Democracy in Nigeria Essay

By May 2009, Nigeria’s nascent democracy should have been a decade. Thus, the thrust of this paper is an in depth analysis of the possibility of sustaining democratic values beyond any sudden reversal. The. paper however, takes a cursory look at the daunting challenges ahead and infers that unless the government increases social expenditure and truncate the current brazen corruption, the hope of democratic consolidation may eventually be a mirage. Key words: democracy, nascent, corruption, state law and order As rightly collated by Decalo1, the events in Africa took scholars by surprise, since most doubted Africa could move towards democracy. Even in the mid-1980’s, one argued that by reason of their poverty or the violence of their politics, African states were unlikely to move in a democratic direction. Another adding that â€Å"to have expected democracy to flourish would have been historical blindness†3, since ‘outside the core (industrialized states) democracy is a rarity, support for Tilly’s thesis ‘why Europe will not occur again – with a few exceptions, the limits of democratic development in the world may well have been reached4. However, despite the doubts and skepticisms openly expressed by scholars, Nigeria, like several other African countries, became democratic. On May 29, 1999 Nigeria became a ‘democratic’ state. Prior to 1999 political transition, Nigeria was under firm military autocracy and absolutism for close to 29 years (since 1966), when the military made their first incursion into Nigeria’s government and politics, following the collapse of the first republic5. It is vital to note that authoritarian governments were interrupted only by a brief period of civilian rule in the Second Republic (1979-1983)6. Thus, Nigeria’s march to constitutional democracy was a chequered one marked by anti-colonial struggles, crises, coups, counter-coups, and a thirty-month agonizing civil war between 1967 and 1970. So far, Nigeria has passed through several phases in her democratization bid viz: (a) era of colonial autocracy and absolutism, that is, period of formal colonialism till October 1st 1960, when the country gained ‘flag’ independence; (b) emergence of constitutional democracy – (1960-1966), (c) the return of military autocracy and absolutism – (1966-1979); (d) restoration of constitutional democracy – (1979-1983); and (e) the second coming of military autocracy and absolutism – (1983-1989) . 7 Since 1989, that Nwabueze made that observation, the polity has added more phases to her democratization bid. With the inglorious ‘stepping aside’ of General Ibrahim Babangida’s administration in 1993, an Interim National Government (ING) was put in place, headed by Chief Ernest Shonekan, handpicked by an unelected military President (General Babangida), thereby making the ING suffer a serious legitimacy crisis ab initio6. The interim contraption collapsed after eighty-two days, following the declaration that it was illegal by a Lagos High Court in a suit instituted by the assumed winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election – Chief M.  K. 0. Abiola. Cashing-in on the court verdict, General Sani Abacha staged a coup d’etat, dissolved all the extant democratic structures retained by the ING, and once again, returned the country to a fiilJ blown military dictatorship. It was in this state of confusion that Gen. Abacha died in June 8,’ 1998 in a mysterious circumstance. Gen. Abdulsalam Abubakar, who took over after the demise of Gen. Abacha, who h ad a transition programme reputed to be the shortest in the annals of military-midwife political transitions in Nigeria. Eventually, barring all odds, Gen. Abubakar handed over the reins of government to Chief Olusegun Obasanjo (a retired general) in 1999. With the inauguration of Chief Obasanjo’s civilian administration in 1999, hopes were high once again that democracy would be sustained and consolidated. But alas, the military background of Chief Obasanjo became a serious liability on the system when the supposedly democratic government became a replica of dictatorship in its entire facet. By 2003, after the expiration of his first term, his administration conducted a general election, and handed over to itself. This election was generally perceived to have been massively rigged. 9 In 2007, at the expiration of his administration’s constitutionally mandated second term, another general election was conducted to usher in another civil government. This election was remarkable in a number of ways. First, it was after eight tumultuous years of democracy – the longest period since independence from the United Kingdom in I960. 0 Secondly, for the first time in the history of the country, there was a civilian-civilian transfer of power. It would have been even more remarkable if there had been a transfer of power from the ruling party to the opposition. † Meanwhile, the thrust of this paper is an indepth analysis of the major challenges facing the nascent democracy in Nigeria to prevent it from the threats of authoritarian repression or what David Beetham calls â€Å"reverse waves†. 2 It is to these anti-democratic forces that could lead to democratic reverse which had taken place in Mauritania recently via a military coup d’etat that we now turn to. (A) As I have argued elsewhere13, quantitative cross-national research on the economic determinants of democracy and democratization generally consistently reveals that a country’s level of economic development is associated positively and strongly with the extent to which the political systems manifest properties of democracy. There is, therefore, a two-way causal relationship between the economy and sustainable democracy; the state of the economy is the determinant of enduring democracy, but democracy is a key pre-requisite for sustainable economic transformation. The message is: ‘oroad-based economic prosperity sustains democracy, whereas widespread poverty and ignorance undermine it. To mimic President Clinton of U. S. when he was running for office in 1992, ‘it is the economy, full stop! ’14 No doubt. Nigeria is potentially Africa’s largest economy. Every year, the country produces over 200,000 graduates of tertiary institutions (including 65 universities), has the 6th largest gas reserves in the world, eighth largest oil producer (with abundant, but largely untapped natural resources – gold, limestone, among others), and with 60 percent of its arable land lying fallqw. In the words of Soludo (2005), Nigeria has also millions of its citizens in Diaspora (with estimated 100,000 Nigerian medical doctors and scientists abroad). Unfortunately, was not lucky in the first 40 years of its independence with sustained good political governance. In his perceptive public lecture, Charles Soludo, Nigeria’s Central Bank Governor,16 noted further that democracy has not been endured in Nigeria simply because the economic numbers did not add up; whereas, democracy and indeed any form of government must deliver tangible economic benefits to the generality of the citizenry to be credible and sustainable. In a seminal article on ‘What Makes Democracy Endure’, Prezeworski found the empirical evidence that: Once a country has a democratic regime; its level of economic development has a very strong effect on the probability that democracy will survive †¦ emocracy can be expected to last an average of about 8. 5 years in a country with per capita income under $2,000; 33 years between $2,000-$4,000 and 100 years between $4,000-$6,000 †¦ Above $6,000 democracies are to live forever. No democratic system has fallen in a country where per capita income exceeds $6,033. 17 Be that as it may, most African states have few economic potentials of any significance (many literally nothing) that could attract foreign risk capital, which is why entrepreneurs did not flock into them in the past, irrespective of ideology or level of democracy! And to rely on local capital to fuel development is to foredoom many to perpetual marginality. 18 Taking a cue from the same line of argument, Akintunde19, while rationalizing the reasons for the demise of democracy in the first republic, postulated that a democracy which is not founded upon a secure economic base is not likely to succeed because it lacks an essential condition of efficiency. It is unable to fulfill the expectations of its citizens; in the common parlance, it cannot deliver goods. So significant is the economic base that many people have surmised that even communist countries, as they become wealthier, will come to resemble western democracy more and more20. Unfortunately, in Nigeria, as in most of the developing countries, due largely to the poor economic base, the middle class is a very small minority of the population. Western democracy is, therefore, not securely founded because it lacks one of the essential ingredients of success – an influential middle class. This fact, which is sometimes a surprise to African leaders21, was well known to Aristotle more than two thousand years ago. According to Aristotle, ‘when democracies have no middle class and the poor are greatly superior in number, trouble ensues and they are speedily ruined’. The nexus between democracy and the strength of the economy reveals that those who are not rich usually confined to mere voting, political career thus become the privilege of those who are wealthy enough to afford the leisure to devote to politics in most western countries, until the advent of Trade Union M.  Ps. 23Thus, while blaming the politicians, it is worth repeating that, by embarking on western democracy on an inadequate economic base, the Fourth Republic was set on a death course, it was bound to be corrupt. 24 The same scenario is playing itself out in Nigeria presently. No doubt, it is a daunting task in the face of the aforementioned historical evidence to sustain democracy in an economy like Nigeria, where per capita income has been below the $1,000 mark. That, according to Prezeworsk25, poses a serious threat. Considering the nexus between democracy and the economy vis-a-vis the expectation of an average African, Claude Ake (of blessed memory) averred that: The ordinary people of Africa are supporting democracy as a second independence. This time they want independence not from the colonial masters, but from indigenous leaders. They want independence from leaders whose misrule has intensified their poverty and exploitation to the point of being life threatening. And they are convinced that they cannot now get material improvement without securing political empowerment and being better placed to bring public policy closer to social needs. [Nonetheless] democracy is being interpreted and supported in ways that defeat those aspirations and manifest no sensitivity to the social conditions of the ordinary people of Africa. Generally, the political elites who support democratization are those with no access to power and they invariably have no feeling for democratic values. They support democratization largely as a strategy of power†¦Ã‚  The people can (only) choose between oppressors and by the appearance of choice legitimize what is really their disempowerment. 26 In line with the above postulations, Jerry Gana (a one-time Information Minister) admitted, too, that: You know the mentality of our people. If democracy does not produce clean water, if democracy does not produce good roads, transform agriculture, cultivate industrial development, sanitise society, give us power supply, democracy will lose credibility and they may say, na democracy we go chop? 7 The caveat is that where democratic processes do not yield economic returns, a regression to dictatorship cannot be ruled out. This point is clearly stated by Larry Diamond thus: †¦ Many new democracies in Latin America, Eastern Europe, Asia and Africa will probably breakdown in the medium to long run unless they can reduce their often appalling levels of poverty, inequality, and social injustice, and through market oriented reforms lay the basis for sustainable growth. When this is juxtaposed with the admittance by the Central Bank in its 2008 firs’; quarter report released to the public29, the economy is in perpetual crisis. The Apex Bank attributed the high rate of inflation in the country to the erratic power supply. According to the report, the inflation rate on a year to year basis was 7. 8 percent, compared to 6. 6 percent and 5. 2 percent recorded in the preceding quarter and the corresponding period of 2007. The report noted further that inflation rate on a 12-month roving average basis for the first quarter was 5. 8 percent compared with 5. percent recorded in the preceding quarter. Indeed, nothing can be more soothing to the nation’s debilitating power crisis, largely fingered for stunting the economy, rendering it comatose and occasioning a declining industrial sector, whose capacity utilization nosedived to a paltry 20 percent by the end of 2006. Epileptic power supply, a very prohibitive business climate and in consistency in government policies, have combined to smother the country’s industrial sector leading to the closure of multinationals, like Michelin, Panalpina, and other notable firms. The shrinking of the textile sector from 170 in the 60s, 70s, and 80s to 10 in the 90s, also evinces the acute nature of the problem. The recent disclosure by the House of Representatives Committee on Power, which probed the power sector that the country now generates less than a pitiable 1,000 megawatts, makes mockery of the country’s vision of becoming one of the 20 largest and most resilient economies by 2020, compared to South Africa, a country of 42 million people, which generates over 42,000 megawatts. Much of Nigeria’s investment in the power sector has been enmeshed in corruption and enthralled in the lust of the political elite for primitive accumulation. 31 The concomitant effect of poor economy is lingering with the poverty problem. Nigeria’s poverty conundrum has assumed a frightening dimension. In the words of Dr. Magnus Kpakol, Senior Special Assistant to the President and National Coordinator of National Poverty Eradication Program, in a public lecture entitled â€Å"Poverty Solution: The Role of Government in Poverty Eradication† declared that: The number of poor Nigerians could be, put at an estimated figure of 70 million †¦ n 1980, the figure was 28. 1 million. 1985, 46. 3 million; 1992, 42. 7 million; 1996, 65. 6 million and 1999,70. 0 million, 2004,54. 4 million. 32 He gave the statistical breakdown along the six regional levels to be â€Å"North-East, 72. 2 percent; South-East, 26. 7 percent; South-South 31. 5 percent; South-West 43. 1 perc ent; North-Central 67. 0 percent; and North-West, 71. 2 percent†. 33 Undoubtedly, something must be wrong somewhere, for a critical official poverty statistics, which revealed that over half of Nigeria’s 150 million population are poor, is unexplainable going by the abundant human and material resources in the country. The economy was so gloomy that 2007/2008 United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP’s) Human Development Index (HDI) ratings placed Nigeria at 158th position out of 177 countries. 34 No doubt, democracy is endangered in Nigeria more than ever before. Poverty, want, and squalor are anti-democratic forces in the polity. The only exception is Indian democracy, which has long baffled theorists of democracy. Democratic theory holds that poverty, widespread illiteracy, and a deeply hierarchical social structure are inhospitable conditions for the functioning of democracy. But the historical novelty of Indian democracy was noted by Barrington Moore: Economically (India) remains in the pre-industrial age †¦ But as a political specie, it does belong to the modern world. At the time of Nehru’s death in 1964, political democracy had existed for seventeen years. If imperfect, the democracy was no more sham †¦ Political democracy may seem strange both in an Asian setting and one without an industrial revolution. 36 To avert recapitulation, my earlier work glaringly with empirical data proved the pathetic downslide of Nigeria’s economy over the years with the attendant threat to democratic sustenance. 7 Bruce Baker too in his perceptive piece emphasized much the strength of the economy and sustainable democracy. As a corollary to the aforementioned weak economy, the state, in terms of being weak or strong, matters to the study of threats to democracy both from within and without, as well as one of the common modes of failure of democracy and democratization. 39 Perhaps, the greatest manifestation of a weak state vis-avis sustainable democracy is that it cannot successfully administer a true and fair credible election which is the kernel of democracy. No doubt, one of the. fundamental problems that post-colonial African states are facing is that of how to sustain and consolidate democracy through credible elections. 40 In the whole continent of Africa, few states could lay claim to having genuinely conducted free and fair elections as universally perceived. Hence, election administration that will attain governmental legitimacy after polls has always been a serious concern to electoral scholars. 41 The reason for this is not far-fetched. It is well known that most new states in Africa, Asia, and Latin America are too weak for the assignment. This is why state capacity is one of the major prerequisites for democratic nurturing, sustenance, and consolidation. In the extant literature on democratization and state capacity generally, five elements are crucial to the strength of the state vis: (a) monopoly of the coercive power of society, that is, control of instrument of coercion; (b) the right to improve tax and collect revenue; (c) the power of legal enactment, that is, power to make laws; (d) sovereignty over territory and society; and (e) control of the institutions of the state or state apparatus, i. . bureaucracy. 42 These five elements taken together constitutes the basis of state power and they endow the state with the status of statehood. However, it needs be emphasized that nation states which qualify for the status of statehood may differ in their degree of stateness; some are strong states, and others are weak. No doubt, Nigeria falls into the category of weak or soft states. Like others in her category, Nigeria runs a system, one in which formal rules (laws, officially stated administrative rules and practices, etc. are applied copiously and in a lax manner rather than rigorously and consistently. It is one in which private advantage can be gained and private bargains struck concerning the enforcement or non-enforcement of the rules as when a businessman bribes a tax official. Besides money, another inducement is kinship sentiment while another is the favour of superiors. The consequential effect is that in several cases, individuals may be too powerful than the state in which the rule of law is abused with impunity. Cases of such were too numerous to be mentioned during the last Nigeria’s general elections in April 2007. 43 In a nutshell, the stronger the state in all ramifications, the better for deepening of democratic values in Nigeria. This can be achieved via the entrenchment of state institutions cum congruent political behaviour by the political elite. Perhaps the most crucial of all imperatives for the consolidation of Nigeria’s nascent democracy is the restructuring of the lopsided and structurally imbalance federal arrangement. As rightly noted by Emeka Anyaoku, former Secretary General of the Commonwealth: At the heart of the several conflicts plaguing the Nigerian state today is the consequence of the failure of the practice of true federalism. The power shift debate that characterized the politics of transition from military to civil rule and which has persisted several months after, rose largely out of the frustration of large segments of the population with the structure of the political system that has shut significant sections out of the corridors of power for most of the post-independence period. 4 With Nigeria being one of the most complex societies in Africa, federalism was adopted to integrate the plural and divided societies. This is in line with the perception of early generation of students of inter-group relations or plural societies, which considered federalism an effective way of achieving and preserving both integration and stability in deeply divided societies. Whenever events seemed to demand that a compromise is affected between the necessity for unity and cooperation on a wide territorial basis, â€Å"the temptation is to proffer catch all management formula, such as federalism .. >>45 This tendency to see federalism as a magic wand that can channel irreconcilable inter-ethnic hostility into conciliation and federal cooperation was subscribed to by Carnell, thus: â€Å"in tropical area characterized by extreme cultural and ethnic diversity †¦ federalism comes as something of a political panacea†. 4 In a nutshell, federalism is considered the most appropriate framework for governing multi-ethnic societies. However, recent events in Nigeria clearly demonstrate that the polity is far from being a federation, or alternatively as has been suggested, that Nigeria is not a true or real federation. 47 Since 1954, when the foundation of classical federation for Nigeria was laid,48 the system is still far from being problem-free. The story is that of both ‘political and governmental instability’. 49 Worst still, Nigeria’s ethnic make-up remains what Furnival calls â€Å"in the strictest sense a medley (of people) for they mix but do not combine†.

Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation Pattern Essay

It is ironic that Kapil Sibal declared at 125th Birth Anniversary celebrations of great Mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan that exam-centric education system would have to go. One wonders what Ramanujan himself would say – â€Å"Mr. Minister, even I am a product of exam centric education system†? Kapil Sibal says he would like to replace the current system with a child-centric one. Now that is a very interesting term. So how does the minister define the term? Expressing his determination to do away with rote learning and the â€Å"archaic† examination-oriented system, he said: â€Å"We are endeavouring to reform this with emphasis on skill development and unlocking the creative talent within the child. † The Ministry’s decision to do away with examinations at the end of the year, replacing them with a Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation (CCE) system in a bid to de-stress children, was a step in that direction. [Link] Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation has its benefits. It has to be, however, said that CCE will not de-stress the children all by itself. Students are under stress due to the range of competition. Imagine a candidate appearing for IIT JEE during +2. He faces at least 7 lakh others across the country. Imagine what goes on in the family, forget the candidate! Every IIT graduate has a story to tell as to how many sacrifices the complete family makes for success at the exam! CCE has its benefits and can de-stress the students but in an autonomous organization with tight controls within the organization. For example, some engineering colleges at graduate level and almost all of them at post-graudate level use it to the maximum benefit of both students and professors. The system is a success at these places because of the autonomy. JNTU implemented CCE in engineering colleges affiliated to it. It had limited impact and yet, it couldn’t do away with the final exam. The final exam had to cover 80% of the total score. CCE makes sense when the number of institutions involved is less. Another important factor that influences the impact of CCE is the physical proximity of affiliated institutions. Otherwise fraud and cheating would happen as the case is with JNTU’s example. Understanding the issue JNTU faced several issues with implementing CCE is more than 100 colleges in AP affiliated to it at the time of introduction of the system. They started with 80% external evaluation in the form of final comprehensive exam and 20% internal evaluation across the semester via 5 exams conducted by the instructor. Due to lack of feedback mechanism between students and the governing body – JNTU, the system led to several problems. There were cases of cheating and fraud. JNTU wanted to solve this problem by making internal evaluation â€Å"not so internal† through online objective evaluation. For this, an internal evaluation question bank was created through suggestions from all its professors, assistant professors, associate professors across the affiliated institutes. The online evaluation software would throw random questions on the screen to be answered in stipulated amount of time. This system again failed at several institutions due to infrastructure issues but the major problem was again cheating and fraud. The issue is quite clear – large educational bodies with centralized governing body cannot use CCE effectively. Effective use of CCE can happen with decentralized model. JNTU understood this and divided colleges between JNTU Hyderabad, JNTU Kakinada and JNTU Ananthapur. The division was purely based on physical proximity of the institute to the governing body. This system still faces the issues that it had initially. It will continue to face them. Take another example. IITs. For evaluating graduate students, IITs dont have a common examination across all the IITs! Even BITS Pilani which has its campuses in Pilani, Dubai, Goa and Hyderabad doesnt use CCE across all four via a common evaluation body. Closed loop within each campus is used. In fact in all these institutes, swift justice in case of any fraud/cheating via committees within the institutes ensures better evaluation, without hindering the process of education. The key phrase – â€Å"checks and balances†. One then wonders why such a tight loop cannot be framed within the schools or a set of schools within close physical proximity! What is happening now? In our current system of school education, we have CBSE at national level and as competing bodies we have State Education Boards. Schools are allowed to choose one of the bodies. The chosen body not just dictates syllabi but also evaluates students in a final examination with a common exam held on a common date at all affiliated schools. So by design CCE is missing. Private schools, so far bridged this gap by having internal evaluation which does not affect scoring at final exam but will only help students to be ready for the final evaluation. Government schools on the other hand, have been busy serving meals at noon to children rather than conducting classes regularly. All government education bodies across India have a common goal – syllabus. Core of the problem lies in this – skill development has never been the area of interest of these bodies. Skill development was and still is the school’s responsibility to compete with other schools. Students who make it top notch institutes across India via JEE, AIEEE, BITSAT etc. , generally have a set of skills in some area or the other. But it has to be understood that they do not make it there due to those skills. They acquire those skills at school, due to their own enthusiasm and sometimes due to the school’s stress on extra-curricular and co-curricular activities. Fortunately or unfortunately, skill development is not due to the governing body. Some exceptions do exist in places like Kerala though! In terms of the system of education, both geography and demography have a huge role to play. Before CCE Implementation†¦. Sibal’s megalomania and grandiose plans lack substance just because of one of his very fundamental assertion – centralization. For a country of the size of India, with such a large population, centralization of education is a disaster to start with. Decentralizing and allowing that little freedom to schools would be a very important step. Such a decentralization process must be addressed before CCE can be implemented. If we are supposed to get anything useful from implementation of CCE, what Governments at class X, +1, +2 level in Government Schools needs to Allow more freedom to schools to collaborate and spool resources – they are already in severe resource crunch. Leaving out examinations completely would be a recipe for disaster. As it is, drop out rates in Class X, +1, +2 across states like AP is too high. Any hasty introduction of CCE without first correcting some fundamental flaws in organizing schools would only bring about faster drop out rates at these levels. CCE is already available in an abstract way in private schools. Several aided and government schools tried to emulate it to see marginal success. But the issue remains. CCE it self will not reduce stress on students. In conclusion, CCE would make sense only with a proper mechanism to address drop-out rates at class X, +1, +2 levels across government schools in India. Acts proposed by Sibal like RTE only make it worse as they attack Private schools which have a decent CCE model already in place. Bottom line – leave private institutions alone. If possible allow them a % share of total evaluation points/score. Don’t scrap examinations, even if you introduce grading. Meanwhile, ensure Government and Aided school improve standards w. r. t infrastructure and faculty. Form conglomerates of schools within a certain radius and allow them to frame, organize and evaluate their students through proper resource spooling.

