A Change For Jane

Her name was Jane Hulsebosch.   She was my math teacher for fifth and sixth grade. Jane was a tall large woman with black tight curly hair. Her eyes were brown and beady, like a ferret. She was approximately five feet and eleven inches tall, but to me she seemed much taller. Jane did not stand, she loomed. If she looked over my shoulder while I took one of her labyrinthine exams, it felt like the sword of Damocles swinging over my head. Jane was an extremely heavy woman who was plagued with varicose veins. When I was young, however, it looked like she had beanbags stored under her skin. Jane was a heavy smoker. I could not help but notice the stale smell of smoke on her fingertips as I gingerly approached her desk with a paper to grade.Jane to me was the educational equivalent of terrorism. I was not stupid enough to actually volunteer an answer to her questions. I attempted, like my other poor unfortunate classmates to crawl into a crevice in the floor by keeping my eyes downcast. Silly me.Like a panther circling its prey Jane walked around our classroom. Employing the Socratic Method, she barked questions at me. And I, paralyzed in fear, failed yet again to answer correctly. The woman was an insidious masochist. I know she delighted in terrorizing us. She threw erasers and chalk at us with the precision of a stealth bomber while wailing â€Å"DOPEY!†My morning prayer was that Mrs. Jane Hulsebosch die a long painful death. In my head I painted glorious medieval deaths. My personal favorite fantasy was one where she is disemboweled. My classmates, however, preferred the â€Å"drawn and quartered† method. God it seemed, never answered our prayers.Then one cold damp winter morning it seemed that God did answer me, well sort of.Jane entered the classroom but her gait was unsteady. She smelled like something I had never identified until I was in college. She smelled like a brewery.Her face was swollen, like someone who just got pummeled in the face during a game of dodge ball, but worse. Was that a black and blue that I saw?   I did not know, and did not care to draw her attention to the fact that I was staring at her. Quickly, I l ooked at my textbook and pretended I was reading.A haunted silence filled my classroom. All of us just sat holding our breath. My stomach felt like there was a lead balloon in it. (Indeed, as I write this paper, the feeling sets in.) What did we do? Did we do something so terrible that we rendered her speechless?Did Sean get caught cheating again? After what seemed like hours, two police officers entered our classroom along with the principal. What was happening? Were we being arrested for being bad students like she promised? Was the threat of our behavior going on our â€Å"permanent record† happening now?No. Jane was being led out of our classroom. Suddenly, as she passed my desk I was compelled to look up at her and a tear hit my shoe.Outside, someone was wailing. It was Jane, but it was not the same yelling that she did in class. What was happening? Our principal entered the classroom and told us that he would be teaching us for awhile and that we should all pray for our teacher.Well, we did†¦but not for her return. That night I remember my parents whispering in hushed horrified tones and then calling me into their bedroom to â€Å"discuss something†.   I was asked an interminable amount of questions about Jane, the throwing, the yelling and that smell.   Jane, they told me was in the hospital. Her husband had been beating her and she had a drinking problem.

Evolution and Humans Essay

Evolution is the transformation of the genetic material of an organism from one generation to the next where it is formally defined as the â€Å"change in the form and behavior of organisms between generations† (Ridley, 2004, p. 4). Humans are believed to have evolved into Homo sapiens from other species such as apes and placental mammals, thus making them related to all species of life on Earth. However, the social, intellectual, physical and emotional strengths of humans separate them from other species on Earth. Just like higher order animals, the social skills and the behavior of humans are driven by instinct, and proper behavior can result from training. However, nature designed the behavior of humans to shift from being instinctive to one that would focus on survivability. There is no other species of animals as advanced as the intellectual and emotional understanding of humans. Although intellect has developed in other animals, the intellect of humans is based on self-control and self-discipline. Their emotional understanding is also well-advanced that humans are the only species to be able to fully communicate with others. Humans also show high-level of emotional cognition, as compared to other animals which only express basic emotions elicited by conditioned stimuli such as hunger, aggression and sex. Humans recognize that all life on earth is interrelated. Although humans are unique, they survive because of this interrelationship with other species. This symbiotic relationship with other species is one reason why humans are obliged to protect other living species, as well as the environment which they live in. Humans recognize that this uniqueness also gives them the responsibility to assure that life on earth will continue as long as humans exist. Reference Ridley, M. (2004). Evolution. Hoboken, New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell.

Capital Punishment Essays (10436 words) - Human Rights, Free Essays

Execution of criminals and political opponents has been used by nearly all societies?both to punish crime and to suppress political dissent. In most places that practice capital punishment it is reserved for murder, espionage, treason, or as part of military justice. In some countries sexual crimes, such as rape, adultery, incest and sodomy, carry the death penalty, as do religious crimes such as apostasy in Islamic nations (the formal renunciation of the State religion). In many countries that use the death penalty, drug trafficking is also a capital offense. In China, human trafficking and serious cases of corruption are punished by the death penalty. In militaries around the world courts-martial have imposed death sentences for offenses such as cowardice, desertion, insubordination, and mutiny.[14] Anarchist Auguste Vaillant guillotined in France in 1894The use of formal execution extends to the beginning of recorded history. Most historical records and various primitive tribal practices indicate that the death penalty was a part of their justice system. Communal punishment for wrongdoing generally included compensation by the wrongdoer, corporal punishment, shunning, banishment and execution. Usually, compensation and shunning were enough as a form of justice.[15] The response to crime committed by neighbouring tribes or communities included formal apology, compensation or blood feuds. A blood feud or vendetta occurs when arbitration between families or tribes fails or an arbitration system is non-existent. This form of justice was common before the emergence of an arbitration system based on state or organised religion. It may result from crime, land disputes or a code of honour. "Acts of retaliation underscore the ability of the social collective to defend itself and demonstrate to enemies (as well as potential allies) that injury to property, rights, or the person will not go unpunished."[16] However, in practice, it is often difficult to distinguish between a war of vendetta and one of conquest. Severe historical penalties include breaking wheel, boiling to death, flaying, slow slicing, disembowelment, crucifixion, impalement, crushing (including crushing by elephant), stoning, execution by burning, dismemberment, sawing, decapitation, scaphism, or necklacing. The Christian Martyrs' Last Prayer, by Jean-L?on G?r?me (1883). Roman Colosseum.Elaborations of tribal arbitration of feuds included peace settlements often done in a religious context and compensation system. Compensation was based on the principle of substitution which might include material (e.g. cattle, slave) compensation, exchange of brides or grooms, or payment of the blood debt. Settlement rules could allow for animal blood to replace human blood, or transfers of property or blood money or in some case an offer of a person for execution. The person offered for execution did not have to be an original perpetrator of the crime because the system was based on tribes, not individuals. Blood feuds could be regulated at meetings, such as the Viking things.[17] Systems deriving from blood feuds may survive alongside more advanced legal systems or be given recognition by courts (e.g. trial by combat). One of the more modern refinements of the blood feud is the duel. Giovanni Battista Bugatti, executioner of the Papal States between 1796 and 1865, carried out 516 executions (Bugatti pictured offering snuff to a condemned prisoner). Vatican City abolished its capital punishment statute in 1969.In certain parts of the world, nations in the form of ancient republics, monarchies or tribal oligarchies emerged. These nations were often united by common linguistic, religious or family ties. Moreover, expansion of these nations often occurred by conquest of neighbouring tribes or nations. Consequently, various classes of royalty, nobility, various commoners and slave emerged. Accordingly, the systems of tribal arbitration were submerged into a more unified system of justice which formalised the relation between the different "classes" rather than "tribes". The earliest and most famous example is Code of Hammurabi which set the different punishment and compensation according to the different class/group of victims and perpetrators. The Torah (Jewish Law), also known as the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Christian Old Testament), lays down the death penalty for murder, kidnapping, magic, violation of the Sabbath, blasphemy, and a wide range of sexual crimes, although evidence suggests that actual executions were rare.[18] A further example comes from Ancient Greece, where the Athenian legal system was first written down by Draco in about 621 BC: the

Inclusion and special educational needs (including challenging Essay

Inclusion and special educational needs (including challenging behaviour) - Essay Example This is better said than done, since in practice, there have been progressively increasing social diversities (DfES, 2001, 1-33). This poses a challenge on the practitioners as well as the state, since they are committed to provide an appropriate education for all. It is well known that factors such as ethnicity, disability and material deprivation are associated with inequality, social exclusion and the risk of low educational attainment, due to diversity of the condition and the candidates. By diversity, it is not only meant the different grades of disabilities or challenging behaviours in these people, it also reflects divergent cultural values and norms. To promote and enforce equal access to education, the current trend is to acknowledge the rights of inclusion of these people. Following lots of argument, now most agree inclusion describes a process where the pupil with special needs may be educated in an inclusive school build within the mainframe of the ordinary schools, in or der to gradually accept them in the mainstream (Croll and Moses, 2000, 1-12). The nature of provision for special educational needs has changed drastically over the last few years following the Warnock Report and the 1981 Education Act. Ideally, all education, special or ordinary should look at implementation of principles of social justice in education, as deployment of "what is good for the common interest where that is taken to include the good of each and good for all" (Griffiths, 1998, 95 in Quicke, 2007, 2-15). This implies improvement of education of all and specially of those with special needs. This should, therefore, follow certain principles guided by the code for practitioners (QCA/DfEE, 2001). In a broader sense, the inequality in education of those identified to have special education needs, can only be demolished by inclusion (DfES, 2001, 1-13) due the fact that all children, special or ordinary, have the rights to experience relationship

