derive it from the senses, nor did it ever arrive unexpectedly as the ideas of sensible things usually do when external objects impinge, or seem to impinge, on the sense organs. Nor was it fabricated by me, for it is clear that I can neither add to it nor subtract from it. Thus it follows that it is innate in me, just as the idea of myself is innate in meà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.This is the artisans trademark imprinted on his work. (Med 3, p42-43) Along with these three types of ideas, you have varieties of idea: substances (persisting particulars), and modes and accidents (properties of substances). Substances can be either finite or infinite substances. Here is his first argument for the existence of God, his causal argument. Here he implies that whatever is possessed by an effect must have been given it to by its cause. For example, a rock cannot be produced by anything with less formal reality (such as a property like a colour), or a pot of water is heated up until it boils, it must have been subjected to heat from some cause that had at least as much heat. Moreover, something that does not have as much heat would not be able to cause the water to boil, because it doesnt have the necessary reality to bring about the effect something cannot give what it does not have. Now, it is evident by the natural light of reason that there must be as much reality in an efficient and total cause as in the effect of that cause. For I ask: where could the effect get its reality from, apart from its cause? Something which is more perfect in other words, that which contains more reality in itself cannot be made from that which is less perfect. (Med 3, P35) Descartes second argumentative question concerning God was could one exist in the absence of God? By the third meditation the meditator has established he exists, and therefore this existence must have a cause. The only possible cause for existence has to be one of the following: from himself, having always been in existence, his parents, something less perfect than God or God. Firstly the cause cannot be from oneself, as he would have been created perfect; assuming to have been in existence always also does not help as what keeps him in existence? As a dependent being, there is a need to be sustained by another. It cannot be from parents, as this would lead to an infinite regress (who caused and maintains there existence?), and it cannot be caused by a being less perfect than God as the idea of perfection that exists cannot have originated from an imperfect being, therefore God is the cause, and God exists. Descartes discussed the ontological argument for Gods existence. The meditator states that the idea of God, the essence, has a necessary connection to the idea of existence. Take an example the connection between mountains and valleys; if there were no mountains, there wouldnt be any valleys, and all land would be flat. Descartes claimed it is impossible for us to conceive of existence without conceiving there is a God, just as it is impossible for us to conceive a valley without a mountain. As previously stated, the proofs of Gods existence played an essential role in Descartes system, as he had established that he was created by an all-powerful, non-deceiving God, Descartes could then place a great deal of trust in his cognitive abilities. Meditation Six gives a clear example of this in its discussion of the mind and of the body. In Meditation Three, Descartes idea of clear and distinct The key part to Descartes system however is the Clear and Distinct Rule: Everything that I perceive very clearly and distinctly is true. To prove that what we see clearly and distinctly to be true is essential to establish a foundation to build upon. He proves both that God exists through the use of Clear and Distinct perceptions, and he proves that clear and distinct perceptions are true because of the existence of God. This argument can be represented in the following structure: P1) If God exists, then he is no deceiver P2) If God is no deceiver, then all I clearly distinctly perceive will be true P3) God exists __________________ C1) All I clearly distinctly perceive is true P1) All I clearly distinctly perceive is true P2) I clearly distinctly perceive the idea of God P3) The idea of God is true _________________ C1) God exists These two arguments create the Cartesian Circle, from which the conclusion of one argument exists as a premise in the other, and vice versa. He begs the question here, assuming the conclusion he is arguing for in both arguments. Throughout the Meditations God play an important role for Descartes and his system, however I do not believe he is entitled to appeal to Gods existence in this way. All of Descartes arguments for the existence of God- the ontological argument, causal argument, and the trademark argument are not convincing alone. The use of God in his defining of clear and distinct perceptions also falls short. At the time of publication, there were many objections raised to some of his meditative conclusions and, understandably at the time to disprove or argue against the existence of God would be considered heresy by the Catholic Church, however the proofs for the existence of God Descartes argues I find unsound. Firstly the ontological argument for the existence of God is a priori proof, which is independent of experience, and states that if we can imagine a perfect being he must exist. God could not be perfect without existence as existence is stated as a property of perfection. So therefore a perfect being/God must exist. This argument commits a bare assertion fallacy. It does not give any backup premise to prove what it is stating and it relies on us just believing what it is saying. You cannot define or imagine a thing into existence. The ontological argument states that if we can imagine a perfect being he must exist, however it generalizes that all people will have the same the idea of a perfect being/God, however as different cultures have different ideas of God, even people within one culture will have different ideas of perfection and different ideas of a perfect God. Therefore either the complete plethora of Perfect Gods is true and exists, or Descartes argument is unsound. We also cannot guarantee that our human perception of perfection is, in fact perfect. Our own conceptions of perfection are through our subjective experience; therefore the ideas of perfection are an expansion of own thoughts and collective ideas. The causal argument for the existence of God appears in Meditation Three. It states that everything must have a cause, and it is impossible to continue backwards to infinity with causes (infinite regress), therefore there must have been an original first cause, one which wasnt conditioned by a previous cause, and such a cause is God. The causal argument is flawed in that if you allow one thing to exist without a cause, you contradict your own premise. To say then that the idea of an all-perfect God must come from an all-perfect cause can be argued against. We can take the idea of goodness, intelligence, and kindness and amplify it, similarly to how we reach the idea of mathematical infinity. The concept of spontaneous generation also argues against the causal principle, where we can imagine the idea of life emerging from a non-living and non-sentient basis. The trademark argument states that the idea of God is innate, and built into us from birth, as that is God leaving his trademark on us. I strongly disagree with this argument. The idea of God is not innate, it is indirectly an adventitious idea, and idea through experience. This experience however is provided through teaching and influence. The idea of God for all beings, at the time of Descartes specifically, were brought up religious and instilled with the idea of God. This is again reflected on the fact that there are different Gods from different cultures and civilizations. The Romans, the Greeks, the Vikings etc., all had different distinct Gods, the ideas of which were instilled to them again through teachings and influence.

Friday, October 25, 2019

Structure and Policy of the European Union Essay example -- European U

Structure and Policy of the European Union The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), is the most complex example of common policy in the European Union. Introduced from 1958 to 1968 and still in existence today, it has brought controversy, dispute and political tension within the EU and with the rest of the world. It is also a remarkable example of the movement toward the unknown realm of integration in Europe. However, subsequent reforms have been slow in arrival and have not always achieved the success expected of them. With the new difficulty of enlargement, challenges will require yet more reform of the CAP. The changing situations and context of the policy will be considered in terms of its effectiveness, as will the reforms of the 1980s and 1990s. It will be seen that there is still much in need of discussion for this enormous common policy. There were many motivations for the original formation of the CAP. Europe in 1958 was quite different to the Europe we know today. With the end of WW2 still in recent memory, there were still many effects being felt. In terms of agriculture, this was seen in the protection of farmers and nation specific rules and regulations as to production, imports and exports etc. There also remained some political mistrust between the central European countries, namely France and Germany . It was a combination of these factors that led to the incarnation of the CAP . In 1958, a large proportion of the population of Europe was employed in agriculture, and the industry accounted for a significant percentage of GDP, indeed as high as 27% of the population of France and 5% of total GDP amongst the original members (Belgium, Luxemburg, Holland, France, Germany and Italy) . The agricul... ...of the CAP and shown that in many ways it was flawed from the beginning and is only now starting to become effective. It is important that the momentum of the reforms is carried into this next chapter of the Union and is allowed to be introduced to the new members with freedom and fairness. Obviously some small adjustments will have to be made, just as they were for previous accessions , but the new nations must essentially be treated as equals. The prospects for the CAP will also improve as the sector becomes more efficient and smaller, with more land being reclaimed from farming and the increases in efficiency. The CAP was unprecedented in 1958, and will not lose its position of importance so long as the members and new candidates are willing to embrace the integration for which the CAP has always stood and move forward, without prejudice, into the 21st Century.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Crime Prevention Essay

