terracotta warriors essays

terracotta warriors essays Since the unearthing of the 8th world wonder, many new worth while discoveries have been made about Chinas first emperor and the Chinese civilization. The 7,000(and rising) life size terracotta warriors were discovered by a local farmer digging a well. The Terracotta Warriors were made during the rule of Emperor Qin Shi Huang- the first emperor to rule the whole of China in its known history. The terracotta warriors were crafted and then fired in a kiln 100s at a time by the citizens and craftsmen inside of the Qin Empire. Terra Cotta warriors were both beneficial and detrimental to Chinese culture. Even now, archeologists are excavating the site of the life like warriors. The 2000 year old Terracotta Warriors are one of Chinas largest attractions. With out its tourism, China would not be as famous as it is today. So the terracotta warriors in all are very helpful to China. They give people jobs on the excavation sites. They give a large amount of tourism, and are a national symbol of China. The uncovering of Chinas terracotta warriors has helped Chinas tourism very much. There are over 7000 terracotta statues, each one different from the last. All of them are helping China with its economy. The figurines consist of horses, archers, foot soldiers, and mounted soldiers (on horses). The details go into a great deal of unnecessary extent, even though it helps the economy with tourists now. All of the soldiers are life size, made completely out of terracotta mud. They all face east (the direction of the entrance) in battle positions. There were also auto firing crossbows placed i n the tunnels of both the terracotta warriors and Emperor Qin Shi Huangs Mausoleum that would fire when triggered by intruders.(2.) Emperor Qin Shi Huang was the first emperor of unified China. Qin was a great leader from the start, and without him China would not be what it i ...

The Good and Bad of a School Principal Job

The Good and Bad of a School Principal Job I love being a principal of a school. There is nothing else that I want be doing at this point in my life. This does not mean that I enjoy every aspect of my job. There are certainly aspects that I could do without, but the positives far outweigh the negatives for me. This is my dream job. Being the principal of a school is demanding, but it is also rewarding. You must be thick skinned, hard working, diligent, flexible, and creative to be a good principal. It is not a job for just anyone. There are days that I question my decision to become a principal. However, I always bounce back knowing that the reasons I love being a principal are more powerful than the reasons I hate it. Reasons I Love Being a Principal of a School I love making a difference. It is fulfilling to see the aspects that I have a direct hand in making a positive impact on students, teachers, and the school as a whole. I love collaborating with teachers, offering feedback, and seeing them grow and improve in their classroom from day to day and year to year. I enjoy investing time in a difficult student and seeing them mature and grow to the point that they lose that label. I am proud when a program I helped create flourishes and evolves into a significant component of the school. I love having a larger impact. As a teacher, I made a positive impact on the students I taught. As a principal, I have made a positive impact on the entire school. I am involved with every aspect of the school in some way. Hiring new teachers, evaluating teachers, writing school policy, and establishing programs to meet school-wide needs all impact the school as a whole. These things likely will go unnoticed by others when I make the right decision, but it is satisfying to see others being positively impacted by a decision I made. I love working with people. I love working with the different groups of people that I am able to as a principal. This includes other administrators, teachers, support staff, students, parents, and community members. Each sub-group requires me to approach them differently, but I enjoy the collaboration with all of them. I realized early on that I work with people as opposed to against them. This has helped shape my overall educational leadership philosophy. I enjoy building and maintaining healthy relationships with the constituents of my school. I love being a problem solver. Every day brings about a different set of challenges as a principal. I have to be adept at problem solving to get through each day. I love coming up with creative solutions, which are often outside the box. Teachers, parents, and students come to me on a daily basis seeking answers. I must be able to provide them with quality solutions that will satisfy the problems they have. I love motivating students. I enjoy finding entertaining and unusual ways to motivate my students. Over the years, I’ve spent a cold November night on the roof of the school, jumped out of an airplane, dressed like a woman, and sang Karaoke to Carly Rae Jepsen’s Call Me Maybe in front of the entire school. It has generated a lot of buzz and the students absolutely love it. I know that I look crazy while I am doing these things, but I want my students to be excited about coming to school, reading books, etc. and these things have been effective motivational tools. I love the pay check. My gross salary was $24,000 the first year I taught. It is hard for me to fathom how I survived. Luckily, I was single at the time, or it would have been difficult. The money is certainly better now. I am not a principal for the pay check, but I cannot deny that making more money is an enormous benefit to becoming an administrator. I work extremely hard for the money that I make, but my family is able to live comfortably with some extras that my parents were never able to afford when I was a kid. Reasons I Hate Being a Principal of a School I hate playing politics. Unfortunately, there are many aspects of public education that is political. In my opinion, politics dilutes education. As a principal, I understand that it is necessary to be political in many cases. There are many times that I want to call parents out on when they come to my office and blow smoke about how they are going to handle their child. I refrain from this because I know that it is not in the school’s best interest to do so. It is not always easy to bite your tongue, but sometimes it is best. I hate dealing with the negative. I deal with complaints on a daily basis. It is a large part of my job, but there are days when it becomes overwhelming. Teachers, students, and parents like to gripe and moan about each other continuously. I feel confident in my ability to handle and smooth things over. I am not one of those that sweep things under the rug. I spend the necessary time to investigate any complaint, but these investigations can be time daunting and time consuming. I hate being the bad guy. My family and I recently went on vacation to Florida. We were watching a street performer when he picked me to help him with a part of his act. He asked me my name and what I did. When I told him I was a principal, I got booed by the audience. It is sad that being a principal has such a negative stigma associated to it. I have to make difficult decisions every day, but they are often based on mistakes of others. I hate standardized testing. I loathe standardized testing. I believe that standardized tests should not be the end all evaluation tool for schools, administrators, teachers, and students. At the same time, I understand that we live in an era with an overemphasis of standardized testing. As a principal, I feel that I am forced to push that overemphasis of standardized testing on my teachers and on my students. I feel like a hypocrite for doing so, but I understand that current academic success is measured by testing performance whether I believe it is right or not. I hate telling teachers no because of a budget. Education is an investment. It is an unfortunate reality that many schools do not have the technology, curriculum, or teachers necessary to maximize learning opportunities for students due to a budget shortfall. Most teachers spend a significant amount of their own money to buy things for their classroom when the district tells them no. I have had to tell teachers no, when I knew they had a fantastic idea, but our budget just would not cover the expense. I have a hard time doing that at the expense of our students. I hate the time it takes away from my family. A good principal spends a lot of time in his office when no one else is in the building. They are often the first one to arrive and the last to leave. They attend almost every extra curricular event. I know that my job requires a significant investment of time. This investment of time takes time away from my family. My wife and boys understand, and I am appreciative of that. It is not always easy, but I try to ensure a balance of my time between work and family.