Financial Statement Presentation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5250 words

Financial Statement Presentation - Essay Example It is concluded that the IAS 1 has evolved over time in keeping the increasing sophistication, complexity and geographical spread of transactions. It broadly fulfills its objective as defined in the standard itself and the framework of IASB. Financial Statements is a set of summary of accounts of an enterprise, running a business, a commercial activity or other formal entity. In common parlance as understood in day to day communication financial statements are records of accounts (financial transactions). Each country has evolved its own conventions, rules and laws for preparation of financial statements. Over the years these have developed as a general set of standards and methods through which preparation of auditing financial statements takes place. These common set of standards have come to be known as GAAPs - Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Thus in USA, US GAAP are used similarly in European / Asian / African countries their own GAAPs evolved and are used According to the prevalent law of each country. It is presumed that the accountants governed by any GAAP would give true and accurate and fair state of financial health of the enterprise under the circumstances, though considerable leeway exists for them to manipulate and present the accounts to suit their own good. Legal Aspects of Reporting USA the world's largest economy has an apex body US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that publishes their motto in the form of mission, "To save investors, maintain precise and correct, well-defined, and fast markets to provide capital formation". This also states that there should be liquidity and transparency in any kind of US investment where investors should have the right to information in compliance with rules and regulations defined by the government. SEC puts set of information necessary for making right decision about purchase, sale or keeping the security from the results published by the company. Every year SEC prosecutes several companies for infractions of violations of laws of SEC most common of which are frauds related to accounting or misleading information about the securities or firms that releases them. SEC has a separate wing known as TheDivision of Corporation Finance. This division helps the SEC in discharging its role to keep an eye on mandatory disclosures of important significant information to the public / institutional investors. Enterprises are mandated to comply abide by set of laws (regulations) regarding disclosure that must be created at the time of initial offering and thereafter on a regular and periodic intervals. According to SEC, the Division works in tandem with the Chief Accountant, and it supervises the operations of accounting professions primarily the Financial Accounting Standards Board

Self-Assessment Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Self-Assessment - Research Paper Example Discussion In the modern demanding workstation, leaders are extremely constraint to find new and creative ways to engage and encourage their workers and affect positive change to enhance the bottom line of their organizations. Similarly, organization leadership program of study needs practical professional skills that are required to develop and maintain the organization in order to realize change, (Kuglin and Hook, 2002). Communication and leadership concepts are critical to teach employees and leaders importance of leadership and other crucial interpersonal communication skills. Communication skill is required for teams’ communication, management of conflicts in an organization, intercultural communication, and organizational change management. Experts agree communication is an interaction among people to convey different kinds of messages. Managers and leaders in organizational leadership program of study need communication skills, leadership and management skills to manage organizational information, behavior and ensure free flow of information and better communication in the organization. Therefore, an effective communication skill is crucial to achieve organizational goals and create better reputation. I have learned that leadership competency is all about having the ability to operate and lead people in a diverse organization structures, skills, cultures, and contexts; it is the ability to work or function with external and internal teams across various time zones, human resource policies and locations, (Agor, 2009). This capability makes a manager or a leader adaptive to alterations in working conditions and able to develop effective teams. Therefore, a leader needs motivation, commitment, and understanding. This is because one is managing different people, with diverse cultural backgrounds, tradition, opinions, and goals, is not easy. The group is motivated in diverse ways, and every teacher expects a different thing from an assistant manager. T herefore, as a leader one needs to be a team builder, motivator, coacher to ensure divergent views are integrated, and needs met to achieve common goals. Efficient listening is crucial for leaders. Without listening skills, a leader cannot get a response and opinions from teachers and principals and as sense of what members prefer about the teaching activities and projects. Listening will allow integration of different team members’ opinions to facilitate project success. A leader must have the ability to facilitate communication among the team members in an honest and open manner. Efficient interpersonal communication is evident when group members listen to each other and try to build on each other's contributions. Members of the group attain efficient interpersonal communication through strong leadership and self-regulation so that every member has an equal chance to contribute in the project. Resolving the conflict and decision-making are two key functions that are crucial for leaders. For successful team development, I believe the ability to make the group function, devise methods, and techniques for problem solving and decision-making is critical. Absence of consensus strategies for decision-making and conflict management may result in inconveniences,

Michel Foucault Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Michel Foucault - Research Paper Example What did his work do? It linked philosophy with history by â€Å"encompassing such diverse topics as changing attitudes to insanity in post-Renaissance European society, the development of the prison system within the same society, and the codes of governing sexual practice in class times† (â€Å"Foucault†). Foucault deems it to be vital to outline the methods involved in the utilization of social control in society. Some of his major works include Madness and Civilization, The Order of Things and History of Sexuality (â€Å"Foucault†). Foucault’s multi-volume work entitled History of Sexuality provides an excellent excerpt that portrays Foucault’s vision and ideas. Part One: We â€Å"Other Victorians† is an excellent example of Foucault explaining how self-identity imposed by the dominant social culture affects the individual. Foucault’s exact words are, â€Å"†¦the imperial prude is emblazoned on our restrained, mute, and hypoc ritical sexuality† (Foucault 3). In private, sexuality is an open and cherished part of life. However, in society, it is frowned upon, even considered to be a sin if it is not contained within the boundaries of religion aka; after marriage. Sexual phrases and words have become taboo. Foucault says it used to be that, â€Å"sexual practices had little need of secrecy; words were said without undue reticence, and things were done without too much concealment; one had a tolerant familiarity with the illicit† (Foucault 3). In other words, perhaps sexuality was not a comfortable subject for every one, but when it was brought up in conversation, it was not treated with intense disdain. People tolerated the topic because it is one that is shared by the majority. But according to Foucault, that now has changed. The mention of sexuality in a social setting is socially prohibited. He says it best when he says, â€Å"The conjugal family took custody of it and absorbed it into the serious function of reproduction† (Foucault 3). Not only had the term sexuality become buried into the background, it had taken on a new identity. Foucault challenged the new system. Nothing had physically changed about sexuality including how people identified or used it in the privacy of their own homes. Its social meaning had altered to a state of something done for a ‘higher’ purpose only. There is suddenly no reason to perform the act of intimacy without the intention of making a baby. When sex was brought up in the Victorian period, it was immediately silenced (Foucault 3). Why did this happen? Foucault believed it to stem from the birth of purity. People in the Victorian Age prized the idea of prudency. But prudency, or purity, is considered to be unrelated, and even opposite, of sexuality according to the Puritans of the Victorian period. Sexuality, or sex, is deemed dirty and inappropriate. Especially, in context of desire vs. necessity. What is desire e xactly in terms of sexuality? According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, desire is be defined as â€Å"conscious impulse toward something that promises enjoyment or satisfaction in its attainment; sexual urge or appetite.† But what is so wrong about the enjoyment of sex? A prude, who is considered better than others in Victorian society, would not consider sex enjoyable in social conversation. It is a mere act taken between two married people for the sole purpose of producing children. Purity is defined as â€Å"the quality or state of being pure† (â€Å"Purity†). What is most interesting about the word purity is that

Elvis Presleys Photography Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Elvis Presleys Photography - Essay Example This paper Elvis Presley‘s photography describes the importance of photography as a means of satisfaction to the person who is looking at the picture. Portraits of popular figures are more interesting to see than the stale photographs of oneself. You can keep on looking at a particular photo of your favorite sportsperson, maybe frame it on your wall, but you don’t usually keep the photo of your wedding in the bedroom. There’s also a section of society which exhibits family photographs in their offices for all to see. But the charm of a wall paper of Jane Seymour or Marilyn Monroe did a lot of good to boost the morale of the U. S. Army in Vietnam. But the beauty of portraits lies in the fact that they are meant more for entertainment than information, more for titillation than for satisfaction. The subjects of portraits know that the photographs are meant for public consumption and the public knows that the subjects know which makes the circles complete. However, i nformal portraits differ a great deal from formal ones for the simple reason that formal portraits are a bit boring. Thus the subjects of the portrait show obvious signs of unease. Except for a rare Lady Diana with her grace and charm, most of the subjects of portraits are awkward and uneasy, which impression leaps out of the photo to say, â€Å"I am doing this only because I have to be polite,† whereas informal portraits show people happy about just being themselves. This essay discusses the portraits one of the most famous men ever, Elvis Presley, the King.

