Polemics On Veiling Egyptian Women In The Twentieth Century Essays

Polemics On Veiling Egyptian Women In The Twentieth Century Introduction .. so much energy has been expended by Muslim men and then Muslim women to remove the veil and by others to affirm or restore it .. (Ahmed 167). This paper explores these efforts in two specific stages: the first and the last thirds of the twentieth century. Through an analysis of some of the various arguments on the veil, I will try to induce some general characteristics of the debate on the issue and on women during these two specific periods of time. The starting point will be Kasim Amin's Tahrir el Mara'a (Liberation of Woman) and the counter argument of Talat Harb's Tarbiet el Mara'a wal Hijab, (Educating Women and the Veil). The debate between those two protagonists which has become a prototype of the debate on the veil throughout the century (Ahmed P. 164). Malak Hefni Nassif's and Hoda Sha'arawi's attitudes towards the veil represent an interesting insight to two different interpretations of the hijab issue by feminist activists that prevail throughout the century. The whole synthesis of this early debate is then put in juxtaposition to the debate later in the century as represented by the avalanche of literature on the topic in the seventies, the views of some famous sheikhs like Mohammed Metwally el Shaarawi and others, and the heated debate initiated by the Minister of Education's decree of 1994 to prevent school administrations from imposing the hijab on girls as part of the uniform. The Early Debate Kasim Amin's Tahrir El-Mara'a (Published 1899) It may not be an exaggeration to say that Amin's Tahrir al-Mara'a was one of the most controversial book in Egypt's modern history. It has ignited a strong debate and prompted more than thirty reaction articles and books either to defy or assert his argument against the veil (Ahmed P. 164). The ideas of the book were not totally new, they echoed the writings of some writers like Mariam al-Nahhas (1856-1888), Zaynab Fawwaz (1860-1914), Aisha al-Taymuriah (1840-1902), and Murqus Fahmi's (a Coptic lawyer) four act play Al Mar'ah fi al-Sharq or (The Woman in the East) (Badran P. 19). Yet, Amin's book double-scored for coming from a Muslim judge and for his overt proposal to unveiling women's faces. His words were not the only challenge to the existing notions of the hijab, it was his caliber as a Moslim judge that has vocalized his call to unveil women and gave his book importance. After an introduction loaded with emotional phrases on the degradation of the Egyptian woman and an exaltation of the European woman, the book is divided into four sections: Educating women, Women's veil, The woman and the nation, and Marriage and divorce. Amin starts his argument calling for the Hijab Shara'ei stating that the Hijab in its form then (covering the face, the hair and the whole body) was not mandated by the Shari'aa. He further adds that he was not calling for the extreme of the West which makes the woman liable to seduction (Amin P. 65). The argument against the veil is in two sections: The religious section which is mainly text interpretation and some Hadith that prompt women to cover the hair and the whole body except for the hands and the face; and the social (practical / everyday life) perspective. The later section includes social ideas such as the inconvenience for women with their faces covered to dwell in business, to testify in courts or to get engaged (as the groom should see her face first). Furthermore, he argues that unveiling would make women watch their behaviors as they could be recognized and hence their reputation would be at stake if they did any wrong. Still, from the practical social point of view, the flimsy bourqo' (face cover) used was more tempting as it makes the viewer curious to see what was intended to be hidden. He further argues that, if women are imprisoned in the hareem (part of the house where women are secluded), then even if they did not commit any shameful act, it would not be due to any virtue in them, but to the fact that they did not have the freedom to do otherwise. Amin accuses the veil of being a barrier to women's development and education (P. 85), arguing that it deprived her from interacting with the society and learning how to live. He illustrates by comparing the ignorant peasant with the elite urban lady who can speak French and plays the piano, and concludes that the ignorat peasant would be

