Separation of Church and State Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Separation of Church and State - Essay Example American attitudes concerning church-state relations are subject to two conflicting forces. First, Americans are very religious. In comparison with citizens of other industrialized nations, Americans report an extraordinarily high degree of religious belief, association, and practice. This means that, at times, there is a strong enticement on the part of some citizens to transform their religious principles into public policy. Specifically, if religion is a significant influence in a citizen's life, that citizen seems more probable to seek government support of religiously based values. Second, and perhaps, on the contrary, the notion of a constitutional "separation of church and state" (a phrase that appears nowhere in the U.S. Constitution) is an influential symbol in American political discourse. Though there is little agreement relating to the precise meaning of such separation, the principle itself is not normally challenged in American politics. Thus, Separation of church and s tate was definitely not an invention of the Enlightenment political theory that might have prompted similar thoughts in the mind of the respected Thomas Jefferson. Certainly, it misleads to analyze the lively experiment in political terms at all, for the Providence regime was just as certainly and decisively rooted in Protestant theologies as was the Puritans city on a hill.The encompassing description of liberty of conscience was the systematizing principle of society, and it produced a kind of severance of church and state. It is thus significant to keep in mind that the cleavage was meant to protect the church and the soul from the debasing influence of the magistrate, to protect the garden of the church from corruption in the boondocks of the world. The quest for spiritual purity quite factually led into the political realm, where he was basically traditional, if not authoritarian.

Nicodemus and samaritan woman Essay Example for Free

Nicodemus and samaritan woman Essay Nicodemus and samaritan woman BY wtxY16 Summarize, explain and compare the meeting of Jesus with Nicodemus in John chapter 3 with his meeting with the woman at the well in John chapter 4. Introduction In the fourth gospel John we are told about when Jesus has two encounters with two completely different people and he talks to them about God and himself. He teaches them about spiritual water and how he is the messiah. Im going to talk about these two meetings and compare them with one another to see the differences and the imilarities between the two. Jesus and Nicodemus, The meeting with Jesus and Nicodemus is a very interesting one to say the least because Nicodemus is seen to be a very high up Jewish leader, Nicodemus was a member of a very important Jewish group known as the Sanhedrin which is like a council but for Jews Oewish council). The Sanhedrin was in fact in the end of Jesuss life was actually responsible for Jesuss death, which makes it kind of ironic because Jesus is a Jew. Nicodemus wanted to speak to Jesus in private so they rranged a visit in the dark which instantly shows us that Nicodemus doesnt want to be seen with Jesus because he is a member of the Sanhedrin, its as if he is hiding something or frightened about what people will thin if they see him talking to Jesus. The fact Nicodemus goes to Jesus at night makes him a very interesting person as it makes us question why he sees Jesus at night and not in the day its as if he doesnt have faith in Jesus or believes he is better than everyone else and has a higher knowledge of faith because Nicodemus was a teacher of the Jewish law so is an cademic therefore he can not be seen by others talking to Jesus as he has a higher authority. Jesus said to Nicodemus that he was born again which Nicodemus misunderstood because he is thinking with the mind because he is an academic he isnt thinking with the spirit or the heart, which is what Jesus is implying and trying to get across. The talk ends with Nicodemus leaving in the darkness of the night not understanding who Jesus really is because his academic view cant grasp the hidden meaning that Jesus is portraying. Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well. Jesus was sat by a well on a hot day this Samaritan woman came to get some water out of the well, which is weird because no one gets water at the hottest point of the day it suggests that she is lonely or an outcast a sinner. Jesus asked the woman for a drink but she wouldnt give him a drink because Jesus was a Jew and she was a Samaritan. They hate each other. Jesus offered another kind of water to the woman this time it was spiritual water and she said give me that water so I wont go thirsty. Jesus reveals what the woman nas done wrong she has had five husbands and for this the other Samaritans do not accept her and she has become isolated because of this. This sows us that she is not a very religious person as she has sinned many times and she know what her sins are which makes her interesting as she becomes a changed woman as Jesus changes her by providing her with spiritual water which makes her realize actually who Jesus really is. Jesus said I am he the messiah. The woman runs off to get other people to see the messiah. The woman is important as it shows us how even though she has committed many sins and has done wrong she is looking for forgiveness and she finds it threw Jesus who shows her the way. Jesuss meeting with Nicodemus and the Samaritan woman are quite different but shows us how the people who know they are good dont always find the answer its the people who lack the faith and believe and dont believe they are good who find the answer. This is shown clearly between the two Nicodemus and the woman because Nicodemus who is part of the Sanhedrin is a very intelligent guy and knows hat he is, doesnt get his life changed by Jesus because he is thinking with the mind not spiritually because he is intelligent, whereas as the woman has committed many sins in her life and is seeking forgiveness and doesnt know she is good. Even though she hasnt done what god asked and has sinned she is the one that understands out of the two who Jesus really is. You wouldnt expect that from a sinner which make it interesting. The Samaritan woman speaks to Jesus in the light at the hottest time of day its as if she knows what she has done and is a wear other people know and herefore she has got nothing to hide whereas Nicodemus talks to Jesus in the Night in the Darkness which suggests there is something we dont know about him, like he is hiding something a truth he doesnt want us to know. Even though he is more religious than the Samaritan woman. The Samaritan womans life is instantly changed but Nicodemuss isnt in fact we dont know if he ever did change. The woman is open in life and is a waiting the messiah to cleanse her whereas Nicodemus is more reserved and thinks he knows it all he comes across as arrogant.