Causes of the Civil War Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Causes of the Civil War - Essay Example As an overview, the American Civil War lasted from 1861 to 1865 where 11 states from the South of the country secede. With this secession, the 11 states established the Confederate States of America, which was primarily done in order to legislate the presence of slavery in these states. In line with this, the American Civil War must be understood beyond the context of death, but it must be taken into account that the civil war had bore many positive changes and perspective, not only to the American society and political system, but also in the worldwide perspective. To name a few, it had caused the Constitutional amendments, which allowed a stronger relationship between citizens with citizens and citizens with the government. Essentially, the most crucial result of the American Civil War was the abolition of slavery across the country. Nonetheless, it must be noted that prior to the emergence of the American Civil War, there have been cited causes of its coming into existence (The Am erican Red Cross 3; West 2).   The cotton gin was invented by Eli Whitney, who graduated from Yale University, and was able to go to South Carolina to tutor the children of wealthy farmers. As a graduate from Yale University, the people in South Carolina were aware of the intelligence of Whitney. One of the individuals who used this information critically was Catherine Greene, who owns a large cotton plantation in Savannah Georgia. Greene invited Whitney to her farm as a guest, and there she encouraged Whitney. to invent a machine that will allow workers to remove seen from the cotton. Whitney accepted the proposal, and after 10 days, he was able to come up with the cotton gin. With the invention of Whitney, the South was able to experience a growth in the production of its cotton. In particular, it was able to produce 8 million pounds of cotton in the span of two years after the invention of the cotton gin broke out. However, his contribution did not end here because after 12 yea rs of using the cotton gin, the American South was able to produce 80 million pounds of cotton. It was inevitable that the region was already economically up scaling due to the invention of the cotton gin (Hazen 4). The demand of cotton in the international market grew high; the American South producers considered this as an opportunity. However, the American South considered this success to be dependable on the slave labor. With this in hand, the agricultural and the societal system in the American South had greatly depended in the presence of slaves and the aspect of slavery. During the year 1860, it was recorded within the slave states that there were already 3.5 million slaves. In average, there was a minimum of five slaves and a maximum of 20 for every slave owner (Griess 7). The slaveholders of the South found that the slaves were true to their work and were more efficient. However, even with these positive working attitudes of the

Japanese Canadians During Wwii Essay Example for Free

Japanese Canadians During Wwii Essay Japanese people were blamed for everything from a bad crop to a flat tire† (Biase). Japanese Canadians claimed they were given many dirty and hateful looks, and overheard â€Å"people cursing at Japanese for their car troubles† (Biase). The Japanese Canadians were being punished for a crime they did not commit. Canada’s only defence for its actions was that, â€Å"Japanese people were not white and they ‘could’ be spies† (Biase). This meant people were suspicious and literally afraid of Japanese for being spies sent from Japan. As a result, Japanese Canadians had to deal with being blamed for things they did not deserve, thus resulting in being treated unjustly as a human being. This notice was distributed throughout British Columbia. If any Japanese were found in the prohibited areas listed, they would be incarcerated. Thirdly, the Japanese Canadians were sent to internment camps across Canada against their will. In Canada, there were 10 internment camps where, â€Å"3 were road camps, 2 were prisoner of war camps (POW) and 5 were self-supporting camps† (Robinson). Internment camps is a â€Å"large detention  center created for political opponents,  enemy aliens, people with  mental illness, members of specific ethnic or religious groups, civilian inhabitants of a critical war-zone, or other groups of people, usually during a war† (Dictionary). In this case, internment camps in Canada at the time were designed for only Japanese Canadians. Internment camps were labour/work camps, which required heavy-duty work for the 22,000 imprisoned Japanese Canadians to do. Since World War II caused a large shortage of farmers, especially sugar beet farmers, the Security Commission Council organized, â€Å"Sugar beet projects to combat the labour shortage. This gave Japanese males a choice. The choice was to work in road camps as slaves or go to the beet camps and be with their families. Working in the beet camp was the choice taken by the majority of Japanese married men† (Biase). Considering the Japanese Canadians had to live inside the camps, the living conditions inside the internment camps were poor. They were crowded and were primitive with no electricity or running water. A story from Hideo Kukubo tells what life was like during the war: â€Å"I was in that camp for four years. When it got cold the temperature went down to as much as 60 below. The buildings stood on flat land beside a lake. We lived in huts with no insulation. Even if we had the stove burning the inside of the windows would all be frosted up and white, really white. I had to lie in bed with everything on that I had at one time there were 720 people there, all men, and a lot of them were old men. This is just one of the many horrible stories the Japanese Canadians experienced. Therefore, the Japanese Canadians were treated unfairly when they were forced to work and live in internment camps. In conclusion, the Japanese Canadians suffered during the period 1929 to 1945. They had their property and rights taken from them, they were blamed for unnecessary things and forced into camps where labour was the only thing you did all day. Therefore, when Prime Minister Brian Mulroney announced a historic redress settlement for the Japanese Canadians on September 22, 1988, it truly was the best thing to do, even though it was long overdue.