Amst 301

AMERICAN STUDIES 301 MIDTERM Please include a title for the midterm, TA name, and staple Description of assignment: Compose an anthology of thirteen quotations drawn from the materials assigned for the first three sections of this course (Parts I, II and III). The anthology will consist of a preface, short commentaries on each quotation, and a conclusion. The anthology should be governed by a theme (or a set of two topics aligned to the concerns of the first four sections of the syllabus) that offer a way to unite together the diverse materials for this course.The best anthologies (those that will receive an A or A- grade) will be ones where the theme enables the student to inquire into the complexities of American culture and where both the structure and content of the midterm manifest democratic thinking (i. e. , examining an issue by looking at it from multiple points of view) and integrative thinking (i. e, finding similarities or making syntheses between separate, diverse voices ). Texts for the assignment: Draw one quotation from each of the following texts or set of texts.Present the quotation and cite the text and page number of the quote (if the page number is available). Then provide your analysis of the quotation. Note: You should feel free and encouraged to arrange the quotes and commentaries in whatever order you find most appropriate and compelling. It’s best not to arrange the quotes in the order presented in the list of texts that follows. Compose an arrangement that allows you to create the most interesting and revealing conversation—or dialogue and debate–among the texts. . Carroll, ed. , Letters from a Nation 2. Katz, ed. , Why Freedom Matters 3. Smith, Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 4. Cumings, Dominion from Sea to Sea, chapters 2, 10 or 11 5. O'Hearn, ed. , Half + Half: Writers on Growing Up Biracial and Bicultural 6. Essays on Los Angeles by Christopher Isherwood, Sonora McKeller, Wanda Coleman, Jimmy Santiago Baca, Lynell George, or Bill Bradley. 7. Political oratory or writings by John Winthrop, Abigail Adams, Thomas Jefferson or Frederick Douglass 8.Herman Melville, â€Å"Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street† or Nathaniel Hawthorne, â€Å"A Gray Champion† 9. Black, Our Constitution: The Myth That Binds Us 10. Political oratory by Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, Martin Luther King, Jr. , Thurgood Marshall, Mario Cuomo, Ronald Reagan, Barack Obama, or Bernie Sanders. 11. Essays or Speeches by Tony Kushner, James Baldwin, Stanley Crouch or Cornell West 12. Poetry by Pat Mora, Gloria Anzaldua, Ariana Waynes, Beau Sia, Steve Connell, Langston Hughes, or lines from comedy skits and writings by Culture Clash 13.John Leland, Hip: The History, David Brooks, On Paradise Drive: How We Live Now (and Always Have) in the Future Tense, or any quotation of your own selection drawn from American music, film, literature, history, politics, including lines from movies or lyrics from a so ng. Analysis of the texts: Write a commentary on each quotation that is between 3-5 sentences in length. The commentary should be more than a paraphrase of the passage: it should seek to illuminate the significance of the passage and connect the passage to other passages through comparisons and contrasts.The commentary should develop the theme or governing idea of the anthology as a whole. It is vital in these commentaries to explicate the passage first and foremost from the point of view of its author rather than to offer your personal opinion of it. Consider the commentary an act of empathic listening and of comparative or contextual analysis. Seek to understand the passage in its own context rather than just declaring its personal significance to you. Comment on the language and specific details of the passage and make both comparisons and contrasts to other texts in the anthology.Preface : Write a 1-2 page Preface to this anthology in which you introduce and explain the orchestr ating theme or themes of this anthology—-the topics, concerns, issues, arguments that govern selection of the quotations you use to compose this anthology. The Preface should be similar to a presenting a thesis to a 5-7 page critical essay in Writing 140 or 340. Conclusion: Conclude the anthology with a paragraph in which you briefly explain which text or reading assignment was most important for your education so far.Select the one text or assigned reading that you feel should definitely be included in the syllabus when I teach this course in a future semester. The task of this anthology (beyond revealing that you have studied the wide range of materials assigned so far for this course) is to find sources of unity in the diversity of the materials. Advice for the Midterm When commenting upon texts for the midterm and when choosing a theme or set of themes to orchestrate your midterm anthology, I recommend that you keep in mind the approaches of Anna Deavere Smith and Michael Kammen to American culture as described below.Smith believes that words can be â€Å"the doorway into the soul of a culture,† and in Talk to Me: Listening Between the Lines (2000), she writes, â€Å"I set out across America, on a search for American character. My search was specifically to find America in its language. I interview people and communities about the events of our time, in the hope that I will be able to absorb America†¦. This is a country of many tongues, even if we stick to English. Placing myself in other people’s words, as in placing myself in other people’s shoes, has given me the opportunity to get below the surface—to get ‘real. † When you comment upon these texts, try to place yourself â€Å"in other people’s words† as if placing yourself â€Å"in their shoes. † Listen to what is said and what may be hidden between the lines, and comment upon both. Consider also what might be revealed about a te xt by comparing and contrasting its words with voices from other texts or by juxtaposing its words against the words of a different text. Compose this anthology, in other words, by â€Å"downloading† and â€Å"mixing† and â€Å"sampling† voices to burn your own CD representing and reflecting upon the â€Å"American sound. And just as in Hendrix’s version of â€Å"The Star Spangled Banner,† your anthology can give us sounds and voices of dissonance as well as harmony. Smith also writes in Talk to Me: â€Å"My pursuit of American character is, basically, a pursuit of difference. Character lives in that which is unique. What is unique about America is the extent to which it does, from time to time, pull off being a merged culture. Finding American character is a process of looking at fragments, of looking at the unmerged. One has to do the footwork, one has to move from place to place, one has to stand outside. Your anthology will be composed of a s et of 12 quotations, and each quotation can be considered a fragment. When commenting upon each fragment or text, try to relate the fragment to other fragments. Seek out and explain places of merger or agreement among the fragments. But also be willing to see each fragment as unique, as a different take or look or perspective on your theme. The various quotations will come from different places, different times, and along with noting the specific time and place of each quotation, you should note on occasion how the quotations differ or disagree with each other.The anthology should, in effect, create a conversation and dialogue and debate—or a drama or a jazz performance–among the texts, playing one text off another. Consider each voice a solo or a monologue whose performance you analyze, but let your commentaries and the structure of the anthology as a whole be a jazz orchestra, or a play, or a congress of voices checking and balancing each other. A crucial part of the anthology will be your selection of a theme or themes that will enable you to unite together the different materials for the course.If you conceive of the anthology as part of an attempt to understand some aspect of the â€Å"American character,† you can follow the path of Michael Kammen who advises us to seek out paradoxes and contradictions within American culture. He notes that many have tried to provide a master key to unlock the mystery of the American character, proposing such single explanations as the Puritan sense of mission, the westward movement of the frontier, the desire for opportunity and open land, the effects of immigration, or the story of freedom.But any â€Å"quest for national character, culture, or style,† Kammen cautions, â€Å"plunges one into a tangle of complex historical considerations,† and he draws upon the writings of Erik Erikson to remind us, â€Å"It is commonplace to state that whatever one may come to consider a truly America n trait can be shown to have its equally characteristic opposite. † There is no simple answer and no one right answer to the question: â€Å"What is the American character? You might say that America is a place of â€Å"mixed messages† and that it will take some â€Å"hard work† to understand the complexity of the struggle for democracy, freedom, justice, equality, and a more perfect union in America. Godfrey Hodgson in his book, More Equal Than Others: American from Nixon to the New Century (2004) gives us an wonderful update on Kammen’s attempt to see Americans as a â€Å"people of paradox. † Hodgson writes, â€Å"At the beginning of of the twenty-first century, the United States was a mature civilization marked by striking, well-rooted contradictions.It is (and the list of pairs by no means exhausts the difficulties facing anyone who attempts a simplistic analysis) generally pacific but occasionally bellicose; religious yet secular; innovative but conservative; tough but tender; aggressive yet reluctant to incur casualties; egalitarian by instinct but stratified in tiers of wide and growing inequality; puritan yet self-indulgent; conformist but full of independent-minded people; devoted to justice, but in many ways remarkably unfair; idealistic yet given to cynicism. (â€Å"Nice guys finish last† is almost a national motto. At some times it can be self-confident to the verge of complacency, at others self-doubting to the point of neurosis. † When choosing a theme for you anthology, I recommend that you search for a topic that allows you to study America by highlighting at least one or two of the contradictions or paradoxes within its â€Å"character. † You can draw upon the list of contradictions/paradoxes/ tensions/conflicts as possible topics of themes for your anthology. Freedom vs. Tyranny Liberty vs. Slavery Equality vs. Hierarchy (or Supremacy) Democracy vs. Monarchy/Aristocracy or Imperialism/Em pire Democracy vs.Racism/Sexism (or the Tyranny of the Majority) Tradition vs. Revolution/Innovation Purity (or virtue) vs. corruption Exclusion vs. Inclusion Culture clash—culture merger Memory (studying the past) vs. Forgetting (letting go, living in the present) Born to Run/Born to be Wild vs. Stability/Civilization/the Home The Founding Fathers Know Best vs. The Sins of the Fathers Democracy vs. Theocracy Church—State Religion—politics Letter of the law—spirit of the law (or a higher law) Unity—-diversity Melting pot—-mosaic Assimilation—roots Majority–Minority Insiders—outsiders (outcasts) More perfect union—individualismSelf-interest vs. fraternity (brotherhood) Care for self vs. Care for others (caritas) Materialism—-spirituality Gold—God Success-failure Happiness—misery Blues–gospel Mobility-fixity Tradition—innovation Conformity—revolt Parents—children (gen erational conflict) Machismo—feminismo Country—city Civilization—savagery Hope—-fear Privilege—equality Reverence–irreverence Authority—-rebellion Provincialism—cosmopolitanism Country-city Myth vs. history Stories we want to hear vs. stories we need to hear Format: Title Preface 1. Anna Deavere Smith, Talk to Me: Listening Between the Lines (2000):I set our across America, on a search for American character. My search was specifically to find America in its language. I interview people and communities about the events of our time, in the hope that I will be able to absorb America†¦. This is a country of many tongues, even if we stick to English. Placing myself in other people’s words, as in placing myself in other people’s shoes, has given me the opportunity to get below the surface—to get ‘real. ’ (p. 12) 3-5 sentences of commentary 2. Author, title quotation: xxxxxxxxxxx 3-5 sentences o f commentary Conclusion

