Time and time again he practices his moves until

He kneels down, trying to lay low to avoid detection.   He has stalked his prey all day.   He has studied â€Å"the kill† from every conceivable angle.   He replayed every scenario in his mind.Time and time again he practices his moves until he is sure that there are no mistakes.   There can be no letting go of this one.   This is the big one that will make everything else seem so insignificant.This will be the last hunt.   It is as if his eyes are glued to this target.   Nothing will deny him this.   It is his birthright.   It is his destiny.   He approaches his prey confidently as his prey stares at him unaware of what will happen next.   As the first words are spoken, he knows that the game is afoot.   The mark has been engaged and the â€Å"con† shall now begin to unfold.It was a very simple transaction.   Legitimate on its face and humanitarian in character.   The young man’s life had taken on the most unfortunate of all turns.   In a span of one month, he had lost everything to the financial crisis.Formerly a successful trader on wall street, one error had cost him his entire life savings and even now threatened to ruin the futures of his daughters, whose pictures he was not slow to show.   â€Å"They are honor students in high school but I don’t know if I can afford to send them to college†, he claims.   The mark looks at him with compassion, reflecting a hint of suspicion.â€Å"Kind sir, I understand your wary nature and I would like to say that I do not appeal to your generosity but as an honest and working man who has fallen on hard times, I would just like to beseech you for an opportunity for me to redeem my pride and rebuild my spirit,† the con man begins his speech and he knows it is only a few more moments before the job is done.â€Å"If you would indulge me for a moment of your time to enlighten you about my situation for you see, I was not like this.   In fact, I liv ed among the haves and looked down on the have nots.   As luck would have it, however, I have fallen on hard times and seek only a way to redeem myself in my eyes so that I may have the courage to face my family when I return home to tell them of my tragic failure.†It is the perfect pitch.   Not an appeal to generosity but rather an appeal to the pride of all men; the need to be able to bravely face his troubles.   It strikes a chord in everyone’s heart, for who could ever deny a little help to a person who wants nothing more than a chance to regain his pride.   There has been no mention of money except that which has been lost by the con man.   Neither will there be a mention of money until the con man is convinced that he has secured his mark.â€Å"Dear sir,† he continues, â€Å"thank you indeed for this time and as you have given me the chance to walk with my head up high again, allow me to repay your act of kindness with a generous gesture.   I w as a trusted banker for a very wealthy family and as such, I am privy to many of their transactions.   If you are interested, I can invest your money in a few of their business that are already making so much money.The returns are not extraordinary but certainly better than normal bank rates.   I only offer this to you because you have been so kind.   Here is my card, please give me a call.   Have a nice day.†Game, set and match.   All he has to do is just sit and wait.   There is no cause for what he does.   It is simply just about the money.   For those who fall prey to the scam, the only cause is the money.   There is nothing more to it.   There are no deeper existential philosophies and moralities to wrestle with just the thought of having more cold hard cash or having none at all.Every con has an angle.   Every con plays on the emotions of people.   Logic never betrays its owner.   Every decision a person regrets in life can be traced back to a s ingle strand of emotion that clouded solid judgment.   This is something that every con man understands.   This is something that every con man counts on.   The cause is simply just money, for after all, a con is about the dollars and sense!

To Toll or Not To Toll

Various public facilities have important uses aside from revenue generation of the government. Like the tollgates, these facilities serve for the conduct of checkpoints, safety for the commuting public and substantially generate government revenues. On the contrary, tollgates are also criticized as the bottlenecks of traffic as vehicles lined up at the maximum or minimum performance of the tollkeepers. In the State of Connecticut, the Federal state and local governments plans reinstalling tolls on its highways. Several perceptions insinuate that causes of road accidents were due the absence of tollgates.It could be for the reasons that tollgates would slow down the speed of approaching vehicles as tollkeepers manning the traffic congestion from entry and exit lanes. This position paper will discuss and examine several points of considerations relating the reinstallation of tollgates in the State of Connecticut. Discussions It has been earlier reported in the 1980s that the removal of toll booths in the State of Connecticut have subsequently attributed to several road accidents that accounted about seven people who crashed and died at the Stratford tolls.In brief, Connecticut had more than 100 private turnpikes which were built from the period 1790 to 1850. The popularization of automobiles in the mid-20th century resulted to renew toll-backed financing to finance highways. In the 1990s to early 2000, technology plays a vital aspect in toll innovations through the introduction of electronic toll collection machines. Based on the May 10th 2009 news item ‘Toll proposals to be discussed at Thursday hearing’ by Martin B.Cassidy from the electronic publication of The Advocate, the Chairman of the Transportation Strategy Board Kevin Kelleher stated that â€Å"all the tolling concepts would use an EZ-Pass system†, referring to the system that would collect or tabulate fees from cars traveling at a speed of 55 miles per hour and up (1). Corey Sipe (2 006) in his article at Associated Content electronic publishing has discussed the analysis of James J. Fazzalaro of the office of Legislative research which cited that one-way gateway toll fees at $1. 00 could generate $58 million in revenues (1).Meanwhile, the web site of BethelRepublicans. Org (2009) has published ‘Opposed to Tolls on I-84 in Danbury’, implying that toll should not only be implemented to generate revenues but also to promote efficiency. Further, it reported that Connecticut Republican Senator Michael McLachlan pointed out on the issue of traffic congestion during a forum held at Western Connecticut State University on March 26th 2009. As cited from the article of BethelRepublicans. Org (2009), it quoted Senator McLachlan who said that â€Å"drivers are trying to avoid the I-84 tolls by rerouting in community areas† (2).In which case, rerouting in the residential community areas congest the traffic of small roads in Danbury and residents could b e prone to accidents. It may be acknowledged that Senator McLachlan has raised a considerable point not only on the issue of traffic situation but as well the public safety, in which could pave the way in the implementation of the tolling system. Despite the concern of Senator McLachlan, it was also pointed out that travel time, gas consumption and toll fees could be an added expense to reconsider (2).Indeed, many motorists tend to shorten their travel time and avoid the additional expenses for gas and toll fees. Moreover as previously covered in the article of Martin B. Cassidy (2009), the implementation of congestion pricing addresses the issue of efficiency. According to Cassidy (2009), the South Western Regional Planning Agency Executive Director Floyd Lapp commented that the state should use congestion pricing (1). It can be explained that â€Å"congestion pricing† is the process of charging distinctly separate toll rates on â€Å"peak or off-peak† travel time sch edules.Also, the toll rates can be implemented in two ways, namely â€Å"static pricing† is attained in periodic intervals on a monthly or quarterly basis with published toll rates adjustments, while â€Å"dynamic pricing† can be implemented by using â€Å"electronic traffic sensor system† to monitor the volume of traffic and automatically adjust the toll rates. Early this year, the Associated Press in its electronic news has published ‘Report Pending on Highway Tolls in Connecticut’ with reference to the $1 Million research contract which was engaged by Connecticut Transportation Strategy Board (CTSB) with Cambridge Systematics, Inc.(CSI). The Associated Press has implied the result of the research-study could be the turning point to realize the seemingly idyllic yet pending developments on the tolling project implementation. However, the Associated Press quoted that â€Å"it is still doubtful whether the CTSB would be supportive of CSI’s f indings and propositions† (1). On the following month after the comments of Associated Press, the year 2009 report of the Cambridge Systematics, Inc. (CSI) was then submitted to Connecticut Transportation Strategy Board (CTSB).The report which entitled: ‘Connecticut Electronic Tolling and Congestion Pricing Study’ was an independent technical study that formulated the strategic and feasible options in the implementation of the toll project. To generally describe the report, it contained variable conceptual framework on how the toll project can be effectively implemented and efficiently perform for public good, together with financial indicators that indicates the cost benefits of the state.Overall, the report has extensively presented the financial viabilities that comprised the operational components. As cited, the CSI report has highlighted the following findings (2): †¢ The New Toll Express Lanes require construction of new lanes and tolling, such as expre ss lanes: A-1: Interstate 95 (Branford to Rhode Island State Line), and A-2: Interstate 84 (Waterbury to New York State Line);†¢ Conceptually, every users pay toll in spite of the occupancy levels and types of vehicles; †¢ Neither access strip would produce traffic congestion, estimating from 6. 2 to 13. 8 percents decline of vehicles for every hour of delay, which shall be implemented at â€Å"I-95 and I-84† toll projects within one year period exclusive of new lanes. CSI (2009) has further presented the estimated revenue generation within a 30-year target, as shown in the illustration below:

Refugee Blues †W.H. Auden Essay

Poet – Wynstan Hugh Auden, born as a doctor’s son in February 1907 in York, United Kingdom, counts as one of the greatest English poets of the twentieth century. Theme – abuse of human rights experienced not only by German Jews but by other Jews and by refugees anywhere. Structure – The poem contains twelve stanzas of three lines each. The first and second line of each stanza rhyme. The two rhyming lines of each stanza tell the story, while the third line contains a refrain (like a chorus) that develops the theme of the poem. Analysis – The use of the word blues also reinforces the musical theme of the poem as the sub-genre of jazz – this style of music was created by the slaves in slave communities in the Southern States of the USA. The origin and the modern meaning of this word tie in with the two purposes of the poem. The repeated use of â€Å"my dear† suggests that the couple are married, but doesn’t give a clue as to whether it is the husband or wife speaking. The first stanza notes that the city they have fled to is full of people, both rich and poor, yet there is no space for them. With the use of word such as â€Å"souls† it suggest something valuable or holy about each and every one of the people within the city, it also implies that they are all the same. The tree is an interesting symbol in the next stanza. The tree can go through nature’s cycle but can. However, this is contrasted with man-made documents that, once lost, can never be recovered: ‘Old passports can’t do that, my dear’.