What is collective efficacy and, how, if at all does it affect local Essay

What is collective efficacy and, how, if at all does it affect local crime rates - Essay Example far as collective efficacy is concerned then crime is actually any harmful act or criminal offense which might be injurious for a particular individual or the entire community. Local crime has a very strong relationship with collective efficacy as it is drastically increasing today in the world while collective efficacy is becoming essential to reduce the crime. Hence it is clearly evident that they both are interlinked with one another. However, the impact of collective efficacy over the crime rates and the critical aspects of their relationship are still unidentified. This paper aims to analyze collective efficacy from different perspectives including all of its influencing factors, how it initiates in a society and what are its possible consequences. Moreover, its affect over the local crime rate would be argued so as to make a conclusion that either the prevalence of collective efficacy in the modern societies will reduce the local crime rate or this would have rather an unnotice d impact. Since this paper is based upon local crime statistics and the general phenomenon of collective efficacy therefore the argument is made considering all the secondary sources including journal articles. These articles have focused upon previous researches in the same area while they have also given a very clear outlook on the criminal world. Thus they have been significantly used to build the argument and also to make the convincing conclusions based on practical ideas. Here, people often misunderstand that crime or criminal activities are linked with the personal attributes of an individual however, the reality is far different from this assumption. It was considered appropriate to present arguments in the paper which will be helpful in understanding organizational and social characteristics of a society which are actually associated with the increasing/decreasing crime rate (Sampson, 1997, p.918). The overall research and critical analysis of collective efficacy reveals that

Supplier Relations Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Supplier Relations - Research Paper Example Generally, a good supplier relation can be described as one in which the company does not keep itself apart from the suppliers (Lautenbacher and Stidham, 2009). Research has actually showed that there exist several companies who only contact their suppliers when they are running out of stock. Even among such companies, the only kind of communication that goes on has to do with quantities of goods needed and the periods the goods are needed. These companies totally fail to see their suppliers as an integral part of their business and so see no need to keep the suppliers informed about the day to day feedback on the supplies they do and the impact of the supplies on the company. For excellent supplier relationship to take place, suppliers must be aware of the daily needs of the companies in terms of demand for products and services. Suppliers also need constant feedback from companies regarding reactions from customers. This is an important move in ensuring that suppliers supply to the specifications of customers and that products supplied are always on high demand by customers so that they do not remain in the inventories for long (Kelton, et al, 2002). Aspects of Boeing's supplier relations program that specifically address reducing inventories For Boeing as an international company, there are several relations programs that it has in place to specifically address the issue of reducing inventories, maintaining quality, regulating compliance and promoting competitiveness. In order to ensure that safety stocks are adjusted downwards and that there is improvement in quality, Boeing ensures that the leading times for supply are reduced to the barest minimum (Arrand, 2007). It would be noted that suppliers have their own lead times whiles customers also have their. But it is the lead time of customer that is paramount because it is the customer that the company makes profits from. There is constant relationship with the supplier to ensure that they reduce their lead times according to the lead time of customers. This helps in reducing inventory in the sense that it leads to a reduction in the amount of time needed to hold stock together (Fofie, 2001). Another important component of ensuring that suppliers are admonished to reduce their lead times is that when the lead times are reduced, it creates enough room for top-up orders to be made in the season when adequate time has been given to measure real demand. Consequently, all forms of rush in the supply of inventory are avoided and so suppliers can take their time to supply quality products. Another important program in place by Boeing has to do with the fact that the company has special terms of conditions as part of its relationship program whereby suppliers must prove beyond reasonable doubt that they can be trusted for reliability of supply before their services are engaged. This is an important program for ensuring reduced inventory and quality of supplies made because it ensures that the need to hold safety stocks is avoided. Meanwhile, the practice of holding safety stocks is one of the major causes of increased inventory. When companies cannot trust the reliability of supply, there are often forced to hold safety stocks that may not necessarily meet the demand of customers. As soon as new stocks come in, they are forced to offload those stocks through cheap sales, rendering the finances of the company handicapped. Boeing therefore avoids this by ensuring that there is strict regulatory