McCulloch vs. Maryland essays

McCulloch vs. Maryland essays One of the most famous supreme court cases of all time took place in Maryland in 1818. The case was between James W. McCulloch vs. the state of Maryland. This was around the time that the big and small state plans were being determined and national and state laws were blurry in how much power each of them had. This case has to do with the powers of the national and state governments. It was the case that also had to do with the necessary and proper clause, and stated that national government has power of state and local governments. The whole case began because of problems with a National Bank. In 1798, treasury secretary Alexander Hamilton chartered the United States first National Bank. However, the Republican congress had let the charter run out in 1811. In 1816 President Madison realized that had been a mistake, and convinced congress to charter a second bank. The charter was granted even though the bank was not a very popular institution. James W. McCulloch was the manager of the banks branch office in Baltimore, Maryland. This was just one of 18 branches around the country. In 1818, the state of Maryland imposed an annual tax of $15,000 on the bank in an attempt to get rid of it. In Maryland, Mcculloch refused to pay. He said that the bank was controlled by the national government and the state was trying to tax it as if it were a state-chartered institution. A lot of lawsuits ensued, with the bank calling the tax unconstitutional and the state calling the bank illegal. This was the beginning of one of the supreme courts most extraordinary oral arguments in its history. The issue went far beyond the bank to exactly what congresss powers were. There is nothing in the constitution that specifically grants congress the power to establish and charter a bank. So the question came down to whether congress is limited to exercising only those powers that have been expressly granted to it by the Constitutions crea...

Assignment 1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 4

Assignment 1 - Essay Example Kartomi and Andrew maintain that historical circumstances and/or developments acted as key drivers to the migration. The routes taken during migration for the two centuries have been used to evidence this argument. Two primary routes were used during the two-century Jewish migration, namely: the Southern Asian diaspora route and Northern diaspora route (Kartomi and Andrew 11). The Jewish group that travelled via the Southern Asian route used sea or land. Their travel time coincided to an approximate spice routes. Homogeneity among migrating persons was highly observed. This group was made up of Jews who were migrating voluntarily. Notably, most of them were family members who were moving with an intention to settle in Asia. Moreover, trade-based migration was also evident. There were groups of Jews whose migration into Asia was solely for trade purposes. Contrary to the southern route users, migrants who used the northern route exhibited heterogeneous aspects. Involuntary migration was also eminent as Kartomi and Andrew maintains. Over the two centuries, the northern route also saw movement of refugees into East Asia from central and eastern parts of Europe. Interest in East Asia was exacerbated by the Silk Road, following the railway system expansion along the road. The two-century migrations had so much to borrow from historical backgrounds. There were series of events that were taking place across the world, Asia and Europe being the central focus of Kartomi and Andrew with regard to the Jewish migration. Historical circumstances essentially informed Jewish migration into Asian territories. In the process, a foundation was set that would see Jewish history encompass musical outcomes relative to their migrations. Jewish history in the Asian soil became more musical to a point that it would essentially define their identity. It is in this respect that Kartomi and Andrew’s

The Difference between Slaves and Servants Essay

The Difference between Slaves and Servants - Essay Example When it comes to putting servants to work, the nature of the work depends on the master being â€Å"merciful or cruel†. When the master shows mercy the work given to servants is light and they are well taken care of in terms of the food given to them and their lodgings. Under a cruel master, however, â€Å"servants have very wearisome and miserable lives6†. Upon arrival, many servants do not even know how to make their cabins and are at the mercy of the other servants who may choose to help them or not. Thus fresh arrivals may have to spend a few nights under the open sky before they can make their own lodgings. Their daily work schedule begins with work at 6 in the morning, a break at 11 and then back to work at 1. They will work again until six in the evening and then go back home. Living in places which provide little cover, they are exposed to the elements such as â€Å"the cold of the night†. Their situation leads Ligon to say, â€Å"Truly, I have seen such cruelty there done to servants, as I did not think one Christian could have done to another†. However, this does not make the life of the slave a bowl of cherries since they too faced cruelty and were apt to fight for their freedoms. The servants, however, decided to rebel against their masters in a bloody plot to kill the masters and overthrow the ruling of the island. Unluckily for the servants, the plot was discovered and the leaders of the plot were put to death. This method of resistance is certainly a result of the cruel treatment given to the servants. The slaves, however, seem to be more accepting of their lot in life and since they are treated somewhat better than the servants, are more apt to show their resistance in more subtle ways. They may even express their feelings with music or by looking towards the â€Å"heaven for revenge†.