Abstract Crime prevention has become a major issue in our Nation. In our text we have learned that in the early 1990’s President Bill Clinton had passed a bill that hired 100,000 police officers as a result of the Violent Crime Control Act (Worrall, 2008). The hiring of all the police officers looked as if was going to make a huge impact across the nation. With the rate of crime going up across the world crime prevention is really needed. Communities and police officers need to come together to help preserve our neighborhoods. This is the best form of crime prevention. In this paper I am going to discuss the relationship of crime prevention to the Criminal Justice System. I am also going to give my definition of what is crime prevention. I will also discuss two or more institutions through which crime prevention programs and practices are delivered and try to give some examples. Crime Prevention Crime prevention can be defined in several ways. My definition of crime prevention is stopping crime and protecting our neighborhoods. If the community and the police work together they can reduce crime over time drastically. Crime is increasing in neighborhoods, so, crime prevention should increase as well. The relationship of crime prevention to the Criminal Justice System has several purposes. Crime prevention has the main purpose of protecting the community and the people that live in them. â€Å"Crime prevention and the Criminal Justice System have two main goals: to lessen the human and material cost and its impact on socioeconomics development and to formulate international standards and norms in crime prevention and criminal justice and promote their observance (Encyclopedia of the Nations, 2013).† In the relationship of crime prevention to the Criminal Justice System the police have several objectives. The police objectives are to prevent and control conduct threatening the life or property including serious crimes. Police also help and protect victims who have been physically abused (Plant and Scott, 2009). They also stop and arrest drunken drivers which help and protect the community. When police make drug bust in which the community helps with tips or make arrest on repeat offenders this type of crime prevention is key in the relationship with the Criminal Justice System. Police are used as mediators and negotiators to resolve domestic disturbances or hostage situations (Plant and Scott, 2009). Police are also trying to find ways to protect the youth of today from following in the same footsteps as the criminals that they deal with on a day to day basis. Police are trying to do everything that they can to stop trafficking of persons and drugs throughout our nation and help keep our youth stay out of the criminal justice system. Crime prevention and the Criminal Justice System go hand in hand with the reduction of crime. There are many institutions through which crime prevention programs and practices are delivered. Most of the programs are built around habitual offenders and youths from the 5 to 18 years of age. One program that they have for repeat offenders is the Circle of Support and Accountability (COSA). This program targets young to adult males that have been tried and convicted of a sexual crime, did not get early release, and are at serious risk of reoffending (National Crime Prevention Centre, 2008). COSA has up to seven but no less than four volunteers that help the offenders reengage back to a normal life in their community. The volunteers also hold the offenders accountable for their actions. COSA’s main goals are to help the offenders through their difficulties and emergencies, hold them accountable for their behavior and attitudes, to be advocates for treatment with the providers, comm unity groups, the police agencies and any other professionals in the community, mediate with the community to answer their concerns, and to help them celebrate their success of treatment and their anniversaries (National Crime Prevention Centre, 2008). Another program that is used as a crime prevention program is the Boy and Girls Clubs of America. This program targets young children and teens from five years of age to eighteen. This also targets kids in high risk and drug infested communities. The Boys and Girls Club gives kids in the community a safe place to go after school and in the summer. This organization keeps kids and teens out of trouble. Teens that have dropped out of school are given an opportunity to get their GED through programs provided by the Boys and Girls Club (National Crime Prevention Centre, 2008). The Boys and Girls Club gives children a place to go when their parents are working late and gives parents a sense of relief because they know that their child is in a safe environment. The Boys and Girls Club provides kids with meals and snacks, a place to do their homework, a place to play sports, and a place to feel safe (National Crime Prevention Centre, 2008). The Clubs offer programming in four main areas. The areas are leadership; growth and empowerment, physical activity; health and safety, learning and career development, and community services. It also operates under five values. The values are inclusion and opportunities, respect and belonging, empowerment, collaboration, and speaking out (National Crime Prevention Centre, 2008). As you can see that empowerment is a major part of the Boys and Girls Club. Showing kids that they matter and that they have worth gives the kids a boost in their confidence and self-esteem. These are just two organizations that help and focus on making someone’s life better. There are many more out there that can help in particular fields of rehabilitation and kid safety. Crime prevention and the Criminal Justice System are needed though out our nation. Police are doing all they can to make the communities safe. It is time for the community to help the police and get rid of the â€Å"no snitching po licy.† The youth of today have so many things that can cause them to turn to a life of crime and it is up to parents, police, and other government officials to protect them. There are a large number of organizations that are out there that can help youths, teens, and adults to become better members of society. When a criminal is released back into society they should find one of these organizations to help them get acclimated with the community that they are moving into. The Criminal Justice System and crime prevention goes hand in hand but is not the only way to turn young adults away from crime. The responsibility is the parents to guide and protect the kids from the dangers of the world. The Criminal Justice System is full enough with young men and women, let’s try and stop the number from getting bigger. References Encyclopedia of the Nations (2013) retrieved from: http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/United-Nations/Social-and-Humanitarian-Assistance-CRIME-PREVENTION-AND-CRIMINAL-JUSTICE.html National Crime Prevention Centre (2008) retrieved from:

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Jewish resistance through music during the holocaust Essay

The Holocaust refers to the grim period of human history when about six million Jews and millions of other groups such as Soviets, Romani, and Poles in Europe were murdered systematically by Nazi Germans. The genocide was Germany’s â€Å"final solution† to the Jewish question which is what to do with the race of people who supposedly caused all the ills of Germany. Men, women, children, and the elderly were murdered using gas chambers in extermination camps in Auschwitz and other places. Jews however, did not easily succumb to the force upon them. They resisted through various ways, such as extermination camp breakouts and art. Jewish music stands out among all forms of resistance against the inhuman brutality of Nazi Germany during the Holocaust. Music served two main purposes for Jews during the time of mass exterminations. On the one hand, Jewish songs in the ghettos and elsewhere expressed their anguish and agony. Words were simply not enough to describe the pain, fear and darkness all around them. On the other hand though, music also uplifted the spirits of Jews. When the Nazis were trying to take away their humanity, the Jews affirmed it through optimistic music. In a way, music became life itself for Jews and other oppressed groups. Like other forms of art, music has the ability to evoke images and feelings in the listeners’ minds. For this reason, music was a convenient way to express the shared sentiments of Jews being murdered. Much of Jewish music ran counter to Nazi culture as Nazis viewed many modern forms of art, including jazz, as degenerate. Nazis forced Jews in concentration camps to make music for them, even commanding them to form orchestras for their entertainment. Jews continued to make music in the ghettos, however. They held concerts, staged operas, and performed many musical works to express their resistance against the Nazis and the sadness of their fate. During the German occupation, the music that surrounded Jews was not restricted to Wagnerian types which influenced Adolf Hitler. Nazis were quick to suppress classical works by Mahler and Mendelssohn because they were Jewish. In 1933, when Nazis started to take power, the Reich Music Office dismissed professional musicians of Jewish origins. John Felstiner, professor of Jewish studies and English at Stanford University, considers Jewish music at the time of the Holocaust as a type of resistance even though it is not done â€Å"physically,† such as ghetto uprisings. Jews performed and appreciated their own music at their lives risk’. Felstiner felt that the music that emerged was consequently free and seemed to have a different feel than poems and diary entries. Different kinds of music resulted from the dangerous situations Jews produced these forms of art. Examples of these are Handel’s â€Å"Judas Maccabeus,† Verdi’s â€Å"Requiem,† bitter songs in the ghettos, and humorous satires composed of old tunes and new lyrics. A friend of his in Auschwitz composed a song with her friends in Hungrian set to the tune of Hatikvah, Israel’s national anthem. Felstiner thought that the song sustained his friend during her stay in the concentration camp. The Gestapo, the secret police of Nazi Germany, turned Terezin, a town in the Czech Republic, into a ghetto for Jews coming from Czechoslovakia, Germany, Denmark, Austria, and the Netherlands. While the place wasn’t an extermination camp, thousands of Jews still died there because of appalling conditions. During this period, a Czech Jewish composer by the name of Gideon Klein intensified his activity when he was sent to the town. He ran numerous classes for children, organized and performed concerts, and composed music Jewish music. According to Felstiner, one of Klein’s listeners remembered him playing so beautifully that they couldn’t help but let tears stream down their cheeks. At another event, Klein organized a very simple attic concert with three chairs for the string trio. Despite the simplicity of the concert however, the audience was very still while listening to the music. People guarded the steps into the attic and someone kept lookout from the window. Klein’s listener described these musical performances as â€Å"spiritual nourishment† and thought they made them forget their misery and hunger and long for more performances. For Klein and other artists however, concerts like this are an act of rebellion against the Nazi Germans. Gideon Klein was very influential to ghetto residents during his stay in Terezin. As evidence, a teenager wrote a striking poem about him entitled â€Å"Concert in the Old School Garret† depicting his ardent desire to express resistance through his music. Klein’s wonderful largo was formed through the variations of his favorite Moravian folk song her nanny sang to him when he was young. He was not able to perform the song himself in Terezin however, although the score survived. Nine days after he composed the song in September 1944, he was sent to the concentration camp at Auschwitz. According to drawings of Charlotte Buresova and Petr Kien, visual artists at Terezin during the same period of time, Klein’s face showed clear resistance against the brutal Final Solution of Nazis. Holocaust songs are different from ordinary forms of communication produced during the period because they elevated speech to transcendent levels. Songs written and sang by Jews contained the culture that defined their oppressed communities. Human values can be expressed in the abstract through music. Thus, in an inhuman environment such as the Nazi Germans constructed for Jews and other oppressed groups, singing their own songs was equivalent to crying for recognition as fellow human beings. Songs have a humanizing effect on singers and listeners. Survivors of the Holocaust consider this effect the essential value of singing Jewish songs. Singing at this time was therefore an act of creation and was very important amidst the horrible conditions of ghetto life. Jews asserted their freedom and human life by singing their own songs in the ghetto, which clearly makes the activity an act of resistance against the systematic dehumanization of their race by the oppressors. Ghetto songs symbolized the struggle for survival of Jews. They were the musical representations of life surviving under the harshest of conditions, and not death. For survivors of the mass exterminations and forced labor, Jewish music was beyond ordinary language. It represented the only truth of their life in the ghettos and told the story of their long and hard spiritual resistance. Nazis though, was also aware of the power of music in defining what’s culturally right or reasonable. As soon as the Nazis took power, they limited the activity of Jewish musicians and aired their propaganda through their own songs. Music was used to establish an atmosphere which permitted mass murder since it was seen as a patriotic duty and its victims were subhuman. Nazi music proliferated the streets and the radio waves and even made its way into concentration camps. Initially during the Holocaust, at the arrival depots for captured Jews, they were questioned regarding their musical abilities. People were sorted out into those who could sing or play music and those who couldn’t. Those who could were commanded to perform propaganda music for Nazis before they were sent away to be gassed, incinerated, or tortured. At Auschwitz, the largest extermination camp in history, an all-female orchestra was formed for the entertainment of Nazis. Members of the orchestra were constantly replaced because the women regularly died of starvation, disease or were murdered. At Terezin, before Nazis completely sent the ghetto residents to the extermination camps, Jews continued to produce their music for the people. Ordinary people and artists defied the regime by singing their songs and make their music. They also gathered strength to live for another day by immersing themselves in the operas and concerts that organizers arranged. Josef Bor, a Czechoslovakian Jew, who was imprisoned with his family at Terezin remembered how his fellow Jews proudly sang to their deaths in the face of Nazis. In a concentration camp, inmates sang Verdi’s â€Å"Requiem† passionately in front of SS troops and Adolf Eichmann, the supposed architect of the Holocaust. Eichmann was amused by the performance of the Jews, but the inmates themselves were beyond Eichmann’s twisted humor. According to Bor, the inmates found liberation from exhaustion, terror, and provocation through the power of music. At their performance, the inmates sang with all their strength the words â€Å"Free me, God, from eternal death† in the faces of their murderers. Many musical works have been recovered since the end of World War II. Scores from musicians such as Gideon Klein, Pavel Haar, Hans Krasa, and Viktor Ullman were discovered by researchers. These musicians had notable musical careers even before the Nazis took power and they continued to make music later to express resistance. Ullman was a pupil of Arnold Schoenberg, the famous Austrian composer. Two operas are particularly significant in defining this period of time: â€Å"Brundibar† by Hans Krasa and Adolf Hoffmeister and â€Å"Der Kaiser von Atlantis, oder Tod dank tab† (The emperor of Atlantis or death abdicates) by Ullman and Peter Kien. All of these talented musicians perished in the extermination camp at Auschwitz in 1944. Their works have since been performed in Israel, the United States, England, Czechoslovakia, and Holland. Other vocal and instrumental selections were also gathered from manuscripts found at the camp in Terezin, many of them written anonymously. Holocaust memorials and Israeli libraries have many of these creations, especially of notable of musicians such as Ilse Weber. Weber was an educator and singer who composed and sang songs to children while she was at Terezin. Unfortunately, Weber along with other Jews, were also transported to Auschwitz and gassed. Today, Holocaust commemorations usually include music produced depicting the struggle for survival of Jews at the time. Examples of this type of music is Max Bruch’s â€Å"Kol Nidre,† an interpretation of a Jewish prayer that opens evening services on Yom Kippur, and Leonard Bernstein’s â€Å"Kaddish† an interpretation of the Jewish prayer for the dead. Other pieces worth considering are Steve Reich’s music in â€Å"Different Trains,† Henryk Gorecki’s â€Å"Third Symphony,† Dmitry Shostakovich’s â€Å"Thirteenth Symphony,† and Arnold Schoenberg’s â€Å"A Survivor from Warsaw. † Music, the universal language of human beings, is indeed a powerful tool of resistance. Through its ability to express the humanity of performers, singers, and listeners, Jews made use of music to highlight the inhuman Nazi force that oppressed them. As long as they could make their own music which reflected their culture, suffering, and hopes, Jews refused to be the subhuman creatures which their oppressors wanted them to be. While music will never be a physical form of resistance against unjust forces in society, its unique power to condition the minds of people will always be as potent as ever. Music contains the truth of the lives people live and is therefore a slap on the face of forces that seek to erase people’s humanity. BIBLIOGRAPHY Berger, Ronald J. Fathoming the Holocaust: a social problems approach. Piscataway: Aldine Transaction, 2002. Flam, Gila. Singing for Survival: Songs of the Lodz Ghetto, 1940-45. Urbana-Champaign: University of Illinois Press, 1992. Gilbert, Shirli. Music in the Holocaust: Confronting Life in the Nazi Ghettos and Camps. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005. Heskes, Irene. Passport to Jewish music: its history, traditions, and culture. Abingdon: Greenwood Publishing Group, 1994. Roth, John K. Holocaust Politics. Dallas: Westminster John Knox Press, 2001. Rubenstein, Richard L. and John K. Roth, Approaches to Auschwitz: the Holocaust and its legacy. Dallas: Westminster John Knox Press, 2003. Signer, Michael Alan. Humanity at the limit: the impact of the Holocaust experience on Jews and Christians. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2000.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Preparing A Nutcracker and Scrub Jay Study essays