A Short Story Essay Example for Free

A Short Story Essay The cold hit him straight way, and he turned to the see the appealing glow of the gas lamp that cast silhouettes on the walls, the shadows dancing with each flicker of the small flame. The wind blew quiet but harsh and found its way through the gaps in his woollen overcoat. He turned up the collar and regretted that there was no button to keep it in place. He scurried down the well-trodden path, passing withering plants and whatever else lay in the darkness. Without warning, the headlights of an approaching illuminated him against the darkness of the forest; he threw himself to the hard ground, scurrying towards the relative safety of the undergrowth. He didn’t dare to move, terrified that any shuffle or scratching might give away his position, as the truck stopped at the side of the road. He heard the slamming of doors and the shuffling of feet. The man could see nothing but the very top of the trucks canvas roof, but he could hear their voices. One shouted out to another in German; the reply was a harsh laugh that seemed to pierce the very core of the wildlife; a large bird that has been making its way cautiously over to the man suddenly opened its wings out and took off violently from where it stood with a loud shriek that filled the deadly quiet. The man stopped breathing, covered his head with both of his hands and screwed his eyes tightly shut, willing the other men to go away. He could hear them walking over, their hard-soled boots thudding, again and again, as they made their way closer. He had attempted to bury himself in the plantation, but it was to no avail. A narrow, white torch beam, moved across the perimeter of the forest, and slowly made its way down to his level. He shut his eyes tight and willed them to leave him be, to go away. And just like that, the beam of light vanished, and the footsteps gradually died away. With the slam of two doors, the engine started, and the truck moved off. The man lifted his head slightly, just in time to see the terrifying symbol of the Swastika that would be engrained in his mind for the rest of his life.

Biography of Willa Cather Essay -- Biographies Authors Writers Essays

Biography of Willa Cather Willa Cather was born December 7th, 1873 in the Back Creek Valley of Northern Neck, Virginia. Her parents, Charles Cather and Virginia Bloak, both came from families that had lived in the region for generations. Their house was described as â€Å"full of bustling and many-colored life† (E.K. Brown 18) including Willa’s three siblings, neighbors, and the friends of the family who came around often. The people of the town were eager to help one another out. Willa spent much of her time divided between her father, whom she helped in the fields tending to the sheep, and going with her grandmother and friend Margie Anderson â€Å"on errands of mercy and medicine, or [with] her mother on visits to cousins, neighbors or dependents† (21). At age nine, however, Charles Cather decided to move the family and join his father and brother near Red Cloud, Nebraska. The moves were difficult for Willa, but in later years she never regretted the change. Red Cloud was a small, settled prairie town whose population was constantly growing from European immigration. The town was made up of primarily Scandinavian, Bohemian, and French immigrants who had come to work the land. The Cather family grew to include seven children while there, but Cather’s strongest influences came from older people in town: schoolteachers and neighbors who read with her and shared their libraries. Cather also met people like Annie Sadilek, a Bohemian woman credited with the inspiration for the character Antonia of Cather’s My Antonia. The entire town and atmosphere of Red Cloud served as the backdrop for most of Cather’s novels and short stories. She said herself that â€Å"the years from eight to fifteen are the formative period in ... ... Her life’s contribution to society is remembered and praise. Cather was a modernist, but more than that, she was an amazing writer whose novels and writings are relevant and still touch readers today as they did when she had first written them. Resource Page Great Websites: www.unl.edu/Cather : The Willa Cather Electronic Archive http://www.csustan.edu/english/reuben/pal/chap7/cather.html : Perspectives in American Literature, a Research and Reference Guide www.ibiblio.org http://www.gradesaver.com/ClassicNotes/Authors/about_willa_cather.html Bibliography Brown, E.K. Willa Cather: A Critical Biography. Alfred A Knopf; New York: 1953. Jessup, Josephine Lurie. The Faith of Our Fathers. Richard R. Smith; New York: 1950. www.gustavus.edu, Scott Newstron, January 6, 2996, Harvard University, last updated March 5 2002.

Research Proposal Same Sex Marriage Essay

Same sex marriage has been one of the many recent political â€Å"hot† topics. It is a popular subject in political debate, national newspapers, and media coverage. These debates, articles, and reports are often focusing on rights outlined in constitutional laws, amendments and Bill of Rights as a source of the right of same sex couples to marry. Some states have addressed the issue of such rights in court cases throughout the United States with varying outcomes. This research paper is concerned with the proposed Federal Marriage Amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman. It will examine the Fourteenth Amendment and the equal protection clause. It will also examine previous court cases and the outcomes. It will further demonstrate possible economic concerns of legalized same sex marriage. Research Question What issues and possible constitutional infringements surround the proposed Federal Marriage Amendment? References National Tax Journal, Vol. 53, Issue 2, June 2000 Lesbian Couples, National Center for Lesbian Rights, www.ncirights.org Legal Marriage, Court Cases, Partners Task Force for Gay and Lesbian Task Force, http://www.buddybuddy.com/t-line-1-html Policy.com Gay Marriage, Civil Liberties Union, http://www.aclu.org/library/aagaymarriage.html

