Bag of Bones CHAPTER FOUR

The phone was ringing when I walked in my front door. It was Frank asking me if I'd like to join him for Christmas. Join them, as matter of fact; all of his brothers and their families were coming. I opened my mouth to say no the last thing on earth I needed was a Irish Christmas with everybody drinking whiskey and waxing sentimental about Jo while perhaps two dozen snotcaked rugrats crawled around the floor and heard myself saying I'd come. Frank sounded as surprised as I felt, but honestly delighted. ‘Fantastic!' He cried. ‘When can you get here?' I was in the hall, my galoshes dripping on the tile, and from where I standing I could look through the arch and into the living room. There was no Christmas tree; I hadn't bothered with one since Jo died. The room looked both ghastly and much too big to me . . . a roller rink furnished in Early American. ‘I've been out running errands,' I said. ‘How about I throw some in a bag, get back into the car, and come south while the still blowing warm air?' ‘Tremendous,' Frank said without a moment's hesitation. ‘We can have us a sane bachelor evening before the Sons and Daughters of East Malden start arriving. I'm pouring you a drink as soon as I get off the telephone.' ‘Then I guess I better get rolling,' I said. That was hands down the best holiday since Johanna died. The only good holiday, I guess. For four days I was an honorary Arlen. I drank too much, toasted Johanna's memory too many times . . . and knew, somehow, that she'd be pleased to know I was doing it. Two babies spit up on me, one dog got into bed with me in the middle of the night, and Nicky Arlen's sister-in-law made a bleary pass at me on the night after Christmas, when she caught me alone in the kitchen making a turkey sandwich. I kissed her because she clearly wanted to be kissed, and an adventurous (or perhaps ‘mischievous' is the word I want) hand groped me for a moment in a place where no one other than myself had groped in almost three and a half years. It was a shock, but not an entirely unpleasant one. It went no further in a houseful of Arlens and with Susy Donahue not quite officially divorced yet (like me, she was an honorary Arlen that Christmas), it hardly could have done but I decided it was time to leave . . . unless, that was, I wanted to go driving at high speed down a narrow street that most likely ended in a brick wall. I left on the twenty-seventh, very glad that I had come, and I gave Frank a fierce goodbye hug as we stood by my car. For four days I hadn't thought at all about how there was now only dust in my safe-deposit box at Fidelity Union, and for four nights I had slept straight through until eight in the morning, sometimes waking up with a sour stomach and a hangover headache, but never once in the middle of the night with the thought Manderley, I have dreamt again of Manderley going through my mind. I got back to Derry feeling refreshed and renewed. The first day of 1998 dawned clear and cold and still and beautiful. I got up, showered, then stood at the bedroom window, drinking coffee. It suddenly occurred to me with all the simple, powerful reality of ideas like up is over your head and down is under your feet that I could write now. It was a new year, something had changed, and I could write now if I wanted to. The rock had rolled away. I went into the study, sat down at the computer, and turned it on. My heart was beating normally, there was no sweat on my forehead or the back of my neck, and my hands were warm. I pulled down the main menu, the one you get when you click on the apple, and there was my Word Six. I clicked on it. The pen-and-parchment logo came up, and when it did I suddenly couldn't breathe. It was as if iron bands had clamped around my chest. I pushed back from the desk, gagging and clawing at the round neck of the sweatshirt I was wearing. The wheels of my office chair caught on little throw rug one of Jo's finds in the last year of her life and I tipped right over backward. My head banged the floor and I saw a fountain of bright sparks go whizzing across my field of vision. I suppose I was lucky to black out, but I think my real luck on New Year's Morning of 1998 was that I tipped over the way I did. If I'd only pushed back from the desk so that I was still looking at the logo and at the hideo us blank screen followed it I think I might have choked to death. ‘When I staggered to my feet, I was at least able to breathe. My throat the size of a straw, and each inhale made a weird screaming sound, but I was breathing. I lurched into the bathroom and threw up in the basin with such force that vomit splashed the mirror. I grayed out and my knees buckled. This time it was my brow I struck, thunking it against the lip of the basin, and although the back of my head didn't bleed there was a very respectable lump there by noon, though), my forehead did, a little. This latter bump also left a purple mark, which I of course lied about, telling folks who asked that I'd run into the bathroom door in the middle of the night, silly me, that'll teach a fella to get up at two A.M. without turning on a lamp. ,'When I regained complete consciousness (if there is such a state), I was curled up on the floor. I got up, disinfected the cut on my forehead, and sat on the lip of the tub with my head lowered to my knees until I felt confident enough to stand up. I sat there for fifteen minutes, I guess, and in that space of time I decided that barring some miracle, my career was over. Harold would scream in pain and Debra would moan in disbelief, but what could they do? Send out the Publication Police? me with the Book-of-the-Month-Club Gestapo? Even if they could, what difference would it make? You couldn't get sap out of a brick or blood out of a stone. Barring some miraculous recovery, my life as a writer was over. And if it is? I asked myself. What's on for the back forty, Mike? You can play a lot of Scrabble in forty years, go on a lot of Crossword Cruises, drink a lot of whiskey. But is that enough? What else are you going to put on your back forty? I didn't want to think about that, not then. The next forty years could take care of themselves; I would be happy just to get through New Year's Day of 1998. When I felt I had myself under control, I went back into my study, shuffled to the computer with my eyes resolutely on my feet, felt around for the right button, and turned off the machine. You can damage the program shutting down like that without putting it away, but under the circumstances, I hardly thought it mattered. That night I once again dreamed I was walking at twilight on Lane Forty-two, which leads to Sara Laughs; once more I wished on the evening star as the loons cried on the lake, and once more I sensed something in the woods behind me, edging ever closer. It seemed my Christmas holiday was over. That was a hard, cold winter, lots of snow and in February a flu epidemic that did for an awful lot of Derry's old folks. It took them the way a hard wind will take old trees after an ice storm. It missed me completely. I hadn't so much as a case of the sniffles that winter. In March, I flew to Providence and took part in Will Weng's New England Crossword Challenge. I placed fourth and won fifty bucks. I framed the uncashed check and hung it in the living room. Once upon a time, most of my framed Certificates of Triumph (Jo's phrase; all the good phrases are Jo's phrases, it seems to me) went up on my office walls, but by March of 1998, I wasn't going in there very much. When I wanted to play Scrabble against the computer or do a tourney-level crossword puzzle, I used the Powerbook and sat at the kitchen table. I remember sitting there one day, opening the Powerbook's main menu, going down to the crossword puzzles, then dropping the cursor two or three items further, until it had highlighted my old pal, Word Six. What swept over me then wasn't frustration or impotent, balked fury (I'd experienced a lot of both since finishing All the Way from the Top), but sadness and simple longing. Looking at the Word Six icon was suddenly like looking at the pictures of Jo I kept in my wallet. Studying those, I'd sometimes think that I would sell my immortal soul in order have her back again . . . and on that day in March, I thought I would sell my soul to be able to write a story again. Go on and try it, then, a voice whispered. Maybe things have changed. Except that nothing had changed, and I knew it. So instead of opening Word Six, I moved it across to the trash barrel in the lower righthand corner of the screen, and dropped it in. Goodbye, old pal. Weinstock called a lot that winter, mostly with good news. Early in March she reported that Helen's Promise had been picked as one half of the Literary Guild's main selection for August, the other half a legal thriller by Steve Martini, another veteran of the eight-to-fifteen segment of the Times bestseller list. And my British publisher, Debra, loved Helen, was sure it would be my ‘breakthrough book.' (My British sales had always lagged.) ‘Promise is sort of a new direction for you,' Debra said. ‘Wouldn't you say?' ‘I kind of thought it was,' I confessed, and wondered how Debbie respond if I told her my new-direction book had been written a dozen years ago. ‘It's got . . . I don't know . . . a kind of maturity.' ‘Thanks.' ‘Mike? I think the connection's going. You sound muffled.' Sure I did. I was biting down on the side of my hand to keep from howling with laughter. Now, cautiously, I took it out of my mouth and examined the bite-marks. ‘Better?' ‘Yes, lots. So what's the new one about? Give me a hint.' ‘You know the answer to that one, kiddo.' Debra laughed. †You'll have to read the book to find out, Josephine,† she said. ‘Right?' ‘Yessum.' ‘Well, keep it coming. Your pals at Putnam are crazy about the way you're taking it to the next level.' I said goodbye, I hung up the telephone, and then I laughed wildly for about ten minutes. Laughed until I was crying. That's me, though. Always taking it to the next level. During this period I also agreed to do a phone interview with a Newsweek writer who was putting together a piece on The New American Gothic (whatever that was, other than a phrase which might sell a few magazines), and to sit for a Publishers Weekly interview which would appear just before publication of Helen's Promise. I agreed to these because they both sounded softball, the sort of interviews you could do over the phone while you read your mail. And Debra was delighted because I ordinarily say no to all the publicity. I hate that part of the job and always have, especially the hell of the live TV chat-show, where nobody's ever read your goddam book and the first question is always ‘Where in the world do you get those wacky ideas?' The publicity process is like going to a sushi bar where you're the sushi, and it was great to get past it this time with the feeling that I'd been able to give Debra some good news she could take to her bosses. ‘Yes,' she could say, ‘ he's still being a booger about publicity, but I got him to do a couple of things.' All through this my dreams of Sara Laughs were going on not every night but every second or third night, with me never thinking of them in the daytime. I did my crosswords, I bought myself an acoustic steel guitar and started learning how to play it (I was never going to be invited to tour with Patty Loveless or Alan Jackson, however), I scanned each day's bloated obituaries in the Derry News for names that I knew. I was pretty much dozing on my feet, in other words. What brought all this to an end was a call from Harold Oblowski not more than three days after Debra's book-club call. It was storming out-side a vicious snow-changing-over-to-sleet event that proved to be the last and biggest blast of the winter. By mid-evening the power would be off all over Derry, but when Harold called at five P.M., things were just getting cranked up. ‘I just had a very good conversation with your editor,' Harold said. ‘A very enlightening, very energizing conversation. Just got off the in fact.' ‘Oh?' ‘Oh indeed. There's a feeling at Putnam, Michael, that this latest of yours may have a positive effect on your sales position in the market. It's very strong.' ‘Yes,' I said, ‘I'm taking it to the next level.' ‘Huh?' ‘I'm just blabbing, Harold. Go on.' ‘Well . . . Helen Nearing's a great lead character, and Skate is your best villain ever.' I said nothing. ‘Debra raised the possibility of making Helen's Promise the opener of a three-book contract. A very lucrative three-book contract. All without prompting from me. Three is one more than any publisher has wanted to commit to 'til now. I mentioned nine million dollars, three per book, in other words, expecting her to laugh . . . but an agent has to start somewhere, and I always choose the highest ground I can find. I think I must have Roman military officers somewhere back in my family tree.' Ethiopian rug-merchants, more like it, I thought, but didn't say. I felt the way you do when the dentist has gone a little heavy on the Novocain and flooded your lips and tongue as well as your bad tooth and the patch of gum surrounding it. If I tried to talk, I'd probably only flap and spread spit. Harold was almost purring. A three-book contract for the new mature Michael Noonan. Tall tickets, baby. This time I didn't feel like laughing. This time I felt like screaming. Harold went on, happy and oblivious. Harold didn't know the bookberry-tree had died. Harold didn't know the new Mike Noonan had cataclysmic shortness of breath and projectile-vomiting fits every time he tried to write. ‘You want to hear how she came back to me, Michael?' ‘Lay it on me.' ‘Well, nine's obviously high, but it's as good a place to start as any. We feel this new book is a big step forward for him.' This is extraordinary. Extraordinary. Now, I haven't given anything away, wanted to talk to you first, of course, but I think we're looking at seven-point-five, minimum. In fact ‘ ‘No.' He paused a moment. Long enough for me to realize I was gripping the phone so hard it hurt my hand. I had to make a conscious effort to relax my grip. ‘Mike, if you'll just hear me out ‘ ‘I don't need to hear you out. I don't want to talk about a new contract.' ‘Pardon me for disagreeing, but there'll never be a better time. Think about it, for Christ's sake. We're talking top dollar here. If you wait until after Helen's Promise is published, I can't guarantee that the same offer ‘ ‘I know you can't,' I said. ‘I don't want guarantees, I don't want offers, I don't want to talk contract.' ‘You don't need to shout, Mike, I can hear you.' Had I been shouting? Yes, I suppose I had been. ‘Are you dissatisfied with Putnam's? I think Debra would be very distressed to hear that. I also think Phyllis Grann would do damned near anything to address any concerns you might have.' Are you sleeping with Debra, Harold? I thought, and all at once it seemed like the most logical idea in the world that dumpy, fiftyish, balding little Harold Oblowski was making it with my blonde, aristocratic, Smith-educated editor. Are you sleeping with her, do you talk about my future while you're lying in bed together in a room at the Plaza? Are the pair of you trying to figure how many golden eggs you can get out of this tired old goose before you finally wring its neck and turn it into pat? ¦? Is that what you're up to? ‘Harold, I can't talk about this now, and I won't talk about this now.' ‘What's wrong? Why are you so upset? I thought you'd be pleased. Hell, I thought you'd be over the fucking moon.' ‘There's nothing wrong. It's just a bad time for me to talk long-term contract. You'll have to pardon me, Harold. I have something coming out of the oven.' ‘Can we at least discuss this next w ‘ ‘No,' I said, and hung up. I think it was the first time in my adult life I'd hung up on someone who wasn't a telephone salesman. I had nothing coming out of the oven, of course, and I was too upset to think about putting something in. I went into the living room instead, poured myself a short whiskey, and sat down in front of the TV I sat there for almost four hours, looking at everything and seeing nothing. Outside, the storm continued cranking up. Tomorrow there would be trees down all over Derry and the world would look like an ice sculpture. At quarter past nine the power went out, came back on for thirty seconds or so, then went out and stayed out. I took this as a suggestion to stop thinking about Harold's useless contract and how Jo would have chortled the idea of nine million dollars. I got up, unplugged the blacked-out TV so it wouldn't come blaring on at two in the morning (I needn't have worried; the power was off in Derry for nearly two days), and went upstairs. I dropped my clothes at the foot of the bed, crawled in without even bothering to brush my teeth, and was asleep in less than five minutes. I don't how long after that it was that the nightmare came. It was the last dream I had in what I now think of as my ‘Manderley series,' the culminating dream. It was made even worse, I suppose, by unrelievable blackness to which I awoke. It started like the others. I'm walking up the lane, listening to the crickets and the loons, looking mostly at the darkening slot of sky overhead. I reach the driveway, and here something has changed; someone has put a little sticker on the SARA LAUGHS sign. I lean closer and see it's a radio station sticker. WBLM, it says. 102.9, PORTLAND'S ROCK AND ROLL BLIMP. From the sticker I look back up into the sky, and there is Venus. I wish her as I always do, I wish for Johanna with the dank and vaguely smell of the lake in my nose. Something lumbers in the woods, rattling old leaves and breaking a branch. It sounds big. Better get down there, a voice in my head tells me. Something has taken out a contract on you, Michael. A three-book contract, and that's the worst kind. I can never move, I can only stand here. I've got walker's block. But that's just talk. I can walk. This time I can walk. I am delighted. I have had a major breakthrough. In the dream I think This changes everything! This changes everything! Down the driveway I walk, deeper and deeper into the clean but sour smell of pine, stepping over some of the fallen branches, kicking others out of the way. I raise my hand to brush the damp hair off my forehead and see the little scratch running across the back of it. I stop to look at it, curious. No time for that, the dream-voice says. Get down there. You've got a book to write. I can't write, I reply. That part's over. I'm on the back forty now. No, the voice says. There is something relentless about it that scares me. You had writer's walk, not writer's block, and as you can see, it's gone. Now hurry up and get down there. I'm afraid, I tell the voice. Afraid of what? Well . . . what if Mrs. Danvers is down there? The voice doesn't answer. It knows I'm not afraid of Rebecca de Winter's housekeeper, she's just a character in an old book, nothing but a bag of bones. So I begin walking again. I have no choice, it seems, but at every step my terror increases, and by the time I'm halfway down to the shadowy sprawling bulk of the log house, fear has sunk into my bones like fever. Something is wrong here, something is all twisted up. I'll run away, I think. I'll run back the way I came, like the gingerbread man I'll run, run all the way back to Derry, if that's what it takes, and I'll never come here anymore. Except I can hear slobbering breath behind me in the growing gloom, and padding footsteps. The thing in the woods is now the thing in the driveway. It's right behind me. If I turn around the sight of it will knock the sanity out of my head in a single roundhouse slap. Something with red eyes, something slumped and hungry. The house is my only hope of safety. I walk on. The crowding bushes clutch like hands. In the light of a rising moon (the moon has never risen before in this dream, but I have never stayed in it this long before), the rustling leaves look like sardonic faces. I see winking eyes and smiling mouths. Below me are the black windows of the house and I know that there will be no power when I get inside, the storm has knocked the power out, I will flick the lightswitch up and down, up and down, until something reaches out and takes my wrist and pulls me like a lover deeper into the dark. I am three quarters of the way down the driveway now. I can see the railroad-tie steps leading down to the lake, and I can see the float out there on the water, a black square in a track of moonlight. Bill Dean has put it out. I can also see an oblong something lying at the place where driveway ends at the stoop. There has never been such an object before. What can it be? Another two or three steps, and I know. It's a coffin, the one Frank Arlen dickered for . . . because, he said, the mortician was trying to stick it to me. It's Jo's coffin, and lying on its side with the top partway open, enough for me to see it's empty. I think I want to scream. I think I mean to turn around and run back up the driveway I will take my chances with the thing behind me. But before I can, the back door of Sara Laughs opens, and a terrible figure darting out into the growing darkness. It is human, this figure, and yet it's not. It is a crumpled white thing with baggy arms upraised. There is no face where its face should be, and yet it is shrieking in a glottal, loonlike voice. It must be Johanna. She was able to escape her coffin, her winding shroud. She is all tangled up in it. How hideously speedy this creature is! It doesn't drift as one imagines ghosts drifting, but races across the stoop toward the driveway. It has been waiting down here during all the dreams when I had been frozen, and now that I have finally been able to walk down, it means to have me. I'll scream when it wraps me in its silk arms, and I will scream when I smell its rotting, bug-raddled flesh and see its dark staring eyes through the fine weave of the cloth. I will scream as the sanity leaves my mind forever. I will scream . . . but there is no one out here to hear me. Only the loons will hear me. I have come again to Manderley, and this time I will never leave. The shrieking white thing reached for me and I woke up on the floor of crying out in a cracked, horrified voice and slamming my head repeatedly against something. How long before I finally realized I was no longer asleep, that I wasn't at Sara Laughs? How long before I realized that I had fallen out of bed at some point and had crawled across the room in my sleep, that I was on my hands and knees in a corner, butting my head against the place where the walls came together, doing it over and over again like a lunatic in an asylum? I didn't know, couldn't with the power out and the bedside clock dead. I know that at first I couldn't move out of the corner because it felt safer than the wider room would have done, and I know that for a long time the dream's force held me even after I woke up (mostly, I imagine, because I couldn't turn on a light and dispel its power). I was afraid that if I crawled out of my corner, the white thing would burst out of my bathroom, shrieking its dead shriek, eager to finish what it had started. I know I was shivering all over, and that I was cold and wet from the waist down, because my bladder had let go. I stayed there in the corner, gasping and wet, staring into the darkness, wondering if you could have a nightmare powerful enough in its imagery to drive you insane. I thought then (and think now) that I almost found out on that night in March. Finally I felt able to leave the corner. Halfway across the floor I pulled off my wet pajama pants, and when I did that, I got disoriented. What followed was a miserable and surreal five minutes in which I crawled aimlessly back and forth in my familiar bedroom, bumping into stuff and moaning each time I hit something with a blind, flailing hand. Each thing I touched at first seemed like that awful white thing. Nothing I touched felt like anything I knew. With the reassuring green numerals of the bedside clock gone and my sense of direction temporarily lost, I could have been crawling around a mosque in Addis Ababa. At last I ran shoulder-first into the bed. I stood up, yanked the pillowcase off the extra pillow, and wiped my groin and upper legs with it. Then I crawled back into bed, pulled the blankets up, and lay there shivering, listening to the steady tick of sleet on the windows. There was no sleep for me the rest of that night, and the dream didn't fade as dreams usually do upon waking. I lay on my side, the shivers slowly subsiding, thinking of her coffin there in the driveway, thinking that it made a kind of mad sense Jo had loved Sara, and if she were haunt anyplace, it would be there. But why would she want to hurt me? Why would my Jo ever want to hurt me? I could think of no reason. Somehow the time passed, and there came a moment when I realized the air had turned a dark shade of gray; the shapes of the furniture in it like sentinels in fog. That was a little better. That was more it. I would light the kitchen woodstove, I decided, and make strong coffee. Begin the work of getting this behind me. I swung my legs out of bed and raised my hand to brush my sweat-hair off my forehead. I froze with the hand in front of my eyes. I must have scraped it while I was crawling, disoriented, in the dark and to find my way back to bed. There was a shallow, clotted cut across the back, just below the knuckles.