Literature, Intertextuality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Literature, Intertextuality - Essay Example These results not only in what Roland Barthes calls as the "Death of the Author", but also makes the issue of authorship debatable. According to Barthes, the text [is] woven entirely with citations, references, echoes, cultural languages . . . which cut across it through and through in a vast stereophony. . . The citations which go to make up a text are anonymous, untraceable, and yet already read 1(Barthes 194-5) If intertextuality is a problematization of the inside-outside ratio of the text and context game, a classic example would be John Barth's Dunyazadiad. The text not only explicitly refers to the original work of The 1001 Nights, which is historically seen as an act of unoriginality, of plagiarism, but manages to create something original out of the reference. In the story, when Scheherazade and the genie (John Barth) are discussing the ending of the story the reader is currently reading, her epiphany illustrates one of the central ideas behind Barth's reworking: "Sherry asked with a smile whether by 'his version' the Genie meant that copy of the Nights from which he'd been assisting us or the story he himself was in the midst of inventing." The fact that Barth consciously subverts the original reference and recasts Dunyazade, the younger sister of the doomed Queen Scheherazade, the original protagonist of the Arabic tale, as the main stay of his text, shows Barth not only toying with the idea of form (as represented by the canon of Queen Scheherazade), but also illustrates the idea of post modern fiction to venture into the realms of 'might have been's' rather than following the filiated history. The greatest triumph of Barth lies in breaking this discourse of filiation, of canonization, by producing a pastiche of the probable. The intertextuality in the text thus, capillarizes the power lying inherently with the omniscient author of The 1001 Nights. If intertextuality celebrates the concept of art imitating art, it is true that Barth's text is a pluralistic discourse. However, the question of whether the text owes more to other texts than itself becomes difficult to analyze simply because the meta-narratives which evolve from Dunyazadiad are themselves a part of the world of intertextuality. The recursive tale structure is a treasure-house of narratives, but is at the same time confounding as it is held in the semiotics of language whose meaning can neither be ascertained nor be fully comprehended. Thus, "I can't conclude it," the narrator admits at the end of "Dunyazadiad," "but it must end in the night that all good mornings come to." The function of intertextuality in Alejo Carpentier's Like the Night has a function which is similar and at the same time dissimilar to Barth's Dunyazadiad. Whereas the similarity is evident in both the text's ability to challenge and break the canon of filiality, the difference becomes one in degree. Alejo's text, one could argue is a conscious effort to defer the issue of authorship at such an ad infinitum pace that its elasticity could combine the aesthetic concerns of multi-cultural traditions and focus on broader social issues regarding cultural identity. A typical example would be the use

Weber's Sociology. The Ideal-Type Explaining Social Phenomena Essay

Weber's Sociology. The Ideal-Type Explaining Social Phenomena - Essay Example To do so however, it is not sufficient to observe action of one individual or collect data from a group of individuals. It requires selection of method to address the peculiar question the action raises (Schtz, Walsh & Lehnert, 1967 5). Weber does not find description alone sufficient; there should be understanding from an individual action. A few causal explanations could be made e. g. I am certain the window broke because it was struck by a rock - I saw it myself; but I can not predict on the basis or rules or laws as to what blows will break which windows. At the most a generalisation like 'Windows are fragile, and fragile things tend to break when struck hard enough, other conditions being right.' (Ringer, 1997-85)... Weber's method of understanding meaning of an action is by construction of ideal types. These are not statistical averages since these depend on unusual questions being asked at that time and they are created as per the methodological demands of these questions (Sch tz et al. 1967 5). The article focuses on Weber's concept of ideal-type and rationality as a tool for understanding social phenomena through interpretive sociological research. An ideal type is a mental construct or picture which the investigator uses to address the reality. The ideal type is different from 'ideals' and it is ideal in coherent way. For an investigator the ideal type is an instrument that he or she uses to give a meaning to the diverse reality. Its usefulness lies in "its success in revealing concrete cultural phenomena in their interdependence, their causal conditions and their significance" (Weber 1949 as in Andersen & Kaspersen, 2000, p 79). The investigator designs an ideal type by " the one sided accentuation of one or more point of view and by synthesis of a great many diffuse, discrete more or less present or occasionally absent concrete individual phenomena, which are arranged to those one- sidedly emphasised viewpoints into a unified analytical construct" (Weber 1949 as in Andersen & Kaspersen, 2000, p79). Weber's definition may be understood by a simple example. Suppose A and B are playing chess. Their behaviour is oriented to an action model, M. The model is not restricted to A and B only, it is an ideal type chess player. Schutz et al (1967) explain that beyond their individuality as chess player, the other concrete individual living experiences of A and B are neither identical nor are being compared here. Andersen & Kaspersen (2000) clarifies that the ideal type are human construct and do not have any counterpart in reality. The social laws are examples of ideal type. Knowledge of law is not the knowledge of reality; these are path leading to understand the reality. The origin of ideal type is attributed to the finding that social sciences lack the causal laws and experimental regularities of natural sciences. Weber cautioned social scientists against using historical constructs as such for explaining reality in contemporary times; he rather advises them designing their own construct using these as basis. The historical constructs show beliefs and attitudes prevalent at that time. Human behaviour is not predictable or constant phenomenon (Ringer, 1997, p110). There are always individual elements associated with it. Weber had maintained that we keep ourselves to certain aspects of reality while exclude other since the chosen aspects are relevant to our values. We thus reduce the complexity of data by constructing abstract concepts containing only

Further Exploration Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Further Exploration Study - Essay Example The story of Michelle Dumaresq in Karen Duthie’s 100 Percent Woman puts forward a counterattack to the ‘concept of level’ between a man and a woman. Not only is the documentary a portrayal of prejudice against the ‘third sex’ but also against women; the worse idea presented, being the fact that women themselves stoke the incessant issue on women empowerment. 100 Percent Woman Canadian mountain bike racer, Michelle Dumaresq is a post-operative transgender who only started racing with women six years after undergoing sex reassignment surgery (SRS) in 1996 when the International Cycling Union and the Canadian Cycling Association granted her request to race as a female. Her first professional race placed her third on the first week and first, on the second week, winning her a trip for the European Championships where she only finished 24th of 39 women (Byers). Growing up, Dumaresq has always been into riding and racing. However, instead of her hard work a s a biker, it was her transition from being male at birth to a female who competes against women in sports that contributed greatly to her ‘popularity’ locally and internationally. ... Dumaresq had been undergoing hormonal therapy to increase her estrogen levels and decrease testosterone levels. According to a study conducted by De Cuypere et al., â€Å"transgendered MTF who have been treated with estrogen continuously had total testosterone levels within the normal female range† (679). Besides having a heart of a woman, scientifically speaking, Dumaresq is a woman through technological means; but a woman nonetheless. On the other hand, it is only reasonable for Dumaresq’s competitors to protest since growing up and living in a preconditioned society makes it hard to be non-conformist and different; and that these factors are not easy to ignore. However, the bottom line is that people need to be liberated of transgender cases. Another point that can be drawn from this is that there are no technical measures to delineate the standard differences between a man and a woman. All these are social constructions of concepts. In so saying, there are no irrefu table truths to such end. While there are indeed some biological differences (York), there are women who run faster or more muscular than some men and/or women who cannot conceive an offspring (Boylan). Should there be standard measures, then this unfair competitive edge that Dumaresq should be possessing could have been translated into constant wins in different competitions. Dumaresq was 18 years old when she decided to undergo surgery but only five years old when she concluded she is not one of the boys (Byers). Homosexuality is how people define this â€Å"disorder.† Some scientists (most of them are homosexuals themselves) argue that it is genetic. However, there is surmounting

Identify an issue which you think is important in the British Essay

Identify an issue which you think is important in the British Education system today. In what way can sociology help us understa - Essay Example However, evidence suggests that there exists racial inequality in the UK educational system (DFES, 2005) with the most affected groups being ethnic minority pupils of Black, Irish Travelers and Gypsy/Roma heritages. The evidence shows that pupils from these racial backgrounds perform poorly in schools compared to their counterparts from other ethnic groups, a situation that has long-term implications on their future. Efforts by various stakeholders to find a way of breaking this chain of inequality, educational underachievement and restricted life chances continue to remain a fundamental challenge. Although the UK policymakers and practitioners have come up with wide ranging attempts to alleviate this problem, the desired impact is yet to be achieved. This paper looks at racial inequality in the UK educational system and tries to explain the phenomenon though the lenses of theories of sociology at an attempt to understand the causes. Moreover, the paper outlines evidence that suggest s racial inequality still exists in the educational system

Global Economic Environment and Marketing Essay

Global Economic Environment and Marketing - Essay Example This has lowered the cost of production for the company which in turn has provided them cost leadership. This also allows the company to maintain its environmental standards (The Times Newspaper, 2009). The key economic factors are: Firstly, the use of renewable raw materials and smarter use of them along with a dedicated relationship with suppliers have contributed to the company’s performance. Secondly, the economies of scale enjoyed by the company in terms of huge production scales. This has further lowered production costs. Thirdly, it has strategically placed its sourcing materials close to the supply chain to reduce costs. This factor further reduces the cost of handling by the company and contributes to its profit. Lastly, the use of innovative technologies has increased the profits of the company over the years. This paper aims to understand the impact on the marketing strategies of IKEA on account of globalization and the impact on the changing customer behaviour. Pot ential economic impact on marketing strategies IKEA initially operated with ten stores at the time it had opened. The increasing integration of the world economies on account of globalization has made IKEA operate a large number of stores to present day. The number of stores has raised to 345 in 42 countries in 2013 (IKEA Group, 2013b). IKEA has expanded its business across the continents of US, Asia along with the countries of Europe. The business environment it had to face in the different countries was different. For example, when it entered China, it faced a unique problem at hand by following its low pricing strategy. The Chinese customers were confused with the low prices of products, while the local companies began to copy the design. In China, the company chose to enter in a joint venture and customize its products to meet the aspirations of the clients (Chu, Girdhar and Sood, 2013). Porter’s five forces can be applied to understand the marketing strategy of the firm. Firstly, the competition from other firms becomes an important factor. IKEA has created a highly competitive market for its business. Secondly, the threat of new entrants can pose a problem to a firm. This threat is relatively less for IKEA because of high levels of market saturation and high capital investments. Thirdly, the bargaining power of suppliers is one of the forces. In case IKEA, all the suppliers strive to maintain a good relationship with the firm. IKEA has maintained strategic relationship with the suppliers, but reduced their bargaining power. The threat from substitute products is another component in Porter’s five forces. This threat is again weak in relation to IKEA because of its large scale. The bargaining power of the buyers is also less due to the large scale of operation of IKEA. This section concentrates on some of these forces in shaping IKEA’s choice (Luxinnovation G.I.E., 2008). Competitive advantage The factor which has contributed signific antly to become the greatest competitive advantage for the company is cost leadership. This has mainly owes to the self-sufficiency of the company. The company strives to provide for the home furnishings that are contemporary in sense of style, robust in quality and offers it at reasonably fair prices. IKEA does not depend on the third party manufacturers instead the employees of the company design the low cost furniture which can be readily assembled by the customers

CQ Rescue Organizations Campaign Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