About KFC Essay

Colonel Harland Sanders, born September 9, 1890, actively began franchising his chicken business at the age of 65. Now, the KFC ® business he started has grown to be one of the largest quick service food service systems in the world. And Colonel Sanders, a quick service restaurant pioneer, has become a symbol of entrepreneurial spirit. More than a billion of the Colonel’s â€Å"finger lickin’ good† chicken dinners are served annually. And not just in North America. The Colonel’s cooking is available in more than 80 countries and territories around the world. When the Colonel was six, his father died. His mother was forced to go to work, and young Harland had to take care of his three-year-old brother and baby sister. This meant doing much of the family cooking. By the age of seven, he was a master of several regional dishes. At age 10, he got his first job working on a nearby farm for $2 a month. When he was 12, his mother remarried and he left his home near Henryville, Ind., for a job on a farm in Greenwood, Ind. He held a series of jobs over the next few years, first as a 15-year-old streetcar conductor in New Albany, Ind., and then as a 16-year-old private, soldiering for six months in Cuba. After that he was a railroad fireman, studied law by correspondence, practiced in justice of the peace courts, sold insurance, operated an Ohio River steamboat ferry, sold tires, and operated service stations. When he was 40, the Colonel began cooking for hungry travelers who stopped at his service station in Corbin, Ky. He didn’t have a restaurant then, but served folks on his own dining table in the living quarters of his service station. As more people started coming just for food, he moved across the street to a motel and restaurant that seated 142 people. Over the next nine years, he perfected his secret blend of 11 herbs and spices and the basic cooking technique that is still used today. Sander’s fame grew. Governor Ruby Laffoon made him a Kentucky Colonel in 1935 in recognition of his contributions to the state’s cuisine. And in 1939, his establishment was first listed in Duncan Hines’ â€Å"Adventures in Good Eating.† In the early 1950s a new interstate highway was planned to bypass the town of Corbin. Seeing an end to his business, the Colonel auctioned off his operations. After paying his bills, he was reduced to living on his $105 Social Security checks. Confident of the quality of his fried chicken, the Colonel devoted himself to the chicken franchising business that he started in 1952. He traveled across the country by car from restaurant to restaurant, cooking batches of chicken for restaurant owners and their employees. If the reaction was favorable, he entered into a handshake agreement on a deal that stipulated a payment to him of a nickel for each chicken the restaurant sold. By 1964, Colonel Sanders had more than 600 franchised outlets for his chicken in the United States and Canada. That year, he sold his interest in the U.S. company for $2 million to a group of investors including John Y. Brown Jr., who later was governor of Kentucky from 1980 to 1984. The Colonel remained a public spokesman for the company. In 1976, an independent survey ranked the Colonel as the world’s second most recognizable celebrity. Under the new owners, Kentucky Fried Chicken Corporation grew rapidly. It went public on March 17, 1966, and was listed on the New York Stock Exchange on January 16, 1969. More than 3,500 franchised and company-owned restaurants were in worldwide operation when Heublein Inc. acquired KFC Corporation on July 8, 1971, for $285 million. Kentucky Fried Chicken became a subsidiary of R.J. Reynolds Industries, Inc. (now RJR Nabisco, Inc.), when Heublein Inc. was acquired by Reynolds in 1982. KFC was acquired in October 1986 from RJR Nabisco, Inc. by PepsiCo, Inc., for approximately $840 million. In January 1997, PepsiCo, Inc. announced the spin-off of its quick service restaurants — KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut — into an independent  restaurant company, Tricon Global Restaurants, Inc. In May 2002, the company announced it received shareholders’ approval to change it’s corporation name to Yum! Brands, Inc. The company, which owns A&W All-American Food Restaurants, KFC, Long John Silvers, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell restaurants, is the world’s largest restaurant company in terms of system units with nearly 32,500 in more than 100 countries and territories. Until he was fatally stricken with leukemia in 1980 at the age of 90, the Colonel traveled 250,000 miles a year visiting the KFC restaurants around the world. And it all began with a 65-year-old gentleman who used his $105 Social Security check to start a business. KFC KFC operates in 74 countries and territories throughout the world under the name â€Å"Kentucky Fried Chicken† and/or â€Å"KFC.