Rotate the Dandies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Rotate the Dandies - Essay Example In The Picture of Dorian Gray, Lord Henry Wotton is a character known for his allegiance with immoral intentions and boundless sensual desires. Contrarily, Lord Goring in An Ideal Husband is a conservative and morally upright character devoted towards ensuring prosperity of conventional goodness in the society. Admittedly, both Lord Henry and Lord Goring play an instrumental role in influencing the dramas’ outcomes. Lord Henry employs his selfish and hedonistic personality in facilitating Dorian Gray’s downfall. On the other hand, Lord Goring takes Sir Robert out of his troubles by skillfully manipulating other characters through necessary blackmails and proper advices on wanting situations (Wilde, 36). Having acknowledged the instrumental roles played by both Lord Henry and Lord Goring, it is time to switch these two characters. There is a remote yet distinct possibility that switching of characters would lead to a significantly different ending of each play. This idea is inspired by the fact that Lord Henry has opposite personality traits compared with that of Sir Roberts. Lord Henry perpetrates immorality and selfish corruption throughout the drama, while Sir Roberts strives to ensure preservation of goodness and works towards tipping the scale to increase chances of moral ly accepted outcomes. Succeeding sections of this part conducts an informed prediction of Sir Robert’s fate in an event that Lord Henry assumed the role of Lord Goring in An Ideal Husband. In the first Act of An Ideal Husband, Sir Robert is blackmailed by Mrs. Cheveley as a means to gain Robert’s approval of her canal scheme. Sir Robert is trapped by the blackmail since failure to approve of the scheme would lead to revelation of a secret of which Mrs. Cheveley is a privy to the previously committed corrupt deed. Left with limited options, Robert decides to approve of

Occupational Health and Safety Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Occupational Health and Safety - Essay Example According to the author, smoking bans are part of public policies, which include criminal laws and regulations on occupational health and safety prohibiting tobacco smoking in workplaces or other public spaces. Moreover, smoke-free laws are solely meant to protect workers from the harmful effects of smoke from second-hand sources. These effects include higher risk of cancer, heart diseases, emphysema among others. The author affirms that laws banning indoor smoking have been implemented by many countries, with most countries citing evidence to establish the harmful effects of tobacco to smokers and inhalers of second-hand smoke. Part of the evidence brought forth to establish the harmful effects of smoking at workplaces include a study conducted in 2002 by WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer, which revealed that non-smokers are equally exposed to carcinogens as active smokers are. The study also indicated that side-stream smoke has 69 known carcinogens and radioactive decay products. In addition, research by tobacco companies has proven that well-established carcinogens are highly concentrated in side-stream than mainstream smoke. The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) gives workers the right to enjoy a safe workplace free of hazards. OSHA has air quality standards. Tobacco smoke, however, hardly exceeds these limits. In extreme situations – such as when tobacco smoke mixes with another airborne component in the workplace – OSHA standards could be exceeded thereby requiring the employer to correct the situation. Several lawsuits have been filed seeking employer compensation for smoke hazards. The current position is that OSHA does not regulate exposure to tobacco smoke; state laws do. The author may be on the frontline in advocating smoke-free workplaces, but he failed to consider the possible demerits of the same. Firstly, smoke-free workplaces will necessitate a change in worker habits, which

Jet Blue Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Jet Blue - Essay Example Entertainment options were introduced and more travel destinations were opened to add convenience to travelers. It operates 75 flights to 7 cities in 22 states in U.S, and Puerto Rico, Mexico, Caribbean and Latin America. Their fleets consist of 127 units of Airbus and 190 units of 53 Embraer Aircrafts and the number of aircrafts is ever increasing. At present, JetBlue Airways employs 12,080 employees and is able to achieve sales growth of USD $4.1b in 2011 to USD$4.6B in 2012(Bloomberg Businessweek. 2013). It has displayed operational efficiency as it was also able to drive down administrative expenses and cost of sales from 4.88% to 4.48% that attributed for its bottom-line growth, report stated. Market data showed USD $5.98 per share whereas competitors are priced higher, for example, $49.52 for Alaska Air, its closest rival. Inasmuch as the company hires a big number of multi-levels of employees which are expected to come from different races and ideologies, cultural differences always subsist. Due to this, problems exist when cultural views are not understood. It is assumed that due to the technicality of airlines operation, there is a high context culture. This means the communicators assume a great commonality of knowledge and views so that less is spelled out explicitly and much more is communicated in indirect ways.† (â€Å"Cultural differences† n.d.) For instance, management maintains a â€Å"cohesive culture and visible leadership†. At JetBlue corporate responsibility are more than just donations to charitable institutions, but by creating programs to develop the environment, the youth, and the community (JetBlue Corporate Responsibility .2013). The expertise of JetBlue’s manager contributed largely to the success of the airline company. Being a second mover, the strategy of low cost airline has been a tried and tested formula for

English as Second Language Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

English as Second Language - Essay Example In the first day of class, I realized that there were 6 essays which I had to write in order to pass this class. In the second day of class, we started directly to write the first ‘in class’ essay. When I got the feedback from my professor about the first essay, I was told that I had a few weaknesses: a lot of grammar issues, no position statement, no driven thesis relevance, and weak examples. After that, we started working on the first ‘out of class’ essay. The out of class essay required 3 draft processes. I needed to bring the first draft to meet with the professor in the conference. I got feedback from my professor for my essay. My first draft also had a lot of grammar errors and other technical corrections. I was directed to structure shorter paragraphs and cite when I paraphrased. I had noticed from my professor that I had some improvement as well - I had a thesis statement in this essay and had also stated my position statement in the essay. Moreover , I had enough examples, explanations, and valid reasons to illustrate my position statement. I know that my weakness in writing is always grammar and technical errors. Therefore, I bought my first essay to the SCAA for help in grammar and technical issues. After that, I used my time to fix the papers. I learned why I went wrong in grammar structures. I looked carefully at the word forms that I chose and why these were wrong the word forms. Overall, I had come up with the third draft with the minimum of grammar issues.

Finance in Hospitality Industry Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Finance in Hospitality Industry - Assignment Example For some it might be a source of income while for others a source of joy. However the proposed restaurant is far from coming into being because of the absence of the budget required for the setting up of the restaurant from construction to serving the customers. The issue at hand is that the restaurant will require, according to a risk estimate, about thirty thousand pounds to start its services from the point of the buying of land for the restaurant. However, on five thousand pounds are available for the project and there are no assured sources of funding for the project. The quoted amount of thirty thousand pounds will only supply for the running of operations for the first few months of the restaurant services and does not cater for any financial risks. The five thousand pounds available for use must be utilized in the most effective way possible, even if that means using the money to acquire the required amount of funding for the project. The location that has been selected for t he restaurant lies in Leyton, East London. The restaurant is aimed at serving a part of the local community of the London Borough of Newham though there will be offerings to cater to the taste of people of all backgrounds. Hence it might be a good idea to solicit some funds from the local community of Newham as there is some value in the restaurant for that community. Newham residents are very hospitable in general because of the need for cohesion among the people of different races and origins living there. And it would be unsurprising if the residents are buoyed by the prospect of a restaurant opening in their area that is being set up specifically to serve the people of Newham. Also the Member of the British Parliament from the Newham area is very fond of supporting food-related projects from projects pertaining to feeding the poor to televised programs discussing lavish regional specialities. Therefore the most preferred source of funding should be the local community of Newham. It is to be realized though that this project is not a charity project, hence the method of approaching the public and the rationale for asking for funding should be different from those usually adopted for welfare projects. That is not to say that the project does not contain an element of welfare for the community of Newham at all, but the basic impetus behind the setting up of the restaurant is commercial. As stated earlier, the restaurant would need only thirty thousand pounds for the first few months of operation, by a rough estimate, even if it does not bring in any profit for the owner and only caters for the costs of running. However, in order to keep the proposed amount of funding for the restaurant low, it is planned that the restaurant would not need any more money and will fund itself from the profit it makes after the initial funding of thirty thousand pounds. The figure of thirty thousand pounds is not a big one if it is contributed to by a large number of people. Hen ce the solicitor does not have to ask for too much money from the Newham residents and chipping in with small amounts is all the members of the public will have to do to fund the plan, given that the number of people who chip into the project is sufficiently large. Therefore pamphlets explaining the restaurant proposal and asking for fundin

Professional Aspect of Care Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Professional Aspect of Care - Essay Example This will enable the nurses to practice autonomously and be accountable for the health care practices to ensure they respect dignity and human rights. Professional nurses must meet the physical and mental health needs of all the patients regardless of their ages, races, and ethnicity. They must meet patients’ needs in all settings that include homes, health centers, and communities. Professionally, nurses have to be caregivers, patient advocates, councilors, leaders, managers, teachers, and coordinators (Dawoud & Maben 2008 p. 1). As caregivers, nurses have to understand the patients’ needs through communication for him or her to support them emotionally through their attitudes and actions. Care giving also involves performance of health care activities that patients cannot do autonomously. Nurses should not only demonstrate physical professional care, but they should also develop close emotional relationships with patients through communication. The contemporary care-g iving role entails knowing that patients feel insecure by communicating with them. Indeed, such feeling may threaten their ability to cope. The role requires empathy, which makes the nurses to be aware of the individuals’ emotional state and need for support (National Quality Board 2012). Teaching is also part of nurses’ profession that is vital in the current health care arena because it enhances communication. Nurses give information to patients according to their health care needs (Nicol &O’Caroll 2007 p. 3). For example, the information that nurses should communicate to patients entail explanation of the procedures involved in diagnosis processes and self-administration of medications. Additionally, nurses should teach the patients how to manage wound care, and the restorative exercises such as the ones done after mastectomy. While educating the patients regarding the health care practices, nurses have to give patients the chances to make choices concerning the issues affecting their health through appropriate communication (Dawoud & Maben 2008 p. 1). They should not force or give advice to the patients about any treatment decisions. They should only give them the potential alternatives and support their decisions. Furthermore, nurses should participate in creating awareness to the communities about the health care issues. While creating awareness they have to build effective relationships with clients through communication. In addition, they should encourage them to join community groups that offer financial and emotional support (Royal College of Nursing, 2012 p. 1). Professional nurses are also coordinators in any health care settings. For example, nurses who manage care should coordinate with the one who delegates care through communication processes (Westrick &Dempski 2009 p. 23). Additionally, nurses have to coordinate with doctors to develop a good relationship between them. This coordination is vital in health care units becaus e doctors depend on nurses in obtaining most of the patients’ information. Acquiring important information from nurses reduces the occurrence of medical errors that risks the patients’ lives (Carvalho, Reeves & Orford 2007 p. 29). Nurses should also be counselors for them to develop effective therapeutic relationships. As counselors, nurses have to communicate effectively with patients to make them develop positive feeling and behaviors in the health care settings. Counseling is vital when nurses are offering the potential alt

McDonald's and its cultural branding principle through effective Essay

McDonald's and its cultural branding principle through effective communication process - Essay Example Fast foods have become integral parts of everybody’s fast-paced life. With them, it is just easy to manage time. There is convenience and even saving of the most valuable resource one could potentially and relatively consider, time. As everybody is faced with very demanding daily schedules, fast foods have proven themselves effective at coping time and meeting deadlines. This specifically created a wonderful opportunity for McDonald’s to meet the prevailing needs in the market via comprehensive marketing techniques. Things did not simply come smoothly for McDonald’s the easy way around. It needed to substantially invest in creating its name through effective communication process. One important move it was able to successfully perform in order to achieve its place in the competition right now was its ability to differentiate its product service. It substantially aimed at giving the world its favorite foods, but in a unique way, which provides a greater value for customer experience. McDonald’s simply has marketing freedom. With this business privilege, McDonald’s has become a powerful company in the world, a producer of knowledge, opener of public consciousness and a great deceiver because there is freedom on its part to use the media with a corresponding advertising budget. This implies that media advertisements are considered to be great ways to influence people and keep the target consumers informed about the latest line of product and service offerings of McDonald’s.