Misrepresentation of african american women Essay

African American women have historically been viewed as hyper-sexual creatures, due to unique anatomical features not often seen in other races. This hyper-sexualized view of Black women dates back as early as the days of slavery when European imperialists traveled to Africa and were excessively intrigued by (and abashedly attracted to) the women in the tribes. Europeans were in awe of the physique of African women, comparable to none, as well as their dancing and traditional garments. Europeans unfamiliarity with a body type that is not unusual amongst African women resulted in a projection of hyper-sexuality onto Black women that did not truly exist and has been hard for Black women around the world to rid themselves of. Saartjie [Sara] Baartman, also known as the â€Å"Hottentot Venus,† became the blueprint for degrading and humiliating the Black woman on a worldwide level. Saartjie Baartman was a South African born woman who was enslaved by a Dutch farmer near the city of Cape Town. Her master was approached by traveling Europeans to travel to Europe to have her body examined and put on display. In 1810, Saartjie’s master informed her that she would be free and assume fortune and fame in order to persuade her to leave his plantation for the sideshow act she would unknowingly become in. It was this promise that led to Saartjie’s willingness to travel to Europe. Saartjie traveled to England and upon her arrival, she was placed on public display, often times in a cage, so her large buttocks and breast could be observed by hundreds of curious Englishman. These invasive spectators were recorded as laughing at her, calling her names, and throwing items at her. Saartjie’s body was so spectacular and strange to Europeans that medical students were able to use her for scientific research. She was again sold from England to a French circus to dance in the nude as entertainment and was one the main attractions. Saartjie never enjoyed the freedom she was promised and turned to alcohol to cope with her humiliation and entered prostitution to support her when she was no longer necessary as a side show attraction. She died in 1815, only five years after her arrival to Europe. Saartjie’s humiliation did not end with her death. She died of unidentified disease in France and her body was turned over to a museum. Her brain, vagina, and her skeleton were removed from her body, preserved and put on display. Her frameless body was then preserved in such a way that she stood erect as well. Her body was eventually buried in France but the parts removed from her body remained on display in a French museum until 1974. The displays were removed that year and replaced with casts of Saartjie’s confiscated body parts. Saartjie Baartman’s humiliating enslavement marks the beginning of the Black woman’s degradation. She could be considered the first â€Å"video-vixen model. † However, culture has changed such that women willingly dance erotically while scantily clad or totally nude, whereas Saartjie was forced. This willingness has transformed the way the Black woman is viewed and the way the Black woman views herself. The manner in which Saartjie Baartman was treated is indicative of European attitudes about Black women and African standards of beauty. Saartjie was renowned for her physique, which Europeans responded to Saartjie as an object with disgust, intrigue, sexual attraction, and condescension. The removal of her organs indicates a perverse obsession with the body of the African woman. This attitude about the Black woman’s body has persisted, taking on new faces as culture changes and pop culture emerged. Media images of Black women have long been degrading, unflattering, and/or extreme. Black women have specific functional roles in the media: typically and most often as Jezebel, Mammie, and the welfare mom. The Jezebel stereotype of the hyper-sexual, manipulative Black woman is more prevalent and more widely seen in the media from television, movies, magazines, and music videos. It is the Jezebel who is the African American woman who is not ashamed to take off her clothes in exchange for things she may need. The music industry especially popularizes strippers and video models as an acceptable and desirable occupation for a Black woman. Not only do majority of hip-hop lyrics degrade women to the lowest level that a woman can be degraded, but the music videos take special care to degrade the black woman even more. Rap music videos depict a false image of what a real woman looks like in reality: â€Å"music videos have gotten so raunchy they might as well be pornography, presenting a hyper-sexual depiction of women that distorts and demeans the image of black women in particular. Even in the tamer videos, women might as well be prostitutes. They are objects, part of the bling-bling, like the platinum chains and diamonds sported by rappers† (Daily Review 7/4/04). It is just in this way that Saartjie Baartman was displayed and responded to and it is in the way Black women have been consistently considered: as objects of sexual exploitation. Hip hop music has become explosively popular in the US and much of the rest of the world in the last twenty years. Hip hop music influences larger society in powerful ways and has become a subculture that has transcended race, socioeconomics, and gender. Its popularity and ability to transcend across many social lines that are usually impenetrable is the biggest threat to the perception of Black women by others and by themselves. When leaders like President Barack Obama and other prominent politicians reference lines from popular rap songs, they are often received with admiration and excitement by the media and larger public. Such a response from a pop culture reference reveals hip hop music’s ability to influence culture on a magnanimous level. Hip hop music is an industry run by men, with overwhelmingly male artists who provide entertainment for other men. In this understanding of the industry, the images of women presented through this massively popular music are exclusively chosen by men. Additionally, hip hop music tends to sell a lifestyle and not just a song or beats. As was previously discussed in the quote from Daily Review, expensive material things and several beautiful and naked women are things to achieve and obtain. An object is for use of some kind and the hip hop music industry has single handedly crystallized the developing notion that women in general are objects for sexual pleasure exclusively. This idea is particularly harmful for Black women and girls in the face of a media that has very few other images of Black women. White women are of course objectified and hyper-sexualized in the same manner, but the damage of such objectification is buffered by other images of a range of professional White women, heroines in film and television, prominent White actresses, politicians, businesswomen, journalists, etc â€Å"Historically, white women, as a category, were portrayed as models of self-respect, self-control, and modesty – even sexual purity, but black women were often portrayed as innately promiscuous, even predatory. This depiction of black women is signified by the name Jezebel† (Pilgram, 2002). Black women and girls have very few other images to measure themselves against or look to for motivation or encouragement. These pervasive images of the Black woman as a promiscuous and manipulative Jezebel juxtaposed with the lack of other, more positive images, is extremely damaging to the Black woman’s self-esteem. These images also inform others of how to perceive and ultimately treat Black women, which is further corrosive to the Black woman’s self-esteem. As if the power that images tend to have on the human psyche were not enough, hip hop music also incorporates lyrics that correspond to the tone of disrespect for Black women. Negative epithets that refer to a woman’s sexual and social behavior like â€Å"ho† and â€Å"bitch† are common, frequent, and acceptable in hip hop lyrics and serve to further denigrate Black women. Often, rappers and fans alike make excuses for the disturbing images and lyrics featured in songs and videos, expressing that the women featured in the videos are working of their own volition and are not being objectified. While the women of these videos are participating of their own volition, the degrading lyrics and the degrading images are not negated just because the women are choosing to participate. The message being sent is still clear and ubiquitous: Black women are objects of sexual gratification that do not have to be spoken to or spoken of as human beings. Viewers are influenced by these images and lyrics and are encouraged to develop erroneous ideas about and monolithic perception of Black women. Additionally, because other, more positive images of Black women are missing in the media, viewers are left with little real information about the Black woman’s experience, life, and character. Hip hop music has also set the standard of presentation for female rappers as well. Female rappers who have debuted in the last 20 years invoke the power the same sexual images and presentations as the male rappers do. More recent female rap artists like Nikki Minaj have amplified the hyper-sexual stereotype about Black women with her sexually charged lyrics, provocative style of dress, and various implants to enlarge her breasts and buttocks, looking not unlike Saartjie Baartman and the many beautiful women of Africa. Artists who pre-date Nikki Minaj, like Lil’ Kim and Foxy Brown, debuted in a similar fashion, using their sexuality through lyrics and risque media poses in which they were almost always scantily clad, to propel their careers. These female rappers only serve to further push the music industry’s agenda to denigrate women, Black women in particular, by buying into and proudly displaying the very stereotypical behaviors that function to keep hyper-sexualized images of Black women in the minds of viewers. Female rappers serve the same purpose as those women dancing in hip hop videos: to push the sexual agenda of a sexist music industry. However, the message delivered through female rappers is pronounced solely due to the fact that the artist is a female who is promoting a hegemonic patriarchal message. The sexual nature of hip hop in general is made more acceptable if the objects of sexual exploitation, women, also become hip hop stars. Lastly, the current female hip hop stars are adopting images of beauty from childhood icons such as Barbie, as is the case with Nikki Minaj. The adaptation of Barbie for the purpose of hip hop is a clear indication that there is an agenda to capture all viewers’ minds to believe the images they are presented with about Black women. The most effectual approach to challenging the erroneous and negative images of Black women in the media is for those who are aware and knowledgeable to expose the falsehoods of the pervasive stereotypes and ideas about Black women. Bibliography Frith, Susan. â€Å"Searching for Sara Baartman. † Johns Hopkins Magazine, June 2009. http://www. jhu. edu/jhumag/0609web/sara. html (accessed April 20, 2013). â€Å"The Hottentot Venus. † Accessed April 22, 2013. http://whgbetc. com/mind/hottentot_venus_emory. html. Payton, Brenda. â€Å"Sorority Sisters Combat Explotiative Rap Images. † Daily Review (Hayward, CA). 4 July 2004. Pilgrim , David. â€Å"Jezebel. † Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia. . http://www. ferris. edu/jimcrow/jezebel. htm (accessed April 23, 2013). Clemlyn-Ann , Pollydore, and Jennifer A. Richeson. â€Å"Affective Reactions of African-American Students to Stereotypical and Counterstereotypical Images of Blacks in the Media.. † Journal of Black Psychology. no. 3 (2002): 261-275. Simmonds, Felly Nkweto. â€Å"’She’s Gotta Have It’: The Representation of Black Female Sexuality on Film. † Feminist Review. (1988): 10-22. http://www. jstor. org/discover/10. 2307/1395143? uid=3739936&uid=2129&uid=2&uid=70&uid=4&uid=3739256&sid=21102132644181 (accessed April 22, 2013).