CQ Rescue Organizations Campaign - Assignment Example The purpose of these tactics is to introduce to the potential sponsors, the role CQ Rescue is playing in saving precious lives as well as provoking their interest in mutual ventures like the promotion of their businesses by offering them enhanced exposure in return for their financial contributions to CQ Rescue. This plan also contains a detail of the expected budget; the expenses shown in the budget are further split into two months i.e. July 2014 & August 2014 to provide an idea of the anticipated expenses for the months during which the campaign is intended to last. The campaign will start on 1st July 2014 and end on 31st August 2014. To gain an idea of the success of the organization’s developed plan, certain vital parameters are selected to measure the success or failure effectively. It is hoped that the implementation of this plan will bring forth additional funding for the organization to make possible the assistance of people who need emergency transport services in ti mes of need. RACQ CQ Rescue is a community helicopter rescue service with an operating base in Mackay on the Central Queensland Coast of Australia. It aims to provide vital medical care to seriously injured patients in Mackay and often critically ill patients who need urgent transport from this region to Townsville. The staffs of CQ Rescue consist of four pilots, four aircrewmen and two rescue crewmen. RACQ CQ Rescue and Queensland Ambulance Service work together to provide an Intensive Care Paramedic being made available to fly with the RACQ CQ Rescue crew 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. As a Community Helicopter Provider, RACQ CQ Rescue relies heavily on the community to provide funding for operational purposes. These funds are sourced from sponsorships, business donations, workplace giving programs, annual appeals, bequests, and fundraising events. At this point in time, CQ Rescue is facing difficulties in acquiring sufficient funding for its operational purposes.  Ã‚  

Medical Prescription for a Diabetic Patient in Prison, Educating Essay - 1

Medical Prescription for a Diabetic Patient in Prison, Educating Doctors - Essay Example This study examines how eating habits, balanced diets, age, beta-blocker medication, stress, body mass index, kitchen shopping lists and women to see if there is a connection. There was an observation on their food intake and eating habits, measurement was done on weight, physical activity, stress levels and sleeping cycle. This paper presents a case study of a 59-year-old prison patient who is type 2 diabetes under the prescription of a drug called 500 mg, which he is to take two tablets two times every day. The old man suffers from no other medical problems, not to mention that he is not allergic to any type of medication. In order to undertake the correct clinical management plan, it is fundamental to lay-out the history of the patient. For the last three years, the 59 old has suffered from diabetes. With respect to the prescriptions and measured to mitigate the condition, the patient has had a healthy diet. However, being in prison environment has left the patient to struggle so as to maintain a healthy diet, not to mention of inadequate access to other healthier options. Therefore, this paper undertakes an extensive and intensive clinical management plan for the patient, in an effort to study and come up with results as to whether the prescriptions of Gliclazide 80mg twice daily in glycaemic contr ol is attained with the metformin. Treatment should harmonize with the causative agent. Diagnosis requires elevated clinical examination together with a continuous examination, microbial analyses, and radiographic examination. Diagnosis calls for the use of several procedures such as Clinical, sugar, and microbiological diagnosis. Prevention should be the focus of clinicians. The act of elimination or minimizing the incidence of diabetes to a level below threshold gets highly significant (Niederman, 2006). Each of the diagnostic procedures has its advantages and disadvantages.  The viability of the procedures requires â€Å"gold standards† for the analysis of diabetes.   The microbiological method has yielded a good result when compared with other methods.

Platos Contributions Essay Example for Free

Platos Contributions Essay It is believed that Plato, a student of Socrates, was one of the greatest contributors of philosophy. Proof of Platos notoriety in the world of philosophy can be clearly seen with his dialogues and his renowned student Aristotle. Plato’s writings are in the form of dialogues, with Socrates as the principal speaker. With his theory of Forms, he had discussed a wide range of metaphysical and ethical questions while finding inherent connections between the two. Plato also considered epistemological questions, such as whether knowledge is justified true belief. His greatest work, The Republic, developed theories of justice. Proof of a truly great philosopher can be shown by his or her students. As mentioned before, Platos Academy was a breeder of philosophers. One of the most prominent philosophers to come from the Academy was Aristotle. Plato himself took Aristotle under his wing and taught him the ways of understanding and contemplating the world around him. Plato divided his world into two aspects. These worlds have forms, the intelligible world and the perceptual world. Plato saw the perceptual world around us as imperfect copies of the intelligible forms or ideas. In the intelligible world, forms are unchangeable and perfect and only comprehensible by the use of intellect and understanding. For example, a chair is a chair because it â€Å"participates in† the Form of Chair. The forms are ideal â€Å"patterns,† unchanging, timeless, and perfect. Plato speaks of them as self-assertion: the Form of Beauty is perfectly beautiful. This led, to the Third Man Argument that there must be an infinite number of Forms. â€Å"If it’s impossible for unlike things to be like and like things unlike, isn’t it then impossible for them to be many? Because, if they were many, they would have incompatible properties† (Plato â€Å"Parmenides† 126), this is Mary Louise Gill and Paul Ryan’s translation of Plato’s Forms of Likeness and Unlikeness. Thus one and the same thing can be both like and unlike, or one and many, by participating in the Forms of Likeness and Unlikeness, of Unity and Plurality. Plato also believed that knowledge is innate, or inborn, and that the development of ideas is buried deep in the soul, and may be guided out by teachers. Plato drew a sharp distinction between knowledge, which is certain, and mere opinion. Opinions derive from the shifting world of sensation knowledge derives from the world of timeless Forms, or essences. Theaetetus stated, â€Å"It seems to me that a man who knows something perceives what he knows, and the way it appears at present, at any rate, is that knowledge is simply perception† (Cooper 168), in which Socrates agreed with that statement. In his best-known dialogue, The Republic, consisted of a lengthy dialogue on the nature of justice. Socrates identifies the four major virtues in the different aspects of this republic: the guardians possess wisdom, the auxiliaries possess courage, and the whole possesses justice and moderation. Plato believed that justice is the most important virtue. Socrates said, â€Å"Justice is minding of one’s own business and not being a busybody† (Plato â€Å"The Republic† 111). Hence, the justice of an ideal republic does not reside in any particular part of the republic but rather in the structure of the republic as a whole. While Plato is best known for his work The Republic, his larger contribution to philosophy includes many such dialogues that are of ancient thought and debate. Platos knowledge and theories have survived throughout the ages and are still relevant in todays society. He continued to teach until the end, winning the admiration and love of his students and fellow Athenians. His contributions to philosophy will be never-ending.? Works Cited Cooper, John M. , ed. Plato Complete Works. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, 1997. Print. Plato. Parmenides. Trans. Mary Louise Gill and Paul Ryan. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, 428-347 B. C. Print. . The Republic. Trans. Allan Bloom. : The Perseus Book Group, 1968. Print.

Target location technology, tracking systems Essay Example for Free

Target location technology, tracking systems Essay Today there are many differing forms of tracking systems that can be used to locate targets accurately very much different to the simple procedures used on aircraft in world war two. One of these technologies is symbology. These are imaged laid over the real world images. The images give target position and other relevant information such as the planes heading. The images change as quickly as the real world view change, there is no visible delay as this could have fatal consequences. The target is clear and weapons can easily be directed to the correct point. The guidance images are displayed in the pilots head-mounted display. These are developed at BAE systems, and their design is critical due to the setting they are used in. The headsets are linked to a powerful and accurate computer that works very quickly to update the view almost instantly and to give warnings about dangerous situations. The Kiowa helicopter from the US Army used a symbology system that included night vision. The system recorded the mission allowing the pilot to play it back. The US Army also uses a laser as a target locator. It has been developed into a hand held laser targeting technology that doesnt damage eyes. Currently they are largely ground based but they allow targets to be located and intensified even in the dark. This technology has been transferred onto a military fighter aircraft for range finding in light and dark environments. The system also gives a range finder which can vary between the direct view and an intensified view. The system can digitally provide a magnetic compass that gives range and elevation. They are already used across the world. Another possible technology is the use of intelligent radar systems that lock onto targets allowing missile to be guided. This technology can be found on the patriot missile, which is aimed at incoming missiles. The system depends on ground-based radar that locates and tracks targets however this technology could be developed to fit on an aircraft like the sidewinder missile. This is a very long ranging and variable system. It can run automatically or an operator can intervene if necessary but these need to be very accurate due the speed the missiles travel at. The radar antenna can scan the sky, identify targets, determines aim and positioning of target, gives information and can help direct the missile to the target even when missile has been launched. Two operators watch the progress of the missiles, they can then change things if necessary such as deselecting targets. One form of missile has its own in-built guidance computer and radar transmitter allowing it to guide itself. The technology allows targets to be located very accurately. Especially if the technology is watched over by operators such as the patriot missile radar system. The accuracy could save many lives, as civilian positions are less likely to be hit with the accuracy of the technology. Therefore military targets can be located successfully allowing for a less morbid military operation. The technology often needs much equipment that is highly developed and costly. As resources such as missiles with their built in computer are expended during war, much money is lost. In less developed countries this money would be needed for other vital materials, so the technology may not be used. The wastage of materials would not be environmentally friendly. The new technology would need people to be trained to be able to operate the systems. If a person puts on a headset and does not know what the lines and boxes mean they be useless at controlling it. However the training takes time to be done safely this will cost money but is necessary for the technology to be used