Preparing A Nutcracker and Scrub Jay Study essays In this experimental design, I would get fully grown adults of 30 nutcracker species and 30 scrub jay species from the wild. I will also get naive 30 nutcracker species and naive 30 scrub jays that were just born in the wild and have not had much chance to practice caching in the wild and bring it into captivity in the laboratory. There would be total of four chambers, one for fully grown nutcracker species, one for naive nutcracker species, one for fully grown scrub jay species, and last one for naive scrub jay species. The naive nutcrackers and scrub jays would stay in these chambers in laboratory for about 3 months before I would actually run the experiments, and the wild nutcrackers and scrub jays would stay in these chambers for only three days before the experiment. The main experiment of this design would be to measure the total number of seeds that nutcrackers and scrub jays of both adult and naive are able to retrieve over a certain limited amount of time (control) and over a longer amount of time. The chambers would be of equal size, and during the initial 3 months before the experiment, the conditions of the chambers will be kept at very optimal conditions so that the naive birds are healthy and not deprived of anything until the experiment. For instance, the temperatures of the chambers will be optimal so that the birds will not get hypothermia or hyperthermia, the birds would be given its optimal diet, the birds would be given enough amount of water, and the birds will be exposed to optimal light/dark cycles (e.g. 12:10 light to dark). It is possible that during the initial 3 months before the experiment, a male nutcracker might mate with a female nutcracker or a male scrub jay will mate with a female scrub jay, and in this case, the newly born offspring would be taken out of the chamber and released into the wild or kept somewhere else, because they will not be tested in this experiment. During the 3 months be ...

Monday, October 21, 2019

Examine how and why McDonald’s recently decided to rebrand itself in the UK The WritePass Journal

Examine how and why McDonald’s recently decided to rebrand itself in the UK Introduction Examine how and why McDonald’s recently decided to rebrand itself in the UK ). It was shown that are significant risks to major bodily organs that came as a result of this experiment (Boniwell and Lucy, 2012). This attitude aligns itself with the increasing interest in the growing level of obesity among adults and children around the world. Given the fact that one of the main reasons behind the obesity is excessive fast food intake, this negatively affects the brand image of McDonald’s (Boniwell and Lucy, 2012). As a result, the company has decided to integrate healthier fast food options within their menus. Jamie Oliver, one of the most popular TV chefs in the UK, has also criticized McDonald’s food. He condemned the company for the poor nutritional content in their products and the overall low quality of McDonald’s food (Marketing, 2012). However, once the company integrated health-related associations into it rebrand, Jamie Oliver actually praised the company (Marketing, 2012). Oliver started supporting McDonald’s after the company started using organic milk and free-range eggs in their menu (Marketing, 2012). Therefore it can be seen that criticism from key institutions and famous celebrities has driven McDonald’s to promote healthy food as part of the company rebrand. This can be seen as McDonald’s has started to provide nutritional information for its products in the restaurant menus. The products have also been redesigned with a view of decreasing the number of calories in them; for example, it is estimated that the calorie content in some McDonald’s meals has decreased by as much as 20%. Despite this, there remain products which are high in calories, such as the popular Big Mac, which still has 490 calories a serving (Daily Mail, 2011). A significant part of this rebrand aims to distance McDonald’s from the image of a â€Å"fast food cafà ©Ã¢â‚¬ , which considers speed as their priority. This implies that the company is trying to change its brand image to be seen as an â€Å"upscale restaurant†, thereby delivering better quality service and products (Humans Invent, 2012). This can be seen in the redecoration of the restaurants’ interior to be more â€Å"restaurant-like† in their design. These actions suggest that the company is attempting to distance itself from the primary factors that, in the beginning, actually have contributed to the widespread development of McDonald’s brand image: efficiency, calculability and speed. However, some sources argue that it would be quite difficult for the company to change the target market from being consumer’s expecting quick service and standard McDonald’s food meal to ones expecting a nice and pleasurable experience (Humans I nvent, 2012). Elsewhere, McDonald’s rebrand aims to target families with children that visit the restaurants for lunch or for dinner. This implies that McDonald’s typical customers, namely teenagers and children, has contributed to decrease the value of the brand image (Humans Invent, 2012). Consequently, the majority of McDonald’s restaurants in the UK have been redesigned to look like a contemporary family restaurant (Humans Invent, 2012). This implies that the whole seating arrangement and interior design has been changed to suit the family needs. Despite this, the food quality is still not considered to be for everyone; therefore it is questionable whether the redesign and changes in the menus will attract the correct consumer. A similar rebranding campaign was integrated by the superstore Wal-Mart, where the management tried to integrate celebrity endorsement to change brand image (Frying Pan News, 2011). However, given Wal-Mart’s brand reputation and history, this campaign was widely considered to be a failure. Therefore, the question still remains whether the current rebranding strategy will work for McDonald’s as the company is trying to completely change a brand strategy that has been hugely successful for 50 years (Elliott, 2011). McDonald’s had already tried to integrate new products in the past, such as offering Deluxe Line Burgers, but these strategies have failed (Elliott, 2011). This suggests that McDonald’s targeted children as well as families, anticipating that parents would come to McDonald’s to please their children. Therefore the needs of a target market did not correspond with the positioning of a new â€Å"Deluxe† product which led to the failure of the line (Elliott, 2011). Currently, McDonald’s is attempting to change the product, promotion, positioning, and physical evidence of its brand in line with the new target market. However, despite all of these changes, there is still a chance that this will not be successful. Conclusion The aim of this essay was to explore the key reasons behind the new McDonald’s rebranding strategy. It can be seen that the company has decided to move away from the old rebranding strategy which has been successful for the last 50 years. McDonald’s has started to integrate changes into every aspect of its marketing mix. This rebranding has altered the nature of McJob, the health value of the product and the quality of the service. The new rebrand strategy has also introduced new targeting and positioning strategies, as well as affecting the promotion, physical product and people aspects of the McDonald’s brand. Despite the efforts of the new rebranding strategy, the levels of success remain questionable and it could be considered that rebranding may actually decrease the value of McDonald’s brand in the context of its association with American and pop culture. Likewise, it may fail to attract the new target market which could result in additional costs fo r the company. References: Bloomberg (2013) McDonald’s Employee Budget Planner Assumes 2 Jobs at $13 an Hour. Available: bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-15/mcdonald-s-employee-budget-planner-assumes-2-jobs-at-13-an-hour.html (Accessed on 14/11/2013). Boniwell, I., Lucy, R. (2012) Personal Well-Being Lessons For Secondary Schools: Positive Psychology In Action for 11 to 14 years old, McGraw-Hill: UK. Daily Mail (2011) Its a (salty, fatty, saucy) McWrap! 600-calorie breakfast is worse than Big Mac, Available: dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2054942/McDonald’s-McWrap-600-calorie-breakfast-worse-Big-Mac.html (Accessed on 14/11/2013). Elliott, C. (2011) â€Å"It’s junk food and chicken nuggets: Children’s perspectives on ‘kids’ food’ and the question of food classification†, in Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 10 (13): 133-40. Frying Pan News (2013) Walmart Celebrities: Which Side Are You On? Available: http://fryingpannews.org/2013/07/30/walmart-celebrities-which-side-are-you-on/ (Accessed on 14/11/2013). Humans Invent (2012) McDonald’s gets a face-lift. Available: humansinvent.com/#!/4429/McDonald’s-gets-a-face-lift/ (Accessed on 14/11/2013). Klein, N. (1999) No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies, Knopf Canada: Canada. Marketing (2012) Jamie Oliver praises McDonalds healthy eating agenda. Available: marketingmagazine.co.uk/article/1142906/jamie-oliver-praises-McDonald’s-healthy-eating-agenda (Accessed on 14/11/2013). Ritzer, G. (2011) The McDonaldization of Society 6, Pine Forge Press: USA. Schlosser, E. (2004) Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal, Allen Lane The Penguin Press: UK. Talent Management (2011) McDonald’s Aims to Rebrand the ‘McJob’. Available: http://talentmgt.com/articles/view/McDonald’s-aims-to-rebrand-the-mcjob/1 (Accessed on 14/11/2013).