Introductory Economics Cheatsheet

Problems by Command 1. Information collection 2. Principal-agent 3. Disagreement among multiple decision-makers. Arrows’ impossibility theorem. Paradox of voting. 4. Enforcement Coordination by Market Princes as signals of scarcity/abundance Induces coordination Requires much less info No enforcement costs No principal-agent problem No problem with multiple decision makers Qualification: some command systems exist within a market (eg firms) Public Good Has free-rider problem due to non-excludability. Can only be provided by a coercive authority that can force users to pay for these goods. Taxes. Collective GoodsProvide benefits for a group. Cartels and Unions Has free riding problem. Prevent by sanctions Common Resources Non-excludable but exhaustible Natural resources goods Lack of well-defined property rights encourages overuse. The tragedy of the commons. Solve by asserting ownership rights over common resources. Coarse theorem Markets generate themselves for property trans fer that internalize externalities. Adverse selection & Moral hazard Market price based on expected quality Reward people for not maintaining quality High quality sellers drop out Cycle continues Market collapse FDI promotes technology transfer without moral hazard.Equilibrium – no one has an incentive to change their behavior. Price ceiling Cause a shortage due to excess demand Leads to rationing or preferential allocation, long queues, inefficiency. Those who do get will benefit from the lower prices. Price floor Eg Minimum wage Only those workers who don’t lose their jobs benefit from the higher wages. Consumer surplus When price goes down, CS increase due to 2 reasons. Existing buyers pay less. More buyers are able to enter market. Producer surplus Markets select low cost suppliers. Only those whose costs of production are below the market price enter.When price goes down, ‘marginal seller’ drops out. When price goes up, PS increases due to 2 reasons. Existing producer get a higher price. More producers can enter. Total welfare = CS + PS Govt intervention decreases this Factors of demand Income & substitution effect Change in tastes Expectation of future prices Change in number of buyers Factors of supply Change in technology Change in input prices Expectation of future prices Change in number of sellers Elasticity Price elasticity of demand for a good is the % change in demand when the good’s price falls by 1%. Elasticity along a linear demand curve decreases with a decrease in price.Factors affecting elasticity of demand Number of substitutes/whether the good is a necessity/time frame/broadness of category Income elasticity of demand is the % increase in its demand for a 1% rise in income. Indifference curve Non-lexicographic and non-satiation Convex to origin – preference for variety Cant cross each other due to consistency and transitivity Marginal rate of substitution(MRS) Negative of an indifference curve†™s slope at any point Equal to the ratio of marginal utilities of the 2 goods at that point Slope of budget line is the negative of the relative prices of the 2 goods.At tangent, slope of budget line and slope of indifference curve must be equal. MRS=relative prices at this point The ratio of marginal utility to price is equal for both goods at the point chosen (equimarginal principle) Income and substitution effect Cost curve AFC=TFC/Q, AVC=TVC/Q, ATC=AFC+AVC AFC declining with Q. AVC first falls then rises. U shaped. Rising marginal cost. When MCMC. No supply curve. MC Pricing P=MC, lead to losses for natural monopoly, which govt can subsidize. But tax has its own deadweight loss. P=ATC , zero profits. Alternative, public ownership Price discriminationIncrease monopolist profits First degree – extract entire CS, socially optimal but unlikely Second degree – Charge buyers based on observable characteristics Third degree – separated markets Quantity discounts Contestable Market No barrier to entry Maintain monopoly only due to the fact that it entered first P=MC, zero economic profits Durable Goods Monopoly MC=0 Compete against its future price Cartels and collusion Incentive that monopoly profits are higher Each has an incentive to sell more than the agreed amount, resulting in a collapse of the agreement. Bertrand duopoly Assumption constant MC.Equilibrium at AC=MC. Naive thinking and no capacity constraint and price easily adjusted Sweezy model Each firm assumes that if it cuts its price, this will be matched by all its rivals while if it increase its price, it will not be matched. Perceive demand curve to be very inelastic below the existing price and very elastic above existing price. Result in price rigidity Reverse kink Each firm assumes that its price increases will be matched by all rivals, while its price cuts will not. Demand curve becomes elastic below the existing price as the cut speedily increases the demand for this firmà ¢â‚¬â„¢s product.Inelastic above the existing price. Result in price instability. Likely during depression. Competition in output Cournet Model Supposes wrongly that other firms will not react to its own output decisions. Will not result in zero-profit outcome. MR=MC. Monopolistic competition Large number of sellers with differentiated products No barriers to entry Each firm faces a downward sloping demand curve Short run, try to max profits by MR=MC. Due to free entry, more firms enter in long run as long as positive economic profits are made. Shifts demand curve to the less are market share reduced. Long run equilibrium, P=AC.Not at minimum of AC curve, thus inefficiency as each firm has excess capacity. Provide more variety though. Game theory Dominant strategy equilibrium No incentive to deviate as none of the players can do better by choosing a different strategy. Nash Equilibrium Each player has no incentive to deviate by himself. Each guess what other player choose. Coordinat ion problem Multiple equilibrium Solve by convention Focal point – higher payoff for 1 equilibrium Zero-sum games Solve by maximin rule – maximize his minimum payoffs. Repeated games Grim trigger strategy cannot work if the game is repeated a known finite number of times.If infinitely, can sustain if they do not discount the future heavily(sufficient weight to future punishments). Discount factor > 1/3. Sequential game Backward induction – work backwards to solve Subgame perfect Nash equilibrium – additional property of ruling out empty threat GDP – the market value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given period of time Relies on market prices Includes market value of the stream of services from durable goods Miss out value of non market services Excludes transfer payments Consumption + Investment + Government spending + Net exportY=C+I+G+NX GDP deflator = (Nominal GDP/real GDP)*100 GDP per capita flawed as a welfare me asure as it excludes value of leisure, clean environment, and safety. CPI measures the cost of a fixed basket of goods bought by a typical consumer. Overstates cost of living because of substitution bias. Introduction of new goods and thus increased living standards is not reflected. Quality changes is not measure. GDP deflator includes goods not bought by typical consumer. CPI includes imports. Real interest=nominal interest – inflation Productivity is a key to rapid growth. Physical capitalHuman capital Natural resources Technology Y= AF(L, K, H, N) Productivity is given by Y/L = AF(1, K/L, H/L, N/L) Technology progress continuously expands the resource frontier. Phases of rapid growth have occurred when a technological innovation opens up a new elastic supply source. Eg Industrial revolution, Railway boom, IT. Policies to promote growth Encourage savings and investment. Diminishing marginal productivity of capital implies that high saving will no longer lead to fast growth beyond a point. Convergence effect. Encourage FDI. Builds up physical and human capital accumulation.Has learning effects through tech transfer and positive externalities. Education. Secure system of property rights Lack of corruption or political instability Pursuing free trade Population growth can lead to lower capital-labor ratio which might decrease productivity Also inefficiency in human capital accumulation as same educational facilities spread thinly Large families may keep woman out of labor force which reduces total productivity C and IM tend to increase as national income rise. So C= C+cY, IM=IM+mY where c and m are marginal propensity to consume and import. An increase in GDP of $1 increases C by c and IM by m. c,m

ABB OUTSOURCING TO IBM Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

ABB OUTSOURCING TO IBM - Essay Example Most of the tasks that are outsourced are considered to be core to the business. Tasks such as billing, pay roll and data entry are some of the services that are outsourced to other companies. Outsourcing involves signing contracts that can last for many years and can also involve a lot of money. There are some very well known outsourcing companies or service providers across the world. IBM is one of the best known of the service providers who offer outsourcing services to other companies. One of the recent contracts that the company signed was with the Swedish company ABB. At the time when it was outsourcing its IT services, ABB had been suffering from serious financial problems. The executives decided to outsource the services as they thought that this would greatly help to lower the production cost incurred by the company. The company executives settled on IBM since it is a top player in the Information technology field (ABB Press Release, 2003). Being a Swedish company, ABB decided to use an international company that is based in the US. This off shoring agreement was valued at 1.1 million dollars. IBM was supposed to perform IT related services for ABB for ten years, as from the year 2003. IBM took over the IT infrastructure in ABB’s 14 stations in Europe and North America. This represent around 90% of Client Company’s IT based infrastructure. IBM was tasked with the duties of server management as well as the management of personal computers, operating systems, help desks and corporate networks that were part of the larger ABB group (The Hindu, 2002). IBM is a multinational company that deals with IT services among other things. This means that they have the machinery to ensure that all IT operations work out as they are supposed to. This explains ABB’s confidence in choosing IBM as the ideal company to carry out its IT functions. Different organizations have a variety

Compare the Funerary Mask of Tutankhamen and that of Lord Pakal Essay

Compare the Funerary Mask of Tutankhamen and that of Lord Pakal - Essay Example The mask depicts a face of a young and good-looking man. It has been acknowledged that the mask has little to do with actual facial expressions of the king (Renfrew 164). It is a perfect mask of a perfect face. This perfection is achieved through proportionality and, of course, materials used. The eyes are highlighted with the help of lapis lazuli and there are two symbols of the king’s power (cobra and vulture) on the mask. Admittedly, the mask reveals the power, wealth and glory of the king. More importantly, the mask stands for the divine nature of the pharaoh. According to Ancient Egyptians’ beliefs, pharaohs stopped their earthly existence and turned into gods. Gold was the symbol of this transformation. Therefore, after his death, Tutankhamen was no longer a mortal but became a god and the mask depicted the divine features of the deceased. The major purpose of the mask was to stress the divine nature of the diseased or rather his transformation into a deity. As far as Lord Pakal is concerned, he was buried in 683 CE (Carrasco 113). Unlike Tutankhamen’s funeral mask, Lord Pakal’s funerary mask is not made of gold. It is primarily made of jade with the use of albite, conch shell, veined quartz, stucco and obsidian. The mask is a mosaic of perfectly fitted stones. Just like the mask of the Egyptian king, the mask of Lord Pakal can be regarded as quite a schematic representation of the great warrior’s face. More so, the prolonged nose (that starts on the forehead) can hardly be a facial feature of the Mayan king. Again, the mask is not aimed at depicting the actual man but rather the king who transformed into a deity after his death. Precious materials are used to reveal the divine nature of the king. More so, the mask was a symbol of transition from life to death and back as it was a symbol of eternity (Sharer 453). Notably, the elaborate mosaic could also embody another important belief of the Mayas. The people of Mesopotamia believed in

Applying Systems Theory to an Educational Setting Assignment

Applying Systems Theory to an Educational Setting - Assignment Example My focus of study is the educational system of Carleton University to which I have experienced studying under its Economics program. From her on, I shall use the word 'school' to denote Carleton University for brevity. The school was founded in 1942 and is located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It is situated on 62 hectares south of the city centre and is bordered by the Rideau River, the historic Rideau Canal and rather pleasant residential neighborhoods. All the information that I will be using is based from my own knowledge of the school with supplemental information from the school's website. Every university should engage in a planning process that sets not only the direction the institution is going to head but also the pacing that it will take. These plans usually require measurable outcomes for the institution to know what they have achieved and how they have fared so far. The administrative and governing body of the school is categorized into five units whose government and administrative functions are clearly defined. These units, although separate from one another, do communicate and work with another to come up with better policies and regulations regarding the school's functions. These five units and their subcomponents are given in the following: Reporting to the President, the Provost and Vic... b. Office of the President The President, also known as the Vice Chancellor, is actually the chief executive of the school. It is thru his initiative that the directions and immediate priorities are determined. c. Office of the Provost and Vice-President (Academic) Reporting to the President, the Provost and Vice-President (Academic), the chief academic officer of the University, is ultimately responsible for all academic programs and policies. The Provost's portfolio includes all academic units, Graduate Studies, the University Library, enrolment management, student affairs, the Office of the University Registrar, learning technologies and teaching support and faculty recruitment and support. d. Office of the Vice-President (Finance and Administration) The Finance and Administration Division of Carleton University are made up of the Computing and Communication Services, Finance, Human Resources, Institutional Research and Planning, Internal Audit and Advisory Services, Pension Fund Management, Physical Plant, University Safety and University Services departments. Its mission is to provide quality specialized services to the Carleton University community that provides a safe, healthy and productive environment for students, staff and faculty in which to work, study and live. e. Office of the Vice-President (Research and International) This office provides the necessary program for research, scholarship, and creative activity in sciences, business, engineering, arts, and public administration. It is also responsible for handling international affairs such as students from abroad and conferences in other countries. Administrative Services All the non-teaching services such as for business transactions, library,

Problem Resolution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Problem Resolution - Essay Example he first important issue to be answered is whether the position of an administrator has indeed the authority to approve any cancellation of privileges and credentials of a medical staff including that of physicians and the authority to approve their termination from employment. On a side issue which must also be determined but however must be answered primarily by Dr. Clark, is whether a chief of the medical staff has the authority to cancel privileges and credentials of a medical staff and to terminate them from employment of the hospital. These issues are important since the Dr. Clark’s proposed action is premised on his claim that he has the power to cancel Dr. Kirk’s privileges and credentials and also the power to terminate him. Dr. Clark also claims that this proposed action could be done if there is approval from the administrator which is given such great weight. Hence, an examination of applicable laws, rules and regulations including an examination of the hosp ital handbook or policy is important to answer this issue. The second issue is on the validity of the employment contracts which serve the basis for any physician’s employment. In the cited scenario, physicians are employed by means of employment contracts. Its validity serves as a basis for either party in defending a discharge or termination of a medical staff or the basis for a claim on the part of the medical staff claimant (Shepard, 2007). Hence, it must be determined whether the employment contract is in accordance with the Constitution, applicable laws, statutes, policies, rules and regulations governing employment in healthcare organization, to be considered as a valid contract. Otherwise, the contract may be declared void for being against the Constitution or against the applicable law, rule, regulation or hospital policy, and may not be used by either parties for their respective claims and defenses. Other relevant laws, rules and regulations would then apply. If there is a valid