The Manufacturing Process At Almoiz Sugar Mills Marketing Essay

The Manufacturing Process At Almoiz Sugar Mills Marketing Essay Introduction Al-Moiz Sugar Mills Limited incorporated in 2004 as a limited company and certificate of commencement of business was granted in 2005. The Head Office of the company is located at Gulberg III Lahore whereas the factory unit is located on Chashma Road in the D.I.KHAN District Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The company is recognized in the local and international market as a fine quality producer of white refined Sugar, Molasses and also holds a substantial share in the market. The company is also engaged in the export of white refined sugar to Afghanistan and molasses to Euro countries and is contributing to the national economy in the form of foreign exchange. The company has strong corporate clients including Engro and Pepsi. This is the only Pakistani company with state of the art technology and is one of the very few mills in Pakistan that is providing Wapda with electricity. The sugar mills basic plant machinery was acquired and installed by The Heavy Mechanical Complex Taxila (A State Engineering Company). Other equipment such as turbines and gearboxes etc were imported from Germany and United Kingdom. Currently the plant is working at the crushing capacity of 1oooo MTCD and company is keen to increase it to 12000 MTCD. The sugar mill has a state of the art technology which is the latest technology in Pakistan. The mill produces sugar by using both sugar cane and sugar beet as a raw material.The company is committed to invest in IT with an eventual target of implementing ERP system. AL-MOIZ Sugar Mills Limited is one of the significant units of Almoiz group of industries. The company is principally engaged in the business of manufacture sales of white refined sugar molasses (as a byproduct), Crushing of sugarcane, Sugar beet raw sugar in to white refined sugar. Manufacturing Process The manufacturing process at Almoiz Sugar Mills comprises of the following steps Main Competitors Products White refined sugar: Major business of the company is to produce white refined cane sugar of intermission standard and from the erased cane and three different components are achieved that are fibber, pith and moisture. Molasses: This is a by product and it is sold to molasses contractors. One of the allied concerns, reliance commodities (pvt) limited is the main buyer of the molasses of al-moiz sugar mills limited and also the main buyer of molasses from whole the country. Reliance commodities (pvt) limited is the main exporter of molasses in pakistan. Baggase This is also a bye product of the company. Baggase is used as source of energy fuel for sugar industry for juice heating. And also used for making medium density fiber board (mdfb). Baggase is sold to the baggase contractors. Mud Mud is also the by-product of the company. It is sold to the mud contractors. This is used in making chocolates and other products. Electricity Al-moiz sugar mills also produce electricity on large quantity. The mill does not only fulfil its own energy requirements but is able to product surplus electricity which is supplies to wapda. Departments at the Factory Site Departments at the Head Office The strengths and Weaknesses of the company are as follows Strengths Attractive salary packages for employees on the site Top management. The CEO of the company is a Stanford Graduate and is a man of great vision Friendly and cooperative working environment Financial resources Agricultural assistance to the local farmers State of the art technology Corporate Social Responsibility Weaknesses Lack of skilled persons available in the region where the mill is located Shortage of residence available for employees on the site The site is prone to being affected by the flood and has been affected by the floods that occurred in the past Unavailability of modern facilities on the site Number of accidental reports are increasing Turnover rate is high Weak organizational policies Poor GSM services on the site Literature Review Sugar Industry in Pakistan JCR-VIS Credit Rating Company Limited, (2011) described the sugar industry ranked the fifteenth largest globally and the second largest after textile industry with 86 operational factories across the country with an installed capacity of 7.0 million tons of sugar annually. It directly employed over 30,000 personnel. JCR-VIS Credit Rating Company Limited, (2010) described the industry as the driving engine of the rural economy after agrarian economy in many countries. They also stated the sugar industrys cyclical nature as harvesting of sugar cane was dependent on weather as well as the availability of adequate water. Khushk, Memon Saeed described the Pakistan sugar industry as uncompetitive in nature due to low sugarcane yield per hectare and low content of sucrose ranging between 7-9 percent however they also described the sugar industry from a growers perspective as competitive since the growers were of the opinion that the sugar crisis was artificially created by mill owners with the motive of keeping sugarcane prices below support prices and reaping abnormal profits. (Shaukat) described Pakistan as the fifth largest country in the world in terms of area under sugar cane cultivation, eleventh by production and sixtieth in yield. The author also described the sugar industry in Pakistan as the second largest agro based industry with 81 sugar mills with annual crushing capacity of over 6.1 million tons. The author also mentioned that the Sugar industry is mostly located in the rural areas of Punjab and Sindh. A small percentage of total production is produced in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Previously, Punjab was partly dependent on supply of sugar from Sindh however after the establishment of some large scale units in Punjab the Province became self-sufficient in the commodity. (Rizvi) described Pakistans sugar industry as mostly owned by politicians. The author also mentions that majority of the sugar mills were setup with the help of Development Financial Institutions normally trapped with the working capital crisis. Consequently, some of the mills were closed and it was feared that some more sick units would close down. The author also mentions the collapse of sugar mill being a loss of national assets, reduction in the sales tax revenue and an increase in unemployment. Awareness of consumers towards branded products Aaker (2000) was of the opinion that brand awareness was a remarkably durable and sustainable asset that provided a sense of familiarity especially in low- involvement products. It also provided with a sense of presence, commitment and substance. It was very vital to recall at the time of purchase. Besides the conventional media there were other effective means to create awareness such as event promotions, publicity and sampling. Chen (2001) stated that though brand awareness was a necessary asset however it was not sufficient for building strong brand equity. In this view a brand could be well known because it had inferior quality. Ramasamy et al. (2005) reported that, the buying behavior was vastly influenced by the awareness and attitude towards the product. Television commercials were said to be the most important source of information, followed by retail outlet displays. Consumers formed an opinion about a brand on the basis of various product features. A large number of respondents laid emphasis on quality and were of the opinion that price is an important factor while other respondents attached importance to image of manufacturer. Purchase Behavior of Consumers Results of the study conducted by Joshi (1993) in Dharwad on food purchasing habits and consumer awareness among rural and urban housewives indicated that majority of the urban respondents purchased sugar (69.00%) on monthly basis. Rural respondents purchased sugar (71.00%) once in week. Both rural and urban respondents purchased groceries (99.00% each) from retail shops. Price, quality and weight of the products were the important factors considered by both rural and urban respondents while purchasing of food items. Nagaraja (2004) opined that, buying behaviour is very much influenced by experience of their own and of neighbour consumers and his family. Above all, the quality of the product and its easy availability were the primary and the vital determinants of his buying behaviour. Consumers were influenced by touch and feel aspect of any promotional activity. Shivkumar (2004) showed that the consumer, irrespective of income groups, was mainly influenced by the opinions of their family members to purchase. Consumers were also influenced by the dealers recommendation, followed by advertisement. Brand Preference Kubendran and Vanniarajan (2005) described the change in consumption pattern a result of change in food habits. If income and urbanization increase among consumers, the percentage of income spent on consumption increased. Branded products were preferred my urban consumers. The major factors influencing buying decisions were accessibility, quality, regular supply, door delivery and the mode of payment. Narang (2006) claimed that, a buyer does not stick to one brand when it comes to purchasing a food item. They should be able recall different brand names when they go for purchase. Repetitive advertising can be used to aid brand recall. The product should appeal to the consumer. Kim-Hyunah et al. (2005) concluded that brand preference and brand image had considerable positive effects on brand loyalty. Thus, the companies should strive to strengthen brand loyalty through building brand preference and brand image. Brand loyalty led to increased customer visits. Low and Lamb Jr. (2000) maintained that known brands tend to exhibit multi-dimensional brand associations, consistent with the idea that consumers have more developed memory structures for more familiar brands. Consumers might be willing to expend more energy in processing information regarding familiar brands compared to unfamiliar brands. Padmanabhan (1999) conducted study on brand loyalty, which revealed that the price of the preferred brand, efficiency of the preferred brand and influence of advertisement significantly influenced the brand loyalty. Factors Influencing Brand Preference In a study conducted by Sarwade (2002) it was observed that the factor which influenced the purchasing decision as against the quality of the product was its price. Another interesting finding was that the company image and brand image were not totally considered by the households. Kubendran and Vanniarajan (2005) described the change in consumption pattern is due to changes in food habits. If income and urbanization increase among consumers, the percentage of income spent on consumption increases. The urban consumers prefer mostly branded products compared to rural consumers. The most significant factors influencing buying decisions were acceptability, quality, regular supply, door delivery and the mode of payment. Vincent (2006) elicited that quality was an important factor that draws consumer towards branded products. Branded products were accepted as good quality products. People do not mind paying extra for branded products, as they get value for money. Media is a key constituent in promoting and influencing brand. External environmental analysis Sugar Industry in Pakistan Sugar is the important sector of Pakistans economy. Sugar industry plays a vital role for development of any countries. In Pakistan this industry play a significant role for economic development. Its share in the large scale industry is 19.25% and in GDP is 1.98%. Sugar industry contribution to the government exchequer in federal excise duty 17.34% History At the time of partition in 1947 only seven sugar mills, existed in the territories of Pakistan, 5 in East Pakistan now known as Bangladesh and only 2 in West Pakistan now known as Pakistan. These two sugar mills namely Rahwali Sugar Mills and Frontier Sugar Mills established in 1936 and 1938 had a capacity of 5000 tonnes each of producing white sugar. During 1954-56 three more sugar mills were established with a capacity of 10000-15000 tonnes. By 1955-56, the sugar production capacity in Pakistan was around 45,000 tonnes. With an abrupt change in the economic activities and urbanization, the demand for white sugar was on the increase. This was attributed to the manufacture of soft drinks, confectioneries and bakery products etc. The number of sugar mills was also on the increase to meet the demand. Major Players in the Sugar Industry The major players in the sugar industry are Current Scenario The sugar industry is the second largest in the country after the textile industry. Currently there are 83 sugar mills operating in Pakistan. In Pakistan normally season starts in November and ends in April. Out of the 83 sugar mills present in the country 76 Sugar Mills are operating having crushing capacity of 361,300 tons of cane per day (TCD). Seven Sugar mills extended capacity but they are unable to utilize. Based on 160 days season these sugar mills have a total crushing capacity of 58 million tons of sugarcane capable to produce 5 million tons of refined sugar and 3 million tons of molasses. Also the weekly sugar production is conveyed to the government via Pakistan Sugar Mills Association. The environmental analysis can be classified into two major types of environments that a firm has to face. They are micro and the macro (mega) environment. These are discussed in detail below. Macro Environment Technological Environment Almoiz sugar mills position as far as the technological environment is concerned is pretty strong as of now. It uses the state of the art technology and can produce sugar using sugar beet as a raw material other than sugar cane. Other than sugar production the firm is also engaged in electricity production and is a supplier of electricity to wapda. Socio-cultural Environment The impact of societal changes, life styles and culture on Almoiz sugar mill is significant. There has been a shift in the life style, for example the type of stores customer prefer to shop from, the type of packaging they prefer sugar in. Consumers are becoming more health conscious they prefer to go for low