Sunday, October 20, 2019

A SWOT Analysis Of PTCL Systems

A SWOT Analysis Of PTCL Systems There is no skimpy competitor of PTCL in landline but with the growth of telecommunication business of Pakistan rivalry increasing specially in mobile phone sector. There are more then 800 million subscribers of cellular phone. There are 03 big players in mobile phone industry but 3 of them are the competitor of PTCL: Mobilink, Telenor, Warid Tel. Mobilink is the largest mobile phone company of Pakistan. Mobilink is currently having more then 31,958,597 users base which is the 36% of total cellular industry of Pakistan. Mobilink is basically challenging Ufone which is subsidiaries of PTCL. Telenor is another cell phone company it have 17,841,074 subscribers which is 20 % of total mobile industry. Warid Tel Waridtel is also providing cell phone services in Pakistan. Waridtel have more than 15,114,678 subscribers which are 17% of Pakistan mobile industry. NEW COMPETITORS Other than mobile Economic forces Social, cultural, demographic, and environmental forces Political, governmental and legal forces Technological forces Competitive forces etc Internal factors are; Marketing strength of firm Financial/Accounting resources Management Computer information system Production/operations etc Why SWOT analysis A SWOT Analysis is conducted by the company so that it is able to position itself to take advantage of particular opportunities in the environment and to avoid or minimize environmental threats. In doing so, the organization attempts to emphasize its strengths and moderate the impact of weaknesses. The analysis is also useful for uncovering strengths that have not been fully utilized and in identifying weaknesses that can be corrected. Matching information about the environment with the organization’s capabilities enables management to formulate realistic strategies for attaining its goals. Strengths A professional management is running PTCL. PTCL Management is continuously allocating funds for new technology, enhancing knowledge pool, acquiring profession ally skilled personnel and so many arrangements regarding meeting the requirements of rapidly changing environment. PTCL has the largest network coverage in the country including almost all the cities and their peripheries which others lack yet. The company has got a very vast and very strong infrastructure within the country based on the landline network

Friday, October 18, 2019

Bureaucracy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Bureaucracy - Essay Example Proponents of bureaucracy claim that the elected officials including the President cannot monitor all affairs of the country and there is need of institutions to support the other three arms of government (Meier & O’Toole, 2006). In this case, the proponents assert that bureaucrats have technical expertise that is essential for smooth running of the country since the elected officials may not have the necessary knowledge and skills to manage certain aspects of the society such as technology development or defense of the county (Meier & O’Toole, 2006). The opponents of bureaucracy assert that public agencies assist in policy formulation and implementation since the Congress only passes the laws and allows the relevant agencies to implement such laws in terms of government policies (Stillman, 2004). The proponents are of the idea that the capacity of government to administer public policies depends on the ability and authority of appointed officials since politicians may have self-interests in certain policies thus jeopardizing the benefits that would have accrued from implementation of the public policy (Wilson, 1989). On the other hand, opponents of this type of administration claim that the legislature can pass the laws in terms of public policies and thus government agencies must not be equated with the other three arms of the government that are outline in the constitution (Meier & O’Toole, 2006). The opponents claim that the Congress is the representative of people voices and allowing bureaucrats to participate in crea ting the laws and regulations overrides the need of voting and having a representative government as guaranteed by the US constitution. Indeed, the opponents assert that bureaucrats are unreachable and this limits public participation is setting up public policies (Stillman, 2004). The opponents of bureaucracy argue that government agencies are wasteful and offer minimal services to the

Understanding management accounting and financial management Assignment - 1

Understanding management accounting and financial management - Assignment Example Understanding management accounting and financial management The cash budget presents the activity of the company over the first 12 months of its operations and assesses how much cash it can generate while working in the due course of business. As it is apparent from the above computation that in the first month the company has negative cash flow as it is the policy of the company to sale goods on credit and majority of the creditor settles claims after the month of the sales. After the first few months, the cash flow of the company has changed from negative to positive and thus it continues to grow for the next months till December. In order to further increase it cash flows, the company should curtail its variable cost of production and should ensure that creditors are approached in order to award the company with discounts. Another method for ensuring that the company has healthy cash flow is that the company should ask the creditors for increasing the settlement period. By doing so, the company would have ample amount of cash available and thus it can invest it in the working capital. Good working capital is essential for better functionality of the business and the company can assess the working capital requirement by looking at its cash budget. For example, since the cash flow is negative in the first two months, the company needs to manage its working capital prudently in these two months so that they can finance the rest of the operations of the year easily. A budget is a financial and a quantitative statement prepared prior to a defined

Kohl's Department store Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Kohl's Department store - Essay Example It also has equally impressive house brands that are price competitive. These give variety to the product lines that the department store carries. One of the company’s strengths is that Kohl has a very wide distribution network, with nine distribution centers located in strategic areas. This enables the company to immediately replenish stocks in the stores. Immediate replenishment means there will be minimal lost sales due to non-availability of the products. Having a lot of distribution centers also results to manageable operations costs resulting from having to bring the products from one area to another. However, Kohl’s main weakness is its company size compared to the industry’s larger players. Kohl only has about 1000 stores located in various parts of the US. Furthermore, its area of distribution is only within the US, whereas other Retail stores have reached other countries. As such, Kohl is very dependent on the economic condition of the US. Kohl has the ability to compete heads on with the larger players as it continues to expand, with the target of having 1,400 stores in 2012 (Economy Disrupts Kohl’s Expansion 2009). In spite of the economic downturn, slowing the company’s expansion from its target of 90 new stores per year to only 75, the company is still confident on its expansion plans. And alongside the expansion plans is their innovative marketing plans, among which is the company’s shopping strategy tool, whereby consumers can create and print customized shopping lists that has product images and pricing so that they can compare values and get the most out of their money (Kohl’s Shoppers Can Count on Tremendous After Thanksgiving Day Savings 2009). Another opportunity is that Kohl is now also maximizing online shopping, as the other retailers in the same league. Doing so would attract more consumers, and connecting them on a personal level as the website offers detailed

Thursday, October 17, 2019

The Semai Community Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Semai Community - Research Paper Example The individuals in the community share more that only among family. However, everybody in the Semai camp has to share the items or food that they have obtained for the day; including those that were injured or even too sick to be able to take part will be given their share. Nonetheless, this is a good example of a generalized reciprocity whereby one might give something without expectations of receiving something in return, maybe in some way or even some other day. The concept or idea of possession among the Semai is different from that of the West. For instance, in the United States of America, it would be felt that the meat’s owner was the one who brought the animal down. However, among the Semai community, the owner of the meat is the one who unleashed the arrow. In this manner, more individuals have a chance of contributing toward food. They are normally happy to do trade with the others since they lack the means to keep or store food (Laird 18). An individual who possesses meat would wish to exchange with another thing since it is possible that the meat would go bad before he or she would finish it all up. The Semai people have a robustly peaceful image of themselves, they consider themselves as being nonviolent individuals who are not always angered or do harm unto others. They, in fact, sometimes disagree and get angry, but have less violent expressions of fury, and they nearly never beat up their children. These people regard themselves as non-violent, nurturing and dependant; a character that allowed violence would challenge their definition of good value (Peaceful Socities.org 16). Their view of the world and the place of humanity in it does not have any place for aggression.  

English - Drama and Farce - The bear Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

English - Drama and Farce - The bear - Essay Example Popov in a funny way, who appears to be mourning the death of his husband died some seven months back. The play concentrates upon one of the protagonists Luka, who is the footman of Mrs. Popov, a silly and idiot old person that maintains the habit of giving vent to his ideas without making any analyses of the remarks he is going to deliver. Since he has been serving Mrs. Popov, Luka also feels sorry for the death of her husband. Consequently, he tries to console his crying mistress in such a stupid manner that looks irksome to her, and invites the laughter of the audience subsequently. Mrs. Popov recalls the sweet memories of the moments she had spent with her deceased husband, while Luka interrupts her by stating that since other members of the house, including servants and animals, have overcome their grief, she should also imitate them and hence should participate in other activities of everyday life. Moreover, instead of sharing the grief-stricken lady, Luka laments on the loss o f his uniform eaten by the mice. He blames the army for this act of the mice, which could not control their mischief altogether. Another character, Mr. Smirnov, is also dealt by Luka in the same manner, which invites his anger to a great extent. Additionally, the expressions of love and affection demonstrated by the old Smirnov also disturb Mrs. Popov, and she looks for the expulsion of the rich stupid fellow in one way or the other. The play contains some elements of a farce in it, where just like farce, the play under study also creates humor out of both dialogue and actions. Both Luka and Smirnov perform acts in a foolish and brainless way, and support their idiocy with the help of absurd dialogues, meant to console Mrs. Popov, though these acts and words infuriate and agitate her to a great extent. Another characteristic of farce observed by the Bear is this that the characters pretend to be very wise and

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Theories in Nursing Practice Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Theories in Nursing Practice - Assignment Example Her coaching then identifies organization system of the model. The scenario implies that nurses should be empowered to utilize their experience in care management, though in a positive way. Nurses’ training should therefore ensure emotional stability and sensitivity. Jason Short who navigates flooded roads to reach a dying patient in his home is using the Orlando’s nursing process theory. According to the theory, a nurse primary function is to identify a patient’s immediate need and to meet that need. Personal intuition guides identification of a patient’s need that may not necessarily be consistent with the information that the patient is conveying. Jason’s motive of helping bedridden patients identifies a broad approach that identifies a dying patient, then using the patient’s environment to learn the patient’s needs before employing initiatives for helping the patient and is therefore consistent with the theory. Based on the theory, nurses should be trained to identify patient’s underlying needs through psychological empowerment (Black, 2013). The Imogene King’s theory of goal attainment is also applicable to Brian McMillion’s scenario. The theory identifies the role of a nurse’s experience in influencing the nurse’s approach to caring for patient and the scenario identifies the role of his traumatic experience in identifying with military veteran (Fitzpatrick and Kazer, 2011). His traumatic experiences as an ex soldier motivates him to help veterans who could suffering from negative effects of their services. The scenario therefore identifies the need to empower nurses to effective management of their bad experiences for helping patients. Sister Stephen’s approach to care that brings patients comfort through her farm animals applies the Kolba’s theory of comfort. According to the middle range theory, the immediate goal of care is to attain comfort and this