† It was founded in Corbin, Kentucky by Colonel Harland D. Sanders, an early developer of the quick service food business and a pioneer of the restaurant franchise concept. The Colonel perfected his secret blend of 11 herbs and spices for Kentucky Fried Chicken in 1939 and signed up his first franchisee in 1952. By the time KFC was acquired by PepsiCo in 1986, it had grown to approximately 6,600 units in 55 countries and territories. KFC restaurants offer fried chicken products and some also offer non-fried chicken-on-the-bone products, with the principal entree items sold in pieces under the names Original Recipe, Extra Tasty Crispy and Tender Roast. Other principal entree items include Chunky Chicken Pot Pies, Colonel’s Crispy Strips, and various chicken sandwiches. KFC restaurants also offer a variety of side items, such as biscuits, mashed potatoes and gravy, cole slaw and corn, as well as desserts and non-alcoholic beverages. Their decor is characterized by the image of the Colonel and distinctive packaging includes the â€Å"Bucket† of chicken. In 1996, KFC’s worldwide system sales of over $8 billion grew faster than the industry average even though the number of restaurants in its global system did not materially increase. This growth was largely due to the impact of new products as shown by the fact that same store sales in Company-operated stores in the U.S. increased 6%. In 1995, same store sales for Company-operated stores in the U.S. were also strong, increasing 7%. For the first half of 1997, KFC same store sales growth for Company-operated units in the U.S. was consistently positive resulting in a 4% growth rate for the 24 week period. Average U.S. system-wide sales per traditional unit in 1996 were $775,000. YUM BRANDS The Yum! Brands, Inc. organization is currently made up of six subsidiaries organized around its five core concepts, KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, A&W All-American Food Restaurants and Long John Silvers. Yum! Brands and KFC is based in Louisville, Kentucky; Pizza Hut and Yum! Restaurants International are headquartered in Dallas, Texas; Taco Bell is based in Irvine, California; and A & W All-American Food Restaurants and Long John Silvers are based in Lexington, Kentucky. Each of Yum! Brands’ concepts are engaged in the operation, development, franchising and licensing of a system of both traditional and non-traditional QSR units. Non-traditional units include express units and kiosks which have a more limited menu and operate in non-traditional locations like airports, gas and convenience stores, stadiums, amusement parks and colleges, where a full-scale traditional outlet would not be practical or efficient. In addition, there are approximately 367 units housing more than one concept (â€Å"2n1s†). Of these, approximately 354 units offer both the full KFC menu and a limited menu of Taco Bell products, and approximately 13 units offer both the full KFC menu and a limited menu of Pizza Hut products. In each concept, consumers can either dine in or carry out food. In addition, Taco Bell and KFC offer a drive-through option in many stores. Pizza Hut and, on a much more limited basis, KFC offer delivery service. Each concept has proprietary menu items and emphasizes the preparation of food with high quality ingredients as well as unique recipes and special seasonings to provide appealing, tasty and attractive food at competitive prices. VISION Our passion, as a restaurant company, is to put a YUM on people’s faces around the world, satisfying customers every time they eat our food and doing it better than any other restaurant company. A&W, KFC, Long John Silver’s, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell offer customers food they crave, comeback value, and customer-focused teams. The unique eating experience at each of our restaurants make our customers smile and inspire their loyalty for life. Toward that end, our 750,000 associates around the world are trained to be customer maniacs. With sales now in excess of $1 billion in Australia, we have proof positive of the power of Customer Mania. But what’s at its core? Three things, really:  · Operational excellence  · Great marketing and advertising  · Real â€Å"sit up and take notice† customer service When we took the concept of Mania to our Restaurant Team Members – the talented people who deal with our customers day in, day out, every day – they embraced it with passion. They took the program and ran with it, becoming powerful catalysts for change throughout our entire organization! Why? Simple – Customer Mania unlocked their enthusiasm and creativity, empowering them to do whatever it takes to satisfy guests. Listening to the Voice of the Customer Customer Mania is a great concept, but how would we give it meat? By listening to the Voice of the Customer! One initiative we undertook in Australia was to invite RGMs to customer research sessions, where they could closely observe customers talking about their experiences in our restaurants. Their stories – good and bad – were telling. Customers complained about speed and communication in the KFC drive-thrus, and the lack of ready access to a manager in the restaurant. As a direct result of these focus groups, our Customer Mania team developed two important initiatives: Improving our drive-thru facilities and service to make them more customer-friendly, and revamping our problem resolution process.  · Drive-thru: We embarked on building large glass boxes at the entry to drive-thrus, with menus and an attendant replacing the speaker. These changes will make the drive-thru experience much more personal and more responsive.  · Problem resolution process: We took our best frontline workers, put them through additional LAST training, and empowered them to resolve customer complaints on the spot. As a result, customer complaints made to the home office have been reduced dramatically – down over 50%! It’s all about Leadership No doubt we’ve got a long way to go. But it’s clear to me that the five leadership principles we’ve established for Customer Mania are working, and are worth sharing:  · Lead from the top  · Stay the course, create a â€Å"five-year journey† mindset  · Be consistent  · Recognize, recognize, recognize  · Define what success looks like  · Good luck, and Yum to you!