calorie versions and are very concerned about hygienic conditions of the sugar and the shop that sugar is purchased from. Economic Environment The economic environment of Pakistan is not very stable and it continues to fluctuate every now and then. With the rise in interest rates and double digit inflation in the country, it has practically become impossible for the consumers to buy the same number of products as they used to buy a few years ago, thus the purchasing power of the consumers has sharply gone down. Political Environment The political scenario of Pakistan is the biggest threat to a business. Changing tax rates, rebates, labor strikes and the instability in general makes it difficult for Almoiz sugar mill to cope up with these changes and thus it can hamper future operations and thus profitability of the entire business. Legal Environment The legal system of Pakistan is generally not very strong and in case of a problem, a company can involve itself into years long legal implications and trials. Micro Environment Suppliers Almoiz has divided its suppliers into two zones Factory Zone: 73 % of sugar cane during the cane season is obtained from the factory zone i.e. 640,000 M .Tons Outer Zone: 27% of sugar cane during the cane season is obtained from the outer zone i.e. 240,000 M. Tons. The outer zone comprises of areas including Indus road, Bypass, Bhakkar and Mianwali. Market Demand There is a great deal of demand for sugar in households. Sugar is used in very house it may be directly consumed or may be indirectly consumed in other products such as beverages and Confectionery items such as sweets, lollipops, candy bars, chocolate, cotton candy and other sweet snack items. Competition Almoiz sugar mill has many competitors with Chashma sugar mill and Layyah sugar mill being the its two immediate competitors. The competitors also offer the same range of products with white refined sugar being the core product and several other by product including molasses however there isnt any sugar mill that generates its own electricity as Almoiz sugar mill. Skill Level of Workforce Workforce and the people in the company is the biggest asset of an organization. In the case of Almoiz sugar mill the workforce plays a very important role in the organizations productivity. The location of the factory is in Dera Ismail Khan and due to the instability in the region finding skilled workforce in that area is very hard. Hence attractive salary packages are given to attract skilled workforce from other regions of the country to come and work for Almoiz sugar mill. Marketing Intermediaries Marketing intermediaries are involved especially when it comes to sugar distribution to retailers and wholesalers. A high level of intermediary involvement makes communication difficult and increases the dependence. Porters Five Forces Model http://www.12manage.com/images/porterfiveforces.gif Porters five forces model basically gauges the intensity of competition within its industry. The collective strength of all these forces combined determines the ultimate profit potential of the industry where profit potential is measured in terms of the long-run return on investment of capital. Threat of New Entrants If someone from a political or influential background wants to set up a sugar mill they have the financial resources to obtain the machinery and contacts needed to obtain a license to start up a sugar mill. So entry into the sugar industry is not hard. There are 83 sugar mills in Pakistan out of which 76 Sugar Mills are operating. Bargaining Power of Suppliers Almoiz has a diverse range of suppliers as mentioned earlier. It has separate categories of suppliers based on distance from the factory site. Thus giving the suppliers a low bargaining power. Bargaining Power of Customers Customers have the option of switching to other sugar producers since barely one or two sugar mills have done something to distinguish themselves from other competitors in terms if having a brand name or packaging. People dont even take into consideration the brand or sugar mill name while purchasing sugar they just purchase whatever is easily available. Threat of Substitute Products Almoiz has many direct competitors. Currently there are 83 sugar mills in the country out of which 76 sugar mills are operating. The competitors also offer the exact same range of products with white refined sugar being the core product thus making the threat of substitute products high. Also other substitute products such as canderal are available for consumers who want to go for a sweetener with less sugar content Porters Generic Strategies According to this strategy, in order to cope up with competition, firms adopt three generic strategic approaches to gain competitive advantage. Overall cost leadership entails the firm to make all or possible attempts to achieve the lowest costs in production and marketing. Differentiation approach lays emphasis on achieving class leadership by providing unique characteristics to the product/service. Focus strategy attempts to serve a narrow strategic target effectively and efficiently. Thus, on the basis of these three strategies, Almoiz sugar mill follows the Overall Cost Leadership Strategy. By being the low cost leader, it increases its efficiency at all levels thus gaining a significant market share. An illustration is shown below: External Factor Analysis Summary Opportunities Entering International Markets Expanding corporate clients Technology Government and industrial projects. Minimization of cost by properly utilizing the by-products. Organic sugar Threats Seasonal Variation in sugar cane Political Instability Natural Calamities The region in which the mill is located is very risky in terms of stability Competitors in the same region can attract the skilled resource of the company by offering them a better package External Factor Weight Rating Weighted Score Opportunities Entering International Markets 0.05 3 0.15 Expanding corporate clients 0.15 4 0.6 Technology 0.03 4 0.12 Government and industrial projects 0.13 4 0.52 utilizing by-products 0.07 3 0.21 Organic Sugar 0.14 3 0.42 Threats Seasonal Variation in sugar cane 0.14 4 0.56 Political Instability 0.09 3 0.27 Natural Calamities 0.07 3 0.21 location of factory 0.13 2 0.26 Total 1 3.32 Competitor Analysis The following are the main competitors of Almoiz Sugar mills Layyah Sugar Mills Layyah Chashma sugar Mills D. I. Khan Chashma Sugar Mill (D.I.Khan) The mill was set up by the sponsors of the Premier Group in 1991. Technical and other assistance is provided to the sugarcane growers, in addition to the development of 150,000 acres of land for the cane supply. The mill production stands at 18,000 tons per day, the largest in Pakistan.   In the financial year 2010, the Company was declared a subsidiary of The Premier Sugar Mills Distillery Company Limited, under the directions of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan.  . The factory is located in Dera Ismail Khan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The company has the following strategic goals Providing Customer Satisfaction by serving with superior quality production of white sugar at lowest cost Ensuring Security and Accountability by creating an environment of security and accountability for employees, production facilities and products Expanding Customer Base by exploring new national and international markets and undertaking product research and development in sugar industry Ensuring Efficient Resource Management by managing human, financial, technical and infrastructural resources so as to support all our strategic goals and to ensure highest possible value addition to stakeholders. Products White Crystaline Sugar White Crystalline Sugar Molasses Molasses Bagasse Bagasse Layyah Sugar Mills (Layyah) Layyah Sugar Mills is a project of The Thal Industries Corporation Limited having its registered office at 23 Pir Khurshid Colony, Multan. The company was incorporated on September 07, 1953 under the companies Act 1913 (Now Companies Ordinance 1984) as Public Limited company limited by shares. Its shares are quoted on Karachi and Lahore stock exchanges in Pakistan. The company is engaged in production and sale of white refined sugar. Layyah Sugar Mills was set up by the Thal Development Authority (Defunct) with a capacity of 1200 TCD in 1954, which was enhanced, to 2000 TCD in 1979-80 and further to 2700 TCD in 1990-91. It was the first sugar mills installed and commissioned in Punjab after existence of Pakistan. After privatization the new management, by taking some drastic measures, enhanced the crushing capacity of sugar mills from 2700 TCD to 3500 TCD in year 2001. In 2002; Company undertook BMR Expansion to add new mills tandem of 4000 Tons Crushing/Day . In 2002-2003; Undertook second phase of  BMR Expansion to increase in crushing capacity and synchronize the process house with the mills house to 6700 Tons Crushed/Day (TCD),  successfully  completed during the crushing season 2002-2003. Due to which  capacity of sugar mills has been increased from 6,700 TCD to 9,300 TCD.   Financial Analysis Liquidity Ratios Year 2011 2010 2009 Almoiz Chashma Layyah Almoiz Chashma Layyah Almoiz Chashma Current Ratio 0.96 0.96 1.12 0.76 0.87 1.08 1.00 0.72 Quick Ratio 0.35 0.22 0.79 0.36 0.52 0.58 0.55 0.22 Inventory to Net working Capital -13.50 -19.63 2.81 -1.62 -2.69 6.08 213.06 -1.80 The  current ratio  is a  financial ratio  that measures whether or not a firm has enough resources to pay its debts over the next 12 months. It compares a firms  current assets  to its current liabilities. The current ratio is an indication of a firms  market liquidity  and ability to meet creditors demands. Acceptable current ratios vary from industry to industry and are generally between 1.5 and 3 for healthy businesses. If a companys current ratio is in this range, then it generally indicates good short-term financial strength. Almoiz has a current ratio of less than 1 for the year 2011 as well as the year 2010 where as in 2009 the current assets of Almoiz are slightly more than its current liabilities therefore the ratio is above 1 in 2009. Out of the three sugar mills the value of current ratio for Layyah sugar mill indicates good financial strength as compared to Chashma and Almoiz sugar mills. Quick Ratio is an indicator of a companys short-term liquidity.  The quick ratio  measures  a companys  ability to meet  its short-term obligations with  its most liquid assets. A higher quick ratio  indicates a  better position of the  company. In the years 2010 and 2011 Layyah sugar mills has a higher quick ratio where as in 2009 Almoiz has a higher quick ratio. Inventory to Net Working Capital measures  a firms  capability  to finance its  inventories  from its available cash. Layyah sugar mill has a better capability to finance its inventories from available cash as compared to Almoiz and Chashma sugar mills. Leverage Ratios 2011 2010 2009 Leverage Almoiz Chashma Layyah Almoiz Chashma Layyah Almoiz Chashma Debt to assets 0.70 0.71 0.81 0.65 0.68 0.80 0.65 0.82 Debt to equity 2.28 2.43 4.22 1.89 2.12 3.94 1.86 4.48 Long Term Debt to equity 1.34 0.83 1.47 1.38 1.35 1.96 1.45 2.30 TIE 1.08 1.37 1.65 0.12 2.16 1.82 0.02 0.68 Debt to Assets is A metric used to measure a companys financial risk by determining how much of the companys assets have been financed by debt. Layyah and Chashma sugar mill have a higher debt to assets ratio as compared to Almoiz sugar mill. Debt to Equity is a measure of a companys financial leverage calculated by dividing  its total liabilities  by  stockholders equity. It indicates what proportion of equity and debt the company is using to finance its assets. Almoiz sugar mill has a lesser debt to equity ratio as compared to Layyah and Chashma sugar mill. Long term debt to equity is a way to determine a companys  leverage. The ratio is calculated by taking the companys  long-term debt and dividing it by stockholders equity. The greater a companys leverage, the higher the ratio. Generally, companies with higher ratios are thought to be more risky  because they have more liabilities and less  equity. Overall for all the three years Layyah sugar mill has a higher debt to equity ratio as compared to Almoiz and Chasma sugar mill. Times Interest Earned (TIE) is a metric used to measure a companys ability to meet its debt obligations. It is calculated by taking a companys earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) and dividing it by the total interest payable on bonds and other contractual debt. It is usually quoted as a ratio and indicates how many times a company can cover its interest charges on a pretax basis. Failing to meet these obligations could force a company into bankruptcy. In 2009 Almoiz has a very less TIE ratio Chashma and Layyah have higher TIE ratio than Almoiz sugar mill. Profitability Ratios Profitability 2011 2010 2009 Almoiz Chashma Layyah Almoiz Chashma Layyah Almoiz Chashma GPM 0.12 0.12 0.13 0.03 0.12 0.11 0.05 0.09 NPM 0.008 0.02 0.025 -0.022 0.05 0.018 -0.217 -0.05 OPM 0.106 0.10 0.11 0.013 0.10 0.08 0.005 0.08 ROA 0.006 0.025 0.046 -0.015 0.104 0.040 -0.072 -0.062 EPS 0.16 4.9 12.23 -0.35 10.78 7.9 -7.59 Gross Profit Margin is a financial metric used to assess  a firms financial health by revealing the  proportion of money left over from revenues after accounting for the cost of goods sold.  Gross profit margin serves as the  source for paying additional expenses and future savings. The GPM for Almoiz sugar mill has increased from 2009 to 2011 and in 2011 it is almost the same as Layyah and Chashma sugar mill however in between it dropped down to 0.03 in 2010. Net Profit Margin is very useful when comparing  companies in similar industries. A higher profit margin indicates a more profitable company that  has better control over  its costs compared to  its competitors. Almoiz sugar mill has a negative NPM in 2010 and 2009 since it faced a net loss and in 2011 though it didnt face a loss but the NPM is still less than that of its competitors. Operating Profit Margin is a measurement of what proportion of a companys revenue is left over after paying for variable costs of production such as wages, raw materials, etc. A healthy operating margin is required for a company to be able to pay for its