EQ Industrial Services (EQIS) Plant Explosion Research Paper

EQ Industrial Services (EQIS) Plant Explosion - Research Paper Example This threatened the lives of people residing near the plant, with evacuation of about 17,000 residents. After the accident, a majority of them had to seek medical attention as a result of the contamination. The plant is a handler of a variety of industrial waste, ranging from household chemicals like sulfur, fertilizer, pesticides and chlorine to paints and solvents. EQ Industrial Services, Inc. is an environmental service company founded in 1997, and is located in Ypsilanti, Michigan. It provides transportation, remediation, industrial cleaning including hazardous waste disposal and recycling, waste handling services including treatment and storage, and emergency services to its municipal and industrial clients. The explosion caused the evacuation of residents; and two weeks later, a chemical reaction exploded forcing emergency crews to evacuate businesses that were located near the plant. The reaction drum contained a solution of sodium metal that ignites on exposure to air or water. Reports claimed that the fumes from the reaction caused burning eyes, was because of chlorine exposure. Ironically, the State Department of Environment and Natural Resources had approved the company’s cleanup plan a day before. Following the accident, EQ Industrial was pinned down and asked to provide a written report on the cause of the explosion and the precautionary measures it had issued to the public. The Environmental Quality Company, which houses highly toxic chemicals, was also at the fire site. The presence of dangerous chemicals rendered fire fighters helpless, and they were forced to watch the flames die out on their own. The fire saw 18 people hospitalized, including nine residents who complained of respiratory distress and one fire fighter who experienced nausea and respiratory problems, and another eight law enforcement officers. This report will recount on the causes, effects and the recommendations associated with this kind of explosion, which was primarily believed to result from chlorine exposure. Symptoms of the victims of the accident as a result of chemical exposure Pulmonary edema and respiratory distresses are among the effects of inhaling high concentrations of chlorine in such an accident. Patients who are exposed to chlorine are prone to immediate onset of rapid breathing, rales, hemoptysis, wheezing or blue discoloration of the skin. Some patients may experience prolonged pulmonary injury resulting in collapse of the lungs and possible death. The lowest lethal concentration exposure is 430 ppm in 30 minutes duration. Reactive airways dysfunction syndrome (RADS) is a chemical irritant asthma that may results due to exposure to chlorine. The smaller diameter of children’s airways makes them more vulnerable to corrosive agents than adults - they are also vulnerable to gas due to their increased minute ventilation per kilogram and failure of evacuating exposed areas. Long-term exposure to chlorine can lead to cancer, teeth corrosion, flulike symptoms and a possibility of acquiring RADS. Pathophysiology of chlorine, which was e xposed in this accident Chlorine is a noncombustible gas at room temperature and atmospheric pressure, with a characteristic greenish-yellow color. The effects of the upper and lower respiratory tract are as a result of chlorine’s solubility to water - this is what caused respiratory complains by some victims. This solubility characteristic cause prolonged exposure as it delays the onset of upper airways symptoms for a number of minutes. Moreover, chlorine is denser than air; therefore, it is near ground level, which increases

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

Flim - Essay Example Wishing we had never existed instead because our life is a total failure in its current form? That is the premise of the movie â€Å"Its a Wonderful Life† by Frank Capra. First released in 1946, this Christmas drama was originally based on the short story â€Å"The Greatest Gift† by Phillip Van Doren. The movie starred James Stewart as George Bailey, a self-sacrificing man who is willing to put his own dreams on hold in order to help those in his town achieve theirs. He inherited a money lending business from his father that, due to the economic depression caused by the war, was on the verge of bankruptcy. In order to prevent a bank run, George tried to commit suicide but is prevented from doing so by his guardian angel Clarence Odbody (Henry Travers). Influenced by A Christmas Carol themes, Clarence sets about saving George by showing him how the town would have turned out much differently if he and his business had never become a part of the lives of the townsfolk. In the end, George realizes that his life has not been a complete failure and that his life is â€Å"wonderful† just as it is, specially with the town residents coming to the aid of his failing bank by contributing more money to save it. The movie in itself is a study of the history of the banking history. With no real banking system existing at the end of the 19th century, small money lenders helped the town business by accepting cash deposits from clients that could then be lent out to business owners. This lending institution known as the savings and loan system would become the bedrock of the great American dream. However, it came at a great price. Remember the term â€Å"Bank Run†? It was first used in this movie to explain how the antagonist, Mr. Potter refused to open up the coffers of the town bank to the people in order to help them survive to their next paycheck by giving them loans or allowing them to withdraw their deposits. He is the representation of everything that is

Systems of Governance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Systems of Governance - Essay Example It is evident from the study that the American economy operates as a welfare state that also enables its economic firms to exist with a reasonable amount of freedom. Changing to a welfare state would not only put too many responsibilities on the government, it would also take away the responsibilities of corporate social responsibility that helps bring back money into the economy for social purposes without the problems that are associated with taxation. This would also force the government to increase the taxes that are levied on its populace and this would lead to widespread discontent that would then lead to an inefficient functioning of the economic apparatus across the country. Following the Great Depression, the American government started a new system of offering benefits to the less privileged sections of the society; people who were unemployed and had to depend on the government for their survival. There were limited benefits that were made available to American citizens in areas that included healthcare as a part of it. The state sponsors part of these expenses for the citizens and this is funded through taxes. An entirely capitalist system would dispense with such schemes and promote the welfare of the capitalists and seek to ensure the well-being of the market and the factors that affect the market. In such an economy, the welfare of old citizens would not be a priority and so wouldn’t the welfare of the other vulnerable sections of the society. ... A state capitalist system, would however, enable both the creation of wealth and the implementation of welfare projects. The flaws of this system would however be the tendency of government firms to lapse into a state of lethargy that, if guarded against, can enable the system to work well. This system too, can only be used in a limited manner owing to the fact that this system may lead to a reduction in the level of entrepreneurship that arises from the people of the country. This may cause a lot of loss in potential for the American economy if this system is adopted. Unlike these systems, the socialist system places the entire burden of enterprise as well as welfare on the state that then has to also implement a system whereby it provides equality for all that is an imposed freedom rather than one that evolves out of natural processes. This economy leads to the stunting of entrepreneurial activity which is the lifeblood of the American economy and needs to be used very selectively. Adopting elements of the Danish state that also employs a mixed economy is a tricky proposition since the dynamics of the social, economic and political situations of the two countries involved are extremely different. Denmark, even though a mixed economy, tilts more towards the model of a welfare state that other Scandinavian countries follow in different degrees, too. The welfare of the citizens is taken care in healthcare and the pensions for vulnerable sections are also attended to by the state. Healthcare insurances are provided by the government. All these welfare projects, however, lead to a high level of taxation that would be unsustainable in a country like the United States of America. Apart from this, Denmark allows the minimum wages to be set by the trade unions and

Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior Essay Example for Free

Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior Essay IN THE ARTICLE ‘WHY CHINESE MOTHERS ARE SUPERIOR’ AMY CHUA, WHO IS PROFESSOR AT THE LAW SCHOOL IN YALE, WRITES IN THE ARTICLE ABOUT HOW TO RAISE YOUR CHILDREN, AND THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN HOW THE WESTERN AND CHINESE PARENTS RAISES THEIR CHILDREN, BY COMPARING CHINESE AND WESTERN KIDS. THE COMPARISONS GIVE US A VIEW OF WHAT THE GOOD AND BAD CONSEQUENCES ARE, WHEN IT COMES TO HIGH EXPECTATIONS AND STEREOTYPICAL RAISED KIDS. THERE ARE A LOT OF DIFFERENT VIEWS ON WHICH WAY IS THE RIGHT, BUT AMY CHUA IS COMPLETELY SURE, THAT HER METHOD IS THE MOST SECURE WAY TO MAKE HER CHILDREN SUCCESS. AND THAT’S ALSO WHAT SHE IS ARGUING FOR IN THE ARTICLE. ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS WE READ IN THE ARTICLE IS A LIST OF WHAT AMY’S CHILDREN ARE NOT ALLOWED TO DO. HER CHILDREN ARE NOT ALLOWED TO DO THINGS LIKE: SLEEPOVERS, HAVING A PLAY DATE OR WATCHING TV AND PLAY VIDEO GAMES. IN THE WESTERN WORLD IT IS VERY NORMAL THAT KIDS PLAY VIDEO GAMES, SLEEPOVERS AND WATCH TELEVISION, BUT IN CHINA IT IS NOT THE KIDS WHO DECIDE WHAT TALENT THEY WANT TO CULTIVATE, BUT THE PARENTS. FOR AN EXAMPLE AMY TELLS IN THE TEXT THAT WHEN LULU WAS ABOUT 7 SHE COULD PLAY TO INSTRUMENTS WHICH WERE CHOSEN BY HER MOM. SHE COULD PLAY PIANO AND LULU WAS WORKING ON A SONG CALLED ‘THE LITTLE WHITE DONKEY’. IT IS A VERY DIFFICULT FOR YOUNG PLAYERS TO LEARN BECAUSE THE TWO HANDS HAVE TO KEEP SCHIZOPHRENICALLY DIFFERENT RHYTHMS. LULU COULD NOT DO IT, SO AMY WORKED ON IT NON-STOP FOR A WEEK, DRILLING EACH OF HER HANDS SEPARATELY, OVER AND OVER. BUT LULU COULD NOT FIGURE OUT HOW TO PLAY THE SONG. SO SHE GAVE UP AND TOLD HER MOTHER THAT SHE DID NOT WANT TO PLAY ANYMORE. BUT AMY FORCED HER TO PLAY. IT COMES IN THE TEXT â€Å"GET BACK TO THE PIANO NOW, I ORDERED† â€Å"YOU CAN’T MAKE ME. † â€Å"OH YES, I CAN† EVEN THOU LULU CANNOT PLAY THE SONG SHE IS FORCED. AND AFTER MY MEANING I THINK IT IS WRONG AND THAT A WESTERN PARENT WOULD NOT FORCED THEIR KIDS TO DO ANYTHING THEY DO NOT WANT TO WHICH AMY ALSO SAYS IN THE TEXT. AMY ALSO SAYS IN THE TEXT â€Å"EVEN WHEN WESTERN PARENTS THINK THEY’RE BEING STRICT, THEY USUALLY DON’T COME CLOSE TO BEING CHINESE MOTHERS. FOR EXAMPLE, MY WESTERNS FRIENDS WHO CONSIDER THEMSELVES STRICT MAKE THEIR CHILDREN PRACTICE THEIR INSTRUMENTS 30 MINUTES EVERY DAY. AN HOUR AT MOST. FOR AN CHINESE MOTHER, THE FIRST HOUR IS THE EASY PART. IT’S HOURS TWO AND THREE THAT GET TOUGH. † IT IS LONG QUOTE BUT IT REALLY TELLS ABOUT THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WESTERN AND CHINESE MOTHERS. AS AMY SAYS IN THE QUOTE EVEN WHEN WESTERN PARENTS ARE STRICT IT IS NOT CLOSE TO BE AS STRICT AS CHINESE MOTHERS. ANOTHER STATEMENT THAT AMY USES IS: â€Å"CHINESE PARENTS DEMAND PERFECT GRADES BECAUSE THEY BELIEVE THAT THEIR CHILD CAN GET THEMâ€Å" AND LATER SHE ADDS: â€Å"CHINESE PARENTS CAN ORDER Taha Hussain, 3. u Engelsk a? evering Frederiksberg Gymansium THEIR KIDS TO GET STRAIGHT AS. â€Å" â€Å"WESTERN PARENTS CAN ONLY ASK THEIR KIDS TO TRY THEIR BEST†. I THINK THAT INDIRECTLY SHE IS SAYING THAT WESTERN PARENTS ARE WEAKER THAN CHINESE PARENTS. THEY DO NOT REALLY BELIEVE IN THEIR KIDS, LIKE CHINESE PARENTS DO. INSTEAD OF ALWAYS BEING CAREFUL AND LOVING, WESTERN PARENTS SHOULD USE PUNISHMENT AND MAKE THEIR CHILD FEEL ASHAMED INSTEAD OF BEING AFRAID OF THE CHILD’S MENTALITY. THEY SHOULD BE MORE LIKE AMY AND USE THE SAME METHODS AS HER. WESTERN PARENTS HAVE TO MORE STRICT. AMY TELLS IF A THEIR CHILDREN KIDS B, THERE WOULD FIRST BE A SCREAMING, HAIR-TEARING EXPLOSION, THEN THE CHINESE MOTHER WOULD GET DOZENS MAYBE HUNDREDS OF PRACTICE TEST AND WORK THROUGH THEM WITH HER CHILD FOR AS LONG AS IT TAKES TO GET THE GRADE UP TO AN A. SO FROM THESE QUOTES WE CAN COME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT CHINESE MOTHERS’ THINKS THAT TO MAKE THEIR CHILDREN ACHIEVE ANYTHING FURTHER IN LIFE, IT’S IMPORTANT TO PUSH THEM FROM THE BEGINNING AND HAVE SOME STRAIGHT AND STRICT RULES. AFTER READING THE ARTICLE I CAN CONCLUDE THAT THERE ARE DIFFERENT WAYS OF RAISING YOUR CHILD, SOME BETTER THAN OTHERS, AND THERE ARE DIFFERENT OPINIONS ABOUT WHICH METHOD IS THE BEST ONE. WHEN IT COMES TO SUCCESS, CHINESE PARENTS WILL ALMOST DO EVERYTHING TO REACH THEIR GOAL. THEY ONLY WISH THE BEST FOR THEIR CHILD, AND THEY ONLY WANT THEM TO HAVE THE BEST FUTURE, BUT THEY MIGHT FORGET THAT THEY ARE NOT DEALING WITH A ROBOT OR A THING THEY CAN BRAINWASH, BUT THEY ARE DEALING WITH AN INDIVIDUAL THAT IS NO LESS WORTH THAN THE PARENTS, THEMSELVES. I THINK THAT EVERY KID NEED TO NEED SOME SPARE TIME WHERE CAN WATCH TELEVISION, PLAY VIDEOGAMES AND SLEEPOVER. IT IS IMPORTANT THAT THE KIDS HAVE DISCIPLINE, BUT AS I MENTIONED BEFORE THEY ARE NOT ROBOTS. THE KIDS ALSO HAVE SOME NEEDS, THEY WANT TO PLAY AND HAVE SOME FUN. AND AMY CHUA DOES NOT MENTION HOW THE CHINESE WAY OF PARENTING AFFECTS THE INDIVIDUALS; I DO NOT THINK THAT IT CAN BE POSITIVE, BECAUSE EVERY INDIVIDUAL NEEDS VALUES AS LOVE, FRIENDSHIP AND FREEDOM. SO I WOULD PREFER THE WESTERN PARENTS ABOVE THE CHINESE, BUT I THINK IT IS BECAUSE I LIVE IN DENMARK, IN CHINA IT IS NORMAL, AND THEY WOULD OF COURSE PREFER THEIR OWN METHODS. SO IN A WAY IT IS FAIR ENOUGH, THAT’S THEIR WAY TO LIVE THEIR OWN LIFE. AND AS WE CAN SEE THE CHINESE PEOPLE HAVE A LOT OF SUCCESS IN THE WORLD RIGHT NOW, SO MAYBE THEY ARE DOING SOMETHING RIGHT.

Nike vs Adidas Essay Example for Free

Nike vs Adidas Essay Nikes business strategy In order to get a grasp of Nike and how its changing the world today with its innovative products, we must first take a glance at the history of the company and how it all began. Bill Bowerman was a nationally respected track and field coach at the University of Oregon and the founding father of Nike. Bill was always seeking to find ways in order to give his athletes a competitive advantage experiencing with track surfaces, energy drinks but most importantly- innovative running shoes. Nikes business strategy is committed to providing athletes around the world with innovative products and committed to serving athletes, rewarding shareholders and being an industry leader in the shoe market in particular. A golden handshake between Bil Bowerman and Phil knight began the era of Nike over 5 decades and what it is today. Nike has adopted a differentiation focus by implementing what Nike call a consumer focused category strategy. Nikes business strategy is committed to providing the most innovative products around the world to athletes and consumers across the globe. Nike carries an arsenal of products that allow the company to continue growth through increased market place capacity and penetration with decisions that involve outsourcing manufacturing to low-cost areas in the world, investing in research and development of innovative products and aggressive marketing strategies that are beyond conventional. Their consumer focused strategy enhances gives them great leveraging ability to deliver great product and elevated consumer experiences which will help grow the NIKE Brand. http://www.nikebiz.com/crreport/content/pdf/documents/en-US/full-report.pdf http://www.nikeresponsibility.com/ http://www.nike.com/nikeihm/about/business.shtml http://nikeinc.com/news/nike-inc-introduces-2015-global-growth-strategy http://www.slideshare.net/joshuasteinberger/adidas-nike-case-study http://nikeinc.com/pages/history-heritage http://prezi.com/kg1omedww1k7/global-strategy-presentation-nike/