Native Son- Cycle of Poverty Essays

Native Son- Cycle of Poverty Essays Native Son- Cycle of Poverty Essay Native Son- Cycle of Poverty Essay Essay Topic: Fight Club Novel Native Son Cycle of Poverty Do poor children become poor adults? Does your financial status predetermine you and your family’s success rate? The cycle of poverty is a cold hearted phenomenon. Throughout the world families struggle to break the cycle of poverty- but does it work? In Native Son by Richard Wright, the cycle of poverty rules the Thomas family. They are born into poverty and find it extremely difficult to lift themselves out of their tragic situation. Although several individuals in the novel work to end the cycle, many of their solutions are insufficient and do not take on the problem as a whole. Bigger Thomas and his family clearly portray a typical family stuck in the cycle of poverty. Although many attempts are made to break the cycle, we learn that it takes more than a few individuals to end poverty. The Thomas family fits almost perfectly into the cycle of poverty. Bigger, the main character, lives with his two siblings and his mother. His father died during a riot, leaving his uneducated mother alone with three children, and his children without a role model. This describes the first steps of the cycle of poverty. An uneducated single parent has little opportunities to move forward in life. Biggers mother struggles to pay their high rent of $8 while trying to properly raise, feed, clothe, and take care of three children. With a single parent trying to make ends meet, the kids are often unsupervised. Supervision is important in early life because it enforces rules and teaches right from wrong. If children are unsupervised, they miss out on learning the basics of life and how things work. Unsupervised kids often get caught up in mischief and mayhem. Bigger constantly finds himself hanging around with a group of guys whose thoughts revolve around crime. They conspire to rob a liquor store, they masturbate in a public theater, they get into fights, and more. Furthermore, with so much crime committed by those in poverty- many of whom are African American- discrimination comes easily to others. A newspaper during Bigger’s murder trial explains that, â€Å"Thomas comes of a poor darky family of shiftless and immoral variety. He was raised here and is known to local residents as an irreformable sneak theif and liar. . . Crimes such as Bigger Thomas murders could be lessened by segregating all Negroes in parks, playgrounds, cafes, theatres, and street cars. Residential segregation is imperative† (p. 280-281). This discrimination keeps the doors shut to many opportunities. Whites viewed blacks as inadequate, incapable, dangerous, untrustworthy people. For this reason, blacks were not allowed to do many of the things that whites were able to. In Biggers case, he wanted to fly: â€Å"If you wasn’t black and you had some money and if they’d let you go to that aviation school, you could fly a plane† (p. 17). The disappointment of having nothing to aspire to or look forward to causes people to lose hope. Once hope is lost, it is hard to rise up. Being so restrained also makes people feel trapped and isolated, â€Å"‘. . . I just can’t get used to it,’ Bigger said, ‘I swear to God I can’t. . . Every time I think about it I feel like somebody’s poking a red hot iron down my throat. Goddamn it, look! We live here and they live there. We black and they white. They got things and we ain’t. They do things and we can’t. It’s just like living in jail. Half the time I feel like I’m on the outside of the world peeping in through a knothole in the fence†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢Ã¢â‚¬  (p. 21). Since the chances of achieving the â€Å"normal† is so low for those in poverty, their standards and goals are compromised. Instead of striving to be the best, they strive to just live comfortably. These are all parts of the cycle of poverty that keep people from thriving or â€Å"living†. Mr. Dalton, a white millionaire in Native Son, takes several approaches to help end the cycle of poverty for African Americans. His solutions include sending ping-pong tables to the South Side Boys Club, offer some African Americans jobs, and send money to African American education programs. Although these are good attempts, they do not efficiently help the poor people as a whole. His action of sending ping-pong tables does not educate, offer opportunity, give self-esteem or confidence, and does not create equality in any way. These would be good steps to improving the poor’s lifestyle. Max tries to relay this to Mr. Dalton in Biggers jail cell: â€Å"Will ping-pong tables keep men from murdering? Cant you see? Even after losing your daughter, youre going to keep going in the same direction? Dont you grant as much life-feeling to other men as you have? Could ping-pong have kept you from making your millions? This boy and millions like him want a meaningful life, not ping-pong (p. 295). Although it does not offer any opportunities, it does help keep young African Americans busy and off the streets, therefore reducing crime. When kids are actively busy and productive, they are less likely to participate in mischievous activities. By Dalton offering jobs to African Americans he is definitely helping their society. The only problem with this idea is that h e is only helping one out of millions of people. He cannot end the cycle of poverty through one person. Dalton offers Bigger a job working as his family’s chauffeur, trying to give Bigger a chance at the world. While his intentions are good, he is subliminally enforcing the concept of blacks being inferior to whites. He works in the house serving their family. He is somewhat in the same situation as slaves- which the time period had just gotten over- except he was treated well and paid. With this job, Bigger realized that there is no room for improvement or a higher status. The most beneficial thing that Dalton did to support the black community was send money to educational programs. Education is the first step to success, and by allowing more African Americans to obtain an education he is helping the black community take a step forward. If more African Americans were educated, then less of them would be in poverty which would cause less discrimination and so on. Overall, his attempts do slowly help progress the African American race, but they were still not sufficient to end the cycle as a whole. Just as Mr. Dalton, Max has good intentions in helping the poor and his solutions as well are not sufficient. Max, who is Biggers lawyer at his murder trial, tries helping the poor black community by defending African Americans in court. He is one of the few people who realizes racism and discrimination, and he wants to change it. He tells in court the reasons why Bigger commits the awful crimes that he does. His explanation blames the whites for oppressing him and never giving him a chance to â€Å"live†. Max sees the big picture in which no one else can seem to grasp: â€Å"Multiply Bigger Thomas twelve million times, allowing for environmental and temperamental variations, and for those Negroes who are completely under the influence of the church, and you have the psychology of the Negro people. But once you have them as a whole, once your eyes leave the individual and encompass the mass, a new quality comes into the picture. Taken collectively, they are not simply twelve million people; in reality they constitute a separate nation, stunted, stripped, and held captive within this nation, devoid of political, social, economic, and property rights† (p. 397). Max explains how this reason led to Bigger Thomas murdering, standing up for the African American race at the same time. The only problems with Maxs solution to defend blacks is that he is connected to the communist party. A local preacher tries to convince Max that he is jeopardizing Biggers case, â€Å". . . there ain no usa draggin no Communism in this thing, Mistah. Ah respecks yo feelins powerfully, suh; but whut yuhs astin jus stirs up mo hate† (p. 289). Many people are against communism and even afraid of it. Bringing communism into a non-communistic case only brings trouble. People will have no trouble connecting the two, even if they are completely unrelated. Another problem with Maxs solution is that he is trying to help those who have already lost the battle. There is no hope for those who have their fate decided for them already- death. He should try to catch these people early, before they make the wrong decisions. Even though Max sees the whole picture, he is wasting his time at the wrong end of the cycle of poverty. Breaking the cycle of poverty will take more than helping a few individuals and saving a couple people from death row. In order to create an escape from the cycle, actions will need to be taken at the very first steps of poverty. Education is the most important factor of success and unfortunately, not many of the poor are offered the chance to a good education. Systems could be set up that provide cheap, convenient, and accessible education. These systems could be in personal environments, at a local church, over the computer, on video, etc. Getting the poor educated will then lead to them making better decisions and having more opportunities. As for unsupervised children who often end up in trouble with the law, community centers could be built. These places could offer fun activities, food, tutors, and overall just a place to â€Å"hangout†. Giving children somewhere to go keeps them off the streets and out of trouble. Community center supervisors could also play as role models for those who are in lack of. Another way to help prevent some people from falling into the cycle of poverty is to offer free contraception and medical care. Planned Parenthood and other facilities currently provide these types of services, but making them more accessible and more convenient would help save many teens from unwanted pregnancies. In all, one person can not end the cycle of poverty; there must be a change in society as a whole. The cycle of poverty is shown clearly throughout Native Son, with Bigger Thomas and his family being stuck right in it. With the restrictions that are put on them, they struggle greatly to improve their lives. It seems impossible for them to be anything but poor. Although both Mr. Dalton and Max try to help the Thomas family, we learn that the problem is much larger than what they can handle. It takes a want for change from society, not from a selected few. Problems need to be nipped in the bud to ensure that everyone gets the same chance at life. Although this ideal may not be attainable, we are certainly able to try to improve the current conditions.