Bridges Essay examples -- essays research papers

REASEARCH PAPER Bridges have been around sense the beginning of time. The Ancient Roman engineers used two significant innovations, the cofferdam and cement. The cofferdam is when the put wooden spikes in to the bottom of the river then used watertight clay over the spikes to make a bridge. Now today there are more efficient ways to make a bridge then just out of cement and clay. There are Suspension Bridges, Arch Bridges, Covered Bridges and many more. Suspension bridges have become a very common method of bridge construction in the last century. For example the Brooklyn Bridge, George Washington Bridge, Golden Gate Bridge and the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. These bridges all use the conventional suspension bridge design were large cables are suspended between towers and smaller cables ar...

The Nuremberg Trials Essay -- Essays Papers

The Nuremberg Trials On June 22, 1945 representatives from France, Great Britain, Russia, and the United States started to plan the prosecution of the main Axis war criminals. These representatives had to establish a fair way of trying the criminals because the world had never seen a situation like the one at hand. The result of the meeting was the International Military Tribunal. The Tribunal’s constitution set forth the principles the defendants were subject to. The panel of Allied representatives decided to hold the trial in Nuremberg. Nuremberg was chosen because the city served as the center of Nazi activities and offered nice facilities (Keeshan 3). Lawyers from the Allied powers submitted an indictment to the Tribunal on October 18, 1945. The indictment charged twenty-four Nazi leaders with crimes committed during World War II (Keeshan 9). The trials were set to start in the middle of November in 1945. Allied troops with the help of some German citizens restored the city because the city was in ruins prior to the scheduled starting date of the trial. The Nazi leaders were incarcerated in Nuremberg in August 10, 1945 (Keeshan 13). A defendant named Robert Ley committed suicide two weeks before the start of the trial. Therefor, an Allied guard was placed at the door of each Nazi leader’s prison door to stop them from killing themselves. When the November trial date finally arrived the city was restored, the defendants were secured and the trial was ready to begin (Keeshan 20). The brutal crimes that the defendants were on trial for revolved around the "Holocaust." It is important to understand the meaning of the word holocaust when viewing the defendant’s case. The definition of hol... ...onot 498). The rest of the guilty defendants were sentenced to life imprisonment including Rudolf Hess. Hess was the deputy to the Fuehrer and successor to Hitler after Goering. Hess hung himself in 1987. The men sentenced to death were killed on October 16, 1946 and their ashes were put into a river outside of Munich. Symbolically, "the center of the Nazi movement became the grave of its leaders (Conot 507)." Works Cited - Bosch, William. Judgement on Nuremberg. Chapel Hill, NC: U. of North Carolina Press, 1970. - Conot, Robert. Justice at Nuremberg. New York: Harper & Row Press, 1983. - Keeshan, Anne. Justice at Nuremberg. New York: Marvel Press, 1950. - Rosenbaum, Alan. Prosecuting Nazi War Criminals. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1993. - Smith, Bradley. The Road to Nuremberg. New York: Basic Books Publishers, 1981.

Midnight Express Essay -- essays research papers

Midnight Express   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Billy Hayes becomes desperate at the end of the movie. He realizes that he will never be released and so when he finds the money his girlfriend hid for him, he is moved to try and escape. He tries to bribe Hamidon to let him out. Hamidon takes the money but takes him to an empty room where he is planning on beating Billy. He takes off his gun and puts down his stick. He starts beating Billy. He stops and begins to pull his pants down. Billy seizes this opportunity and pushes him, knocking his head into a peg on the wall killing him. He then puts on Hamidon’s clothes, takes his gun and leaves the prison. He is finally out and makes it across the border into Greece.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  If I were put into that situation, I think I woul...

How Christianity and Judaism are Alike and Different Essay

Judaism and Christianity are two of the many religions of the world. Both of these religions can be found in the Middle East. Although they are very similar, they also differ in many ways. People who believe in the Jewish religion are called Jews. Jews believe that the Messiah is yet to come. In the world there are about 13 million Jewish followers. Jews go to a synagogue to worship their ‘Messiah.’ They also read the Torah, which is their Holy Book. Abraham founded Judaism in 1700 B.C.E. Jews consider Jerusalem a holy city because of the Wailing Wall is located there, (which is the last remnant of the second temple.) Finally, Jews believe that they are the ‘Chosen People’ and that Israel is the ‘Promise Land.’ On the other hand you have Christianity, these followers are called Christians. Christians believe that Jesus was the ‘Son of God’ and the ‘Messiah.’ They also believe that Jesus suffered and died for people’s sins and then that he rose from the dead. There are over 1,000 million Christian followers all over the world! Christians believe that Jesus was crucified in Jerusalem so they consider Jerusalem to be a Holy City. They also believe in God and read about their religion in a Bible in a Church. Finally, Jesus established Christianity in 4 B.C.E. Now you’ve learned all about the differences between Judaism and Christianity but now you have to learn the similarities between the two religions. Both religions are monotheistic meaning they have one God who created the universe. Also, both consider Jerusalem a holy city in different ways. Both religions also have a sacred book that they read to discover things of their religion, although these religions have different books they still learn many similar things, and finally, both religions recognize Jesus in some way, either as a prophet or a Messiah. So, as you can see Judaism and Christianity are very similar but also very different.

Advertisement: Advertising and Media Literacy Education Essay

Children cannot escape them. They stare at them from every nook and corner. The highways, the roadways, streets all have hoardings, banners, posters screaming about the goodness of the product they are advertising. Newspapers have columns and columns, pages and pages devoted to advertisements. Greatest curse of modern times for children is advertisements. Advertisement reminds the children to buy new things and no wonder they are brainwashed and pester their parents to buy it for them. However, advertisement is a good way to tell about the products. They inform the children about new technology or trend. Similarly, advertising may also have a negative impact on today’s youth. Junk food ads encourage children to eat unhealthy food, which is often portrayed as fun. See more: Defining research problem and setting objectives Essay Another advantage of advertising is it gives media literacy education. Children need to know that they are being bombarded by messages (both good and bad) every day. They need to be taught how to discern these messages from an early age and to decide how to react to the messages. They also teach them other good things. In addition, advertising is making children feel that without their product, you’re a loser. Kids are very sensitive to that. They become most emotionally vulnerable. Advertisement also educates children and is very informative. How would children cope without news and catching up with what goes around in the society? For instance, sometimes kids do not understand what the commercial is about and they are not yet fully developed. If they see something that is not appropriate then they will start telling other kids of their age which is not okay for them. Kids are exposed to things that can be misunderstood and take things negatively. What is more is that the advertisements targeting children’s aim to promote the products and services, which cater for children’s needs and have no damaging intention at all. Overall, I believe that advertising has both advantages and disadvantages. However I believe that in most cases the benefits outweigh the disadvantages. I do believe that ads should be more strictly monitored, especially during children’s viewing hours. Harsher penalties should apply to people who infringe any laws and more people should be hired to patrol exactly what is played on ads. Children see, children do.

Pharmacy school admission Essay

A glimpse at the list of the top ten most desirable jobs in world will reveal that everyone either wants to be a fireman, doctor, lawyer or an airline pilot. Further down that line and one will discover that being a Doctor of Pharmacy is not among the list of most desirable jobs. This is an understandable fact given that not everyone comprehends the importance and complexity of the job. Unlike others, however, I was given the wonderful opportunity to see just what a Doctor of Pharmacy does and as such, it has strengthened my desire to be one. Probably one of the main reasons why I am keen on pursuing a Doctor of Pharmacy degree is because of my lifelong passion for helping out people. I vividly remember the first time I entered a Pharmacy. My uncle, who managed the Pharmacy at the corner of where I grew up as a child, had brought me to where he worked. He told me that it was like a candy store except that it was for grown ups and that it also made people happy. The moment he opened those doors and ushered me into the Pharmacy I was dumbfounded. Never had I seen so many colorful bottles and pills in orange plastic cylinders that looked no bigger than a tic-tac. If my uncle hadn’t told me that they were not candy I swear I could have eaten them all. The most amazing thing about that experience however was not how wonderful the store seemed to me back then as a child but the fact that every person who walked into that Pharmacy that day seemed to know him by name while he also knew them by heart. He knew their families, their ailments, their refills and prescriptions. He could even tell you from the handwriting alone which doctor had written out the prescription. This was a man of character and man who lived his life to help others. It was never a glamorous job yet that day, my uncle was a star. It was this passion that my uncle had for helping people and giving them the medicines that they needed that first got me thinking about pursuing a Doctor of Pharmacy degree. I have always believed that living life for oneself is not fulfilling. There is so much more to life than just the accumulation of material wealth. While I am certainly not preaching a religion, I would like to express my opinion that life should be lived in the service of others. The contributions that one can make to his community should never be overlooked. That is one of the reasons why I have chosen this profession and that is why I am confident that I will be able to be a catalyst of change in the future.