Summarize an approved scholarly article regarding a biblical book Assignment

Summarize an approved scholarly article regarding a biblical book - Assignment Example The next aspect is divine filiation of the monarch. Indeed, both David and Jesus are called a Son of god. Then there is a clear messianic status of the monarch: while David is praised as the Messiah, Jesus is the Messiah. The fourth aspect is centrality of Jerusalem: all major events of both lives take place in Jerusalem. For example, David proclaimed this city as the capital of the new kingdom, while Jesus was crucified in this city. Another aspect is centrality of the Temple. Indeed, the life of David is firmly connected to the erection of the Temple. On the other hand, Jesus preaches to the people from the Temple. The sixth point of comparison is the emergence of the international empire. Thus, David is known as a ruler who was able to conquer different nations and bring them under the power of Jerusalem. The name was done by Jesus, but in terms of spiritual teaching. Finally, the people thought that both David and Jesus would have eternal rule. In other words, they were regarded as leaders until the end of days. The author points out that many times in Luke-Acts, the Evangelist shows that the kingdom of David should be considers in close connection to the earliest book of the Old Testament, namely Genesis. First of all, the Solomonic temple which is the central building in life of David should be seen as microcosm. Indeed, the Scriptures say that the Lord agrees to give strength to the house of David if the latter creates house for God. Furthermore, the Temple was deliberated designed to remind of the Eden which people left in the beginning of times. For example, it was set on a hill with a river flowing next to it. Secondly, there is a strong parallel that is drawn between Adam and David. They both are referred to as second only to God which implies their great importance for the world. Moreover, each of them is granted with the universal dominion over all the things in the world. Thus,