Essay --

Humans have known how to use the color from plant, animal and mineral around them and utilized in everyday since antiquity. We can see image on the walls caves, they known how to use to decorate container or jewelry body of tribes various. When human prosperous, they known how to use apparel and can use color from natural tinted or decorate for beauty increase Colors derived from plants such as blue from indigo. Red from Sappan core or orange color from annatto seed, color from animals such as red color from lac. Which is still used today (hongthongdang and Srimakajorn, 2006). The popularity on natural dyes are decreased when they have the chemical synthesis because of the chemicals dyes is easy to use, convenient, highly stable, The quantity and type of colors more sufficient for increasing demand in the production of industrial. but at present we found that the chemical dyes some kinds have carcinogen that harmful to affect the dyer, user and environment. Until some countries discourage fabrics dyed with chemical colors and they will popularity turn to natural colors increase. Most farmers like to dye silk from chemical color or synthesis because the color is fresh color, cheap, convenient and fast and decolorization Dyeing silk a very important role because it can add beauty to silk to use more. at the present, consumers have begun to focus on the use of natural materials is the factors in living. Including silk's consumer both Thailand and overseas is turn to like using fabric dye from natural more. Because the color from natural a light color more than chemical color and does not cause irritation to the skin. It also using a local diversity materials are useful and do not cause pollution to the environment. However, farmer... ...% to 5.5%. The feature extraction process does not properties the loss of natural dye type. However normally usually powder color to be dispersed. The user may be inhaled into the body and the resulting harm. So to keep the dye color is used to compress the powder into a pigment. Which can be easily used. Not be dispersed. Storage facilities just keep in opaque plastic bags or amber bottles in this way, it is keep materials of natural scarce is used to dye natural color all year round In this research, we have make developed a powder colors of natural materials has a variety of colors, consistency of color and stable decolorizing. Farmers can use throughout the year, convenient and simple. To replace the use of chemical colors or synthetic dyes. Reduced the purchases of foreign coloring, added value of the product, unique of silk and respond requirement of consumers