Battle of Oriskany in the American Revolution

Battle of Oriskany in the American Revolution The Battle of Oriskany was fought August 6, 1777, during the American Revolution (1775-1783).  In early 1777, Major General John Burgoyne proposed a plan for defeating the Americans. Believing that New England was the seat of the rebellion, he proposed severing the region from the other colonies by marching down the Lake Champlain-Hudson River corridor while a second force, led by Colonel Barry St. Leger, advanced east from Lake Ontario and through the Mohawk Valley. Rendezvousing at Albany, Burgoyne, and St. Leger would advance down the Hudson, while General Sir William Howes army advanced north from New York City. Though approved by Colonial Secretary Lord George Germain, Howes role in the plan was never clearly defined and issues of his seniority precluded Burgoyne from issuing him orders. Assembling a force of around 800 British and Hessians, as well as 800 Native American allies in Canada, St. Leger began moving up the St. Lawrence River and into Lake Ontario. Ascending the Oswego River, his men reached the Oneida Carry in early August. On August 2, St. Legers advance forces arrived at nearby Fort Stanwix. Garrisoned by American troops under Colonel Peter Gansevoort, the fort guarded the approaches to the Mohawk. Outnumbering Gansevoorts 750-man garrison, St. Leger surrounded the post and demanded its surrender. This was promptly refused by Gansevoort. As he lacked sufficient artillery for battering down the forts walls, St. Leger elected to lay siege (Map). American Commander Brigadier General Nicholas Herkimerapprox. 800 men British Commander Sir John Johnsonapprox. 500-700 men American Response In mid-July, American leaders in Western New York first learned of a possible British attack into the region. Responding, the leader of Tryon Countys Committee of Safety, Brigadier General Nicholas Herkimer, issued a warning that the militia may be needed to block the enemy. On July 30, Herkimer received reports from friendly Oneidas that St. Legers column was within a few days march of Fort Stanwix. Upon receipt of this information, he immediately called out the countys militia. Gathering at Fort Dayton on the Mohawk River, the militia mustered around 800 men. This force included a group of Oneidas led by Han Yerry and Colonel Louis. Departing, Herkimers column reached the Oneida village of Oriska on August 5. Pausing for the night, Herkimer dispatched three messengers to Fort Stanwix. These were to inform Gansevoort of the militias approach and asked that receipt of the message be acknowledged by firing three cannons. Herkimer also requested that part of the forts garrison sortie to meet his command. It was his intention to remain in place until the signal was heard. As the next morning progressed, no signal was heard from the fort. Though Herkimer wished to remain at Oriska, his officers argued for resuming the advance. The discussions became increasingly heated and Herkimer was accused of being a coward and having Loyalist sympathies. Angered, and against his better judgment, Herkimer ordered the column to resume its march. Due to difficulty in penetrating the British lines, the messengers sent on the night of August 5 did not arrive until later the next day. The British Trap At Fort Stanwix, St. Leger learned of Herkimers approach on August 5. In an effort to prevent the Americans from relieving the fort, he ordered Sir John Johnson to take part of his Kings Royal Regiment of New York along with a force of rangers and 500 Seneca and Mohawks to attack the American column. Moving east, Johnson selected a deep ravine approximately six miles from the fort for an ambush. Deploying his Royal Regiment troops along the western exit, he placed the Rangers and Native Americans down the ravines sides. Once the Americans had entered the ravine, Johnsons men would attack while a Mohawk force, led by Joseph Brant, would circle around and strike the enemys rear. A Bloody Day Around 10:00 AM, Herkimers force descended into the ravine. Though under orders to wait until the entire American column was in the ravine, a party of Native Americans attacked early. Catching the Americans by surprise, they killed Colonel Ebenezer Cox and wounded Herkimer in the leg with their opening volleys. Refusing to be taken to the rear, Herkimer was propped up under a tree and continued to direct his men. While the main body of the militia was in the ravine, those troops at the rear had not yet entered. These came under attack from Brant and many panicked and fled, though some did fight their way forward to join their comrades. Assailed on all sides, the militia took heavy losses and the battle soon degenerated into numerous small unit actions. Slowly regaining control of his forces, Herkimer began pulling back to the edge of the ravine and American resistance began to stiffen. Concerned about this, Johnson requested reinforcements from St. Leger. As the battle became a pitched affair, a heavy thunderstorm erupted which caused a one-hour break in the fighting. Taking advantage of the lull, Herkimer tightened his lines and directed his men to fire in pairs with one firing and one loading. This was to ensure that a loaded weapon was always available should a Native American charge forward with a tomahawk or spear. As the weather cleared, Johnson resumed his attacks and, at the suggestion of Ranger leader John Butler, had some of his men reverse their jackets in an effort to make the Americans think a relief column was arriving from the fort. This bit of trickery failed as the Americans recognized their Loyalist neighbors in the ranks. Despite this, British forces were able to exert heavy pressure on Herkimers men until their Native American allies began to leave the field. This was largely due to both the unusually heavy losses sustained in their ranks as well as word arriving that American troops were looting their camp near the fort. Having received Herkimers message around 11:00 AM, Gansevoort had organized a force under Lieutenant Colonel Marinus Willett to sortie from the fort. Marching out, Willetts men attacked the Native American camps south of the fort and carried off plenty of supplies and personal belongings. They also raided Johnsons camp nearby and captured his correspondence. Abandoned at the ravine, Johnson found himself outnumbered and was forced to withdraw back to the siege lines at Fort Stanwix. Though Herkimers command was left in possession of the battlefield, it was too badly damaged to advance and retreated back to Fort Dayton. Aftermath of the Battle In the wake of the Battle of Oriskany, both sides claimed victory. In the American camp, this was justified by the British retreat and Willetts looting of the enemy camps. For the British, they claimed success as the American column failed to reach Fort Stanwix. Casualties for the Battle of Oriskany are not known with certainty, though it is estimated that American forces may have sustained as many as 500 killed, wounded, and captured. Among the American losses was Herkimer who died on August 16 after having his leg amputated. Native American losses were approximately 60-70 killed and wounded, while British casualties numbered around 7 killed and 21 wounded or captured. Though traditionally seen as a clear American defeat, the Battle of Oriskany marked a turning point in St. Legers campaign in western New York. Angered by the losses taken at Oriskany, his Native American allies became increasingly disgruntled as they had not anticipated in taking part in large, pitched battles. Sensing their unhappiness, St. Leger demanded Gansevoorts surrender and stated that he could not guarantee the garrisons safety from being massacred by the Native Americans following a defeat in battle. This demand was immediately rejected by the American commander. In the wake of Herkimers defeat, Major General Philip Schuyler, commanding the main American army on the Hudson, dispatched Major General Benedict Arnold with around 900 men to Fort Stanwix. Reaching Fort Dayton, Arnold sent forward scouts to spread misinformation regarding the size of his force. Believing that a large American army was approaching, the bulk of St. Legers Native Americans departed and began fighting a civil war with the American-allied Oneidas. Unable to maintain the siege with his depleted forces, St. Leger was forced to begin retreating towards Lake Ontario on August 22. With the western advance checked, Burgoynes main thrust down the Hudson was defeated that fall at the Battle of Saratoga. Selected Sources National Park Service: Battle of OriskanyFort Stanwix National Monument: Battle of OriskanyBattle of Oriskany