Nuclear Energy Essay Example for Free

Nuclear Energy Essay An Argumentative Essay â€Å"Use of Nuclear Energy: Safe or Not?† 23 Aug Most countries today are becoming more and more dependent on nuclear power as a source of energy because of its high energy output and the availability of uranium used for fuelling nuclear reactors that generate power to provide electricity in households. Although using nuclear power as a source of energy has benefits like this, the danger posed by using nuclear power is very eminent. This was demonstrated in the recent Fukushima daiichi nuclear reactor crisis wherein the reactors as of March 24, 2011 at Fukushima emitted 30,000 to 110,000 TBq of Iodine 131 much higher compared to Chernobyl’s 760 PBq or 400 kg of I-131, 85 PBq Cs-137 (Shimbun, 2011). Another widely known nuclear reactor accident was the Chernobyl disaster that occurred on April 26, 1986 (Black, 2011). Threats not only exists in accidents like the ones mentioned, but also threats exists not only from terrorists but also from other countries who have acquired or made nuclear weapons. An all out war will probably see the use of nuclear weapons against each nation’s enemy resulting in a nuclear holocaust. Millions of people will die not only from the initial explosions of the nuclear bombs but also from the following nuclear fallout that will cause widespread radiation sickness. A German study showed that there is a statistically significant increase solid cancers (54%), and in leukemia (76%) in children aged less than 5 within 5 km of 15 German nuclear power plant sites (Fairlie, 2009). Use of nuclear energy has two advantages over fossil-fuel plants. (1) Nuclear reactors use less fuel than a fossil-fuel plant to generate the same amount of energy a fossil-fuel plant generates. The fissioning of 1 metric ton of uranium fuel provides the same amount of heat energy as burning of 3 million metric tons of coal or 12 million barrels of oil. (2) Uranium, unlike fossil fuels, does not produce chemical or solid pollutants that are released into the air. (World Book Encyclopedia, 1996). The trade-off is that (1) nuclear plants costs more to build than fossil-fuel plants. (2) Nuclear plants are potentially hazardous. In order for a nuclear plant to be built, it first has to pass several government requirements that a fossil-fuel plant does not have to meet. Nuclear plants must pass government tests before a certain nuclear plant maybe deemed safe to start operation. In addition to that  there have been already many serious accidents involving nuclear plants like the Chernobyl nuclear plant disaster in 1986 and the more recent Fukushima daiichi plant in Japan that has already reached a certain level of severity making it as much or more disastrous that the Chernobyl accident causing widespread opposition against the building of more nuclear plants. (3) Uranium that is used for continues to emit radiation long after it has been used up posing dangers to any community close to the nuclear plants. Although experts argue that nuclear power should be used as a source of energy because it is a clean source of energy and does not produce any chemical or solid pollutants, the uranium that is used in fuelling the nuclear plants still remains radioactive and can still harm the surrounding community. To make it worse, the problem of nuclear waste disposal has not yet been solved. A number of solutions have been proposed like geological disposal wherein th e radioactive waste is buried 500 to 1000 meters below the ground or the more complicated and costly space disposal of nuclear wastes. The latter being too costly because of the technology needed to be developed and financed to efficiently dispose the wastes. Proponents of the use of nuclear energy as a source of energy state that nuclear energy is the safest energy option. This, however, is contradicted and is shown to be questionable by the past nuclear plant accidents. Also, uranium, the source needed to power a nuclear plant to generate electricity itself is dangerous. The threat of nuclear terrorism also exists as terrorists can use radioactive nuclear wastes in building nuclear weapons for self-interests which in turn can cause a nuclear war that has the potential to wipeout the human race from the face of the earth. Summarizing and analysis of the pros and cons of the use of nuclear power, we can see that the sinister consequences of the decision to use nuclear power far outweigh the advantages of using such sources of energy. Continued use of nuclear power could lead to more severe types of accidents with ef fects that can not be irreversible. Countries world wide should research on better and safer sources of energy rather than risking the lives of millions of people just to generate the energy needed to supply our daily energy requirements.

Blue Shield Health Insurance Essay Example for Free

Blue Shield Health Insurance Essay The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) serves independent local Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies as its trade association. The BCBSA is one of the nation’s oldest and biggest health benefits company, widely recognized in the health insurance industry, given its 800 strong employee strength, across 39 companies in Chicago and Washington D. C. BCBSA companies together cover about 98 million people or about every one in three Americans. The reach and spread of the BCBSA is really immense covering all 50 states and the District of Columbia, in contract with over 90% of the hospitals and 80% of physicians. The products serviced by BCBSA covers individuals to small and large employers, ensuring coverage to all citizens. Through its several unprecedented and innovative schemes, Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association tries to bring healthcare insurance to all people providing hope and security to everyone. The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association is an insurance provider covering healthcare for more than 98 millions, nearly one in three Americans. Healthcare insurance is a must for everyone. It is necessary to keep the economy going and growing because once the people are covered under some healthcare insurance, their medical needs are adequately taken care of, which makes their productivity go up because better health obviously results in better work performance. If the concept of insurance were not Blue Cross and Blue Shield 3 there, then every individual would have had to save a huge amount of money as reserve to cover some unforeseen or unexpected calamities. Healthcare is one aspect which can never be compromised. With the mounting medical expenses, people without a healthcare insurance can just not afford to avail proper preventive and therapeutic treatment. With the cost of medical services growing by leaps and bounds, healthcare insurance is imperative for one and all. Healthcare insurance company also stands to benefit because when they are likely to pay more in claims than what they get in premiums, a hike in the premium is anticipated. Under the employer-sponsored healthcare insurance, the employer spends roughly five times more than what the employee contributes. But the increasing medical costs have a great impact on the employers who have to pay out huge sums as premiums for their employees. From 1998 to 2003, there was a national increase of 42% in individual premiums after adjustments made with regard to inflation. With the increase in medical costs, employees are forced to contribute a sizable amount towards their coverage, so they opt to stay away from the job-based health insurance plans. The employers depend more on part-time and contract workers who are often not eligible for coverage. So fewer people access employer-paid healthcare insurance. The job instability too contributes in the steady increase of the number of uninsured people. And then there are some firms, which do not provide health insurance to their employees. With the shooting medical expenses, it is difficult for people to go for healthcare coverage, as the premiums are high. This leaves them uninsured, which again has drastic effects affecting Blue Cross and Blue Shield 4 both the people and the company. So, healthcare insurance has now become something that people can neither do with nor do without it. To combat this scenario, Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association brings various new schemes taking into consideration the needs of every individual. With no insurance and with the exorbitant medical expenses, the health care of the people is greatly compromised. They go in for lesser preventive care with the result diseases get out of hand before they are diagnosed, and even when diagnosed, the treatment costs are so huge that the therapeutic care is compromised. With no insurance, people are expected to pay up-front for the medical services and so they defer medical care except when it is life threatening. This also affects the government because it has to cater to the medical needs of the uninsured, which has a terrible impact on the economy because the expenses of the emergency department is much higher than in the outpatient clinics, and the conditions are often those that could have been averted or postponed with preventive care. Proper health insurance package is the icing on the cake. The medical expenses are so much that healthcare insurance acts as a major deciding factor when people seek jobs. With the ever-increasing medical expenses, every individual has to be insured medically so that they can avail the needed healthcare. But with the increased insurance premiums, the number of uninsured people is on the high. Furthermore, insurances have too many exclusions like certain drugs not being covered, certain Blue Cross and Blue Shield 5 procedures not being covered and the like, which again discourages people from being insured, which is detrimental to the citizens as well as the country at large. Even with insurance, the prospects of the people losing their jobs and thereby their insurances is there. There definitely have to be changes in the system so that every individual could be worked into the health insurance plan. The view of Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association president and CEO Scott P Serota testifies this â€Å"With such divergent political ideologies, it is unprecedented for these groups to have a joint agreement. Helping the millions of Americans who do not have health insurance is an issue that needs to transcend politics and partisanship, and that is why we worked together to give Congress a starting point that we can all support. † The 2005 data shows that one in seven American was uninsured thus depriving them of basic healthcare. The Institute of Medicine has that approximately 18,000 die every year of diseases that could have either been treated or prevented had they had health coverage. Lack of insurance prevents people leading a quality life, and it also brings down their productivity because of their recurrent ailments. The first annual National Walk @ Lunch Day to be held on Wednesday, April 18, 2007, by BCBSA (Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association) will definitely bring about an awareness among people about the need for an active lifestyle, which obviously would usher in better health. Unlike the usual health insurance companies, Blue cross and Blues Shield Association design innovative schemes to match the diversified requirement of the market. It does a Blue Cross Blue shield 6 lot of activity to keep the competition at bay. Even though profit making is the main objective in any organization, Blue cross and Blues Shield Association takes care that it does not become the sole objective. A paradigm shift in this regard is obvious by the mere existence of CareFirst, the non profit health care company which provides health insurance products and administrative services. In the current scenario where the number of uninsured people is on the rise, Blue cross and Blues Shield Association has to be applauded for its efforts in trying to bring the maximum people under the healthcare insurance cover. REFERENCES www. nchc. org www. bcbs. com www. money. cnn. com