Pride and Prejudice Essay

The novel Pride and Prejudice was written during the middle of the Romantic period in western literature, but it is itself rather uncharacteristic of other fictional works of the period. Unlike the great Romantic novels and poems of the period, which usually praised youthful passions, Austen’s work minimizes them. Austen’s works are models of restraint. Instead of the wild force of nature, Austen concentrates on family life in small English towns. Instead of rampant emotionalism Austen emphasizes a balance between reason and emotion. Instead of suicide and unrequited love, Austen offers elopement and marriage. â€Å"Austen’s prime theme of marriage is far from trivial† (Walder 1996, p. 52) as it is considered today as marriage was an important issue in Austen’s time and it was the only time when a woman had the freedom to get upward socio-economic mobility [though some critics thinks that she considers that considering money as the criterion for marriage is highly terrible. (Collins p. 161)] This extract explains this correlation between socio-economic status and marriage. Irony or the contrast between the expected and the actual is the chief literary device Austen uses to comment on the manners of English gentry in Pride and Prejudice. Her irony takes different forms for different. Another stylistic feature that one can observe in this extract in general and throughout novel in particular is her formal style. Perhaps the first thing about Jane Austen’s style that strikes the reader is its formality by modern standards. This is a characteristic of her time, and of the outlook she shared. The decorum of her prose represents a disciplined habit of mind and a disciplined attitude towards life. But the formality has about it nothing of the pomp us or verbose. On the contrary one of the chief qualities of her narrative style is precision, lucidity, and economy. With these is combined a habitual tone of irony. The irony is the cutting edge, as it was an instrument of moral perception which was Jane Austen’s sensibility. Mr. Collins speaks about his conception of a true marriage. He takes the conventional notions about marriage of true minds where partners have similar dispositions and ideas about life in general. Mr. Collins philosophy of marriage reminds Charlotte’s reminds Charlotte’s matrimonial ideology as she also consider the harmony of characters and minds as the ultimate source of matrimonial bliss and place no importance to money or fortune. She says in Chapter 6; â€Å"Happiness in marriage is entirely a matter of chance. If the dispositions of the parties are ever so well known to each other, or ever so similar before-hand, it does not advance their felicity in the least. They always contrive to grow sufficiently unlike afterwards to have their share of vexation; and it is better to know as little as possible of the defects of the person with whom you are to pass your life. † Mr. Collins also suffers from the same fictitious idealism like Charlotte. That’s the reason he says; â€Å"My dear Charlotte and I have but one mind and one way of thinking. There is in everything a most remarkable resemblance of character and ideas between us. We seem to have been designed for each other. † (Chapter XXXV) Furthermore, he longs for same matrimonial felicity for Elizabeth in her married life without knowing what is her ideals of marriage and what she wants to be come out of marriage. Jane Austin has beautifully employed irony as Mr. Collins wishes something for Elizabeth that she does not like. Furthermore, Jane Austin juxtaposes this conception of matrimonial bliss with his own conception of marriage and its preconditions that prevail throughout the novel. Jane Austin has Marxian conception of marriage and she considers wealth and socio-economic well-being as the foremost pre-condition of marriage. For the author, in the persona of Mr. Bennet’s daughter Elizabeth, however, irony’ is potent toy and a defensive weapon in the war against stupidity. The author uses Elizabeth to skewer self-important characters such as Mr. Collins and Mrs. Bennet. Yet Elizabeth is also blind to her own character faults, and her very blindness is another example of Austen’s use of irony. In her misunderstandings with Darcy, she (who is blind to her own pride in her ability to read character) accuses him false and excessive pride, while he (who is prejudiced against people with less money than he has) accuses her of prejudice. The rest of the episode shows the haughtiness and pomposity of Mr. Collins. Mr. Collins is a type of character that Jane Austin uses to highlight the posing and pretensions of English society of the time and the vain self-importance of an individual. His acquisition of fortune by chance to get an approval of Lady Catherine de Bourgh has made him to think of himself in higher terms and opinion. All his haughtiness and snobbery in the extract is a manifestation of this high opinion of his own self. His high opinion of Charlotte is also a product of this imagined high placement in society. He earns a handsome income and owns a house, so he requires a wife at this stage that can enrich his own fortune. Here Jane Austin elaborates the interrelation of marriage and money. If Mr. Collins would not have owned a house and would not have made a good fortune by chance, he would never think of having marriage. So he imagined conception of marriage as a bond between tow souls that are alike in their dispositions and character, seems only a caprice of imagination only. Establishing a correlation between marriage and social status is an important theme of Austen in this extract. Jane Austen also makes her reader see the correlation in the light of her contemporary social conventions. Earlier in the novel, when Elizabeth refuses the proposal of Mr Collins, he is unwilling to accept it. It was highly improbable that a woman of Elizabeth’ social status would reject the proposal of a well-off person. His self-importance is another factor that contributes toward his un-acceptance if her refusal. He disapprove of Elizabeth’s social status in these words that Elizabeth’s â€Å"portion is unhappily so small that it will in all likelihood undo the effects of [her] loveliness and amiable qualifications†. His social status reassures himself by saying that; â€Å"you are not serious in your rejection of me, I shall chuse to attribute it to your wish of increasing my love by suspense, according to the usual practice of elegant females. † There is a dichotomy of Elizabeth’s refusal to Mr. Collin and her manifestation as an ideal woman of Austen who thinks marriage in terms of money. Walder (1996) has rightly pointed out; â€Å"In a social world where only possibility of movement in a women’s life was through marriage, choice of partner was as serious a business as choice of career was for a man. † Seen in this light, Elizabeth’s refusal of Mr. Collins is as brave an act as that of a young man who refuses to enter the family firm. † (Walder, 52) Jane Austen used Elizabeth as her mouth-piece to ridicule the fictitious idealism of various characters throughout the novel. In this case, Elizabeth does not directly say any word about Mr. Collins viewpoints but only show her contempt by feeling sorry for â€Å"Poor Charlotte† but she revisits her thought about her and says that she is not innocent as she herself has decided to marry Collins and choose a pretentious society. Jane Austen reflects here that if someone is placed in this situation, then it is tragic but someone has consciously decided to go for a vain marriage proposal, he ore she should be fully responsible for it. So it was Charlotte own disposition rather than chance that her placed her in that situation. But when Elizabeth herself refuses the proposal of Mr. Collins, she was also caught in fictitious idealism. She is of the view that as her father is a gentleman; she is on equal terms with Darcy and Bingleys. (Brooke, 1999. p. 158) Jane Austen beautifully shows her fictitious idealism as well. Jane Elizabeth also shows, through the character of Maria, the vainglory of English gentry. Unlike Elizabeth, Maria is amazed and amused by the social decorum. She was still startled at the nine dinners at Rosings and several teas. This extract further another aspect of Jane Austen’s art i. e. handling of dialogue. She had a remarkable ear, and must have been a shrewd observer of mannerism in speech. The speech of her characters is always consonant with their personalities yet it never approaches caricature. In the extract, Mr. Collins dialogues are true reflection of his personality yet it does not portray him as a caricature. Maria’s dialogues are equally expressive of her self and her tender age. So this extract and other textual examples from Pride and Prejudice clearly manifest that Jane Austen has skillfully conveyed her basic theme of money and marriage through her subtle style. She does not waste her words and there is uncommon clarity with economy in her art. References Austen, Hane. (2006). Pride and Orejudice. New York: Poenguin Classic. Brooke, C. (1999). Jane Austen: Illusion and reality. Rochester, NY: D. S. Brewer. Walder, D. (1996). The realist novel. Approaching literature. London: Routledge.

Trends in marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Trends in marketing - Essay Example This is specifically true for organizations striving to obtain a competitive advantage. This literature review analyzes existing literature that emphasizes on a retailer’s growth and usage of social media as an elaborating of their marketing strategy. This incident has only emerged within the past ten years, therefore social media study has hugely emphasized on elaborating what it is through the details of new terminology and ideas that combines its basis, and discovering the influence of an organization’s incorporation of social media on the behaviors of consumers as well as critically evaluating its features that poses ethical dilemmas to the society. This research initiates with a detailed expression of terminology that elaborates social media marketing which will be followed by a discussion of the some major themes discovered within existing research studies. Even though, the topic of social media marketing has been discusses and researched quite a lot with numerous perspectives, it has only been researches through theoretical and experimental studies, researches never concisely elaborate the advantages retailers obtain from this marketing trend (Barker and Barker et al., 2012). In reviewing the affluent excess of multi disciplinary literature, the study has become precise that researches are emphasizing on elaborating what social media marketing is as well as evaluating what aspects influence consumer behavior associated to social networking. In spite of the beginning progress created by researchers, growth in this field of study has been restricted. Research requires elaborating by offering a profound understanding of the str ategic promotional advantages retailers get from social media marketing. Further structured researches are also required to develop beyond predicted or theorized results in order to obtain insight of practical life applications and uses. This literature review touches over the disparities

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All God's Children (Fox Butterfield) Book Report - Essay Example All God's Children is an exceptionally well written and finely researched book, detailing how violence in the African American community and primarily in the Bosket family, saw roots from the violence that was the norm in South Carolina, where the Boskets came from. It is the sobering story of Willie Bosket's family, from his ancestors down to his parents and siblings, explaining how families can be doomed when they remain outside mainstream society and who have no access to opportunity or given any hope. Butterfield does a fine job describing the criminal justice system as it relates to children and how we have come to treat 12 and 13 year old children like adults. In July 1962, while Willie was still in the womb, his father, Butch, stabbed two men in the heart in a Milwaukee pawnshop. Willie's mother, Laura gave birth to him in Harlem, three months before Butch was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murders. Willie did not learn his father's history or whereabouts until he was seven years old. By then, Willie had stolen groceries and assaulted an old woman. By age 8, Willie was described as a human nuclear chain reaction, someone very unpredictably violent and aggressive. When he threw a typewriter out of a school window, just missing a pregnant teacher, he was expelled from school and sent to Bellevue for observation. His institutional life had begun. He was diagnosed as depressed. By the time he was 15, Willie claimed he had committed 2,000 crimes, including 200 armed robberies and 25 stabbings. They culminated in seven violent weeks in 1978, when he kicked another boy off a roof to his death, and then murdered two men during subway robberies. Six factors existed in the Bosket family that fuelled this level of violence - alcoholism, physical abuse, sexual abuse, incest, rejection, and neglect. Since the victims of this abuse found it difficult to transfer their anger back at their family, they turned their rage outwards on society. It seemed as though the only way they had learned to fight back was with either weapons or with their bare hands. One of the saddest situations included Butch and the fact that he had raped his girlfriend's 6 year-old daughter, Kristin. The girlfriend's name was Donna, a weak-willed woman, who had actually ignored her daughter's cries during the rape. In the end, because she allowed it to continue, she had lost custody of both Kristin and her twin brother, Matthew. She was so taken by Butch that she seemed to care more about him than her own children. Butterfield shows the weaknesses that existed within the family. This book seamlessly ties two issues together. On the one hand, it is a fascinating and detailed true crime study of Willie Bosket and on the other hand it's a study of the origins of violence in America. With a surprisingly detailed research, the author was able to trace Willie Bosket's ancestry back to his slave ancestors, and follow the escalating evolution of violence and criminality in each succeeding generation of the Bosket family. The book begins in pre-revolutionary era with a study of white violence in the region of North Carolina where Willie's ancestors were enslaved. The author persuasively argues that the primary origin of black violence is the tradition of white violence that was transferred to them from their former slave owners. Butterfield contends that the white Southern mentality of easily aggrieved honor has made its way through time and the descendants