Challenges Faced By Working Couple

Challenges Faced By Working Couple The overarching purpose of the study was to know the impact of working hours on the work-life balance challenges faced by working couple. WLB from an employee perspective is the most important strategy of organisation. This article reports that the working hours have a significant relationship with the challenges faced by working couple. Data was collected from various countries like USA, India, Australia, and Canada. A total of 70-80 participants (working couples) indicated that long and odd working hours make their work-life imbalanced. Due to which they are unable to spend time with family and negatively effecting their organisation commitment. Also, these time constraints create more stressful conditions to work and giving unproductive results to organisations. We therefore, recommend all the organisations to implement work-life balance strategies which are family friendly policies and simultaneously, reaping benefits for the organisations too. Keywords: working couples, work-Life Balance, Flexible working hours, flexibility. Introduction What is Work-life balance? For companies to remain competitive there is a need to attract and retain valued employees with regard to human resource policies and practices that address work-life balance. Therefore Work- life Balance is an important area of concern for Employers. Work life balance is about individual choices that enable employers and employees to manage the interaction between work and the demands of life that affect health, families and communities. Work/Life Balance: n. A state of equilibrium in which the demands of both a persons job and personal life are equal. According to Maryln Walton of Herman Millers Future Insight Group, The participants rated work-life balance as the most important of the propositions in the future. It also was rated lowest for the amount of attention being paid to it through the workplace. Therefore in todays organizational settings WLB strategies are being implemented like policies of flexible work and leave arrangements, child and dependant care, compressed work week, job sharing, etc. Review of Literature Working Hours and Dynamics Interplay between Work and Family Challenges A work/life balance survey conducted in 2002 by TrueCareers states that 70% of more than 1,500 respondents said they dont have a healthy balance between their personal and work lives. As organisations move towards more participative and flat structures where fewer employees are expected to manage increase workloads (Hall Ritcher, 1988), the demands of the environment increase, and maintaining the balance between the demands of a career and life responsibilities become more difficult. Hence an increasing level of stress can rapidly lead to low employee morale, poor productivity, and decreasing job satisfaction. Some of the specific problems that relate directly to productivity in the work environment are abuse of sick time, cheating, chronic absenteeism, distrust, embezzlement, organizational sabotage, tardiness, task avoidance, and violence in the workplace. Other serious repercussions are depression, alcohol and drug abuse, marital and financial problems, compulsive eating disorder s, and employee burnout. With ever increasing work overload there is always negative spillover of stress from office to home and from home to office. Working late hours, bringing work to home, less time for lunch at office hours are the common problems faced by working couple. Moreover, if the working environment is not supportive it may lead to more turnover as before. Employees tend to experience work-family conflict when demands from work and family are both high and difficult to satisfy. Work-family conflict is a form of interrole conflict in which incompatible demands emanating from work and family domains make it difficult or impossible to satisfy both sets. Employees from dual-earner families (the subjects of our study) are particularly likely to experience conflict between work and family. Whereas most research has focused on individuals and the work-family conflict they personally report, a growing number of studies suggest that work-life issues must be understood in the context of both spouses employment conditions. Employees tend to experience work-family conflict when demands from work and family are both high and difficult to satisfy. Work-family conflict is a form of interrole conflict in which incompatible demands arising from work and family domains make it difficult to satisfy both sets. Working couples are particularly likely to experience conflict between work and family. Whereas most research has focused on individuals and the work-family conflict they personally report, a growing number of studies suggest that work-life issues must be understood in the context of both spouses employment conditions. This study though examines the spousal support and his indulgence in work, being at priority. A 1991 study finds relationships among employees job security, income, and weekly work hours and their spouses job involvement and satisfaction. Longer working hours are considered as the biggest work-family conflict reason giving more challenges to be faced by working couple. Late working hours, night shifts, work at home, no flexible scheduling and rigid corporate timings all these are demanding flex time work strategies. In the last decade ( Health Canada 2001, National Work Life Conflict Study), declared that high job stress has doubled, high job satisfaction and employee loyalty has doubled, the percentage of Canadian working more than 50 hours a week has grown from 10% to 25% , most Canadian lives in dual-income families and have dependents, whether children, aging parents or both. Also Canadian employers has reported that work life conflict has resulted in increased absenteeism and employee turnover, reduced productivity increased disability costs and health cost, increased managerial stress, and impaired family/social relationships. Jacobs and Gerson (2001) proposed that total family work hours, or the combined work hours of both spouses, would be a stronger predictor of negative outcomes, especially among parents, than the work hours of the individual spouses. Total family work hours is a concept with considerable face validity; as Jacobs and Gerson (2001) note, married individuals have less time to spend at home, because they devote more joint time to work (p. 50). More recently, Voydanoff (2004b) argued that long work hours reduce the resources that couples have for managing home demands, with likely negative effects on marital quality that vary with gender. For example, long work hours have been associated with high work_family conflict (Grzywacz Marks, 2000) as well as with good physical health (Bird Fremont, 1991). In contrast, there was no significant relationship between long work hours and intention to turnover or life satisfaction (Barnett Gareis, 2000a,b). Therefore todays company need various work-life strategies to be implemented that are helpful for working couple. They will be able to maintain a balance between much needed personal and professional life. The workplace based strategy could be flexi-time and flexi hours, part time, job sharing, job redesign, compressed work schedule; and flexi-place strategy could be telecommuting. Leave arrangements could be compassionate care leave, extended leave, maternity leave, parental leave, personal leave, self-funded leave, sick leave. A review of more than 30 surveys regarding work/life balance published from 1997 to 2003 reveals that the number of employers who offer family-friendly benefits has dramatically increased. According to the SHRMÂ ® 2003 Benefits Survey by the Society for Human Resource Management (www.shrm.org /surveys-available late June 2003), the percentage of employers offering family-friendly benefits continues to increase.21 The survey documents that the top five family-friendly benefits offered are: Dependent care flexible spending accounts (71% of respondents). Flextime (55% of respondents). Family leave above required leave of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) (39% of respondents). Telecommuting on a part-time basis (34% of respondents). Compressed workweeks (31% of respondents). Research Methodology Data Collection A sample of 70-80 working couples was taken from various countries including USA, Canada, Australia and India to measure the effect of working hours on working couples and the challenges they face. Diverse type of corporate sector including service sector, medical sectors, NGOs, manufacturing sectors, educational sectors etc. were included A structured questionnaire was drafted containing various statement on Work-Life Balance and challenges. Giving a Chronback Aplha of .80 ( reliability and validity of questionnaire). Measurement Individual working hours effect was assessed on the lives of working couple. 12-items from the dual career couple challenge scale were used to assess the challenges experienced by them. Responses were gauged on a 5-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 (never) to 5 (always). For example items including, Do you work late hours at office everyday?; Do you miss out on quality time with your family and friends because of work pressure? A higher response rate of 85% was recorded. Therefore, for measuring the effect of working hours on the challenges faced by dual career couple a simple regression analysis technique was applied with the help of SPSS 18 (PASW). Taking challenges as independent factors and working hours as dependent factors. Simple regression analysis was used to test the hypothetical relations between the challenges and working hours, in table 1. We can see the variables entered as independent. To address the challenge of analyzing data where its being proved by our results that as p Conclusion This study therefore suggests that dual-career couples may have different needs from those of the more traditional single-career couple. There is, therefore, a need for organisations to develop policies and practices that provide support for the demands of both work and family. In the work environment, dual-career employee status implies the need for greater employer sensitivity and awareness of the conflicting demands of simultaneous careers, so that employees may become more effective both at work and at home. What is needed is policies and programmes to help employees reduce the amount of conflict and the resulting stress they experience when they try to juggle the demands of work and home responsibilities (Thomas Ganster, 1995). Higgins, Duxbury and Irving (1992) for example, found that conflict between work and family roles reduce employees perceptions of quality of work life and the quality of family life which, in turn, can impact productivity, absenteeism and turnover. Suppo rtive work practices like flexible work options (e.g. flexitime, compressed work weeks, home telecommuting) as well as assistance with child and dependent care, employee support programme (e.g. counselling) and career path alternatives (Bardoel, Tharenou and Moss, 1998) are therefore vital to minimise stress, maximize employees sense of control over their lives, sustain manageable career progression, and at the same time balance career and family demands. (Elloy F David, 2004). Limitation of Study The study presented here is not without limitations. Lack of time was also a big constraint. Respondents situated out of India (home country) having problem while filling up the questionnaire were not able to discuss the doubts regarding the questionnaire because of distance and lack of time. Wrong information like telling wrong age or wrong spouse information cannot be avoided. An additional limitation based on the characteristics of the sample may be bias associated with nonresponse.