English - Drama and Farce - The bear Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

English - Drama and Farce - The bear - Essay Example Popov in a funny way, who appears to be mourning the death of his husband died some seven months back. The play concentrates upon one of the protagonists Luka, who is the footman of Mrs. Popov, a silly and idiot old person that maintains the habit of giving vent to his ideas without making any analyses of the remarks he is going to deliver. Since he has been serving Mrs. Popov, Luka also feels sorry for the death of her husband. Consequently, he tries to console his crying mistress in such a stupid manner that looks irksome to her, and invites the laughter of the audience subsequently. Mrs. Popov recalls the sweet memories of the moments she had spent with her deceased husband, while Luka interrupts her by stating that since other members of the house, including servants and animals, have overcome their grief, she should also imitate them and hence should participate in other activities of everyday life. Moreover, instead of sharing the grief-stricken lady, Luka laments on the loss o f his uniform eaten by the mice. He blames the army for this act of the mice, which could not control their mischief altogether. Another character, Mr. Smirnov, is also dealt by Luka in the same manner, which invites his anger to a great extent. Additionally, the expressions of love and affection demonstrated by the old Smirnov also disturb Mrs. Popov, and she looks for the expulsion of the rich stupid fellow in one way or the other. The play contains some elements of a farce in it, where just like farce, the play under study also creates humor out of both dialogue and actions. Both Luka and Smirnov perform acts in a foolish and brainless way, and support their idiocy with the help of absurd dialogues, meant to console Mrs. Popov, though these acts and words infuriate and agitate her to a great extent. Another characteristic of farce observed by the Bear is this that the characters pretend to be very wise and

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Discuss the Different Components of Michael Porters Essay Example for Free

Discuss the Different Components of Michael Porters Essay National prosperity is created not inherited. It does not grow out of a country’s natural endowments, its labor pool, its inters rates or its currency’s value. A nations competitiveness depends on the capacity of its industry to innovate and upgrade. They benefit from having strong domestic rivals, aggressive home based suppliers and demanding local customers. Innovation is what drives and sustains competitiveness. A firm must avail itself to all dimension of competition, which he categorized into four major components of the â€Å"diamond of national advantage† 1. Factor Conditions: The appropriateness of the nations factors of production to compete successfully in a specific industry. Porters notes that although these factor conditions are very important in the determination of trade, they are not the only source of competitiveness as suggested by the classical, or factor portions, theories trade. Most importantly for Porter, it is the ability of a nation to continually create, upgrade, and deploy its factors ( such as skilled labors) that is important, not the initial endowment. 2. Demand conditions: The degree of health and competition the firm must face in its original home market. Firms that can survive and flourish in highly competitive and demanding local markets are much more likely to gain the competitive edge. Porter notes that if the character of the market, not its size, that is paramount in promoting the continual competitiveness of the firm. And Porter translates Characters as demanding costumers. 3. Related and supporting industries: The competitiveness of all related industries and suppliers to the firm. A firm that is operating within a mass of related firms and industries gains and maintains advantages through close working relationship, proximity to suppliers, and timeliness of product and information flows. The constant and close interaction is successful if it occurs not only in terms of physical proximity but also through the willingness of firms to work at it. 4. Firms strategy, structure and rivalry: The conditions of the home- nation that either hinder or aid in the firms creation and sustaining of international strategy is universally appropriate. It depends on the fit and flexibility of what works for that country at that time. These four points constiture what nations and firms must strive to â€Å"create and sustain through a highly localized process† to ensure their success.

Monday, October 14, 2019

Introduction To The Media Industry Media Essay

Introduction To The Media Industry Media Essay As the media industry joins the ranks of others that are facing tremendous declines and losing advertising revenue, African Americans in the media have also faced extreme challenges. We as people often search for answers to create change in todays society, but stereotypes linger within our world placing a barrier on chances of unity and equality. One of the main sources of these stereotypes is the mass media. Stereotypes are commonly referred to as codes that give audiences quick, common understandings, (sometimes invalid) of a person or group of people mostly relating to their class, ethnicity or race, gender, sexual orientation, social role, or occupation. African Americans are constantly viewed in ways that are false and over-exaggerated. From loud explicit curse words, to wobbly behinds and gold teeth, the mass media blinds America with false and negative images. From the beginning of television history, African Americans were shown as very dark, monkey-like characters without a tad of know-how except in the areas of housekeeping or singing and dancing. Stereotyping or labeling is a technique that attempts to arouse prejudices in an audience by labeling the object of the images as something the target audience fears, hates, loathes, or finds undesirable (Lester 134). These ideas become so clichà © that they begin to form daily thoughts and views and one is unable to look beyond them. The mass media, including movies, music, music videos, newspapers, magazines, television broadcasts, and forms of advertising, often portrays African Americans as hood, ghetto, threatening, and sexually explicit. This has transformed into lifestyles and insulting stereotypes in todays society. The inadequate coverage of African Americans due, in large part to the lack of depth in minority media ownership, has provided an opportunity in the nations current economic conditions. The media industry is taking major hits as revenues are dropping, readership and viewership totals are down, and the journalism and media industries are bumping along the same rocky roads as the automotive industry where thousands of jobs were lost in a matter of days. Framework of Study This study will include a mass research of the past century of African American appearances in the media. African- Americans image has evolved over time. Research will be focused on why and how this evolution process has taken place. This subject has been overlooked by society, and many do not understand that the process of an African-American being placed in the media was a very difficult one. Examples will be given on how African Americans were depicted in the media. Also, there will be an analysis of how audiences of the media react to blacks being the focal point, and why publishers and broadcasters show these images in the manner that they do. Graphs of the ratings of the different media releases will be compared by race of focal point to determine the impact that African-Americans had on society through the media. Also, common television sitcoms will be analyzed in order to explain how African-American images have changed over time. All sitcoms were reviewed through network television. The sitcoms range from the 1960s to the current television era. Also, the sitcoms will be analyzed to explain how the content has changed societys view on the lives and culture of African Americans. Statement of Problem Society has placed a negative image on African-Americans due to the techniques of the media used to portray them. These techniques are marketing schemes used to produce more total revenue. These negative ideas or beliefs place a role in the lives of many African-Americans. Stereotypes are formed and problems arise daily for black individuals. From ethnic name profiling to police brutality, African-Americans endure corrupt thoughts based on negative images displayed by the media. The only way to erase or reduce these negative images is if the media reverses the images it has created. Many marketing specialist believe that these images are entertaining and overlook the morals and values of its content. African-Americans are unfairly and unrealistically portrayed on television and other forms of media. Unfortunately, there are many who do fall victim to the stereotypes, and there are many more that experience prejudice and pain because of them. After watching some movies that are currently popular, it seems that the majority of current films that are aimed at an African American audience fill and support these negative stereotypes of African Americans. Luckily, there are some media broadcasts that allow variety of African Americans to be shown to society. The change in content of programming is currently allowing room for change of the long lived stereotypes. Rational Profiling, stereotyping, and negative imaging must be stopped. Even after decades have relinquished away since the time of slavery, racism and prejudices still linger in our society. The media is not making these images look any better. Social prejudices or programmed depictions of groups in a society have long pervaded and shaped social ethos, but it is through this awareness, that cultural humanity is able to dismantle and set aside such associations (Walker 545). The images in the media of African Americans have changed the lifestyles of todays black society. Due to lack of knowledge and being blinded the media, the African-American race has yielded to live up to the images shown to society. These stereotypes of African Americans being used by the media today and years ago are injuring the realistic image of black people and the way that both African-American and Caucasians view those of African heritage. Gender, Class, and Race Stereotypes in American Media Gender, class, and race stereotypes abound in contemporary society, much like they have done throughout human history. With the advent of the media, however, stereotypical assumptions have become so pervasive, and so diffused, that some call for a serious and purposeful scrutiny of the media contents. A full analysis will be conducted to enlighten others that the African-American culture differs tremendously from the way that the media displays it.

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Working with families is difficult and complex. Essay -- Social Issues

Working with children, young people and their families can be seen as difficult and complex for many different reasons. However, before these topics can be discussed and explored fully, it is important to completely understand the difference between the words ‘difficult’ and ‘complex’. ‘Difficult’ implies that things are not easily or readily done, where it requires much effort much effort, labour and skill to be performed effectively. In the same way, ‘complex’ implies a hard to deal with situation, but also involves many interconnected parts or complicated arrangements that consist of emotional attachment. Social work is rarely working with one individual, as stated in O’Loughlin and O’Loughlin (2008); it will involve working with the whole family which is constantly changing making it complex and diverse. It may consist of parents or carers who share the same race, class, culture, or sexuality, but alternatively it may not. Members within the family help to determine our behaviour, roles, rules and stereotyping. To add to this, people are constantly entering and leaving the family system either by marriage, divorce or death. These complexities are shown in ecomaps or genograms. It is important to understand that the child’s welfare is paramount, but in order to achieve positive outcomes for the child, effective work will need to be done within the family. Relationships within a family are known as a system with the family being viewed as a whole, rather than as many individuals. Within family relationships, everyone seeks to uphold the equilibrium so if one member seeks to change, the others seek to resist. However, difficulties include maintaining good relationships and knowing boundaries between professional and personal... ...children, young people and their families can be both complex and difficult. Social work practice is one of the most challenging as it involves work with a diverse range of both professionals and service users. However, there is more that one single reason for this. As all professionals, agencies and parents continue to work together in various different cases, a variety of skills are required including: communication, preparation, intervention skills, assessment of significant harm, research of current legislation and decision making skills, all of which contribute to the complexities and difficulties of social work. It could be argued that these difficulties are highlighted most in many public cases of child abuse; moreover these cases can be seen to be changing social work practice, affecting the difficulties and complexities of working within this profession.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Positive Quotes :: essays research papers