A League Of Nations

A League Of Nations The First World War (1914-1918) caused horrible slaughter and destruction in the countries of Europe and Asia. It produced a horror of war and created an idea to set up an international organization which would prevent the outbreaks of wars in the future. As a result of such ideas, and as a result of such discussion in the Peace Conference in Paris, in 1919, an agreement was reached by the victorious governments to set up an international body to be called the League of Nations. An agreement was entered into for this purpose. It was called the covenant of League of Nations. The covenant described the purposes, the constitution and functions of the League of Nations. On January 10, 1920, the League of Nations was formally established, with Geneva, in Switzerland, as its headquarters. History of League of Nations: The league did not live long. After a period of nearly 20 years, it ceased to exist, when the Second World War broke out. The membership of the League of Nations varied from time to time. At first it consisted of 42 member states, for example, England, France, Japan and other. Germany was excluded because she started the war. Russia was not allowed to join it, because it did not serve her isolationist policy. After the failure of the league to check Italian and Japanese aggressions and conquests in 1935 and in 1937, it was practically dead. The outbreak of the World War two put an end to the existence of the league. Aims of the League: The covenant of the league declared that the aims or purposes of the league were three: namely To preserve peace in the world To settle international disputes by peaceful methods and not by war To promote cooperation among the peoples and nations of the world, so as to increase welfare and prosperity of these nations. League Structure: The machinery of the league consisted of an assembly, a council, and a secretariat. Before World War II (1939-1945), the assembly convened regularly at Geneva in September; it was composed of three representatives for every member state, each state having one vote. The council met at least three times each year to consider political disputes and reduction of armaments; it was composed of several permanent members, France, Britain, Italy, Japan, and later Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and several nonpermanent members elected by the assembly. The decisions of the council had to be unanimous. The secretariat was the administrative branch of the league and consisted of a secretary general and a staff of 500 people. Several other bodies were allied with the league, such as the Permanent Court of International Justice, called the World Court, and the International Labor Organization. Members of League of Nation: The Countries Involved In The League of Nations Are As Follows: Abyssinia Afghanistan Argentina Belgium Bolivia British Empire separate membership for: United Kingdom Australia Canada India New Zealand Union of South Africa Bulgaria China Colombia Cuba Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt Estonia Finland France Greece Iraq Iran Irish Free State Latvia Liberia Lithuania Mexico Netherlands Norway Panama Poland Portugal Thailand Turkey Sweden Switzerland Uruguay Yugoslavia V -LEGACY Never truly effective as a peacekeeping organization, the lasting importance of the League of Nations lies in the fact that it provided the groundwork for the UN. This international alliance, formed after World War II, not only profited by the mistakes of the League of Nations but borrowed much of the organizational machinery of the league. The Rise of League of Nation When League of Nations came into being, it did so much work and rose day by day. Some of its achievements by rising are as following: Settlement of Disputes: The League quickly proved its value by settling the Swedish-Finnish dispute over the Ã…land Islands (1920-21), guaranteeing the security of Albania (1921), rescuing Austria from economic disaster, settling the division of Upper Silesia (1922), and preventing the outbreak of war in the Balkans between Greece and Bulgaria (1925). In addition, the League extended considerable aid to refugees; it helped to suppress white slave and opium traffic; it did pioneering work in surveys of health; it extended financial aid to needy states; and it furthered international cooperation in labor relations and many other fields. Try to prevent the outbreak of another war: The league tried to prevent the outbreak, by outlawing war as an instrument of national policy of the sovereign state. An agreement not to resort to war by all great powers of the world was entered into, called the Locarno pact. Social and Humanitarian Achievemnt: The league of nations had several social and humanitarian achievements to its credit. Its health committee endeavored to fight against such cruel diseases all over the world, as malaria, cancer, syphilis, T.B and others. Further, the league had also controlled the trade and sale of such injurious things as opium. The Geneva agreement of 1925 proved that the retail, sale, import and distribution of opism shall be the monopoly of the states. Another committee of the league, called the permanent committee on arts and letters, performed two services, namely, it conserved the masterpieces of arts and letters and promoted intellectual cooperation. The league dealt with the important questions of labor and of the relations between the workers and employers. These functions were performed by the international labor organization (I.L.O). It is one of the bodies which has survived the league. Membership: The League grew in its membership, from 42 in 1920 to over 60 by 1929. More countries were showing commitment to the principle of peace-keeping. Peace-keeping Successes: During the first ten years of its existence, the league had several achievements to its credit. It settled several international disputes between states and nations and thus prevented the outbreak of war between them. During its twenty years of existence, the league settled thirteen political disputes. Among them the first important dispute was a quarrel between Italy and Greece over the island of Corfu in 1923. The quarrel was amicably settled by the intervention of the league. The second serious dispute was between Greece and Bulgaria over their boundaries in 1924. Both countries were about to fight but the dispute settled by the league peacefully. Improved Relations with Germany: League increasingly seen as a peace-keeping organization rather than a winners club, Germany was allowed to join the League in 1926. Fall OF LEAGUE OF NATIONS The success of League of Nations can be judge on the basis of its handling disputes and international conflicts incidents. The authenticity of any organization can be checked by its utility of solving political and social issues. During 1920s League provided a useful but modest addition to international diplomacy where round of negotiations and diplomatic relations develop. Stress was made on sitting together of nations for the settlement of disputes. Security was provided to frontiers and problems of Disarmaments were solved. but unfortunately League was helping and solving matters of minor states because of influence of BIG POWERS on world League failed to implement its will on them which gave a true picture of its contradiction of covenant. League failed in its main object of maintaining peace in the world. In spite of its efforts for two decades , the whole world was involved in a war in 1939. By that time, the machinery of the League Of Nations had completely broken down. The failure of League Of Nations can be attributed to many causes. They are: 1. Absence Of Great Powers : It was unfortunate that the covenant of the League of Nations was made a part parcel of the peace settlement. It would have been better if it had kept separate. There were many states which consider the Treaty Of Versailles as a treaty of revenge, and were not prepared to ratify the same. By not ratifying the treaty, they refused to be the members of the League. The absence of the great powers from the international organization weakened her and was partly responsible for its ultimate failure. Japan, Germany and Italy also left the League and their defection must have weakened the League. 2. Domination Of France and England: It was felt that the League Of Nations was dominated by England and France and consequently the other states began to lose their confidence in that organization. 3. Rise of Dictatorship: The rise of dictatorship in Italy, Japan and Germany also weakened the chances of success of the League of Nations. Japan was determined to acquire fresh territories and her unscrupulous patriotism threw to the winds of all principles of international law and morality. If the League was prepared to condone her fault of conquering Manchuria. She was prepared to give up her membership of the League and that is exactly what she actually did. When the League of Nations decided to take action against Italy on account for her aggression in Abyssinia, Italy left the league. In the wake up spreading dictatorship states continued to be the members of the League so long as their national interest were not in any way endangered and sacrificed. 4. Limitations of Legal Methods: The League Of Nations demonstrated the limitations of the legal methods. The League was fairly efficient in structure and probably would have worked if there had existed a realization of a community of interest. Law grows out of public opinion cannot operate in disjunction with it. In the case of League law proposed and opinion disposed. According to Lincoln: Public sentiment is everything. With public sentiment nothing can be fail ; without it nothing can be succeed. 5. Loss of Faith In League: Small nations lost their faith in the effectiveness of The League to save them from any aggression. The principle of collective security was not applied in actual practice. Each state decided to follow her own policy, the principle of security weakened and thus there was nothing to check the aggressive policy of Hitler. 6. Constitutional Defect: The League of Nations failed because of certain constitutional defects. In the cases of disputes brought before the council of the League under Article 11, decisions of the council had to be unanimous in order to adjudge a nation guilty of having violated the covenant by resort to war or unjustifiable aggression, In Article 15. If the decisions were not unanimous verdict under Article 11, the disputing parties were free to resume the hostilities after a period of 3 months. By allowing exceptions, the covenant seemed to assume that was remained the normal solution of international disputes. 7. Narrow Nationalism: Narrow nationalism was still the dominant among the peoples of the world. France was increasingly concerned with her national security, while Great Britain considered that problem less urgent than promoting commerce by fostering international trade. Japan intoxicated by her emergence as a world power, while Italy was desperate to redress her damage. Germany was indulged to retain her national prestige even at the cost of an aggressive military adventure. 8. Lack Of Mutual Co-Operation: The member of the league lack mutual co-operation which is always essential for the success of an organization. For France the League was an instrument for providing her security from Germany. On the other hand Great Britain wanted League protecting her imperialist interest. Hitler found League a great hurdle on the way of rise of Germany. 9. Separate Lines of Thoughts: The League was the offspring of a marriage of two separate lines of thoughts. In one of these which were developed my Mr. Taft and others in the U.S. The stress was on organized forces. There has to be League of enforced peace On the other hand the British attitude was extremely hesitant in its approach to the nation as enforced peace. If the fourteen points of Woodrow Wilson are consulted we find that a general association of nation is projected for the purpose of affording mutual guarantees of political independence and territorial integrity In its proposal the world peace is not mentioned and international co-operation is restricted to one limited object. These two inconsistent principles were incorporated in the fabric of the League itself and no wonder it failed. 10. The Depression undermined the League: The League was weakened by the Great Depression that swept the world after 1929. At a time of economic crisis governments were less interested in what happened in faraway places. Japan and Italy were able to invade other countries without being punished effectively by the League. 11. Manchurian Crisis: On the night of Sep. 18-19, 1931 some Japanese soldiers making an attempt to blow off the railway line near Mukdan. Japan took full advantage of this minor incident and on the 18th Sep, 1931 she invaded Manchuria and also occupied all Japanese cities north of Mukdan. League of Nations failed to implement sanctions on Japan and on March 27, 1933 Japan decided to withdraw her membership of League of Nation. CONCLUSION: According to most of the thinkers , existence of League Of Nations was at wrong time .Then , all the nations was indulge in the concept of narrow nationalism and sovereignty. Situation would have been much more different had except the concept of Internationalism. It is wrong to believe League Of Nations done nothing, it paved the way of United Nations Organizations.

Nostradamus :: essays research papers

Nostradamus lived in the 16th century in France. He was a healer of the black plague, which was an incredible pandemic that struck Europe, killing thousands. But when his wife and two children died of it, he went in to seclusion and started writing his â€Å"visions.† He wrote them in verses of four that are called quatrains. Nostradamus was said to have predicted many things. He predicted what he called as â€Å"the three antichrists.† The first is believed to be Napoleon. The second antichrist he predicted, in which is said by most as his most incredible prediction, is believed to be Hitler. He wrote of the second being called Hisler. He is also credited with predicting the French Revolution, the American Revolution and the deaths of the two Kennedy brothers. Since the movie was made in the early 80’s, their present predictions aren’t really applicable to us. But he predicted the world was to become completely flooded after a giant earthquake which was to happen in the New City. The new city is believed to be LA, California because it lies on the San Andres Fault, which is a hotspot for earthquakes. He also tells of a great famine that would engulf the world. Probably Nostradamus’ most incredible predictions are the ones of the future. He is said to predict the third antichrist as one from the middle east which would bomb the new city and he gives the latitude of New York city. Not only that, though, he says specifically that the city would be attacked twice. This relates tremendously to the attack on the world trade center believed to be planned by Osma Bin Laden. But, even though it does say that the city would be attacked twice, it also says that the first attack would fail.

MacDonalds The Princess and the Goblin Essays -- MacDonald Princess G

MacDonald's The Princess and the Goblin The Princess and the Goblin is a story about self-realisation and the expansion of limits. The princess, Irene, is able to come to certain conclusions about herself with the help of her grandmother, who lives in the attic upstairs in the palace. The grandmother guides Irene through her rite of passage into adulthood, and helps to bring the princess and Curdie together in the end. However, the reader never really knows whether the grandmother even exists, and it is this uncertainty that causes the reader to question whether she is a personification of a force within Irene that is driving her to achieve all that she does. There are many elements of fairy tales that exist within the grandmother's world and Irene's relationship with her grandmother and her nurse, Lootie. Archetypes such as the attic, birds, the moon, and fire exist within her grandmother's world and archetypes such as the underground exist within the world she guides Irene through. The grandmother embodies characteristic s of the good witch with supernatural powers, who guides Irene on her journey, while Lootie embodies characteristics of a wicked witch, who hinders her right of passage into adulthood. Irene's first encounter with her grandmother is one of ambivalence, which parallels the stage of puberty she is in. This is the stage of her journey when she is not sure how far from the safety of her mother figure, the nurse, she should wander. Irene does not stay very long with her grandmother, as she is not fully ready to leave childhood. There are elements of Charles Perrault's Little Red Riding Hood and The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood in Irene's first visit with her grandmother. Her discovery of the grandmother is very... ...hat exist in this story follow the fairy tale tradition. The princess is transformed into a young woman with the aid of a helper. This helper is her grandmother, who gives her the tools to cut the invisible thread, and be led by her own powers. The princess discovers another world beyond her nursery and the walls of the palace that becomes more and more real every time she lets go of someone's hand. Bibliography MacDonald, George. The Princess and the Goblin. London: Penguin Books Ltd., 1996 Perrault, Charles. "Little Red Riding Hood." in Folk & Fairy Tales. Eds. Martin Hallett and Barbara Karasek. 2nd edition. Peterborough, Ontario: Broadview Press Ltd., 1996. 25-27. Perrault, Charles. "The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood." in Folk & Fairy Tales. Eds. Martin Hallett and Barbara Karasek. 2nd edition. Peterborough, Ontario: Broadview Press Ltd., 1996. 40-48.