Role Of Family In Mental Health Social Work Essay

Role Of Family In Mental Health Social Work Essay As a potter molds clay to form a beautiful creation, so does the strong family support and good values does. Family bonds are a link from the beginning and guide to future. Early influences are fundamental to individual development. Everyone wants to belong and feel accepted. A sense of belonging is derived from the strong bond of family. Family is where roots take hold and grow. We are molded within a unit, which prepares one for the experiences of the world and reactions to those experiences. A close family bond is like a safe harbor where one finds refuge. From trusting that someone will pick us up when we fall, as a toddler, to someone being there for us as we experience the storms in life. Family bonds help to instill trust, hope and belief in ourselves. The other hand if family doesnt have attachment, poor relationship, insecurity and anger can lead to negative consequences like isolating, low self image, anger and pain inside them. If one isnt loved as a child, they may later seek love and acceptance in a way that brings them harm. This not only affects the emotional, physical and social well-being. The poor self-image may be with the patients throughout life, causing inability to make positive choices or be close to others. Strong family bonds help us to thrive in all aspects of life. Lack of these bonds can lead to forever seeking that something which is missing and one should not take the value of family bonds for granted. Along the farm duties, family usually faces burdens. Yip (2005) identified three types of burdens in family care giving of persons with mental illness. Objective burdens are financial burdens, time and effort in care giving of family caregivers. Subjective burdens are feelings of loss, shame, worry, anger, and hopelessness of family caregivers towards their relatives with mental illness. Finally, there are burdens in management of problem behaviors like assault, mood swing, unpredictability, and other negative symptoms due to mental illness of a family member. Along with the burdens, there are benefits when family stay with mentally ill person. Often patients listen to their family because they are close to each other and every disease needs cure and family is the major support. They can help their family member to involve in the social and family activities, by involving them in rehabilitation program, encouraging other family members and friends to invite the ill family member to join them in activities and by respecting the need of solitude. Scenario: My patient was a 17 years old female, forth among seven siblings, with the diagnosis of schizophrenia. Her pre morbid personality was that she was always a different child, quite and always thinking. She had no friends and was never interested to talk to her sisters as well. She never took part in household chores and when asked to help, she used to get angry, and never participated. She had a jealousy component in her as the mother always admired her elder sister and degraded her. Before hospitalization she even had hallucinations and delusions. While talking to the patient, she verbalized that I dont like my sisters because everyone compares them with me. Patients mother also accepted that she had always given importance to the elder sister and pointed out the client that she is the laziest person of the family. May be this could be a reason of patients anger, frustration and not having a caring attitude towards family. Significance of family support in Pakistani context: Family support is a very important part of our entire Pakistani nation. Family support is given a lot of importance in terms of family bonding, love and affection. On the other hand there are few families which do not pay attention to this important issue. The family support is important because it effects on physical, psychological and social well being of an individual. In the Pakistani context no such study is been done on familys role in ones life. According to Mansoor (2008) Family system in Pakistan states that each member of a Pakistani family has respect for the older family members. The parents feel responsible for teaching their children the basic beliefs of the chosen religion. Looking at the scenario mentioned above the family has paid less attention to the child because of huge family, house hold responsibilities and low socio-economic system. According to my understanding when a child grows in a close kit family they learn to appreciate all the members of family and nev er hesitate to accompany their elders or youngers in public. I believe that strong family bond serves as catalysis for everyones joy. This is because the family has its rules and regulations and when these rules and regulations are strictly followed it brings joy to the whole family and helps in community building. There is always the belief that good families can make a good society. Strong family bonds create an atmosphere of interference in the affairs of one another. For example a strong and united family the elders do not abandon the family, but they keep taking care of their parents and their younger ones in times of troubles. Significance of family support in western world is on appendix 1. Analysis of concept in the light of literature: During the 1950s, Murray Bowen gave family system theory. Theory affirms that the individual can change behavior if aware of the impact of current and historical family behavior. It works on family as well as on the emotional health of an individual. Bowen summarized his theory using seven interlocking concepts. First three concepts apply to overall family and other four are related to family characteristics. Differentiation of self The concept of differentiation of self measures all human functioning on a continuum from the greatest emotional fusion of self boundaries to the highest degree of differentiation or autonomy. In my patients scenario self was suppressed from the childhood in the result of that her family relationship were not strong. A lot of family criticism was there. Children were not allowed to take their own decision; instead they have to do whatever parents asked. The example is secular studies were compromised and the client was put in Madrasa to learn and recite Quran. As a result the family bonding went down. Her issue were not given importance and taken as a least important person of the family. She was never paid attention for whatever she did; the reason could be huge family, less differences between children and poverty. The continuum of differentiation of self is discussed more in detail in appendix 2. Triangles Triangle is a predictable emotional process that takes place when difficulty exists in a significant relationship, and the third entity is included. In my patients scenario, the triangle has three ends. One is father, another mother and the third is the patient. The conflicts between parents have a great impact on child and that can leave lifelong effects on ones life. In my clients scenario the parents had conflicts between them and research indicates that the longer parental conflict continue, greater the tension between the parents, the greater the likelihood that psychological difficulties will result for children such as emotional and behavior problems, anxiety, depression, sleep problems, low self-esteem, school problems and a number of other difficulties. The example of family triangle is on appendix 3. Nuclear Family Emotional System These are patterns of interaction between family members and the degree to which these patterns promote emotional fusion. In my clients picture she was always projected that she never participates in house hold chores and is the laziest person of the family. This indeed led to low self esteem and hopelessness. Most of the patients develop hopelessness because of shame and guilt of being poor. According to Patel Kleinman (2003) stated that hopelessness is a core experience: it is associated with spouse and family abuse, forced marriages, limited educational and work prospects, stigma for failing to produce a son, and the migration of husbands to urban areas for employment. The family projection process It is the projection of spouses problem onto one or more children to avoid intense emotional fusion between the spouses. This also fits into the clients scenario that because of poverty and low socio economic status parent and child were not able to create bond between them. The economic stressors such as unemployment, low income, and lack of affordable housing, are more likely to precede mental illness.(Hudson, 2005 ) Multigenerational Transmission Process This refers to the transmission of a family projection process. The nature and degree of intensity of emotional responses are passed down from generation to generation. Levels of differentiation are affected through generations based on levels of differentiation of partners as they marry. This was not exactly explored during the interaction but it could be a part of patients illness. Emotional cutoff The concept of emotional cutoff describes people managing their unresolved emotional issues with parents, siblings, and other family members by reducing or totally cutting off emotional contact with them. In my patients case she became isolated from the family. This could be because she has some concerns from the family but they were never addressed and she got emotionally cutoff from it. Siblings position There is an impact of sibling position on development and behavior. Most of the time it is practiced that older child is the leader and the youngers are the followers. My patient follows exactly in this category. She is forth among seven siblings. She never liked her mother to say that be like your elder sister and never liked to follow her elder sisters. (Stuart, 2001) See appendices 4 for the factors left. Intervention: At individual level, a mental health nurse can take time for the patient and encourage them to ventilate their feelings. Moreover, while giving teaching to the patients, nurse can discuss the coping strategies. She can provide holistic care and address the problems and concerns accordingly, as the need of the individual. The nurse can provide the most important informations to the patient that is the need for the understanding their own responsibility. Make them aware of the importance of family support which is necessary for them. The interventions done on the client includes family teaching on dealing with hallucination and delusions that was informal. Mother was given teaching on stress management and coping mechanism. Client was involved in occupational therapy example making sit upon, coloring, drawing, collage work, making bands and so on to see the concentration level and keep the patient busy and asked the family to keep patient involved. At group level family can also involved with patient, to be aware of patients condition and involve them actively in patients care. The individual can be involved in group therapies for example milieu and occupational therapy. Moreover, in Pakistan, organizations should be made which can involve families who have clients with mental illness so that they can share their concerns, ventilate their feeling and reform solutions to problems. Some organization can also work to reduce the poverty and socio-economic instability, which is one of the leading factors of mental illness. At institutional level different groups of health care professional can be train for the risk assessment, can conduct the educational session on importance and role of family in ones life. Moreover, seminars can be held for general public regarding awareness of mental illness, coping skills to reduce stress and to ventilate their feeling. Hence, I would like to recommend that health care workers should be more vigilant towards clients health. At governmental level, organizations should be made to teach skills to clients for earning and to feel them self-empower. In addition, it is role of a nurse to identify the concerns in clients, spend time with the clients for their ventilation of feelings, should not be judgmental regarding clients complains and try to resolve their issues collaboratively with clients, families and other health care providers. My own learning Reflection: Through this paper writing my horizon of thinking about family role has more broaden. I always had a thought that mental illness occurs more often with parental conflicts but it has many other dimensions to look at. Going through different researches I came to know that love and affection are the important aspects which can help a mentally ill patient to live a normal life and when one is deprived from it can end into many other issues. The misconceptions I had before about mentally ill patients were that they are harmful and attacking but now I realized that they are only looking for love and someone to listen them. Mentally ill patients are also human and they should be treated as human beings, this is their right and they should get it. Conclusion: In conclusion, low family sociability, the extent to which family members derive and seek   gratification from social interaction with others along with a lack of cohesion explicitly, the extent to which family members have bonding towards one another is important. Conflicts between family members, authoritarian family styles, the extent to which parents dominate the locus of rule making and low family sociability plays a significant role in ones life. Importance of Family lies in the fact that one can discuss matters with the other family members and search solution from discussions. At times, conflict appears in a family but enough space should be provided to their opinions and views. In modern days, we have seen that joint families have broken up into nuclear families and a nuclear family consists of a couple and their children. In western countries, nuclear families are the norm but in many eastern countries, joint families still exist. Children receive guidance from the family as to what they should do or what they should not do. The Importance of Family lies in the fact that it determines to a large extent the social roles that the children will perform. Family support and bond can help an individual to come out from stressors, mental illness and other health problems. References: Abelenda. J., Helfrich. C., A. (2003). Family resilience and mental illness: The role of occupational therapy. Occupational Therapy in Mental Health, 19 (1), pge # Edalati.A., Redzuan. M., Mansor. M., Abu Talib. M. (2010). Family values and females psychological aggression.Malaysia Journal of Social Sciences 6 (1), 8-13. Katie M., Rootes.H., Peter J., Jankowski., Steven J Sandage. (2009). Bowen family systems theory and spirituality: exploring the relationship between triangulation and religious questing. Springer science business media, LLC. Mansoor.H. Family System in Pakistan. Retrieved on April 21st, 2010 from http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Hayi_MansoorHYPERLINK http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Hayi_Mansoor . Marshall.T., Solomon P., Steber. S.A., M.S.S., Mannion E. (2003). Provider and family beliefs regarding the causes of severe mental illness. Psychiatric Quarterly, 74,(3). Mental illness and poverty. A fact sheet. (2007). Florida council for community mental health. Retrieved on April 10th,2010. Nichols, M. P. Schwartz, R. C. (2001). Bowen family systems therapy. In M. P. Nichols R. C. Schwartz, family therapy: Concepts and methods. 5th ed., pp. 137-171. Boston: Allyn and Bacon. Retrieved on April 15th, 2010. Patel. V., Kleinman. A. (2003). Poverty and common mental disorders in developing Countries. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 81 (8). Retrieved on April 13th, 2010. Schizophrenia: The Journey to Recovery. (2007). A consumer and family guide to assessment and treatment. Canadian psychiatric association schizophrenia society of Canada. Retrieved on April 20th, 2010. Stuart, G. W. (2001). Principles and practice of psychiatric nursing. 7th ed. St. Louis: Mosby. Sven.D. (1998). Family ties in Western Europe: Persistent contrasts. 17 Population and Development review, 24 ( 2). Retrieved on April 18th, 2010. Time magazine teen age pregnancy. (2006). Children having children-teenage pregnancy in America. Retrived on april 22nd, 2010 from http//: teenage pregnancy single parent families society and modern ailments rape sexual assault.mht Videbeck, S. L. (2004). Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing. Philadelphia: Lippincott. Yip.K.S. (2005). Family intervention and services for persons with mental illness in the peoples Republic of China. Journal of Family Social Work, 9 (1). Appendices 1: Significance of family support in western context: According to Sven.D. 1998 There are regions where traditionally the family group has priority over the individual and others are opposite, with the individual and there values having priority over everything else. The geography of these family systems suggests that North America, center and northern Europe has been characterized having relatively weak family links. There are indications that these differences have deep historical roots. There is little to suggest that they are diminishing today in any fundamental manner. The way in which the relationship between the family group and its members manifest itself has implications for the way society itself functions. According to my thinking, in western world, families have less importance, may be because of their fantasy world, interference they dont like or freedom they are fond of. In the west, kids are allowed to leave parents at the age of 18 as they are mature and can take their own decisions and responsibility and parents dont mi nd it because its their trend, as a result single parent family comes into existence. According to Jill Francis, of the National Childrens Bureau, There are four main reasons why teen age unmarried girls in Britain become pregnant. The likelihood becoming pregnant as a teen increased if one had parents who were inattentive, unloving, or failed to instill moral values with no family bonding. Girls whose mothers were teenage mums are more likely to do the same. Here the question arises that if this situation will continue, will there be family bonding in upcoming years? It is important for the family to understand the importance of family role in order to save the generation from mental illness, as families role is one of the biggest factors contributing towards mental disorder. The concept of family is somewhere far but those who belief in family bonding are still holding their hands together. Appendix 2: High differentiation Low differentiation Fusion with others. Personal autonomy Blends thoughts and feelings. Distinguish between thoughts Emotionally reactive when stressed. and feelings. Retains objectively when stressed.