Education and Gross Domestic Product of the Philippines

Education and Gross Domestic Product of the Philippines Marione Tomas T. Padilla ABSTRACT The research paper is about determining whether certain factors of Education have an effect on the overall Gross Domestic Product of the Philippines. Intuition would tell us that Education has an effect on GDP. In addition, budget allocations for education in the Philippines are high compared to the other sectors in the government. Table of Contents Introduction Background of the Study †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 4 Statement of the Problem †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 5 Objectives of the Study †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 6 Significance of the Study †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 6 Scope and Limitation †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 7 Review of Related Literature Civilian Discretionary Spending †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 8 Human Capital and Education †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 9 Education in the Philippines Millennium Development Goals Similar Studies Theoretical Framework Gross Domestic Product IS-LM Model Operational Framework Variable List A-Priori Expectations Methodology Empirical Testing and Analysis of Results Conclusion and Recommendations References Introduction Background of the Study According to Jeffrey Sachs (2011), civilian discretionary spending is spending on public goods and services that the private economy cannot provide on its own[1]. In addition, one of the sectors he mentioned that are involved in civilian discretionary spending is education. Education is defined as the knowledge and development resulting from an educational process (Merriam Webster, 2014)[2]. In any country, education is one of the things that the government is in charge of and is one of the factors in the government’s expenditures which contributes to a percentage in a country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP); the government takes into consideration the budget allocation for education, how they are going to make the educational sector competitive i.e. the quality of the service that the citizens of the country are to get, and many other factors. The Philippines currently has a literacy rate of 95.4% and rank 108th out of 215 countries in terms of literacy rate[3]. In addition, the educational system of the Philippines is currently experiencing a shift, because our educational system is being exposed to different factors such as the implementation of the K to 12 and the ASEAN Integration which are to be imposed soon. In the previous education system of the Philippines, kindergarten was not compulsory for students but now it is. In addition, Primary Education (Elementary) and Secondary Education (Junior and Senior High School) both require 6 years making a total of 12 years. Because of these adjustments and other factors, the budget and the expenditure for education increase every year. The Department of Education is one of the top departments that are given high budget allocations with their proposed 2014 budget being the highest at 293.3 billion pesos; according to an article in Rappler (2013), â€Å"the increase is focused on learning resources, as well as classrooms, chairs and school facilities†[4]. But despite all of this, the overall quality in the education has declined and this was due to certain factors (insert them here). With this given, this proves to be a challenge not just for the government but for the other Filipinos as well that could not cope up with the Philippines’ current system of education. According to World Vision (2011)[5], education has a relationship with growth of an economy i.e. lack of quality education is a threat to economic growth. In addition, World Vision also stated that 92 percent of Filipino children are able to enroll in primary education but 20 percent of these students who enrolled are able to finish. Statement of the Problem The Philippines experienced a decline in the quality of education due to certain factors such as the quality of the education, affordability, budget, and mismatch between training and the jobs[6]. With this, the researcher has prepared the following questions: a) How can the Philippine government fix or alleviate these factors? b) Were there any measures taken in line with the previous question? What specific measures were done and were they effective? c) Are Filipino students (both current and incoming) ready for K to 12 given the decline in the quality prior to the implementation? d) Is K to 12 really a step further for the Philippines? The researcher would also want to know if the budget that has been allocated to them is being used efficiently and in the end if it contributed to the output of the country. In addition, the researcher would also want to clarify if these expenditures in education really did make any changes. Objectives of the Study Given the background of the topic for this research, the researcher would like to accomplish the following objectives: a) Determine the relationship between certain factors of education i.e. number of enrolled students and education expenditure, and the Gross Domestic Product of the Philippines b) Be able to find ways to improve the quality of the educational system of the Philippines so that we can be really ready for future changes. c) Construct an econometric model that can be used in analyzing how GDP and Education go hand in hand. Significance of the Study A lack of quality education can hamper growth in the economy because the citizens are not equipped with the basic knowledge; in addition, a lot of Filipinos do not have access to even the basic education and because of this, the human condition is not improving. In the Human Development Forum held last March 2, 2011, U.S Secretary of Education Arne Duncan stated that Education can be the bridge to factors such as eliminating gender inequality, poverty reduction, planet sustainability, preventing deaths and illnesses, and for peace. In addition, he stated that education is inseparable from the development of human capital, and that education is the new currency so that nations maintain economic competitiveness and global prosperity (Duncan, 2011)[7]. In line with the previous statement, this study is aiming to find a way to be able to improve the standard of education that the Philippines has and to make it competitive. In addition, this study aims to make a point that education plays a role in the growth of a country and is a step towards improving lives thus we should not take this lightly. The researcher believes that the government should look into the bigger picture and the root causes as to why our education is not accessible or feasible to the citizens. Scope and Limitation The data used in this study came from sources such as indexmundi, World Bank, NSCB, and UNData. The researcher took into consideration GDP, Education Expenditure (not including capital and equipment), and number of enrolled students per year level except the Tertiary Level due to unavailability of data; the research has 30 observations (from 1982 to 2011) and is focused on a Philippine setting. The researcher is using the multiple regression analysis to determine the influence of our independent variables to the dependent variable. Review of Related Literature Civilian Discretionary Spending The Huffington Post (2011), posted an article entitled â€Å"De-Mystifying the Budget Debate†; this article was written by Jeffrey Sachs. One of the things that Jeffrey Sachs pointed out was the issue on civilian discretionary spending. Civilian discretionary spending is spending on public goods and services that cannot be provided efficiently by the private economy alone (Sachs, 2011). In addition, the programs are called â€Å"discretionary† because the budget allocation is voted upon every year and contributes to about 4% of the GDP in the United States. He also mentioned the factors that make up civilian discretionary spending in the following quote[8]: â€Å"Discretionary spending includes national security (homeland security, diplomacy, development assistance); education and job training; science and technology; the justice system; public administration; environmental protection; community development and housing assistance; major infrastructure (highways, dams, levees, flood control, water and sanitation).† From the given definitions and statements, the aim of civilian discretionary spending is to make a country competitive and so that there would be more opportunities for economic growth. Human Capital and Education According to Investopedia, Human Capital is defined as â€Å"a measure of the economic value of an employees skill set† wherein it measures the labor input and is thought to be equal[9]. The term was coined by economist Theodore Schultz; this term mirrored human capacities and believed that human capital was like any other capital in general. Capital is defined as those long term assets used in the production of output by a firm. In the case of human capital, education, training and enhanced benefits are the factors to be considered when investing in human capital; in effect this will lead to an improvement in the quality and level of production. In addition, the education and the experience an employee has obtained merits economic value in the perspective of both employers and the aggregate economy. The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) published a study in 2001 entitled Development Planning in a Market Economy; One segment of this study, The Role of Human Capital in Economic Development: Some Myths and Realities, explains how important Human Capital is in Economic Development[10]. The author stated that for human capital to create an impact on economic development, a nation needed to have at least a 70% literate population. In addition, it was also stated that if a large number of people in the population are literate, even if they are equipped with the basic education, the minds of the masses can be opened up (UNESCAP, 2001). It was also mentioned that the government has a role in this i.e. one of the factors as to why there are differences in human capital was because of the direction of the priorities and commitments of a nation towards the educations sector[11] (UNESCAP, 2001). An entry in the Encyclopedia of Educational Philosophy and Theory (EEPAT), entitled Human Capital Theory and Education, one concept introduced is the Human Capital theory wherein it states that the framework for nation state policy framework is by enhancing the flexibility of labor in the labor market, and also enhancing skills through investment in education, training and employment schemes, and immigration focused on attracting high-quality human capital (Fitzimons , 1999)[12]. In that same entry, Fitzimons (1999) referenced Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations (1776) wherein Adam smith was able to formulate a basis for the science of human capital. In addition, two schools of thought were formed; the first school of thought distinguished acquired capacities that were classified as either capital or the human being themselves, who were not counted as capital. The second school of thought, on the other hand, claimed that human beings are considered capital. Operational Framework Variable List The table below presents the variables that have been used in the study. The model has four independent variables and one dependent variable. The regression to be performed will take into account the significance of the variables, both individual and overall References education. 2014. In Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved April 5, 2014, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/education Sachs, J. (2011, April 18). De-Mystifying the Budget Debate. The Huffington Post. Retrieved April 5, 2014, from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeffrey-sachs/de-mystifying-the-budget_b_850332.html Geronimo, J. (2013, July 30). DepEds proposed 2014 budget biggest in history. Rappler. Retrieved April 5, 2014, from http://www.rappler.com/nation/35186-deped-proposed-budget-biggest-in-history Philippines. (n.d.). World Vision. Retrieved April 5, 2014, from http://www.worldvision.org/our-impact/country-profiles/philippines Philippines. (n.d.). Find the Data. Retrieved April 5, 2014, from http://country-facts.findthedata.org/l/111/Philippines Mankiw, G. (2013). The Data of Macroeconomics. Macroeconomics (8th Edition ed., p. 18). New York: Charles Linsmeier. Human Capital. (n.d.). Investopedia. Retrieved April 5, 2014, from http://www.investopedia.com/terms/h/humancapital.asp Gary S. Becker. Human Capital.The Concise Encyclopedia of Economics.2008. Library of Economics and Liberty. Retrieved April 5, 2014 from the World Wide Web: http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/HumanCapital.html Patrick Fitzsimons. (1999). Human capital theory and education. InThe Encyclopaedia of Educational Philosophy and Theory, M. Peters, T. Besley, A. Gibbons, B. Ã…Â ½arniĆ¡, P. Ghiraldelli (eds.). Retrieved 5 April, 2014 fromhttp://eepat.net/doku.php?id=human_capital_theory_and_education An Analysis on the Education and Gross Domestic Product of the Philippines 1 [1] Civilian Discretionary Spending will be elaborated in the Review of Related Literature. [2] Definition of education taken from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/education [3] Statistics taken from http://country-facts.findthedata.org/l/111/Philippines [4] The full article can be seen at http://www.rappler.com/nation/35186-deped-proposed-budget-biggest-in-history [5] Taken from http://www.worldvision.org/our-impact/country-profiles/philippines [6] Retrieved from http://www.ph.net/htdocs/education/issue.htm [7] The Full transcript can be viewed at http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTEDUCATION/0,,contentMDK:22848251~menuPK:282425~pagePK:64020865~piPK:149114~theSitePK:282386,00.html [8] This section explains the factors that make up civilian discretionary spending; note that this is an excerpt from the article mentioned. The article can be found at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeffrey-sachs/de-mystifying-the-budget_b_850332.html [9] Definition taken from http://www.investopedia.com/terms/h/humancapital.asp [10] The file for the said part can be found at http://www.worldwewant2015.org/node/296253 [11] This quotation can be seen on the same file mentioned. Refer to footnote number 10. [12] Retrieved from http://eepat.net/doku.php?id=human_capital_theory_and_education

Making the World Safe for Baseball :: Sports History Athletics Essays

Making the World Safe for Baseball The national pastime, organized baseball’s self-proclaimed moniker, represented an important American institution as the Great War began to enmesh Europe. The game’s association with democracy bred a poignant sense of patriotism among the players, fans, and other baseball aficionados as the conflict slowly ensnared the United States. Around the country, reporters emphasized baseball’s important role in the impending European conflict: in the New York Times, Benjamin DeCasseres wrote, â€Å"the world ought to be made safe for baseball,† since, as long as baseball embodied American democracy, â€Å"the Kaisers and the Trotskys would strike out.†[1] Accordingly, notes Richard Crepeau, the game â€Å"took its role in the First World War quite seriously,† identifying itself as the â€Å"game of democracy.†[2] In his analysis, Crepeau stresses the sport’s willingness to accept the Great War and the government’s mobilizatio n efforts as both â€Å"good for America†¦and good for baseball.†[3] Harold Seymour, on the other hand, claims organized baseball demanded special favors and considerations from the government while maintaining an air of allegiance and patriotism.[4] An examination of Baseball Magazine, a premier baseball publication during this period, validates the latter argument, revealing the sport’s simultaneous claims of support for and exemption from the war effort. Up until President Woodrow Wilson’s declaration of war, organized baseball remained rather detached from the European situation. Despite the war’s emerging influence on the affairs of the country, the World Series of 1915, columnist F.C. Lane reported, represented a week in which the â€Å"united American people† could â€Å"forget the war†¦and talk and eat and dream of baseball and who will win the all important series.†[5] As the baseball season reopened the following April, the sport possessed an aloofness not uncommon throughout the rest of American society. An interview with Detroit Tigers star Ty Cobb demonstrates this position. Refusing to take sides in the European conflict while placing blame for belligerency on the continent’s imperial heritage, Cobb states, â€Å"No, I haven’t any decided notions in favor of either side. I believe the conflict was inevitable, according to the system followed by both parties in Europe.†[6] The editors of the publication seemed to agree with such detachment by proclaiming a moral supremacy reminiscent of President Wilson’s own rhetoric. While Europe impeded civilization’s progress, according to one columnist, America’s growing acceptance of Sunday baseball represented a most telling and â€Å"hopeful sign of that progress.

Help My Computer :: essays research papers

Help my Computer In today’s world the personal computer is as common as a toaster. Almost every household has at least one computer. According to a 2001 survey over 65% of the population in the United States uses a computer. We use the computer to surf the Internet, keep track of our finances, email friends and relatives and play games. There are limitless possibilities for the use of computers. They have made typewriters and filing cabinets and thing of the past. However like any other parts of our society the pc is not safe from being harmed. There are computer viruses and spyware applications that can attack your computer. If your computer has been freezing up, giving you strange illegal operation error messages, or just not working properly it may be time to rebuild it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Rebuilding your computer isn’t as difficult as you may think. Most anyone who has some basic computer skills and who isn’t afraid of taking a risk is capable of rebuilding a pc. You need to allow three to five hours of your time. Rebuilding your computer involves formatting your local hard disk first, and then reinstalling your operating system again. You will lose any personal folders and files you have on the hard disk, and programs not included in the operating system will have to be reinstalled. You will need to copy off the data you created. This is the information that you created in Word, Excel or Powerpoint. You should also backup your email messages along with your Internet favorites. You may choose to copy the data onto a CD or if your computer is networked, then copy it onto another computer or a network drive.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Next you need to verify that you have legal copies of the computer operating system. A legal copy allows you the ability to get the most up to date computer patches. You need to get the most current software drivers for devices such as printers and scanners. The drivers are usually found on the CDs or disks that came with your computer and accessories. If you no longer have these disks, then you will need to download the latest drivers from the appropriate website. However, the newer operating systems like Windows XP and Windows 2000 usually contain the drivers needed to make these devices work. The next step to take is to reinstall the operating system. You will need the Windows CD and serial number that came with your computer for this.