Everyone Has an Obligation to Vote Essay -- Politics Political Essays

Why should I vote? This is a simple question with a long history of debate. My vote doesn't make a difference anyway. I'm too busy. They're all crooks, why should I vote for one of them? There isn't a good choice. Nothing will change. The problem with these reasons is that they actually perpetuate the circumstances keeping would-be-voters away from the polls. Many arguments exist for both sides of the issue, however, I believe more reasons to vote exist than lame excuses. My vote is too insignificant to make a difference anyway. No one's vote "makes no difference," though the difference may be small in comparison to the whole, it is there nonetheless. Through not voting, one is only guaranteeing that one's own opinion will make no difference. If the right isn't exercised, no reason exists for its presence. Countless complaints would arise the instant anyone tried to revoke one's right to vote, therefore, that right must actually be valued. Since that right is valued, then it must be thought to have the power to make a difference, and thus the excuse is invalid. At least put fourth the effort and try to make a difference, no matter how inconsequential every little bit helps. My schedule is too busy; I don't have time to vote. Voting can be done by absentee ballot if one is out of town on Election day. No need to go anywhere or stand in lines, just fill out the ballot and mail it in. Every citizen is eligible to vote by mail if they cannot get to the polls on election day. For some it is often just a matter of convenience. With the absentee ballot, none have an excuse not to vote. It's not hard work, actually it's rather easy, almost too easy. The real reason behind this excuse usually boils down to ... ...o do so. Nonvoters, on the other hand, don't readily see those same benefits, and resist when confronted with them by voters. In conclusion, I feel that everyone has an obligation to vote, a responsibility for the betterment of themselves, their children, their peers and their country. I believe that if more people were educated as to the benefits of voting, voter turnout would dramatically increase, and promote a greater general concern. Only through knowledge will we ever be able to make a difference in the minds of nonvoters to make the choice to act upon their duty to vote. Shortly before he died, James Madison, wrote in a letter to a friend, "A popular government, without popular information, or the means of acquiring it is but a tragedy . . . a people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives."