Comparing Satire in Canterbury Tales, Pride and Prejudice and The Rape

Use of Satire in Canterbury Tales, Pride and Prejudice and The Rape of the Lock Jane Austen and Alexander Pope had had a myriad of writing styles and techniques from which to express the desired themes of their works.   Satire, however, seemed to be the effective light-hearted, yet condescending, tool that enabled them to surface the faults and follies of their moral and elite society.   In Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, satire is used to the full extent in revealing the glutton within a pious and sacrificing nun, the vain hunter within a poor and meditative monk, and the vulgarity within a honorable woman of society.   In Pride and Prejudice and The Rape of the Lock, Austen and Pope use contrasting forms of satire to obtain the same result as Chaucer:   to ridicule society's hypocritical and supercilious   manner by forcing it to see the absurd truth of what society pretends to be and what it really is.   In order to create satire in their literature, Austen and Pope must place an ironic, mocking language in an environment, and allow the la nguage to transform its surroundings into a parody of human moral regression.   The essence of satire in Pride and Prejudice and The Rape of the Lock begins with the writer's mocking use of diction, and then spreads to how the characters, tone, and theme of the literature are heightened to a level that identifies with supercilious society.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Characters in Pride and Prejudice and The Rape of the Lock are necessary tools in establishing satire within the stories.   Austen uses a range of different character types in order to highlight the absurdity of society.   For example, Elizabeth Bennet differs greatly from her other sisters and young ladies of Hertfordshire because h... ...rning within society to undermine its flaws.   Austen and Pope were great writers and observers of their time, and though they have passed, their writings continue to reveal the hidden follies of humanity.   Humanity has not made any extremely valuable changes beside the obvious advancements that are expected through time.   However, there will always be literature to magnify humanity's growth and regression, urging its readers to never hide from the truth. Works Cited: Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Ed. Donald Gray. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1996. Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Canterbury Tales. Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces. Ed Mack, Maynard et al. W. W. Norton and Co. New York, NY. 1992. Pope, Alexander. "The Rape of the Lock". The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Ed. M.H. Abrams et al. 6th ed. Vol. 1. New York: Norton, 1993.

Thanksgiving :: essays research papers

Thanksgiving Day In today’s meeting, the President of the United States of America, George W. Bush, officially announced he is having a Thanksgiving party at his ranch in Crawford, Texas this weekend. Throughout the day, invitations were sent out all over the White House. My body grew tremendously excited at the possibility that maybe this year I would be invited. My partner Bill walked in with his invitation in his hand, wagged it around as though it were merely nothing to him and then threw it aimlessly towards the trash can but missed. My eyes grew large as I was extremely angered by the offense he had just committed in front of me. To my surprise, he caught my severe look and politely asked, â€Å"Would you rather go instead of me? I could simply change the name without anyone knowing.† The tension on my face began to ease as I looked up at him from my seat and to my amusement my lips formed a strong smile in answer to his question. The process took only a short moment but in that t ime I carefully observed the paper in Bill’s hand and couldn’t help but notice its beauty. The thickness of the card clearly showed its expense and the soft colors of the shade blue played along the edges of the card, showing its artistic side for the affair. And now I was a member. Once I got to my apartment I called my family back home to tell them about the exciting news. Father wasn’t home but the message was reassured to get through to him, making sure plans were still set. I packed everything I thought I would need and headed off to sleep. My legs trembled as they always did at times like these and before I knew it the sunlight crept into my bedroom, slowly covering it completely. Now, it was time to go.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I arrived at the ranch on time with everybody else so that I would blend in. There stood President Bush, his lovely wife Laura and the adorable twins Barbara and Jenna. It was the twin’s 23rd birthday as well, so the celebration was going to be a big hit. On the left side of the President stood everybody else from his team like Vice President Richard B.Cheney, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld, Secretary of State Powell, and National Security Advisor Rice. The Vice President seemed happy and eager to eat as he kept rubbing his pot belly.

Essay --

Prior to my enrollment in this class, I did not have exposure or any type of familiarity with the Zen tradition. The uniquely Japanese branch of Buddhism has indeed flourished, and focuses on eliminating the sources of human suffering, or in other words, dukkha. On its simplest level, the effect on the development of this Japanese-Buddhist culture continues to resonate among its followers, as it did approximately 2500 years ago. However, there is a question that remains to an even larger extent. How actually did Zen come to influence not only the worlds of art, literature, and architecture, but also popular culture and Western life? The connection involving Zen and art is incredibly mystifying, because upon examination Zen art itself appears to be very modern. Shunryu Suzuki explains that â€Å"Zen practice is the direct expression of our true nature† (32). He also mentions â€Å"when you practice Zen, you become one with Zen† (49). Fully exposing ourselves to foreign n otions may be strange, but at which point is it that Zen transcends into art? As said by an unknown essayist, Zen is the â€Å"spiritual journey towards enlightenment, known as satori, an awakening that is achieved through the realization that one is already an enlightened being† (1). In keeping with my previous question, traditional arts do have roots in the Zen tradition. In order to reach enlightenment, one has to find meaning within the scope of their everyday experiences. It is not particularly useful to create something new or search for significance in other objects. As day to day life is a component of Zen teaching, and there may be artistry well in the midst of routinal activities. Perhaps art is a guiding tool for those individuals who seek enlightenment. Therefore, the ... ...by its boundaries† (Hoover 9). We hesitate to take a step back, look at the whole picture, and regain full composure. After all we are the products of lifetime conditioning, as it relates to our emotional and thought patterns. All living beings try to avoid misfortune, except that negative emotions come from the mind and are nonexistent. Zen reminds me of the complete need for restraint and patience. You have to begin at one point and embrace life’s unique experiences as they come. When an individual is captivated and enthralled with the Zen practice, art is clearly an expression of their enlightenment. Zen artists, similar to Ranzan Shoryu, are not consumed by the lavish appearances of their art forms. The religion and religious art are interdependent, and may as well define each other. To find nirvana, is there not a need for disruption in interdependence though?