Creation and Science (Christianity) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Creation and Science (Christianity) - Essay Example This evolution theory by Charles Darwin has gained popularity among scholars over the years. Other theories proposed by science over the origin and existence of the universe include the big bang theory and the passing star theory. Creationism faces a lot of opposition socially and politically. Majority of the schools hardly include it in their learning. Evolutionism has a lot of favor, and it is being taught in schools. This is what made the proposed theory of intelligent design face a lot of criticism. The intelligent design theory argues that the universe and its inhabitants are too complex in structure and design to exist as a mere product of evolution (Davis et al 36-61). It proposes that the universe and creatures in it is an intelligent product of an intelligent designer. Both science and religion hold strong views on the existence of life and the universe. It is, however, possible for the conflict between the two to end as concepts and theories of science and religion can be compatible. Scholars do not necessarily need to choose one over the other, but rather appreciate both views as each one complements and enriches the other in a number of

Ethics case Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Ethics case - Essay Example dy of a lady named Lisa Michaels who is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and presently works with Home and Personal Care Products as Finance Manager. She is an experienced and dutiful employee with a very good reputation for honesty and depth of analysis skills. In this case, Lisa faces the challenge of identifying loopholes in the financial matters between her own company Home and Personal Care Products and a company it acquired named Prestige Fragrance Company. Lisa has concerns over evaluation of the assets of the acquired company and Mr. Anderson, who is also a CPA and Controller of the merger on behalf of Prestige Fragrance Company has not managed to address Lisa’s concerns satisfactorily. Lisa thinks that the costs have been capitalized by Prestige Fragrance Company whereas they should principally be not. The ethical challenge for Lisa is to find answers to her queries without tarnishing the relationship between the parent company and the acquired company. Key stakeholders in the case include everybody working in and associated with both companies i.e. Home and Personal Care Products, and Prestige Fragrance Company in general, and the controllers of financial operations of the two companies i.e. Lisa and Mr. Anderson in particular. Lisa might lose her job if her claims are based on weak foundations and if she cannot find proof in support of her accusations that she has not yet openly made. Mr. Anderson, on the other hand, who is also a CPA and is respected a lot by the Board of Directors, risks losing his job as well as image if he is found guilty of capitalization of costs or presentation of liabilities as assets to Home and Personal Care Products. Stakeholders also include the people and companies that have purchased shares of the two companies because any profit or loss made by any of the two companies has a direct impact on the value of their shares. In order to maximize the likelihood of a successful merger, it is imperative that both companies