You can have anything you want ..if you want it badly enough. You can be anything you want to be, do anything you set out to accomplish if you hold to that desire with singleness of purpose. - Abraham Lincoln Learn to self-conquest, persevere thus for a time, and you will perceive very clearly the advantage which you gain from it. - St. Teresa of Avila No one is in control of your happiness but you; therefore, you have the power to change anything about yourself or your life that you want to change. - Barbara De Angelis June 5, 2004 Cherish your visions and your dreams as they are the children of your soul; the blue prints of your ultimate accomplishments. - Napoleon Hill In every person who comes near you look for what is good and strong, honor that; try to imitate it, and your faults will drop off like dead leaves when their time comes. - John Ruskin There are two educations. One should teach us how to make a living and the other how to live. - John Adams May 29, 2004 None will improve your lot if you yourself do not. - Bertolt Brecht, 1933 "When meditation is mastered, the mind is unwavering like the flame of a lamp in a windless place." - Bhagavad Gita I can give you a six-word formula for success: Think things through ..then follow through. - Captain Edward V. Rickenbacker May 22, 2004 You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. - Eleanor Roosevelt The more people have studied different methods of bringing up children the more they have come to the conclusion that what good mothers and fathers instinctively feel like doing is best after all. - Benjamin Spock People are eternally divided into two classes, the believer, builder, and praiser, and the unbeliever, destroyer and critic. - John Ruskin May 15, 2004 To be capable of steady friendship or lasting love, are the two greatest proofs, not only of goodness of heart, but of strength of mind. - William Hazlitt There is in every true woman’s heart a spark of heavenly fire, which lies dormant in the broad daylight of prosperity, but which kindles up, and beams and blazes in the dark hour of adversity. - Elisabeth Guizot Look at a day when you are supremely satisfied at the end. It's not a day when you lounge around doing nothing; it's when you've had everything to do, and you've done it.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Essay on “Anti-smacking bill” Essay

In this essay, I am going to discuss, identify and outline my selected social policy; I will also explain why I selected this social policy and why it is a social policy; I will Identify and describe the interest groups who helped define this problem and have set the agenda; the objectives of this social policy will be outlined and explained, arguments of the interest groups will be linked to their political ideology or ideologies. I have chosen the â€Å"Anti-smacking Bill† because I believe that physical punishment can be ineffective and can have harmful long-term effects on children, especially if it’s severe. It is appears clear to me that there are many other ways of disciplining children that are less harmful. Also, I believe that prosecuting parents will not necessarily lead to a decrease in child abuse. Like many other New Zealanders however, I have been a little confused by much of the argument around which is the best way to protect the interests of the children of our country. I am also interested in how this policy affected so many groups of people that defined the policy in different ways. This bill was very controversial from the start. Politicians and focus groups have been up and arms about this bill. In 2001, The Labour-led government began considering amending the smacking law at the request of United Nations, but decided not to repeal Section 59 of the Crimes Act, which says parents can use disciplinary force against their children if it’s reasonable. In 2001, the National party called for the law to give parents the right to use reasonable force to discipline their children. In 2003, Prime Minister Helen Clark called for smacking of children to be outlawed after UN Committee on the Rights for the Child said that New Zealand was the only country that had legislation that allowed parents to use reasonable force when it came to disciplining children. In July 2005, the Anti-smacking Bill, sponsored by Sue Bradford, passed its first hurdle in parliament with MPs voting to send it to select committee. The bill was processed by other MPs and NZ Law society. There were concerns that this bill would turn good parents into criminals. There were also apprehensions on the lack of clear guidance about what is acceptable when disciplining a child. There were lots of groups that were lobbying against this bill but in February 2007, the Anti-smacking bill got through its second reading. MPs voted 70 to 51 in  favour of the bill. Aside from all the controversy the bill was passed on May 16, 2007. This bill repeals section 59 of the Crimes Act. (One news, 2009) The Anti-smacking bill was implemented by the government on May 16, 2007 after the bill got through its second reading in February 2007. (One news, 2009) The Anti-Smacking law provides a safe and secure environment for both children and adults and ensures positive outcomes as children grow up. The law makes it clear that physical discipline is not a necessary or acceptable part of parenting because it undermines a child’s feelings of safety and security. In addition, the law helps to ensure that a child’s right to a fair deal in the courts is respected. (Robinson, 2010) The law is designed to teach children that physical discipline is not the answer. Violence leads to fear and distrust of adults and often does not help children understand what behavior is expected of them. (Robinson, 2010) Police have the discretion not to prosecute complaints made against a parent of a child or guardian where the offence is considered to be so minor that there is no public interest in proceeding with a prosecution. (Robinson, 2010) The Anti-Smacking Bill is a social policy because this bill has affected all New Zealanders in different ways. This policy affected our society and our welfare in so many ways. Not all New Zealander’s believed that parents would accept being controlled by the government in this way or would answer to the police when disciplining their children. The country was truly divided on whether or not this policy would prove to be advantageous and beneficial for the parents and the children at all. In the early 2000s Family First was one of a number of conservative groups that opposed proposed legislation restricting the use of corporal punishment on children – the so-called ‘anti-smacking’ bill. Family First declared the measure would undermine parental authority and campaigned to stop it being passed. This included a protest march along Wellington’s Lambton Quay in March 2007. The bill became law later that year. (Miller, 2007) In fact, the Family First NZ says that the latest review of the anti-smacking law shows that the law is a complete waste of time as it fails to catch actual child abuse, wastes police resources and time, and targets non-abusive parents. (McCroskie, 2009) Mr Bob McCroskie stated the following: â€Å"While the country struggles with the problem of the P-drug, violent crime including armed hold-ups, and boy racing which is killing our young people, the police are having to waste time running around investigating parents who use a smack,† says Bob McCoskrie, National Director of Family First NZ. (McCroskrie, 2009) He continued on saying that the prosecution rate for ‘smacking’ and ‘minor acts of physical discipline’ is as low as 5-8% and even ‘other child assaults’ have up to 20% of them only warranting a warning. This report, as with previous reports, continues to confirm that non-abusive parents are being investigated – which we always feared.† (McCroskie, 2009) He also added that the results of this bill will be trumpeted by the supporters of the law change for doing nothing. (McCroskie, 2009) He also pointed that If the politicians introduced a law targeting boy racers that involved a significant number of investigations but less than 10% was actually catching offenders, it would be quite obvious that the law was dysfunctional. The anti-smacking law is ideologically flawed and a complete and utter waste of time. (McCroskie, 2009) According to ‘Family First – Mr. McCroskie, â€Å"the horror of child abuse deaths has continued since the law change†. Mr McCroskie added that Sue Bradford’s comment was quite correct when she said ‘The epidemic of child abuse and child violence in this country continues – sadly. The bill was never intended to solve that problem.’ (McCroskie, 2009) â€Å"You know a law is completely ineffectual when the proponents applaud it because of its lack of impact and the problem and rate of child abuse remains,† says Mr McCoskrie. (McCroskie, 2009) There are reports that families are calling on the National government to amend the law so that non-abusive smacking is not a crime, and good parents are not victims of a law which should be targeted more effectively at child  abusers. The New Zealand people are crying out for laws that actually target abusers and protect abused. (McCroskie, 2009) A poll of New Zealanders has found that 3 out 4 voters want the anti-smacking law to be amended, and the support was strongest from National, NZ First and Maori party voters. (Anti-smacking pool, 2013) In the poll of 1,000 people undertaken by Curia Market Research, respondents were asked â€Å"Do you think the anti-smacking law should be changed to state explicitly that parents who give their children a smack that is reasonable and for the purpose of correction are not breaking the law? 77% of respondents back a law change to allow correctional smacking. 86% of National voters supported a change in the law. Only 12% of respondents thought the law change had had any effect on the rate of child abuse, with Green voters surprisingly being most skeptical. (Anti-smacking pools, 2013) According to Craig and Barbara Smith, â€Å"Polling in 2009 and 2010 showed that parents were confused by the effect of the law because they have been given conflicting messages by the promoters of the law, legal opinions have contradicted each other, and on top of that there is ‘police discretion’ but not CYF discretion to investigate. And police guidelines state that ‘a prosecution may be warranted if such actions are repetitive or frequent’.† (Smith, 2008) In 2009 the New Zealand public was asked to vote on a referendum regarding the question â€Å"Should a smack as a part of parental correction be a criminal offence in New Zealand?† Despite an over whelming vote to the contrary the National Government chose not to make any adjustment to the Anti-smacking Law. The purpose of this law is essentially to make better provision for children so that they can live in a safe and secure environment that is free from violence. The Anti-smacking Law pursues to achieve this by removing the use of parental force for the purpose of correction. The law makes it clear that physical discipline is not necessary or acceptable part of parenting because it undermines a child’s feelings of safety and security. (McCroskie, 2009) The Anti-smacking rules are: Use of force correction is strictly forbidden; the law states that adults who hit children hard enough will be prosecuted. Adults caring for children can still use ‘force’ (by methods of holding or restraining) to keep children safe – for example adults can stop a child from running out onto the street, touching a hot stove, hurting themselves or other children and they can carry a protesting child out of a supermarket. (Robinson, 2009) The Anti-smacking Bill has brought up controversy from the time the bill was passed to the present. According to the latest (17 June 2013) â€Å"Media Release†. The Family First said that since the anti-smacking law was passed in a supposed effort to lower our child abuse rates, it has been confirmed as a spectacular failure based on flawed ideology. (Independent news media, 2013) The Family First NZ are also refuting and contesting a statement that was made by Prime Minister John Key that the increased numbers of child abuse simply reflect an increase in reporting. (McCroskie, 2009) Mr Bob McCroskie has stated that â€Å"The rates of child abuse deaths have stayed at the same rate as they were before the law was passed. That certainly has nothing to do with ‘increased reporting’. He further stated that the politicians who supported this bill should front up and admit that the anti-smacking law has been a huge flop which has targeted good parents, rather than the rotten parents who are abusing their children, and has wasted time of the police and CYF.† (Independent news media, 2013) According to a recent survey that was made Family First, out of 1,000 New Zealander’s, they found that only 12% of respondents think the law change has had any effect on the rate of child abuse. The survey also found that three out of four people back a law change to allow â€Å"correctional† smacking of children. (Independent news media, 2013) It is my conclusion that the Anti-smacking Bill has brought up issues that have created misunderstanding and confusion for the New Zealand people. Personally, I am comfortable that children are now afforded the protection of the law, as opposed to the discrepancies of the previous legislation. I do still however believe that parents should have the right to choose how they discipline their own children. I believe that such disciple can and should include the use of a light smack where appropriate. The discretionary role of the Police in enforcing the new legislation comes at no small cost in Police and Court  resources. However, in the absence of any better alternative this would appear a cost we should all bear. No child should be ruled by fear, or live in fear. Unfortunately, as much as the Anti-smacking Bill is serving a positive purpose it would appear that it has failed to address or reduce the more extreme cases of child abuse that continue to be as a blight on our society. This issue was the root of much the emotion in the debate around this policy. To my dismay the issue remains unresolved. VA:F [1.9.17_1161] References: Abrahams (2009) Anti-smacking thoughts. Retrieved from http://www.abrahams.co.nz/antismacking/ Family First Press release (2013). Smacking law as spectacular failure. Retrieved from http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1306/S00202/smacking-law-confirmed-as-spectacular-failure.htm Farrar, D. (2009) Anti-smacking proposed. Retrieved from http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2009/03/anti-smacking_amendment_proposed.html McCroskie, B. (2009) Sue Bradsford Anti Smacking. Smacking law complete and utter waste of time. Retrieved from https://www.familyfirst.org.nz/research/anti-smacking-polls/ . Manukau City Miller, R. (2012). ‘Interest groups – Cause interest group’,Te Ara – the encyclopedia of New Zealand, updated 15-Nov-12.Retrieved from URL: http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/34982/family-first-protest One news (August 21, 2009) (Copyright 2013) Timeline: Anti-smacking bill. Retrieved from http://tvnz.co.nz/politics-news/timeline-anti-smacking-legislation-2936192 Anti-Smacking Polls, (2013). National Voters Want Smacking Law Change – Poll. Retrieved from https://www.familyfirst.org.nz/research/anti-smacking-polls/ Robinson, K. (2009) How to understand the New Zealand Anti-smacking law. What is the law? Retrieved from http://howto.yellow.co.nz/legal/consumer-law/how-to-understand-the-new-zealan d-anti-smacking-law/ Smith, C. & B. (2008). Family Integrity. Retrieved from http://familyintegrity.org.nz Robinson, K. (2009) How to understand the New Zealand Anti-smacking law. What is the law? Retrieved from http://howto.yellow.co.nz/legal/consumer-law/how-to-understand-the-new-zealand-anti-smacking-law/ One news (August 21, 2009) (Copyright 2013) Timeline: Anti-smacking bill. Retrieved from http://tvnz.co.nz/politics-news/timeline-anti-smacking-legislation-2936192