Satirical Texts: Dead White Males & World of Warcraft Episode

Dead White Males DAVID WILLIAMSON Make Love not Warcraft SOUTH PARK (SEASON 10 EPISODE 8) INTRO The role and function of satirical texts is ultimately to expose the follies and vices that we see today in contemporary society. Satire may be effectively defined as a device used to highlight and the expose the failures of human nature in society.Two texts in particular, Dead White Males by David Williamson and a particular episode of South Park named ‘Make Love not Warcraft’ will be spoken upon, one satirising the follies in the educational system through a very arrogant and narrow minded aspect and the other ridiculing those people who play World of Warcraft. Satirical techniques such as caricature, understatements, situational irony and characterization are all used to effectively satirise and expose human vices and hypocrisy. WoW CARICATUREThroughout the Southpark episode ‘Make Love not Warcraft’ it is evident that it caricatures the stereotypical heavy Worl d of Warcraft players. Through the use of caricature we are able to understand that the social roles of those who partake in the digital game reach a point where they do not leave their keyboard. In this particular text the four main protagonists become increasingly obese, lazy and unsocial. Give an actual example of one of the characters. Explain the caricature – their exaggerated physical attributes and the exaggereated aspects of their personas as WoW players.The follies of the digital world are intemperately exaggerated within the text so as to highlight and reinforce the absurdity of the social and physical sacrifices made by some people in the real world in order to be part of the World of Warcraft. A very visible example of this within the text of ‘Make Love not Warcraft’ is where one of the main protagonists, Cartmen, suggest that they sacrifice all but three hours of their day in order to level up their characters for the following seven and a half weeks in order to face their rival.This is a clear technique of caricature and parody as they reenact what some might do in the real world. DWM CARICATURE In contrast, within the text of ‘Dead White Males’ there is much dramatization surrounding the traditional roles of males and females. Shakespeare argues that from the moment of birth it has been in a males nature to wear boyish clothes and play with toy cars, and in a girls nature to wear skirts and play with dolls. In response to this Swain argues that Shakespeares’ theory was incorrect, rather it was society that had invented the nature in which males and females should act.Angela Judd, the main protagonist in the play questions her grandfather Col on the topic of her father Martin Judd, unemployed and supported by his dominant wife Sarah. Angela quotes: â€Å"He didn’t fit the traditional male role did he? † In return Col argues: â€Å"If you can’t stand up for yourself you sink, male or fe male. † This particular quote by Col reinforces the theory of Swains’ that the way in which males and females were taught to act, this links to the satirical technique of caricature.There is also an element of Inversion within this as the characters have been given opposite roles in order to ridicule. The social roles and behaviours of Angelas’ parents are ridiculed as her mother is portayed as dominant over her father. WoW UNDERSTATEMENT Another satirical technique that is used almost always throughout the South Park series is an understatement. Defined as being the opposite to exaggeration it may be used to address something very casual in a serious manner.An example of this is found midway through the ‘Make Love not Warcraft’ episode whereas one of the main protagonists, Cartmen, addresses his friend Butters in quite a threatening manner, quoting: â€Å"Butters, go buy World of Warcraft, install it on your computer and join the online sensation b efore we all murder you. † This example of understatement links directly back to the technique of caricature, once again highlighting the absurdity of their immoral social behaviour when on the topic of World of Warcraft. DWM CHARACTERIZATIONThroughout the text of ‘Dead White Males’ there is a bitter satirical comment on many of today’s familiar poses of sexual and political rectitude, it also conveys the topics of deconstruction in human nature and the nature of male and female relationships. Grant Swain, a university lecturer takes our attention in both the first and second scene by lecturing us on his subjective views of society and literature. The satirical technique of characterization (THIS IS CARICATURE) portrays Grant Swain as very opinionated, an intellectual fascist who’s goal is to indoctrinate not educate.As the story progresses there are many stereotypes that are formed showing Swain in a very negative light, one of these stereotypes inc ludes that he is an ageing and belittled university lecturer who wishes to achieve a patriarchal and charismatic figure amongst his younger students. It is therefore clear that Grant Swain is used in order to satirise the vices of the educational system. WoW SITUATIONAL IRONY Situational irony, which is also commonly used throughout the South Park series is simply when something happens and as a result the reversal of expectations may occur.Cartmen once again reappears and as before mentioned suggests that the four of them continue to play and level their characters sacrificing all but three hours of their day to the game in order to face their rival, someone who is considered to have no life. Cartmen then quotes: ‘What do you say guys? You can just hang outside in the sun all day tossing a ball around or you can sit at your computer and do something that matters† To the viewers amazement, they do so, linking to the element of Situational Irony and once again back to car icature as their their social behaviours’ alter for the duration of their involvement with World of Warcraft.DWM SITUATIONAL IRONY In contrast, Grant Swain, being previously portrayed as quite opinionated is also characterized to the reader through the use of situational irony. In the first few scenes of the play Swain quotes â€Å"the dominant ideology has constructed a female stereotype† this also links directly back to the dramatization of the traditional roles of sexes. Verbal irony is shown soon after as Angela counters his theory quoting â€Å"your average woman may find swaggering macho master far more attractive than intellect†.This in turn sheds Swain in a negative light as being stereotypical, previously referring to himself as an ‘average woman’, satirising the hypocrisy of humans and in particular linking back to Swains characterization as an intellectual facist. CONCLUSION All things considered through both texts ‘Dead White Males ’ and ‘Make Love not Warcraft’ we are able to understand that the roles and functions of satirical texts in contemporary society are crucially important and particularly illustrated through the use of satirical techniques.

Ethical Dilemma Essay

The article Ethical Dilemma presents the formidable role and functions of a nurse and other healthcare providers as it tries to preserve and uphold the dignity of life until its last breath. The authors Cynthia Kellam Stinson, MSN, RNC, CMS; Jennie Godkin, MSN, RN; and Rutchie Robinson,RN, MSN, all respected and reputable professionals in their field, have illustrated a real life situation coupled with an analysis that will hopefully give a well-grounded judgment and management to everybody working to perfect their roles in the care of patients most especially those stricken with debilitating diseases. Ethical Dilemma showcased a case where an ill-stricken patient’s supposed request was granted, however, the decision to grant was eventually found lacking and wanting. The patient named Mr. Antonio had been a vibrant 60-year-old Associate Professor in the Music Department of a university before he developed a type of Parkinson’s disease. The disease advanced and had its toll on the well-being of the patient and brought tremendous concern on his family which eventually led to seeking the aid of a long-term care facility to ensure that the patient is perfectly cared for. During his confinement in the long-term care facility, the patient went through personal bouts of self pity and despondency. All these feelings were manifested in his disposition and appetite. It was not clear if he clearly expressed that he no longer wants to eat and drink but it was stated in the article that for several times he would not swallow the food once it entered his mouth and will instead spit it out. The question if it was a qualified case of VSED or voluntarily stopping eating and drinking then surfaced. The concern if the patient made an informed and competent decision came out; and if the family and the healthcare providers made a well discerned decision when the caring steps taken were based on the later behavior of the patient was also asked. To further define the case, the authors used relevant legal and social issues that arose from similar situations in the past. Another enlightening presentation of the article is the possible physiological issues of the Ethical Dilemma 2 patient’s situation. The authors’ analysis of the case came into full circle when it reconciled the realizations and resolutions to the practice of nursing care and the indispensable role of a multidisciplinary group comprised of the family, the healthcare experts such as physicians, nurses, dietitians, psychiatrist, and should be joined too by lawyers, social workers, and a spiritual advisor to ensure a better health care for patients. This case surely taught important lessons to concerned healthcare practitioners although it took one life as an example. The article says that the patient’s autonomy must be respected and healthcare providers must avoid inflicting more harm on the patient in the process of caring for him, however, additional harm befell the patient in the article when the healthcare providers failed to thoroughly and adequately discuss the benefits and risks of VSED and even the pros and cons of inserting a percutaneous endocopie gastrostomy (PEG) tube into the patient’s stomach and even allowing the patient to be fed with exclusive soda. The American College of Physicians and the American Society of Internal Medicine’s Position Paper provided guidelines for VSED. It clearly stated that VSED was appropriate for a terminally ill patient provided the patient was competent to make decisions after a comprehensive psychological assessment of the patient to rule out depression, spiritual suffering, and assessment of motives. These conditions were not observed in the case of Mr. Antonio. In the second to the last paragraph of the article, it was mentioned that in the last 21 days of the patient, there were instances that he stared at the nurses with pleading eyes. Could this mean a contradiction of how matters in his situation were interpreted? It is possible that there was a point that the patient wanted to stop eating and drinking because of depression, but a good facilitation to make him further understand his situation and realize what can still be done, the patient might just decide to fight his battle. It is a fact that Parkinson’s disease, and any of its’ type, is a progressive, debilitating illness and all measures of treatment and Ethical Dilemma 3 dealings should have evolved on this reality with complete consideration of how the patient will respond to the situation. Nurses aren’t just around to merely nurse and purely attend to ailing patients, their skills and most importantly their presence can help patients bear the pain of their illnesses. It is right to call them advocates and it may be an overwhelming job but there’s so much fulfillment involved when they listen to the patients’ plight, help patients find the truth and share that faith and courage to face their situations. Nursing as a profession entails many things thus the mention of countless points to consider in carrying out the job. Mastery of each point most especially the ethical theories will make a better nurse and will increase the chances of saving more lives. Insights learned, realizations, and resolutions should be lived. The article made a very good point when it enumerated a list of possible improvements such as enhance quality care in the ICU through educational preparation of staff, patient, and family; emotional preparation of practitioners, family, and patient; flexible staffing; provision of privacy for patient and family; maximum communication between family and staff; spiritual support to the family; ongoing evaluation of patient; and stress debriefing program for the staff. All of these measures should be implemented for a better health care system. It should not wait for another patient to experience the same situation. Health care providers should be proactive and must always be prepared should another patient will need their expertise and attention.

George Orwell’s “Politics and the English Language” Rhetorical Précis Essay

Goerge Orwell, in â€Å"Politics and the English Language†, demonstrates how to effectively express oneself with written language. To do so, Orwell states the â€Å"dos† and â€Å"don’ts† of effective writing. Because the rules for writing effectively are so complex, Orwell utilizes parallel structure to make the body structure of his essay more cohesive: â€Å"†¦ it has nothing to do with archaism†¦ it is especially concerned with the scrapping of†¦ It has nothing to do with correct grammar†¦ it is not concerned with†¦ Nor does it even imply†¦ though it does imply†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Orwell). Orwell interlaces multiple parallel structures to give the body both unity and a back-and-forth feel that keeps the audience on their toes. If he had not done so, his arguments would have quickly become repetitive and monotonous. Although Orwell specifically states that â€Å"correct grammar and syntax†¦ are of no importance†, one can see that he has gone to great lengths to achieve an engaging effect through syntax. The back-and-forth action of the body paragraphs and his self-contradiction alludes to a rule he introduces later in the writing: â€Å"Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous† (Orwell). He then goes on to break a number of his previously stated rules, some more blatantly than others: â€Å"†¦ send some worn-out and useless phrase†¦ into the dustbin† (Orwell). He also uses polysyllabic diction at some points, though he expressly states to â€Å"Never use a long word where a short one will do†. His contradiction of himself may at first leave some readers puzzled, but ultimately establishes the concept that a writer should not be afraid to break conventions to make a point.