Theme of Voice in Their Eyes Were Watching God Essay -- Literature Zor

Breaking Through In the novel "Their Eyes Were Watching God" written by Zora Neale Hurston, Janie the protagonist is seen by critics as having no voice. For all women silence knows no boundaries of race or culture, and Janie is no exception. Hurston characterizes Janie with the same silence that women at that time & period were forced into, (complete submission.) "Women were to be seen and not heard." Janie spends forty years of her life, learning to achieve/find, her voice against the over-ruling and dominate men in her life. But in the end Janie comes out the victor, breaking the silence. In her essay "What do Feminist Critics Want?" Gilbert states, "Like Wagner's master singers....men had the power of speech,[but]....women like Emily Dickinson, knew that they had, or were supposed to have, the graceful obligation of silence."(34) To question the male voice in "Their Eyes" is an important aspect of the genre which contributes to the story as a whole. Furthermore it is to discover the ways in which the male voice affected Janie's. Weather it be physical or mental, the reader [if reading close] can surpass Janie's verbal silence and allow just her presence to speak for her. Janie's actions are what makes her someone to pay attention to. By first understanding that Janie was silent (verbally)through most of the novel, does not mean she was not heard. Her presence demands respect and by doing so, the reader will find and appreciate Janie as a whole, and not just a "Black Woman" whose voice had been hindered by societies bias. Mary Helen Washington states in her critical essay on Their Eyes, "Ourattentiveness to the possibility that women are excluded categorically from the language of the dominant discourse should h... ...-defense, and from the voice she expresses in defending her life from Tea Cake. Hurston shows that her characters' voices have been influenced by people's subjection to a dominant authority. Hurston indicates that voice may be personal and yet move into the universal. At the end of the novel, Janie's voice is heard and recognized by Pheoby, who will share it with the community later. Finally there is a unity within Janie that allows her to share her self with others. Janie has found her voice, and she can choose when and how to express it when defining who she is. Works Cited Gilbert, Sandra M. "What Do Feminist Critics Want? A Postcard from the volcano." ADE Bulletin 66 (1980).Rpt. Hurston, Zora Neale. Their Eyes Were Watching God. New York: Harper, 1998. Wall, Cheryl A. Their Eyes Were Watching God: A Casebook. New York: Oxford, 2000.

A discussion on the uniform system in American schools

Are pupils in classs Kindergarten through Twelfth given excessively much freedom of pick? Should pupils in classs Kindergarten through Twelfth be required to have on uniforms in school? Many would state that because pupils have freedom of pick, it is a misdemeanor of pupils ‘ rights for the schools to necessitate them to have on uniforms. Because of this people merely look at the negative of uniforms in schools whereas they should look at the positive of uniforms in schools. Uniforms allow pupils to be disciplined and motivated academically every bit good as Teach pupils to show themselves through cognition instead than showing themselves through material ownerships. The sentiment of most is that if pupils wear uniforms, so they will non be able to show themselves and demo their individualism. Although it is of import for pupils to show their individualism, they do non necessitate to make so with vesture. A kid ‘s individualism goes farther than what trade name of vesture is on his or her dorsum, and this is why uniforms should be adopted into all schools. The lone job is that non everyone agrees with pupils being required to have on uniforms in schools. In schools across the United States instructors are divided on the determination of whether or non uniforms should be employed into schools. Harmonizing to Axia College hebdomad five reading Constructing an Educational Doctrine ( 2005 ) , † Teacher Dave Oland does non desire uniforms in school because he feels that there are bigger issues that need to be dealt with such as constructing relationships with parents and pupils ( p.366 ) . Peoples about make it sound as though necessitating pupils to have on uniforms is the most tragic thing that could go on to them. Harmonizing to Axia College hebdomad five reading Constructing an Educational Doctrine ( 2005 ) , † Mr. Oland believes that pupils should be encouraged to hold better attitudes on life, society, their hereafter and themselves without being regulated to have on uniforms ( p.366 ) . What is the large trade with pupils have oning uniforms in school, and why do people take a firm stand on comparing school uniforms to that of prison? Harmonizing to the Axia College hebdomad five reading Constructing an Educational Doctrine ( 2005 ) , † Teacher Dave Oland compares pupils have oning uniforms in school to boot cantonments, prisons, and parochial schools ( p.366 ) . The statement is that uniforms in school will merely keep the pupils, and that schools can hold higher trial tonss, less battles, and better subject jobs without integrating uniforms into the schools. With that being said, the issue that needs to be addressed within the local and province schools is the fact that pupils have oning uniforms in school is non merely good to the pupils, but is besides financially good to parents. Children get so wrapped up in what apparels and places are popular among kids their age that they do no privation to concentrate on the existent ground of why they are in school. Students are in school to larn, and when they wear uniforms they are more likely to concentrate more on their faculty members and less on dad civilization. Even though there are schools that require pupils to have on uniforms all the clip, there are some schools that do non desire to set force per unit area on the pupils by necessitating the pupils to have on uniforms full clip. Some schools try to strike a happy medium by merely necessitating their pupils to have on uniforms two or three yearss a hebdomad ( Boutelle, 2008 ) . Students do non acquire the full benefit of uniforms in schools unless they wear uniforms in schools full clip. Harmonizing to Boutelle ( 2008 ) , â€Å" Uniforms offer a assortment of benefits such as uniforms promote school safety and heighten the acquisition environment every bit good as diminish the vesture competition ( p.36 ) . Because uniforms diminish the vesture competition pupils will non be distracted by the new interior decorator denims that Christina has on, or by the newest brace of interior decorator places that Joe merely got for his birthday. Alternatively pupils are able to concentrate on the existent ground of why they are in school which is to acquire an instruction. Another issue that has been eliminated with uniforms in the schools is the issue of pupils have oning vesture that is excessively telling. Harmonizing to Boutelle ( 2008 ) , † With today ‘s manners of minimum frock, female pupils may demo up at school have oning a micro-mini skirt rolled down to expose her belly button and a hackamore top that exposes her middle ( p.34 ) . When female pupils wear vesture that is excessively uncovering to school, non merely is it deflecting for her schoolmates, but it besides invites inappropriate activity. A miss may have on a hackamore top and mini skirt to school because that is the new manner, but what she does non recognize is that manner of vesture may convey her some unwanted attending from the male childs such as perverse comments and name naming. Uniforms non merely extinguish issues for misss every bit far as misss have oning vesture that is excessively telling ; instead uniforms extinguish issues for all adolescents in school. Harmonizing to Boutelle ( 2008 ) , † Uniforms rid schools of pack colourss, every bit good as rids schools of pupils contending over interior decorator jackets and other interior decorator vesture ( p. 36-37 ) . Because of uniforms in school the overall behaviour of pupils has improved so much that there have merely been a few behavior incidents in schools where pupils are required to have on uniforms ( Boutelle, 2008 ) . Without behavior incidents in schools due to uniforms, pupils are able to concentrate more on their surveies. Students have learned that they can show their creativeness both academically and artistically ( Boutelle, 2008 ) . The issue of pupils have oning uncovering vesture and combat over interior decorator vesture has about been wholly eliminated from schools due to uniforms. In other words, pupils express themselves with their cognition, alternatively of with the apparels they wear. Because of this there are some astonishing consequences. Schools that require pupils to have on uniforms can take to improved subject and schoolroom behaviour, increased school attending, regard for instructors, better school public presentation, higher pupil self-esteem and assurance, lower vesture cost, publicity of group spirit, decrease in societal stratification, and lower rates of force and offense. ( Konheim-Kalkstein, 2006, p.25 ) With the possibility of uniforms work outing all of instruction ‘s jobs, people may inquire why pupils have non already been required to have on uniforms in schools. This is a consequence of the people who are opposed to necessitating pupils to have on uniforms in schools. Those who are opposed to pupils have oning uniforms in schools argue that necessitating school uniforms violates pupils ‘ rights, that uniforms are non responsible for reduced force, that pupils will happen other ways to vie, and that uniforms have no direct bearing on academic accomplishment. ( Konheim-Kalkstein, 2006, p.25 ) Because of this it may be difficult for schools to make up one's mind which side is the best for the pupils. For this ground people need to look at the fact, which means they need to look at the schools that have already employed uniforms for pupils in their schools. Harmonizing to Konheim-Kalkstein ( 2006 ) , † A rule from Cherry Hill School reported increased attending, reduced suspensions, less frequent combat, increased trial tonss, and improved school public presentation after pupils began have oning uniforms † ( p.25 ) . There have besides been other schools in different metropoliss that have adopted school uniforms. One illustration of a metropolis that has enforced uniforms in schools is Long Beach where uniforms are required for pupils in classs Kindergarten through Twelfth ( Konheim-Kalkstein, 2006 ) . Since schools in Long Beach have adopted uniforms, there have been important betterments with the behaviour of pupils. Below is a chart that shows the statistical betterments in a school in Long Beach due to pupils have oning uniforms. The chart below shows how after five old ages of pupils have oning uniforms in schools in Long Beach, California, the bad behaviour of pupils decreased dramatically. Improvements Due to School Uniforms A Uniform Look, by Konheim-Kalkstein, p.25, Copyright 2006 by American School Board Journal. Bad behaviour in the Long Beach schools was progressively bad before the acceptance of uniforms. Five old ages after Long Beach schools adopted uniforms overall offense decreased by 91 % , suspensions decreased by 90 % , sex discourtesies decreased by 96 % , and Vandalism decreased by 69 % ( Konheim-Kalkstein, 2006 ) . This is entirely should be proof plenty of what good can go on when pupils are required to have on uniforms in school. Along with Long Beach, other metropoliss have besides adopted uniforms in schools. These metropoliss are New York City, Philadelphia, Miami, and Chicago, and as a consequence 37 province legislative assemblies enacted statute law authorising local territories to find their ain unvarying policies ( Konheim-Kalkstein, 2006 ) . Even though all of these metropoliss have adopted uniforms into their schools, pedagogues and the populace are still clearly divided over the execution of such policies in public schools ( Huss, 2007 ) . This is the instance even after people have seen the positive consequence that uniforms have within the pupil organic structure. Despite the dither between the pedagogues and the public pupils do like the thought of uniforms in schools because uniforms give them a sense of group of rank and besides minimise pupil green-eyed monsters and favoritism ( Huss, 2007 ) . Every school has jobs with green-eyed monster and favoritism in one manner or another. If uniforms give pupils a sense of belonging, so why can people non hold that uniforms are a good thing? Harmonizing to Huss ( 2007 ) , † Widening cognition in this country is highly of import because the overall school clime has every bit much to make with acquisition, productive work, and self-concept as does anything else in the educational plan ( p.32 ) . When speech production of uniforms in the educational plan, instructors ‘ sentiments besides need to be heard. Students look up to instructors, and because of this the instructors input can hold a positive consequence on pupils refering uniforms. After uniforms are implemented into schools, instructors have said that they noticed pupils are less concerned abut how they fit in wit their equals, and that pupils are no longer being judged for non have oning the â€Å" right † apparels or for have oning hand-me-downs. ( Huss, 2007, p.36 ) Along with pupils non being judged for their apparels, other instructors have reported that pupils are more enthusiastic about being at school, less riotous during category, and that there have been fewer battles since implementing uniforms in schools ( Huss, 2007 ) . Peoples must non bury that uniforms allow pupils to be disciplined and motivated academically, every bit good as Teach pupils to show themselves through cognition instead than showing themselves through material ownerships. With all the calamity that happens in this universe today, it is of import for pupils to be taught morally right. Meaning it is of import for pupils to be taught about the things that genuinely matter in this universe. Education, self-esteem, self-confidence, self-discipline, and sense of belonging are all facets of life that pupils look for in one manner or another, and this is why pupils need uniforms in their schools.