Thursday, October 10, 2019

Cyber Attacks

The rising threat of terrorism has led to unprecedented levels of security at Indian airports, railway stations, hotels, ports etc. But the government does not seem to see the bigger threat, which will not come from AK-47s, bombs and rifles. The next big attack will be come from terrorists in the cyber world. We live in a technologically interconnected world. Most of us cannot imagine even a single day without our cell phones, internet and ATMs. There is hardly any distinction between where our bodies end and technology begins. Would it be surprising then, if terrorists choose to attack India via the internet? Let me share some facts about how real and damaging that threat can be If a terrorist group were to attack our stock market and financial infrastructure, it would cause widespread panic and losses to millions of people and organizations. Imagine yourself running helplessly from one ATM to another, trying to withdraw money from your account, only to find that the attack has forced banks to suspend online transactions. Likewise, our telecom infrastructure. If it were flooded with malicious data, business and personal life would grind to a standstill. Terrorists could also target India's top businesses, hacking into their systems, stealing valuable intellectual property, sensitive information and company secrets. Even military networks can be targeted. These scenarios are not from a Bollywood flick, but tangible threats that loom large. In May 2007, Estonia — a small but technologically sophisticated Baltic country — fell victim to a cyber attack. The unidentified terrorists bombarded the country's network with data traffic, clogging it and rendering major services unusable. People were not able to access financial utilities, communications and data services for several hours and some, for days together. What stops cyber terrorists from launching similar attacks in India? Very little because, despite being an infotech power, India lags on cyber security. Neither the government, nor the private sector is adequately prepared to face a cyber attack. We have the necessary laws in place, but they are futile in the absence of trained security experts and police officials to enforce them. Recently, I was at a conference in the Capital, attended by numerous Delhi Police officials. During the question-answer session, one police official asked me: â€Å"All this is fine Mr Ankit, but yeh internet ki building kidhar hai? † According to him, the internet was a huge building and, in order to protect it from cyber terrorists, the police had simply to stand all around it, holding rifles and lathis to fight off viruses, worms and criminals! If this is the state of affairs in the police department of the national capital, one can't even begin to imagine the way it is in other cities. The fact that few engineering colleges in India offer courses on cyber security is a major reason for the lack of cyber experts. The result is that when a private company website gets hacked, the incident is brushed under the carpet lest its brand image is tarnished. Worse, it's considered normal for most Indian government websites to get hacked regularly. But the lack of trained professionals and a lax attitude are the least of India's concerns. The internet has no boundaries and allows cyber terrorists to hide behind geographic, political and diplomatic clouds. It is easy for a criminal to hide behind proxy servers and bounce off systems in unfriendly countries to stop security agencies from tracing the culprits. The dynamic nature of cyber security, coupled with the obsolete techniques used by the Indian forces, means it is a losing battle for India. Let's not wait for a cyber 26/11 to happen. A willingness to make changes, a proactive approach with some nimble execution can fix the chinks in India's cyber security and drastically improve our preparedness to fight a cyber war.