Civil Society in Russia

The term â€Å"civil society† in Russia is rarely referred to something other than to the civic organisations and movements created during and after the break-up of the Soviet Union (start of the 1990’s). Never the less this paper will look at the â€Å"civil society† term in Russia more widely and insidely. I will talk more and discuss about our time â€Å"civil society†, which came in in the end of the 90’s with the Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin’s ascension on the presidency. Putin re-established a top-down order in Russia and has proved to be quite antagonistic both to Western foreign policy and to pro-Western civil society groups.However, both capitalism and multiparty democracy continued their uncertain paths in Russia through the last decade. After two terms as president, Putin handed over to Dmitri Medvedev and therefore he built a so called monopoly in the hidden â€Å"Dictatorship† in the Russian political sphere. Total dominat ion until the unability of being the ruling force of the country will come in but even then he has a cut back plan of Medvedev and some later chosen candidate, that will help Medvedev make same what Putin did, with getting the presidentship back in his hands as soon as possible. Looking to the future, the paper highlights two main trends.First, the continuation of Russia’s tradition of civic and political activism, seen most dramatically in the mass demonstrations in Moscow and other cities. Second, the major steps made by CSOs and local government in implementing social partnership, with new funds from the state that both replace and build on the contributions of foreign donors during 1995-2005. History. The beginnings of Russian civil society. The first stage (1760-1860) flows out of Catherine the Great’s reforms to the Russian estates and was characterized by the creation of public organizations related to science, literature, the arts, leisure and charitable activi ties.These included famous and influential associations like the Russian Geographical Society, the Free Economics Society, the Moscow Agricultural Society, the Russian Technical Society, and the Pirogov’s Association of Russian Doctors. These societies were set up with hopes for friendly cooperation with the Tsarist authorities and in the second half of the 19th century their members played a key role lobbying for social and legal reform. Civil society growth under Tsarism. Russia’s second stage of civil society development began with the Great Reforms ushered in by Tsar Alexander II in the 1860s.Serfdom was abolished, basic civil rights were established in law, and the first steps taken in the creation of a local government system. CSOs expanded gradually, became more professional, and began to provide educational and health support to vulnerable groups across the country. At the same time industrialization and urbanization gathered pace in Russia. The extension of th e railway system across Siberia to the Pacific was one of the most dramatic examples of this in the late 19th century. Though ,the development of capitalist relations in the economy was not mirrored by political changes.The period of reforms gave way to a new period of repression and political stagnation, and the state was challenged by increasingly radical political forces such as the Popularitists(Narodniki) with their â€Å"to the people† movement, culminating in the 1905 revolution. Many voluntary associations were radicalized too (including almost all the scientific societies noted above). Significantly, the only law passed in Tsarist time devoted to public organizations was issued by the Senate in the immediate aftermath of the first Russian Revolution, in March 1906.In the next few years, almost 5,000 new organizations, societies and unions were registered. However, once again this reforming, liberalizing movement ran into opposition from the state and with the crisis that was brought into the country because of the participation and taking a huge part and playing important role in World War I. Civil society in the Soviet period. The Soviet period (1917 to the mid-1980s) is the third stage in Russia’s civil society development, notable for the â€Å"nationalization of civil society institutions†.Again, there were stages when popular activity flowered. The Soviet arts, cultural and scientific avant-garde of the 1920s is well known, but less well known are the local movements, peasants’ and proletarian organizations that emerged all around the country. For example, every settlement/district had its own Peasant Mutual Society and the Central Bureau catered to the welfare needs of students much as voluntary associations had done before the revolution.However, in the 1930s this phase gave way to a period of repression and political regimentation – occasioned by the Soviet government’s decision to forcibly collectiviz e agriculture and go for rapid industrialization. This â€Å"required state-oriented CSOs which were to drive the foundation of socialism†. The voluntary associations created in the 1920s â€Å"offered alternative ways of solving social problems† but the authorities â€Å"doubted the utility of voluntary movements and the reliability of their participants. † Thousands were shut down in the 1930s and new associations set up in their stead, as part of the government machine.It was not until the late 1950s-early 1960s that citizens’ organizations of a less politicized type began to re-emerge, encouraged by Kruschev’s denunciation of Stalin and the political though that followed. Russian analysts have identified about 40 of these, operating mainly within the arts and scientific fields under the patronage of Communist Party bodies and subject to the latter’s decisions on policy and personnel matters. By the Brezhnev period, associations were acti ve among groups as varied as war veterans, professional designers and those involved in child welfare. Civil society now included the dissident  movement.Dissidents developed various modes of resistance to the Soviet state – writing and publishing artistic or journalistic critiques of the regime, creating a variety of informal circles and discussion groups, and making statements on political and human rights issues that brought down considerable persecution on themselves. But they had many sympathizers and considerable impact on the political atmosphere in the country and its reputation abroad. The dissident movement included not only western-leaning liberals, but also strident nationalists and religious activists from many of the constituent republics of the USSRTransition period to our times. â€Å"Civil society† played a huge role in dissident ideology in Eastern Europe and the USSR in the 1980s. When the communist regimes collapsed one after the other it seemed t o many people that an entirely new society was being born. Many different analyses of â€Å"newly-created† civil society in the region were built around this view. Twenty years later and with the benefit of new historical research, most experts in the region see things differently. The current stage of civil society development in Russia is a fourth stage, starting in the mid-1980s and continuing to the present day.The movement for perestroika and glasnost led by Gorbachev was designed to solve the USSR’s pressing economic crisis (caused by the arms race and economic competition with the West) and to shore up the legitimacy of one-party rule. But it led instead to the collapse of the communist system. Many of the most active civil society sectors today can trace their origins to the 1980s – not just the human rights groups, but also the environmental movement with its active networks among young people and in the regions.The adoption of a law on public associati ons in the late soviet period, supported by subsequent Russian Federation laws regulating public and charitable activity, opened the door to CSO registration for all-comers. However, under Yeltsin’s successor Putin, the environment for civil society changed significantly. On the one hand, Putin accelerated a process initiated under Yeltsin –government financing of the sector (mainly via contracting out social services to CSOs), and set up a national structure of Public Councils to dialogue with and co-opt the sector.On the other hand,  in 2006 he introduced regulations limiting the influence of foreign donors. The study’s authors call this policy â€Å"import substitution†; the replacement of foreign models and funding by national programs, self-organization and local philanthropy. Russian civil society today. General features of the sector After two decades of transition, analysts of current developments in Russia are beginning to gain a balanced view of the civil society sector. Civil society in Russia, is showing more attention to the detail, shows that elements of continuity and change, tradition and innovation, exist alongside one another.Here is what I can say on that theme: †¢ civil society activists today are â€Å"a strong minority of citizens† who deserve more support †¢ Informal networks are important for civil society, especially in rural areas because they include a large membership and their ability and readiness to provide vital daily services, plus often good links with government †¢ Foreign funding has had a positive effect in many areas (for example, it helped open up dialogue on many issues like feminism, domestic violence and others) †¢ Mafia-type groupings have had a powerful and negative effect at all levels in Russia – even â€Å"co-opting the role of civil society† †¢ The millionaires or â€Å"oligarchs† that emerged during the 1990s preferred not to work through formal or wider business associations; hence they contributed little to civil society development. So Russia surely has a civil society. The question is how to develop it further, from local to national level. Here is some thoughts on that part because there are many different opinions from different experts on that note. I will try to suggest the best possible ways of improving it and making in stronger and more vulnerable to what tries to hurt it.†¢ Civic engagement: the level of public activity in stable periods is moderate, but CSOs have shown they can mobilize quickly when the external situation demands †¢ Level of organization: Russian civil society is still in a difficult period of organizational development †¢ Practice of values: CSO members and activists refer to non-violence, tolerance and internal democracy as being among the most important for the sector †¢ Perception of impact: the general image of civil society is not equal from internal an d external points of view. CSOs themselves rate their social and political impact as higher than the scores given by external experts †¢ External environment: the majority of the population do not approve of corruption, tax evasion, and so on. These positive social attitudes could potentially act as a catalyst for further civil society development. †¢Consultative mechanisms.Set up by Putin in 2004, the national Public Chamber has 126 members, selected in equal numbers by the President, public organizations, and Russia’s regions. The aim was to develop the space for civil society and intersectional dialogue. Gradually, this model has been extended across Russia. Critics said they would prove to be mere â€Å"window-dressing to legitimize the government’s increasingly authoritarian policies†, but at local level many NGO supporters have proved willing to give them a try. (A survey found that 60% of activists would participate if asked, while 16% wouldnâ⠂¬â„¢t, 181) In all of these developments, a clear gap can be seen between advanced and less advanced elements in civil society and government.The rural areas lag behind the cities, the remote regions lag behind the industrial centres. The character of political opposition to the regime is quite different in the regions. As the demonstrations of autumn 2011 and spring 2012 showed, present-day ‘dissidents’ in Moscow and St Petersburg tend to be middle-class, liberal and western-leaning. However, in the Urals and Siberia, many of the most strident activists are from the communist and nationalist camps. Conclusion and perspectives. In December 2011, Russia was admitted to WTO (18 years after first applying) and all that remained was for the Duma to ratify the agreement. In March 2012, Putin returned as President for a new seven-year term.Thus, for the alter-globalization movement as for other dissident forces, a new period of struggle lies ahead to win a greater degree of social and economic justice and a more democratic society in Russia. On the other hand, Putin has promised to priorities social issues and CSOs are well placed to work for positive results in this area. This is a kind of â€Å"crossroads† for Russian civil society – will activists and organizations collaborate or conflict with government? None can say surely but it is likely that many will opt for the first of these strategies, so they face the challenge of how to resist incorporation and maintain their own agenda during the negotiations.Both the democracy and the alter-globalization movements face the challenge of how to coordinate their activities, combine different viewpoints, and communicate more effectively with the general public. The activists involved in social issues at local level have put energy and ideas into setting up grants contests, ensuring transparency in awarding contracts. Now they need to focus on the development, implementation and monitoring of l onger term programs – whether carried out by NGOs or government itself. Only a truly independent position will enable them to work effectively in difficult areas like anti-corruption, anti-racism or the protection of minority rights. Civil