scarlet letter :: essays research papers

Summer Reading: The Scarlet Letter In the novel The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne symbolism is prevalent, understanding symbolism is necessary for understanding Hawthorne’s novels. The rosebush is a symbol in the novel. It is rendered through the characters of Hester and Pearl in how they are perceived by the people. Hester Prynne has been convicted of being an adulteress. She is put on a scaffold as a form of public humiliation and told to wear a Scarlet A on her breast to identify herself with shame. Hester stands on the scaffold for three hours. As she stands, she looks around at the crowd of people. Inside she is shameful but to the onlookers she appears proud. The rosebush also from a distance looks majestic and alive but as one gets closer, its thorns are revealed. Hester, like the rosebush, is very pretty and majestic but as one gets closer the Scarlet A of an adulteress is revealed. In the wild, rosebushes use their thorns to keep predators away. Hester and Pearl are like rosebushes because they try to keep people at a distance from them. As Pearl grows up she becomes a very pretty, young girl as her mother is. She is also faced with the reality that she was born out of wedlock. Pearl develops a rude, annoying personality because she has never had anyone that has wanted to be close to her because of her predestined status in the community. Before she has even grown up she is known as an inferior member of society. Her personality is her protection, just as thorns on a rosebush protect the flowers. Hester uses her Scarlet A to keep Hester from having anyone close to her. Her past has kept her from wanting anyone to try and pry into her business. She would rather people stay away from her and her family to prevent any more gossip or talk about her. However, by the novel's end, Hester has become a proto-feminist mother figure to the women of the community. The sham e attached to her scarlet letter is long gone. Women recognize that her punishment stemmed in part from the town fathers' sexism, and they come to Hester seeking shelter from the sexist forces under which they themselves suffer. Throughout The Scarlet Letter Hester is portrayed as an intelligent, capable, but not necessarily extraordinary, woman. A rosebush too, is portrayed as being strong yet beautiful plant.