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

Storm Born Chapter Fifteen

I don't care how old you get or how tough you are. Nothing, nothing at all, can ever replace your mother taking care of you when you're sick. The feel of a cool, wet cloth touched my head, and the sound of familiar humming just barely penetrated my weary brain. I opened my eyes and saw the same funny-shaped pieces of sunlight cast through my blinds onto the bedroom ceiling. Only this time, their positions had changed, their colors dimmer and darker orange. The humming abruptly stopped. â€Å"Eugenie?† â€Å"Mom,† I croaked. My throat felt torn and raw. She moved into my field of vision, face drawn with worry. I couldn't believe it. She looked almost entirely normal. Her hair had a bit of a wind-swept look, and I could see a few bruises. Other than that, she seemed fine, not like she'd just endured a paranormal attack and subsequent magically induced maelstrom. For just a moment, I questioned my own memories. Had I imagined what happened? Had it been a trick or a vision? No. I felt like shit. No delusion could have caused this pain. â€Å"You're okay?† I asked doubtfully. She nodded. â€Å"Fine. What about you?† I tentatively attempted to make contact with the muscles in my body. They told me to leave them the fuck alone. â€Å"I hurt.† She adjusted the cloth on my head, making it fractionally more perfect. As she leaned over, a lock of her hair slipped forward, and I made out muddy fingerprints on her neck. No. Definitely not my imagination. â€Å"I called Roland. He was up in Flagstaff with Bill. He's on his way back now – should be here in a couple of hours.† â€Å"Mom†¦how'd you recover?† â€Å"What do you mean?† â€Å"You were really messed up from those spirits. Don't you remember?† â€Å"I got a little shaken up but nothing worse. Nothing like you.† She frowned, giving a little sigh. â€Å"God, how I wish you were a lawyer instead. Or maybe a pharmacist.† â€Å"What do you remember happening?† â€Å"Not much,† she admitted. â€Å"I remember going after one of those†¦creatures. After that, it's a blur. I must have panicked. Your living room is, uh, going to need some help.† I closed my eyes, feeling tired. My living room would probably need to be bulldozed and rebuilt from scratch. No telling how the rest of the house had fared. It could probably collapse at any moment. My room actually looked kind of normal. A few things were knocked over, probably casualties of stray gusts of wind. â€Å"You've got people here who want to see you.† I opened my eyes. â€Å"Who?† â€Å"No one I know. A man and a woman.† â€Å"Is the man a fox?† She stared at me, confused. â€Å"A fox? He's very handsome, yes, but, sweetie†¦maybe I should send them away. You don't sound like you're better yet.† â€Å"No, no, let me talk to them.† I had a feeling the missing pieces of what had happened during and after the storm lay with Kiyo. â€Å"And I need to talk to them†¦alone.† My mother looked hurt. â€Å"It's not personal. It's business.† She started to argue, then shook her head and stood up. â€Å"I'll go get them.† While she was gone, I dared a hasty assessment of my appearance. I was still in my underwear and camisole. The top in particular was ripped and dirty. I pulled the covers up almost to my neck and ran a hand over my hair and face. I could feel more dirt on my skin plus a scab on my cheek, distantly reminding me of a shard of something flying out and cutting me. My hair stuck out everywhere. I attempted to smooth it down, but then my mom returned with Kiyo and a strange woman. â€Å"I'll be in the kitchen if you need me,† Mom said protectively. She pulled the door closed behind her, all but a crack. Kiyo's face told me all I needed to know about the way I looked. â€Å"You should see the other guy,† I said. A small smile broke over his face. â€Å"I did. He's in pieces in the other room.† â€Å"Oh.† He beckoned to the woman. â€Å"Eugenie, this is Maiwenn, queen of the Willow Land.† I started in surprise. She didn't look like a Willow Queen. Of course, I'm not sure what exactly I expected – maybe something akin to Glinda the Good Witch. But this woman looked like Surfer Girl Barbie. Her skin glowed with a deep bronze tan. Platinum blond hair fell in supermodel waves to her waist. Her eyes were the color of the sea in the sun, blue-green with long lashes. She wore a simple blue dress, a bit old-fashioned but nothing that screamed, â€Å"I'm a fairy queen.† It was looser than the form-fitting gowns other gentry women seemed to favor but was still quite pretty. My feelings of inadequacy about my appearance increased tenfold. â€Å"Nice to meet you,† I said. I could hear the tentativeness in my voice. Kiyo might swear to her character, but I still carried a lot of apprehension around the gentry, monarch or no. â€Å"And you,† she said. Her voice was rich and sweet, her face serene. â€Å"I'm sorry I could not heal you too.† â€Å"‘Too'? Oh†¦was it you? Did you heal my mother? She doesn't remember anything†¦.† She nodded. â€Å"I didn't have the power to heal you both. She was more severely injured, and with your age and stamina – and your blood – well, I thought you'd have an easier time recovering.† I thought about the aches and pains shooting through my body. Easier? That might be a subjective term. â€Å"You made the right choice. Thanks. I'll be fine.† Kiyo stuffed his hands in his pockets and leaned against the wall. â€Å"Eugenie doesn't like to admit weakness. It's one of her more charming traits.† I shot him a glare, and Maiwenn offered a small, polite smile. â€Å"Nothing wrong with that.† She approached me and extended a hand toward my face. â€Å"I think I have enough strength for a small healing. May I?† I nodded, not entirely sure what I was agreeing to. Her fingertips grazed my cheek, icy cold but gentle. A tingle ran through me, and she drew back, suddenly looking pale and tired. Kiyo started to help her when she stumbled, but she waved him off. â€Å"There. No scarring this way.† My fingers examined the place she had touched. No more scab. â€Å"Thank you.† Silence fell, and I looked from face to face. With me in bed and them hanging around so casually, I didn't really feel like I was having a meeting with a bona fide queen. It was all so informal. â€Å"What happened?† They exchanged uncertain glances. â€Å"We're not really sure,† he said. â€Å"You and your mother were both unconscious. The elemental was dead, and your living room†¦it looks kind of bad.† â€Å"But†¦that was it?† His eyebrows rose. â€Å"What more could there be?† â€Å"There was no storm when you showed up?† They exchanged conspiratorial looks again, and something about their solidarity rankled me. â€Å"Tell us what you remember,† Maiwenn said. I did, starting with the spirit attack and ending with the vicious storm. Neither spoke when I finished. Kiyo sighed. â€Å"What?† I demanded. â€Å"What happened? You obviously know.† â€Å"It's complicated.† â€Å"Everything's complicated lately. Let me guess. It was the magic, wasn't it? Storm King's inherited power?† He didn't answer. She did. â€Å"Yes. It seems it has been passed down after all.† â€Å"Can I stop it? Keep it locked up so it doesn't come out again?† â€Å"Not likely. You might be able to bury it so it isn't consciously used, but†¦if it's there, it's likely to burst out again when your emotions let loose. You'll get the same kind of disastrous results if you don't learn to manage it.† â€Å"I don't want it.† I shuddered, recalling that horrible blackness and deadly lightning. Uneasily, I remembered what Volusian had told me, that embracing my magic could protect me and those I loved. I looked at Maiwenn nervously, hating what I was about to ask. â€Å"But I don't want to hurt anyone either. Can you teach me to use it? Or at least control it?† Kiyo's eyes widened. â€Å"Eugenie, no – â€Å" â€Å"What do you expect me to do?† I demanded. The expression on his face mirrored what I felt inside. â€Å"It's not like I want to do this. But you saw what happened. I destroyed my house, and worse, I nearly killed my mother. And myself.† He sighed but didn't argue. Maiwenn regarded him calmly. â€Å"She's right.† â€Å"I know. But I don't have to like it.† â€Å"I don't know if I can teach you or not,† she murmured, turning back to me. â€Å"Your magic – storm magic – is a very physical, outward sort of power. Healing is more internal. Less aggressive. Some of the basics will be the same, but we'll probably have to find you a teacher with similar powers.† Like someone who can call up pieces of the earth and rip castles apart, I thought. I didn't give voice to that. Kiyo and I might be â€Å"friends,† but I immediately knew he wouldn't like me getting close to Dorian. â€Å"Kiyo says you're against the invasion thing, that you weren't a supporter of Storm King.† â€Å"Yes. That was part of the reason I wanted to meet you. I'm happy you survived today, Eugenie Markham, but†¦this possibility of the prophecy coming true alarms me. I've spent years believing Storm King had no children. Your existence causes all sorts of complications.† It occurred to me then that Maiwenn might have slept easier if I'd been killed today. â€Å"So is it true?† she asked. â€Å"You have no intention of fulfilling the prophecy?† â€Å"Of course not.† â€Å"Turning one's back on such power can't be easy. Even now, you're considering his magic.† â€Å"That's a necessity. I don't want it. Besides, none of this is about power. It's about keeping my world safe. You forget that until a few weeks ago, I had no clue about any of this. In most ways – me whipping up a storm aside – I still consider myself human. I'm not going to let some army subjugate or destroy my race.† â€Å"You see?† Kiyo said to her. â€Å"I told you.† I could still see the doubt on her face. â€Å"I'm serious. I don't want to usher in some terrible era of gentry domination. I sure as hell don't want to be a plaything for every gentry guy. And even if the worst happens† – I shuddered, remembering the elemental's proximity – â€Å"well, there are ways of making sure I don't actually get or stay pregnant.† I didn't feel like getting into logistics with her. â€Å"Hopefully, I can just keep up the avoidance, though. I'm not jumping into anyone's bed soon.† Sympathy replaced Maiwenn's doubt. â€Å"Yes. I'm truly sorry for what you've endured. It sickens me. I honestly can't imagine it. You've surpassed your fearless reputation. I couldn't have coped so bravely.† I thought again about the terror that had filled me when the elemental had me trapped. The tears. The desperation. I didn't know how brave I'd really been. Kiyo's eyes met mine then, and while Maiwenn looked distracted with thought, I think he might have glimpsed a little of my emotion. Affection for me burned on his face, and I fell into it. The moment shattered when a loud voice sounded outside my room. â€Å"What the fuck happened in here? No way am I cleaning this up!† Kiyo straightened up, alarmed, but I waved away his concern. â€Å"Don't worry. It's just my housemate.† Sure enough, Tim burst in, outrage written all over him. He wore buckskin pants and a matching vest over his bare chest. Feathers decorated his black hair. Beads ringed his neck. His face fell as soon as he saw me. â€Å"Oh God, Eug. Are you all right?† I started to give him the â€Å"other guy† line, then opted for simplicity. â€Å"Fine.† He jerked his thumb behind him. â€Å"That room's in pieces.† â€Å"I know. Don't worry. I'll clean it up.† â€Å"What happened?† â€Å"You're better off not knowing. Tim, this is Kiyo and Maiwenn.† Remembering himself, Tim raised his right hand in a sort of â€Å"How, white man† kind of way. â€Å"I am Timothy Red Horse. May the Great Spirit smile down upon you.† This latter part seemed to be for Maiwenn in particular. She smiled formally. Kiyo appeared to oscillate between hilarity and disgust. Greetings done, Tim walked over to me, shaking his head ruefully. â€Å"You're into some crazy shit.† â€Å"You might want to find another place to stay,† I said seriously. â€Å"I don't think it'll be safe around here.† â€Å"Are you kidding? I'm never going to find this good a deal. What's a little death and destruction?† â€Å"Tim – â€Å" His face sobered. â€Å"Don't worry, Eug. I know what you do. If things heat up, I'll get out.† â€Å"Did you see the living room? That's pretty hot.† â€Å"Yeah, but so long as the house is standing†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"You're more difficult than I am.† I remembered I was supposed to find a witch to boost the wards around my house. I'd forgotten. Instead, I had created some wards of my own, but they weren't very strong, as evidenced by the recent invasion. A witch couldn't keep everything out but would do a better job than me. Tim grinned. â€Å"Well, let's not get carried away. Anyway. You look like you're in the middle of something. You want anything? Chicken soup? Foot massage?† â€Å"You can get me a Milky Way. And see if my Def Leppard CD survived the war zone.† â€Å"Don't get your hopes up on that last one.† He said goodbye to the others and left. â€Å"An odd man,† mused Maiwenn. â€Å"You have no idea.† Yet, while Tim and I had bantered, I'd noticed Maiwenn and Kiyo speaking quietly to each other in the corner. She had rested a hand on his arm as they talked, and there had been something almost†¦intimate in the way they stood together. Like they were comfortable being in each other's personal space. Very comfortable. I remembered Kiyo's resolute support of her, his claim that he worked with her because he believed in her cause. But was that truly it? Or was there more? She was a â€Å"good friend.† They stood apart now, but a jealous, ugly feeling kindled in my chest. She finally turned away from him and gave me a small, tight smile. â€Å"I don't mean to be rude, but†¦I'm not feeling well and must return home.† â€Å"It's no problem. Thanks for coming, and†¦thank you for healing my mother.† Maiwenn nodded, and I could tell she really was sick. Weariness ringed those lovely eyes. â€Å"I'm happy to. And I'm glad we were able to talk. You have no idea how relieved I am to see where you stand. I'll do what I can to keep others from trying to†¦take liberties with you.† Kiyo's fingertips brushed her arm to stop her, and I watched that contact with a critical eye. â€Å"Wait for me outside.† She nodded and then swept out of the room in all her golden beauty. Kiyo walked over to my bed and sat down, running a hand along my cheek. â€Å"I'm glad you're okay. When I walked in†¦I thought you were dead.† â€Å"I'm hard to kill,† I said lightly. He smiled, shaking his head with exasperation. â€Å"I can believe that.† Reaching down, he picked up my hand and brought it to his lips, eyes on mine. He lingered a moment, and my skin burned where he kissed me. Then carefully, gently, he laid my hand back down, lacing his fingers with mine. â€Å"I'm going to make sure she crosses over okay, and then I'll be back to stay with you.† â€Å"You gonna take care of me? Massage my feet and feed me chicken soup?† â€Å"Anything you want,† he promised. â€Å"That's what friends do.† He kissed my hand again and then stood up. â€Å"Be back in a few minutes.† I could still feel where he'd kissed me, but for once, my infatuation with him went on hold. I was thinking about the conversation I'd just had. It still bothered me, but I'd meant what I said. Learning gentry magic was about the scariest thing – other than rape by a mud elemental – that I could imagine right now. Yet, I wanted no more storms in my living room, no storms anywhere that I was incapable of controlling. And for what it was worth, that meant getting a grip on my power. I knew whom I had to go to for that control, and it held its own set of terrors. Necessary evils, though. I had no choice. So while I waited for Kiyo's return, I began a mental to-do list. Summon Volusian. Plot strategy. Buy high-heeled shoes†¦