Society in Russia Introduction.The term â€Å"civil society† in Russia is rarely referred to something other than to the civic organisations and movements created during and after the break-up of the Soviet Union (start of the 1990’s). Never the less this paper will look at the â€Å"civil society† term in Russia more widely and insidely. I will talk more and discuss about our time â€Å"civil society†, which came in in the end of the 90’s with the Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin’s ascension on the presidency. Putin re-established a top-down order in Russia and has proved to be quite antagonistic both to Western foreign policy and to pro-Western civil society groups. However, both capitalism and multiparty democracy continued their uncertain paths in Russia through the last decade.After two terms as president, Putin handed over to Dmitri Medvedev and therefore he built a so called monopoly in the hidden â€Å"Dictatorship† in the Russian political sphere. Total domination until the unability of being the ruling force of the country will come in but even then he has a cut back plan of Medvedev and some later chosen candidate, that will help Medvedev make same what Putin did, with getting the presidentship back in his hands as soon as possible. Looking to the future, the paper highlights two main trends.First, the continuation of Russia’s tradition of civic and political activism, seen most dramatically in the mass demonstrations in Moscow and other cities. Second, the major steps made by CSOs and local government in implementing social partnership, with new funds from the state that both replace and build on the contributions of foreign donors during 1995-2005.History. The beginnings of Russian civil society.The first stage (1760-1860) flows out of Catherine the Great’s reforms to the Russian estates and was characterized by the creation of public organizations related to science, literature, the arts, leisure and charit able activities. These included famous and influential associations like the Russian Geographical Society, the Free Economics Society, the Moscow Agricultural Society, the Russian Technical Society, and the Pirogov’s Association of Russian Doctors. These societies were set up with hopes for friendly cooperation with the Tsarist authorities and in the second half of the 19th century their members played a key role lobbying for social and legal reform.Civil society growth under Tsarism.Russia’s second stage of civil society development began with the Great Reforms ushered in by Tsar Alexander II in the 1860s. Serfdom was abolished, basic civil rights were established in law, and the first steps taken in the creation of a local government system. CSOs expanded gradually, became more professional, and began to provide educational and health support to vulnerable groups across the country. At the same time industrialization and urbanization gathered pace in Russia. The exte nsion of the railway system across Siberia to the Pacific was one of the most dramatic examples of this in the late 19th century.Though ,the development of capitalist relations in the economy was not mirrored by political changes. The period of reforms gave way to a new period of repression and political stagnation, and the state was challenged by increasingly radical political forces such as the Popularitists(Narodniki) with their â€Å"to the people† movement, culminating in the 1905 revolution. Many voluntary associations were radicalized too (including almost all the scientific societies noted above).Significantly, the only law passed in Tsarist time devoted to public organizations was issued by the Senate in the  immediate aftermath of the first Russian Revolution, in March 1906. In the next few years, almost 5,000 new organizations, societies and unions were registered. However, once again this reforming, liberalizing movement ran into opposition from the state and wi th the crisis that was brought into the country because of the participation and taking a huge part and playing important role in World War I.Civil society in the Soviet period.The Soviet period (1917 to the mid-1980s) is the third stage in Russia’s civil society development, notable for the â€Å"nationalization of civil society institutions†. Again, there were stages when popular activity flowered. The Soviet arts, cultural and scientific avant-garde of the 1920s is well known, but less well known are the local movements, peasants’ and proletarian organizations that emerged all around the country. For example, every settlement/district had its own Peasant Mutual Society and the Central Bureau catered to the welfare needs of students much as voluntary associations had done before the revolution. However, in the 1930s this phase gave way to a period of repression and political regimentation – occasioned by the Soviet government’s decision to forcib ly collectivize agriculture and go for rapid industrialization.This â€Å"required state-oriented CSOs which were to drive the foundation of socialism†. The voluntary associations created in the 1920s â€Å"offered alternative ways of solving social problems† but the authorities â€Å"doubted the utility of voluntary movements and the reliability of their participants.† Thousands were shut down in the 1930s and new associations set up in their stead, as part of the government machine. It was not until the late 1950s-early 1960s that citizens’ organizations of a less politicized type began to re-emerge, encouraged by Kruschev’s denunciation of Stalin and the political though that followed.Russian analysts have identified about 40 of these, operating mainly within the arts and scientific fields under the patronage of Communist Party bodies and subject to the latter’s decisions on policy and personnel matters. By the Brezhnev period, associatio ns were active among groups as varied as war veterans, professional designers and those involved in child welfare. Civil society now included the dissident  movement. Dissidents developed various modes of resistance to the Soviet state – writing and publishing artistic or journalistic critiques of the regime, creating a variety of informal circles and discussion groups, and making statements on political and human rights issues that brought down considerable persecution on themselves.But they had many sympathizers and considerable impact on the political atmosphere in the country and its reputation abroad. The dissident movement included not only western-leaning liberals, but also strident nationalists and religious activists from many of the constituent republics of the USSRTransition period to our times.â€Å"Civil society† played a huge role in dissident ideology in Eastern Europe and the USSR in the 1980s. When the communist regimes collapsed one after the other it seemed to many people that an entirely new society was being born. Many different analyses of â€Å"newly-created† civil society in the region were built around this view. Twenty years later and with the benefit of new historical research, most experts in the region see things differently. The current stage of civil society development in Russia is a fourth stage, starting in the mid-1980s and continuing to the present day. The movement for perestroika and glasnost led by Gorbachev was designed to solve the USSR’s pressing economic crisis (caused by the arms race and economic competition with the West) and to shore up the legitimacy of one-party rule. But it led instead to the collapse of the communist system.Many of the most active civil society sectors today can trace their origins to the 1980s – not just the human rights groups, but also the environmental movement with its active networks among young people and in the regions. The adoption of a law on publ ic associations in the late soviet period, supported by subsequent Russian Federation laws regulating public and charitable activity, opened the door to CSO registration for all-comers. However, under Yeltsin’s successor Putin, the environment for civil society changed significantly.On the one hand, Putin accelerated a process initiated under Yeltsin –government financing of the sector (mainly via contracting out social services to CSOs), and set up a national structure of Public Councils to dialogue with and co-opt the sector. On the other hand,  in 2006 he introduced regulations limiting the influence of foreign donors. The study’s authors call this policy â€Å"import substitution†; the replacement of foreign models and funding by national programs, self-organization and local philanthropy.Russian civil society today. General features of the sectorAfter two decades of transition, analysts of current developments in Russia are beginning to gain a bala nced view of the civil society sector.Civil society in Russia, is showing more attention to the detail, shows that elements of continuity and change, tradition and innovation, exist alongside one another. Here is what I can say on that theme: †¢ civil society activists today are â€Å"a strong minority of citizens† who deserve more support †¢ Informal networks are important for civil society, especially in rural areas because they include a large membership and their ability and readiness to provide vital daily services, plus often good links with government †¢ Foreign funding has had a positive effect in many areas (for example, it helped open up dialogue on many issues like feminism, domestic violence and others)†¢ Mafia-type groupings have had a powerful and negative effect at all levels in Russia – even â€Å"co-opting the role of civil society† †¢ The millionaires or â€Å"oligarchs† that emerged during the 1990s preferred no t to work through formal or wider business associations; hence they contributed little to civil society development. So Russia surely has a civil society. The question is how to develop it further, from local to national level. Here is some thoughts on that part because there are many different opinions from different experts on that note. I will try to suggest the best possible ways of improving it and making in stronger and more vulnerable to what tries to hurt it.†¢ Civic engagement: the level of public activity in stable periods is moderate, but CSOs have shown they can mobilize quickly when the external situation demands †¢ Level of organization: Russian civil society is still in a difficult period of organizational development †¢ Practice of values: CSO members and activists refer to non-violence, tolerance and internal democracy as being among the most important for the sector †¢ Perception of impact: the general image of civil society is not equal from in ternal and external points of view. CSOs themselves rate their social and political impact as higher than the scores given by external experts †¢ External environment: the majority of the population do not approve of corruption, tax evasion, and so on.These positive social attitudes could potentially act as a catalyst for further civil society development. †¢Consultative mechanisms. Set up by Putin in 2004, the national Public Chamber has 126 members, selected in equal numbers by the President, public organizations, and Russia’s regions. The aim was to develop the space for civil society and intersectional dialogue. Gradually, this model has been extended across Russia. Critics said they would prove to be mere â€Å"window-dressing to legitimize the government’s increasingly authoritarian policies†, but at local level many NGO supporters have proved willing to give them a try. (A survey found that 60% of activists would participate if asked, while 16% wouldn’t, 181)In all of these developments, a clear gap can be seen between advanced and less advanced elements in civil society and government. The rural areas lag behind the cities, the remote regions lag behind the industrial centres. The character of political opposition to the regime is quite different in the regions. As the demonstrations of autumn 2011 and spring 2012 showed, present-day ‘dissidents’ in Moscow and St Petersburg tend to be middle-class, liberal and western-leaning. However, in the Urals and Siberia, many of the most strident activists are from the communist and nationalist camps.Conclusion and perspectives.In December 2011, Russia was admitted to WTO (18 years after first applying) and all that remained was for the Duma to ratify the agreement. In March 2012, Putin returned as President for a new seven-year term. Thus, for the alter-globalization movement as for other dissident forces, a new period of struggle lies ahead to win a greater de gree of social and economic justice and a more democratic society in Russia. On the other hand, Putin has promised to priorities social issues and CSOs are well placed to work for  positive results in this area. This is a kind of â€Å"crossroads† for Russian civil society – will activists and organizations collaborate or conflict with government?None can say surely but it is likely that many will opt for the first of these strategies, so they face the challenge of how to resist incorporation and maintain their own agenda during the negotiations. Both the democracy and the alter-globalization movements face the challenge of how to coordinate their activities, combine different viewpoints, and communicate more effectively with the general public. The activists involved in social issues at local level have put energy and ideas into setting up grants contests, ensuring transparency in awarding contracts.Now they need to focus on the development, implementation and monit oring of longer term programs – whether carried out by NGOs or government itself. Only a truly independent position will enable them to work effectively in difficult areas like anti-corruption, anti-racism or the protection of minority rights.