Military Spending Essay

Examine the extent to which expenditure on arms and the armed forces is justifiable in the modern world. With all its wars, terrorist attacks and genocides, history might suggest that the armed forces has a critical and unquestionable role in any nation-state. However, as Steven Pinker puts it â€Å"We believe our world is riddled with terror and war, but we may be living in the most peaceable era in human existence’. Since the peak of the cold war in the 1970s and 80s, organised conflicts of all kinds, such as civil wars, genocides, repression by autocratic governments, terrorist attacks, have declined throughout the world and their death tolls have declined even more precipitously. Despite the trend of the New Peace, world military expenditure in 2013 is estimated to have reach $1.747 trillion and 2012 saw the highest total military spending than in any year since World War 2. Are these military spendings a good return on its national-security â€Å"investment’, for it is clearly an investment intended for peace and security. This essay aims to show that expenditure on arms and armed forces are justifiable in the modern world to a very small extent because it facilitates violence, results in power imbalance and its money can be put to better use. First, expenditure on arms and armed forces is not justifiable as such military spendings facilitate violence and thus violates human rights. Countries without military capability cannot easily undertake â€Å"wars of choice† or wars whose purposes evolve, as in Iraq, from dismantling wars of mass destruction to promoting democracy. The last five major wars that the United States undertook, namely Korea 1950, Vietnam 1955, Kuwait 1990, Afghanistan 2001 and Iraq 2003 were the ones in which the United States attacked countries that had not directly attacked the United States. Furthermore, wars involving powers that have the military and economic capability allows for such conflicts to exist for prolonged periods of time. For example, four out of the five wars mentioned above are still unresolved. The United States possession of military establishment that has a capability far beyond its ability to defend the homeland hence gives it a capability to undertake wars of choice, to the extent that Vietnam and Iraq prove to be miscalculations and strategic blunders. In the UK, the Ministry of Defence redefines the purpose of the armed forces as â€Å"meeting a wider range of expeditionary tasks, at greater range from the UK and with everincreasing strategic, operational and tactical tempo† which â€Å"could only conceivably be undertaken alongside the US†. This means that their ‘defence capability’ is now retained for the purpose of offence. Expenditure on arms and armed forces is hence not justified on the grounds that they facilitate violence in the world as countries claim moral authority to launch attacks on other countries in the name of benign foreign intervention. Second, the disproportionate expenditure on arms and the armed forces is not justifiable because wars are no longer the biggest threat to a nation. A report published by the Oxford Research Group argues that modern defence policies are self-defeating. They concentrate on the wrong threats and respond to them in a manner which is more likely to exacerbate than to defuse them. The real challenges, it contends, are presented by climate change, competition over resources, the marginalisation of the poor and our own military deployments. By displacing people from their homes and exacerbating food shortages, climate change will cause social breakdown and mass migration. Competition for resources means that the regions which possess them – particularly the Middle East – will remain the focus of conflict. As improved education is not matched by better prospects for many of the world’s poor, the resulting sense of marginalisation provides a more hospitable environment for insurrection. Aids leaves a generation of orphaned children vulnerable to recruitment by paramilitary groups and criminal gangs. The war on terror has created the threats it was supposed to defeat, by driving people to avenge the civilians it has killed. By developing new weapons of mass destruction, the rich nations challenge others to try to match them. In 2012, the United States allocated 37% of its budget on military spendings but only 2% on diplomacy, development and war  prevention. This is also more than spendings on healthcare and responses to poverty combined. The budget would contribute far more to security if it was spent on energy efficiency, foreign aid and arms control. Furthermore, the danger and paradox of military spending is that the bigger the budget, the more powerful the lobby because which can fight for its own survival. This leads to loose budget  constraints and poor control over spendings and programmes. In Saudi, the corrupt relations that have been cultivated with the princes result in civil servants defending not the realm but the arms companies. Even in countries with reputable governments such as the UK, some abuses in military activities arise because Congress cannot possibly effectively oversee such a large operation where programs involving $24 billion are enacted as a single line item. Hence, military spendings intention of protecting the state may be compromised by other motivations. Last, the expenditure on arms and armed forces is not justifiable because the disproportionate distribution of military expenditure leads to an unjustifiable imbalance of power. In 2013, nearly four-fifths of all military expenditure was made by 15 states and just 2 states, the United States and China, made nearly half of all military expenditure. American primacy in the global distribution of capabilities is one of the most salient features of the contemporary international system. Their expenditures on arms is more than the next 14 countries combined together. This extraordinary imbalance leads to a unipolar world likely to be built around rules and institutions as desired by the United States. The extent to which the powerful countries can translate its formidable capabilities into meaningful political influence is debatable as the United State’s selective involvement in Vietnam or Iraq but lack thereof in Cambodia during the Khmer Rouge era seems to reflect that America’s foreign policy , especially after  2001, has been a reflection simply of the idiosyncratic and provocative strategies of the Bush administration itself rather than a manifestation of the deeper structural features of the global system of power. Hence, expenditure on arms and armed forces is justifiable to a small extent as it has allowed for the presence of many ‘bullies’ on the world stage. However, expenditure on armed forces can also be justified as nations do have the sovereignty and right to protect their own nations. Ironically due to the current situation of massive military spendings, the world is still vulnerable to threats, especially from terrorism, in the modern century. The drastic increase in United State’s military spending in the last decade can also be justified by the September 11 terrorist attacks. Hence, it is in the nation’s interests to be as prepared as they possibly can. Since the beginning of civilisations, violence has had an unmistakable role in societies and there is little evidence to indicate its extinction in the near future. Some argue that it is human nature to challenge, oppose and expand. Furthermore, mistakes in history such as when Neville Chamberlain wanted to cut Defence spending in Britain and â€Å"appease Hitler† to achieve â€Å"peace in our time† have resulted in world leaders who are well guarded against making the same mistakes. Military capability is also an important source of legitimacy for governments. For countries like the United States, their formidable military capability is also a source of national identity and pride. From yet another perspective, it is also the responsibility of governments to deliver and ensure that the security of its people is ensured within its means as stated in Rousseau’s social contract. Under these arguments, the expenditure on arms and armed forces still seem to have a justifiable place in a country’s budget. Yet, it is important to keep in mind that there are means other than a larger military force to ensure these security needs are met. Despite the initial failures of League of Nations, defence treaties such as NATO founded in 1949  are encouraging initiatives that have successfully reduced military spendings. The organisation constitutes a system of collective defence whereby its member states agree to mutual defence in response to an attack by any external party. Such institutions allow smaller nations to rely on the more powerful ones so that their budget can be more efficiently allocated to build their economies and such is the case in countries like Hungary, Poland and Ukraine. History shows that countries can reduce spendings quickly if they so desire. In the United states, military spendings declined by 74 percent in the first year after World War II and 23 percent in the first two years after the Korean War ended. Today’s slow decline in spending on obsolete systems arises not because of the increasing threat of war but because there are weak budgetary and virtually non-existent political pressures on military spendings. Given that expenditures on arms and armed forces facilitate violence, leads to inefficient allocation of budgets and global power imbalances, it is justified to a very small extent.