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Jewish Funeral Anthropological Research Paper - Essay Example For them, since we are all created in the image of God, life should be all about infinite value, â€Å"regardless of its duration of quality†. Anything that expedites the death of a person or shortens a human life is absolutely a violation to this duty1. The other end in a Jewish life continuum is that of death. As they safeguard life with supreme care, they also take death with valuable commitment in maintaining their duty of sanctity even in this difficult time. Death in a Jewish community is embraced with intricate ceremonies lasting for a period of time. The seemingly simplistic process of Christian death and its acceptance remarkably differs from the extremely complex process by which this community responds to the same social experience. Contrary to Christian communities’ ritual regarding death, Jewish communities give surety that rituals be carried out in accordance to Judaism religious beliefs which is always to set an example of holiness and ethical behavior to the world. Thus, whether in life or in death, the presence of a community epitomizing the Jewish â€Å"covenant relationship† with God is of prime importance. To honor the dead (kvod hamet), it must be buried at a shortest time possible regardless if a family member is not present to attend its burial. Anything that prolongs the physical body to remain above ground is considered â€Å"disrespectful and undignified† and â€Å"humiliation of the dead† (Khara, 2009). Moreover, it is necessary that the dead person must never be left alone from the moment he is considered dead until the time he is completely buried. Doing so is an apparent gesture of rendering utmost respect for the departed (mitzvah). From the moment a Jew dies, a synagogue will make the necessary arrangement for the whole ritual process. When a community is well organized, the services of a sacred burial society or Chevra Kaddisha are acquired in preparation for the burial of the body. It is a rule that in the

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Nobody Gets Married Anymore, Mister by Gerry Garibaldi - Article Example The author predicts in the article that although money, reforms, and the gleaming porcelain hold great importance for the schools they can hardly make a good impact on the minds of the children. The reason is that urban teachers and students are facing such problems, which are associated with the mindset of children, which cannot be changed due to reforms. â€Å"Urban teachers face an intractable problem, one that we cannot spend or even teach our way out of teen pregnancy†. In the remaining part of the article, the author describes her experience of dealing with her pregnant students. The author mainly emphasizes her encounter with a girl named Nicole who is likely to become a teenage mother. Along with Nicole, who has been the focus of the author in the whole article, the author also highlights her experience with another student, jasmine, who gave birth to a child nearly six months ago. In the end, the author tells us about Data Wall, which is a strategy for the teachers to produce data about the progress of the students. My own belief about the issue of teenage pregnancies is somewhat conservative. I believe that teenage pregnancies result in creating many social and health problems. The government of the U.S.A provides considerable benefits to the unwed teenage mothers, which is one of the main factors behind the increase in the rate of teenage pregnancies. Jansson states, â€Å"Refusing or severely limiting public benefits to teenage mothers, will reduce out-of-wedlock birthrates†. Some girls do not get pregnant intentionally. Such girls forget using pills or other contraceptive methods during sex, so their chances of getting a pregnant increase. Such pregnancies also give rise to illegal abortions, which is another ethical issue.

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Discuss the political significance of shifting structural (economic, cultural, social, demographic) trends in Texas - Research Paper Example When examining the interactions that interconnect economic outcomes and decision making politically, we are studying structural trends and political economy. Therefore, this paper will discuss the political significance of shifting structural (economic, cultural, social, demographic) trend in Texas. Political economy The economy creates a significant context in understanding of Texas’ political culture. It can assist in the shaping of the political culture. The economy’s development can shape certain political stereotypes and perceptions-and the society’s various sectors. With much involvement of the government in the economy, economic actors from private sectors have every reason to get involved in political participation to become actors in politics (Gutierrez 217). Since the earlier settlement improved by oil production and land grants boosted by state law to the technology backed by the government in the past two decades, the government has been protecting an d promoting state economic interests. It has happened so with the positive participation of political representatives of the interests. This marriage of politics and business has been successful in the Texas government’s council. ... The stability of the marriage of politics and business stands on pragmatism of both the result and the cause of the state’s booming economic history. In Texas, the culture has created entrepreneurial politicians and giants of savvy entrepreneurs, the government has made and protected businesses and established industries with incentives, exemptions, state contracts and subsidies during both wicked and good economic times (Mayer 265).The resulting distortions and inefficiencies in the economy’ structure and negligence of public interests have hindered a diversified development of a modern economy. The in-come tax absence, the reluctance to set a side funds for the delivery of education and social services have distorted the state’s growth and development. With the agreement that the government’s business is to uplift business, it has been constant throughout the history of the state, the public services delivery like public health and education has been pre sent despite constitutional and legal mandate. It is no surprise that the link between the economy and government is political and occupied by the influence of well-financed and well-organized private interests. It is too unsurprising that state governments perpetuate efforts to deriver public services that might raise the state of Texas amongst other states. The interaction patterns between the policy makers and the economic interests in the â€Å"reduced services, low taxes â€Å"government dominance to both the broader body politics and government halls (Mayer 205). Business leaders, such as political leaders and several voters saw government income tax as beyond the reasonable realm. As a result, the state services provision remains low because the money to fund them is little.

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Economic growth is one of the macroeconomic objectives of the Australian government . Outline the problems that arise in measuring economic growth - Essay Example It also fails to consider the externalities that may be negative like those caused by pollution as well as depletion of resources. (tradingeconomics.com, 2011) Globally, the process by which the wealth of a nation is determined or poverty is a complex task since there lies a predicament while trying to obtain compatible type of data. Different nations may be having different data types and thus, comparison in performance fails to be objective at the end. GDP as mentioned earlier is the method that is mostly used in the world to measure a country’s growth and Australia has followed this method as utilized by United Nations. This GDP method does not consider the incomes that come from corporations and individuals. This is especially if these incomes come from foreign sources and this approach further shows the weakness of measuring the growth of a nation. The alternative method, (just to mention), that was usually used to measure an economy’s growth and that was applied universally in the world was GNI. The difference arises where GNI considers income from outside the country while GDP does not. (Kendall, 2010

Creative Writing - Belonging Essay Example for Free

Creative Writing Belonging Essay The clear, bright and enlightening blue skies greet my face as I ponder through my thoughts in my head. The sun blossoms it’s radiating sunlight, which glisten and reflect off the tranquil, wavy sea to reveal elements of a mystifying, inexplicable, yet convivial world. My heart beat pulsates through my ears†¦ so silent and blissful this world of beggaring-description, words could not hope to utter moments like these. It was the idea of confronting, change and experience which led me to this endeavouring challenge of discovery. In preceding life, â€Å"discovery† was but a mere artwork to me; its extravagant detail painted an image which took me to a new world of the unknown. Its colours merged and intertwined, creating infinite pathways for life to take me far beyond the norm. But, it was just a painting. Vibrant as the sky could ever be, inhabitants of birds and seagulls cluster amongst the sky’s surface to shadow various regions of radiation. Numerous shades of varying size, shape and darkness swam steadfast past my eyes, stimulating diverse light shades across the sea surface. I travel along a path to encounter countless fish as their scales unleash myriad hexagonal-structured reflections, capturing every single colour of the rainbow. I touch the water and an instant sensation crawled through my fingertips, as the water almost desiccated back down my finger, revealing wondrous ripples. The constant expansion and flow of ripples developed into motions of diffracting sunlight which followed a distinct pattern of iridescent white light. The sea so pure, its reflections illuminated my face with the pattern of the undulating water flow. A flash before my eyes re-writes the memoirs of my past life solitary and confined to the one passageway of safety and security. Ironic is it not? That such an introverted life could lead to the feeling of belonging to something ordinarily worthwhile, or to conduct a life of normality. I still hear a screech suddenly exerted from the fancy convertible making an unceremonious turn, piercing the dusk, still fog of night. The periodic fear of tomorrow, dreading what society had in stall for me. A vision of â€Å"my world† was painted bit by bit, colour by colour and section by section; a world of drifting into the crystalline sea far beyond human sight. It shimmered into this blazing, crimson sunset that protrudes colours of red, white and tinted blue clashing and smashing, latticing over and over again, against one other only to produce an amalgamation of beautified hope and warmth, resulting in this augmentation of sanctity, safety and assurance. A world I longed to belong†¦ I always questioned myself, repeatedly over and over and over again about my identity, destiny and independence. Was it really necessary to do what I did? To precariously determine my own destiny, where life was to be lived unknowingly? To see my father tremulous and mother on her knees, with her hands drenched in tears. A sudden emotion of fear and regret struck my heart in its centre, but also a sigh of relief. I was suddenly brought back to reality by the roar of the motor. The consistency of ripples flowing causes my reflection to distort with the scaly and incandescent rays from the schools of fish and the sun’s protruding rays of warmth and somewhat, hope. I closed my eyes for a few seconds to relax and enjoy this free moment†¦ 1|Page Jason Chan Year 12 Ms. Sake However, I felt a drop of water plummet on the right side of my cheek. My heart froze for a micro -second, dreading to open my eyes as I assumed for the worst. I hear the deafening silence of the waves, on the brink of a complete halt in their tranquil motion. No longer did the extravagant light shower the crystal sea, nor did the birds flourish over the sky. Foul-coloured fluffs of clouds conquered the remaining essence of light the sky had to offer. 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