Iron Crowned Chapter 13

The journey back was uneventful, the most notable thing being the afterglow that now burned between Kiyo and me – something I now questioned the wisdom of. My words had been true: I'd never stopped caring about him. But he'd been right too: what had happened between us back in the glade had come from my own outrage and need to get back at Dorian. That wasn't really a good reason to start a relationship. It wasn't even a really good reason for casual sex, and honestly, I wasn't sure what my status was with Kiyo at the moment. Deanna reappeared and followed along so quietly and obediently that I finally broke the silence to reassure her I'd keep my part of the bargain. Her drab face lit up, and I had to give her credit for not pushing the matter until I settled my other business. Kiyo and I went straight to Dorian's, once we'd crossed back into more familiar territory. My plan was to deal with him first and then jump to the human world. I thought it would be safer to have the crown there. Dorian's guards met me with pleased grins, and while they were surprised to see Kiyo, most seemed to know I'd been off on some secret mission. Coming back alive was a good sign. As soon as we entered the castle, I ordered a messenger to go to Katrice and inform her that I now possessed the Iron Crown and that if she wanted to talk surrender, I was all ears. As Dorian's consort, I had the power to order around his staff – but I had a feeling that would end soon. Kiyo and I were admitted into Dorian's exalted presence out in a courtyard, where he was making a long-tormented courtier named Muran play the harp. I knew for a fact that Muran had had exactly one lesson, and Dorian seemed quite amused watching the guy struggle through. This kind of thing was one of Dorian's greatest pastimes, and usually, even though I felt bad for Muran, it provided me with a little amusement. Today I felt none. When we entered the courtyard, Dorian took one look at our faces and promptly ordered everyone away – even his guards. He still wore that small, carefree smile, but I'd seen a subtle shift in the lines of his face. He knew something was up. His astuteness was what made him such a good ruler. â€Å"Well, here you are,† he said, sitting back in the gentry equivalent of a lawn chair. Except, of course, I'd never seen Home Depot sell anything so ornate and gilded. Normally when I arrived, Dorian kissed me, but his wariness must have held him back. â€Å"As beautiful as ever, my dear, if a little beat up around the edges. I suppose this means you either succeeded or just barely escaped with your life?† â€Å"We succeeded,† I said. â€Å"I've got the crown.† Again – that smile didn't change, but an eager light flickered in Dorian's eyes. He leaned forward. â€Å"I knew it. I knew you could do it.† He studied me up and down, his gaze finally resting on the bag over my shoulder. â€Å"May I see it?† â€Å"No,† I said bluntly. â€Å"No one's going to see it. It's going to be hidden away where it can't be used to start eating up people's lands.† Dorian's eyebrows rose, and he began to speak. I could already imagine a hundred variations of what was going to come out of his mouth, something along the lines of, â€Å"Whatever are you talking about, my dear?† I stepped forward, my control snapping as I cut him off. â€Å"Don't start! Don't even start with some sugar-coated denial. You've known all along what the crown could do! You knew it'd scare Katrice because it meant I – and by default you – could take over her kingdom!† Dorian hesitated, and again, I could guess at the thoughts spinning in his head. Denial or backpedaling? He finally went with the latter. â€Å"And what better way to push her into peace?† he said at last. â€Å"The point of a war like this is to eventually march over and subdue someone anyway. Isn't it much simpler and faster to achieve that same end through another way?† â€Å"A way that rips her land from her!† I exclaimed. â€Å"And sticks me with another fucking kingdom!† I stepped forward and had to forcibly keep myself from getting closer. I was so, so angry. So angry that this man I cared about could do this to me. I was almost angrier at him than Katrice at the moment. From her, at least, I expected betrayal. â€Å"And that's what you would have wanted to do – not just scare her. You would have found some way, some justification for taking that drastic step, just like you got me to go after this in the first place.† Much of the humor had faded from Dorian's face now. â€Å"And would you have gone after it if you'd known?† â€Å"No.† He shrugged. â€Å"Well, there you have it.† I was aghast. â€Å"That's it? How the hell can you be so lax about this? How can you act like it's okay to have tricked me from the beginning – you and that hag? How can you claim to love me and lie to me?† â€Å"I do love you,† he said. â€Å"More than you know. I did this for your own good.† â€Å"You did it for your own good,† I snapped. â€Å"I can't believe I fell for it again. You've done this before, and now I'm done. Done with you. Done with all of this. I don't need your help anymore. I'll finish this fucking war on my own.† â€Å"Eugenie,† warned Kiyo softly. He didn't contradict me, not in front of Dorian, but I understood the subtext. It was the point he'd made before: not to spurn Dorian's military help. Dorian scoffed, sharing that sentiment. â€Å"Of course you need me. If you can get past your hurt pride, you'll see that we're in this together. Use the crown however you want, but be reasonable so that the two of us can finally end this war.† My voice was low and dangerous when I spoke. I was furious that he could be so condescending, that he assumed he could just smooth this all over. â€Å"There is no more us.† â€Å"Now you're just overreacting,† he said. â€Å"We need to finish this war together, and we need to be together, period. We're meant to be.† â€Å"No,† I said. â€Å"We're done. It's over.† I could see from his face that he didn't take that seriously either. He didn't get it. His ego wouldn't allow him to. Before he could respond, Kiyo lightly touched my arm. â€Å"Be careful. Look what you're doing.† I glanced around. The wind was rising and falling, making the apple trees sway back and forth. Dark clouds began to gather above. It wasn't uncommon for my emotions to unconsciously affect the weather, but the fact that I could do it in a land under someone else's control was a sign of how much my power had grown. If Dorian had wanted sunny weather, it should have stayed that way. The realization of what I could do was heady. Nonetheless, I pushed back, calming the air and dissipating the storm clouds. But Dorian wasn't concerned about any of that. His attention had snapped to one small gesture: Kiyo's touch on my arm. I'm not sure how Dorian knew – maybe just the way Kiyo and I stood near each other – but in that moment, Dorian realized what had happened between Kiyo and me. And that, more than any of the arguments here, was what finally broke that laid-back attitude. His face turned to stone. â€Å"Oh,† he said to Kiyo, voice completely devoid of emotion. â€Å"I see. It's your turn again.† Outrage filled me at the insinuation that I could be passed around – a sentiment not unlike what Kiyo himself had expressed. Dorian allowed me no chance to counter. â€Å"Well, if that's how it's going to be, then that's how it's going to be. You may be right that there's no us, but we are still in this war together. My armies are too enmeshed, and I can hardly let Katrice think I'm backing down. Dareth!† Dorian's voice rang out, loudly enough that one of the guards behind the glass doors heard. He swiftly opened the doors and stepped outside. â€Å"Your Majesty?† â€Å"Please escort the Thorn Queen and her pet from the premises. They are denied hospitality. Do not admit them again. Should any of her household come, they may be allowed into my presence.† His eyes flicked to me. â€Å"Send Rurik as your proxy for all military matters. He was doing all the work anyway.† Dorian's attention went back to his guard. â€Å"You have your orders.† Dareth had trouble keeping the shock off his face. I had become a fixture around here, treated nearly the same as Dorian. After a few moments, Dareth composed his features, his loyalty to his king overriding any disbelief he might feel. He turned to me, expression formal. He gestured inside. â€Å"Your Majesty.† The respect was there, but the message was clear. I was being thrown out and could see Dareth practically praying I wouldn't resist. I didn't, and while a dozen parting retorts to Dorian filled my head, I shoved them aside. He thrived on that kind of attention. It would only make him feel more important, and I wanted it made clear that I really was done with him – even though the cold reality of what was happening made my heart break. Kiyo and I began to follow Dareth without comment, but then I paused. Reaching toward my neck, I ripped off the necklace I wore, the one with Dorian's ring. I tossed it at his feet, meeting his gaze with a message I hoped he understood. He did. His answered mine with green fury. â€Å"I said get out of here.† I turned away, letting Dareth take us to the castle's front doors. As soon as we were outside, I heard him giving instructions about the revoking of our hospitality. I imagined the other guards shared his shock, but I walked on without looking back. Once Kiyo and I had traveled far enough that the land shifted and put us in Maiwenn's kingdom, he turned to look at me. â€Å"Are you okay?† he asked, worry in those dark eyes. â€Å"Fine,† I said flatly. I was confident my anger was justified †¦ but leaving Dorian still hurt. He'd dismissed me so easily, once he'd realized I'd slept with Kiyo. I'd expected something †¦ something more emotional, I guess. Some sign that I'd meant more to him than a useful consort. I should have known better. â€Å"Let's go back to Tucson.† I'd kept Volusian and Deanna away while we'd met with Dorian but brought them both back now. I told Deanna to come to my home tomorrow and that we'd start working on her problem then. To Volusian, I gave orders to return to the Thorn Land. He would tell Rurik to go to Dorian and then wait until word came back from Katrice. I had no doubt that word of my being banned from Dorian's would spread around quickly enough; I didn't want to see the reactions of my people when that happened. Kiyo and I crossed back to Arizona at a nearby gateway, going to his place instead of mine so that he could redo my stitches. He was as good as any ‘real' doctor, and I didn't want to have to explain my new cuts and bruises to someone else. A slew of cats and dogs greeted me when I entered his apartment, making me feel oddly nostalgic. â€Å"Are you sure you're okay?† Kiyo asked later. I was lying stomach-down on his bed while his needle went to work on the cut. My cheek rested on a pillow, my only view being his dresser as I tried to stay still. â€Å"Fine.† â€Å"You keep saying that, but what went down was pretty serious.† I could imagine the frown on his face. â€Å"I didn't expect him to pull hospitality.† â€Å"He knows we slept together,† I said. â€Å"Guys get upset when their girlfriends do that.† I'd broken up with Dorian in my head the instant I found out about the deception, but as far as he was concerned, I'd cheated on him. Maybe I had. But betraying someone who'd deceived you didn't seem like that much of a betrayal. â€Å"Yes,† said Kiyo. â€Å"Yes, they do.† He tied off his thread and re-bandaged it all. â€Å"Please, please do not pull these out again. The fact that this isn't infected is a miracle.† â€Å"I won't,† I said, sitting up and carefully putting my shirt back on. â€Å"I don't plan on getting in any fights for a while. I'm staying out of the Otherworld until they really need me, and investigating Deanna's murder should only involve questions. Actually, I'm hoping to pass it off on someone else.† â€Å"She won't like that,† he said. â€Å"It'll get it done,† I said. â€Å"And she'll like that. Probably even faster than if I did it.† I started to stand, but Kiyo caught hold of my hand and kept me down. His expression turned sly. â€Å"You want to stay for a while?† I shook my head, smiling faintly. â€Å"I've got some things to do. Besides, just because we did what we did doesn't mean †¦ well, it doesn't mean things are the same again.† His mischievous smile faded. â€Å"You're right. A lot kind of got rushed. I suppose we should †¦ I don't know. Do you want to go on a date?† â€Å"A date?† I laughed in spite of myself. It seemed so out of place after what we'd been through these last few days. Too ordinary. â€Å"Dinner and a movie?† â€Å"Something like that. I could pick you up later, after your errands are done. Or tomorrow if you need a little more time.† A little more time? Maybe I needed a lot more time. I really didn't know. I might have jumped into bed – figuratively speaking – right after my relationship with Dorian had crumbled, but as I'd said, that didn't mean I was ready to establish something committed with Kiyo again. I'd had sex with Kiyo in the throes of my anger; I had more to think about now that I'd cooled down – and seen Dorian's face. My head told me we were through, but my heart already missed him. â€Å"Tomorrow,† I said. Kiyo nodded. â€Å"Fair enough. I should probably check in at the clinic anyway.† I honestly didn't understand the terms of Kiyo's employment. With his constant visits to the Otherworld, he didn't seem to have any regular schedule with the emergency vet clinic he worked at. He just seemed to show up whenever he wanted. It was more convenient than my own job for maintaining a dual existence between worlds. Confused feelings or not, I let him kiss me good-bye before I left. There was a part of me that wished I could just stay with him, hiding out in his bed and avoiding the rest of the world. Worlds, even. But I had too much to do. The first thing was to get home and change into clean clothes. I arrived to what initially appeared to be an empty house, but the cars in the driveway tipped me off. Sure enough, a minute or so after I walked inside, I heard Tim's bedroom door open. He emerged, wearing only jeans, his black hair standing in all directions. â€Å"Hey, Eug. Didn't expect to see you back.† â€Å"Apparently not. I take it Lara's in there?† He had the grace to look sheepish. â€Å"Ah, well – â€Å" â€Å"Hi, Eugenie.† Lara appeared in the kitchen beside him, her hair as messed up as his. Her clothes – including Tim's â€Å"West Coast Powwow 2002† T-shirt – showed signs of hasty assembly. She was blushing, but her embarrassment turned to surprise as she eyed my appearance. She still wasn't used to seeing me in real life. â€Å"Rough day?† â€Å"Days,† I said. â€Å"Oh †¦ I don't suppose †¦ I don't suppose you'd be interested in hearing about some job offers?† It was the first time she'd been hesitant to bring up work. I think she was finally starting to understand the grueling nature of my life and that back-to-back jobs weren't as easy as checking items off a list. â€Å"Not really. Not for a few days.† â€Å"A few – † She bit off her protest and meekly nodded. I walked around them, heading for my room. â€Å"I've got things to do,† I called back to them. â€Å"So you can go back to †¦ whatever it is you were doing.† Truthfully, I didn't want to do the task hanging before me. I wanted to find whatever baked goods Tim had squirreled away in the kitchen and then take that nap I'd longed for at Kiyo's. But, no. I'd made a promise to Deanna, one I had to honor, no matter how messed up the rest of my life was. So, after cleaning up and changing, I sat on the edge of my bed and picked up my cell phone. I stared at it for a long time, running my fingers along its edges as I procrastinated. Finally, I dialed a memorized number and waited. There was a good chance that no one would answer. I was calling my mom's cell phone, though, which gave me better odds than if I'd called her house number. I knew Roland had asked her to keep her distance from me, but after seeing me at the hospital, my mom would likely resist any directives like that – if only out of fear that I'd lost a limb or something. â€Å"Hello?† My breath caught, and I almost couldn't speak. Just that one word †¦ the sound of her voice. It sent a flood of emotions through me, and I forced myself to remember my mission here. â€Å"Mom?† â€Å"Genie? Are you okay?† she asked promptly. As suspected, she feared limb loss. â€Å"Yeah, yeah, fine. How are you?† â€Å"Fine. Worried about you – like always.† â€Å"I'm okay,† I said. â€Å"Really. But I need †¦ I, um, need to talk to Roland.† Long silence. â€Å"Eugenie – â€Å" â€Å"I know, I know. But I need his help with something. It won't take long. Just one question. Please.† She sighed. â€Å"Oh, baby. I wish I could, but he's made it clear †¦ You know how he feels about everything†¦.† â€Å"It's a human thing,† I said, only partially lying. â€Å"A job in this world. Please, Mom. Just ask him if he'll talk to me for a minute?† More silence, then another sigh. â€Å"Hang on.† I waited, nervously twisting the fabric of my bed's duvet. What would happen? The two most likely options were that either my mom would relay his refusal or they would simply hang up on me. But, no. It was Roland's voice I heard next. â€Å"Yes?† Cold. Wary. After everything that had just happened to me in the Otherworld, hearing his voice nearly broke me. I wanted to sob and beg him to forgive me. Beg him to love me again. My mom had undoubtedly done a fair share of that already, though. She'd clearly had no luck. I had no reason to believe I'd fare any better, so I made my tone match his as I swallowed back tears. Just business here. â€Å"I need a referral,† I said brusquely. â€Å"To a private investigator. One who isn't going to be freaked out by the stuff we deal with. I figured you must know someone.† â€Å"You need a P.I. to deal with some monster?† he asked harshly. â€Å"No, no. It actually should be pretty mundane – all human stuff. But considering what we do †¦ Well, I thought I should have someone prepared in case things get weird.† I didn't have any reason for Deanna to interact directly with a P.I. – or for me even to mention her – but I wanted to be safe. â€Å"Well,† said Roland. â€Å"Let's make it clear: ‘we' don't do the same kinds of things.† With great effort, I bit off the retorts that wanted to burst out of me. I wanted to explain for the hundredth time that I'd never expected – or wanted – to reach this level of involvement in the Otherworld. Again, I opted for directness. â€Å"Please, Roland,† I said simply. â€Å"This is for a human family. Just forget about me for a minute.† When he didn't respond, I thought for sure the anticipated hang-up would come. â€Å"Enrique Valdez,† he said at last. â€Å"You should be able to look up his number. I'll call too and give him a heads-up.† â€Å"Oh, Roland. Thank you so – â€Å" Click. There it was. I pulled the phone away and held it in front of me again, staring at it as though it were to blame for all my problems. A few moments later, I tossed it on the floor. Anger surged through me, quickly fading into sadness. My eyes fell on my travel pack in the corner, the pack containing the Iron Crown. That – and all it represented – was the source of my problems. I fell back onto my bed, staring up at the glow-in-the-dark stars stuck on my ceiling. Roland, Dorian †¦ I was losing the men in my life. Why, why had Dorian done that? Why had he let me fall in love with him, only to play me? Was that what love meant to him? Was that how all his relationships worked? He'd hurt me, hurt me so terribly, and the petty, dark voice that lived inside me said that if sleeping with Kiyo had hurt Dorian in return, it was no more than he deserved. Kiyo. Kiyo was all I had left now, and I didn't know if I could trust him either. Before I could ruminate very much on that particular woe, a cold presence filled the room. I sat up quickly, putting aside all my self-pity as Volusian materialized before me. â€Å"Mistress,† he said. â€Å"Volusian,† I replied. â€Å"What's going on?† â€Å"I've come with a message, as you requested.† As always, his words were emotionless, yet he somehow conveyed the feeling that he resented every one of them. â€Å"Queen Katrice has responded to your news of the Iron Crown.† That was fast, even for the Otherworld. â€Å"And?† â€Å"And, she has agreed to a temporary truce.† I shot up from the bed. â€Å"You have got to be kidding.† Volusian didn't respond. I'd long since learned that any comment I made about him joking or kidding was treated rhetorically. Volusian did not joke or kid. â€Å"It worked,† I murmured, more to myself than him. â€Å"I can't believe it. Dorian was right.† â€Å"Indeed. But I assume my mistress will not resume carnal relations with him.† I made a face. If there was anyone I hated discussing my sex life with more than Jasmine, it was Volusian. â€Å"No. It doesn't matter if he was right. He lied to me to make it happen. He should have told me the whole story. He used half-truth means to achieve his ends.† Volusian nodded solemnly. â€Å"I told you that long ago, that the Oak King's own agenda will always come first. As will the kitsune's. But, unsurprisingly, my mistress chooses to ignore the only sound advice given to her and instead listens to those who use affection for their own purposes.† The word ‘affection' was spoken with particular venom. â€Å"Kiyo and Dorian don't – Look. Stay out of this, okay? I never asked for your ‘sound' advice. Get back to Katrice. How does this truce work exactly?† â€Å"Hostilities will cease until all parties are able to discuss the current situation. How said discussion proceeds will be settled beforehand by messengers. You and the Oak King may meet with her directly, or you may have representatives do the negotiating.† I tried to picture myself in a room with Dorian and Katrice. Lovely. â€Å"And where would this happen? I'm sure as hell not going to the Rowan Land.† â€Å"That too will be negotiated during this truce,† he said. â€Å"A neutral kingdom is the most likely choice. Shaya would like to discuss that with you at your earliest convenience.† â€Å"I'm sure she would. Go back and tell her I trust her to set up whatever arrangements need to be made. If I have to go myself †¦ well, then I go. I'll check in with her soon, but come back if anything happens in the meantime.† Volusian waited, and I gestured him away. â€Å"Go.† He vanished, and I sank onto my bed. My eyes fell on the concealed Iron Crown once again, and I dared to wonder if maybe some good had come out of this whole mess.