Word Choice Your vs. Youre - Writing Tips with Proofed

Word Choice Your vs. Youre - Writing Tips with Proofed Word Choice: Your vs. Youre The words â€Å"your† and â€Å"you’re† are so commonly confused (especially online) that it has inspired memes. And in the face of memes, it would be easy to give up, leave social media behind, and accept that good spelling and grammar have no place in our crazy, modern world. But no! We are proofreaders. Correcting spelling and grammar is what we do! So even if we are destined to drown under wave after wave of typos, we will stand, like Cnut, and resist the tide. People need to respect grammar, Derek. I dont care if my feet get wet. All of which is an overly dramatic way of saying that, today, we’re looking at â€Å"your† and â€Å"you’re.† Your (Possessive Pronoun) â€Å"Your† is a second-person possessive adjective. We use it when something belongs to a â€Å"you†: Your dog is chewing my boot. Here, â€Å"Your† shows that the dog belongs to the person we’re speaking to. Other possessive adjectives include â€Å"my,† â€Å"our,† â€Å"his,† â€Å"her,† and â€Å"their.† She got frustrated when they didnt fit her.(Photo: gomagoti/flickr) You’re (Short for â€Å"You Are†) The term â€Å"you’re† is actually a contraction of two words: â€Å"you† and â€Å"are.† It would be used in a sentence as follows: You’re wearing tasty boots. = You are wearing tasty boots. The apostrophe in this term shows us there are letters missing. Keep in mind that contractions should not be used in formal writing (e.g., a college paper). To ensure a formal tone, write â€Å"you are† instead. Your or You’re Despite looking similar on paper, these terms have very different uses. On the plus side, this makes it easier to tell the difference. If you’re not sure which term to use in a sentence, though, see how it sounds with â€Å"you are† in it. We can illustrate this with the example used for â€Å"your† above: You are dog is chewing my boot. This is very obviously wrong, so we know it should be â€Å"your† instead. Remember: Your = A second-person possessive adjective You’re = Short for â€Å"you are†

Akutagawa essays

Akutagawa essays In all of Akutagawa fs rather dark themed short stories which were assigned, there was clearly a strong emphasis placed on the supernatural. In the conclusion of the first story,  gThe Clown fs Mask h, I got the impression that what initially seemed to be a harmless comic mask could possibly have been haunted and not of this world, and was eerily portrayed as the cause of the main character fs death. In  gThe Immortal h, images of the afterlife found in the Shrine of the Mountain Deity (e.g. the Assistant Prefect, the Little Devil) add to the story fs supernatural theme. However, most of all, the inclusion of the haggard old man who is actually not of this world, and this character fs act of turning the paper into silver and gold coins were rather strong symbols of Akutagawa fs focus on the mystical. In  gRasho Gate h, the man initially respects the corpses found inside the structure and sees the woman as a very evil person for disturbing the dead. It is not until the woman confesses that she must raid the corpses in order to survive that the man decides to rob the woman of her clothes. This greater respect for the dead rather than another human is a rather interesting aspect of the story. Finally, in the story  gWithin a Grove h, it should be mentioned that the account of incident in the grove given by the deceased husband is introduced with the title  gThe tale of the spirit as told through a medium h. As is mentioned in the book fs introduction, Akutagawa fs fascination with the macabre and ghost stories of the Edo Period since his childhood undoubtedly influenced his writing. Other than the assigned readings, the only other work of Akutagawa fs I fve had the chance to read has been  gThe Spider fs Thread h (Kumo no Ito). However, in this story as well, there is substantial emphasis placed on the supernatural. Akutagawa describes the afterlife, and especially hell in rather ghastly detail, even d...

Adult development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Adult development - Essay Example t limited to; not being able to acquire a job because of lack of knowledge of a particular software, not being able to converse confidently with the peers at the workplace because of lack of knowledge of the subject of discussion, and not being able to apply the theoretical knowledge to practical situations in the workplace. As an adult, an individual needs to be more responsible in order to excel in the profession. It becomes more than just cramming things up to pass the exams, which is the approach towards learning adopted by a vast majority of the juveniles. One gets to realize the importance and significance of learning once one is required to exhibit the skills acquired through learning, and one’s professional growth, privileges, benefits, and the whole standard of living is associated with that. â€Å"As unemployment rises, along with employer concerns about worker skills, adult learners are returning to higher education in droves† (Cordes, 2009). As a result of t his realization, adults become more serious about learning. While they may have skipped classes in the schools to hang out with friends as juveniles, the same people tend to look for opportunities of learning, training, and skill development once they enter the professional life. An individual who was not serious about learning a software when the parents were paying the fee becomes so conscious and serious about learning that he/she wills to personally pay an institution to teach him/her that software. Tough life experiences make adults realize the importance of learning and thus, they approach learning as a ladder towards professional growth and success. IT can help adult learners in many ways. Firstly, learning through IT is a way that is best attuned to the learning style of the adults. A vast majority of adults spend considerable time using the Internet in the present age. Adults choose to use the Internet in the contemporary age in order to build contacts, and interact with friends and

Stroop effect experiment on bilingual students Research Paper

Stroop effect experiment on bilingual students - Research Paper Example It is not difficult to see the central importance of bilingualism, with an emphasized importance on English language acquisition, in today’s society. Although having English as the world language raises numerous issues about identity and power that need to be further investigated, the reality is that being bilingual – in both one’s native language as well as in English – is quickly becoming the norm. In an attempt to compete globally, countries are investing mass amounts of capital into establishing bilingual institutions of higher learning, in which English-speaking instructors are being enticed to move to some of the most remote and exotic places on the globe to educate children and adults in China and Cambodia and Oman, etc. Therefore, the discussion of how non-English speakers become proficient in a second language (L2) is pivotal in the educational community, which raises issues of recognition, comprehension, and stimuli that aid the brain in developi ng the connections that enable the interpretation and processing of foreign information. In an attempt to study how these connections are made, many linguists rely on the Stroop test, which serves to study the reaction time of a task. Applying this test to L2 acquisition provides invaluable insight which will enable language instructors to create learning environments that will aid language learners in transitioning from a basic or intermediate knowledge to an advanced fluency of the second language. J.R. Stroop has made an invaluable contribution to the history of experimental psychology, and his test has been utilized in a myriad of subject areas, from neuropsychology to affective disorders. The Stroop effect has been used to discuss frontal lobe function (brain patterns), the role of emotions on cognition, the speed at which individuals process and compartmentalize information, and the process of second language acquisition (Stroop Effect, 2010). The