Ethical Issues in Management Essay

Every so often we hear the phrase â€Å"Business is business and a cup of tea is a cup of tea†. The contemporary business managers think quite on the contrary. Morals and ethics are the new paradigm and have taken the driving seat in the day to day working of the Management. Ethics contains code of conduct for a person to blend with others keeping in view the righteousness and goodness of the trade; whereas, morals are not primarily written but acted upon by most of society with rectitude. The modern manager faces several issues on the moral and ethical front as more teamwork is required to accomplish collective goals. Fraud, discrimination, nepotism, false marketing in advertorial manner is the name of the game for unethical pseudo professionals and to cope with them always remain a challenge for the socially and ethically responsible manager. The moral values of a professional lie deep within, starting with the core communications between his superiors, peers and subordinates. The levelheaded working style of a manager speaks volume of not only his good ethical behavior but also keen sense of judgment and ability to lead his subordinates in a fair and square manner. An ethically responsible manager not only tells people what to do but shows them how to do it. A Manager must be the role model to other employees of the company; therefore, he is accountable for the training and guidance of his coworkers and associates. The management must device an ethical education management and assessment of behavioral integrity of the employees to extract more productivity (Wankel, 2011). It is rightly said that â€Å"Charity begins at home†, the same is applied to morals of the management. Ethically responsible management practices enforced by a company ensure that the company declines any shady business practices and eventually fraudulent functioning of the employees. The old business model has drastically changed over the years as accountability and transparency have become norms of progressive business (Carroll, 2012). In this context, the burden on the shoulders of whistles blowers have increased radically. They should be encouraged to report organizational misconduct in any form or manifestation. It is the responsibility of the management to encourage its employees to report any fraud or delinquency. Fortification of the whistle blower from coworkers is the responsibility of the company also which in return shall endorse the trust of the employees on the management. There are many example of ethical dilemma which arises due to the fact that the people in power not realize the repercussion of their decisions. Although society gives so much for the business to prosper, mostly none is returned to the society. A classical example would be the industrial waste coming out of a process industry which gravely affects the flora and fauna of the milieu. The decision of the management to spill industrial drainage without treatment is a solemn ethical breach. The environmental agencies have formalized various codes and standards like OSHAS which should have been followed prior to any drainage of detrimental waste water. Ethically responsible management practices and social issues bear close rapport. Hence the management must always have an insight to resolve these issues as they are always involved in dealing with the community directly or indirectly related to the business. The managers may have to take stern decisions to alleviate unethical demeanor yet it is bound to return back in folds.

Lady Macbeth is evil Essay

In my opinion, Lady Macbeth is portrayed by Shakespeare as an evil character, as she shows great ambition, she values power and wealth over human life, and she demonstrates cruelty throughout the play. Firstly, Lady Macbeth’s evil character is demonstrated by the reckless ambition she shows. ‘That no compunctious visitings of nature shake my fell purpose, nor keep peace between the effect and it!’ she states. This shows that Lady Macbeth is willing to do anything to accomplish her evil ambitions, even if it means that she has to ignore human compassion which includes her gender, as she wishes the spirits to â€Å"unsex her†, to make her less like a women and more like a man. In that period of time, women were below men in society. Being able to have such thoughts as a woman under those circumstances at that time proves that Lady Macbeth is evil and her mind is filled with the lust for high ambition. Therefore, Lady Macbeth’s evilness drives out Macbe th’s ambition to become king and murder Duncan. Additionally, the way that Lady Macbeth values power over human life also shows her evil personality, when she says, ‘Have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums and dashed the brains out’. This tells us that she would rather kill her own newborn baby by bashing his brains out, than break her own promise. Women were meant to show a soft, feminine nature in society at that time, however uses such vivid imageries, showing how hungry she is for power, and how cruel and evil she is as a female human being. This quote also tells Macbeth that he is weak and less of a man if he is unable to follow through with their plan, when she would be willing to kill her own blood, which shows the sheer force of her character that leads to Macbeth follow what she says. Furthermore, Lady Macbeth’s evilness is also demonstrated by her inhumanity, as she says, ’Why did you bring these daggers from the place? They must lie there. Go carry them and smear the sleepy grooms with blood.’ This shows that Lady Macbeth is only afraid of getting caught, but not guilty about what she has done, in addition she wants to make it seem even worse by smearing the grooms with blood and p assing the blame to innocent people. In this quote Lady Macbeth is scolding her husband for showing humanity and feeling frightened after performing a murder, which is a feeling that all normal people would have, as she finds this a cowardly behaviour, and this shows  her cold-hearted and evil nature. In conclusion, Lady Macbeth personality is expressed through her large ambition, the way that she desires power, and her cold-bloodedness. Therefore, one thinks that Lady Macbeth is evil.

How to Create Quick Chapter Outlines for School

How to Create Quick Chapter Outlines for School When you read a chapter in a textbook from beginning to end, it’s easy to get swept away in a sea of details and overlook the main ideas. If you’re short on time, you might not even be able to make it through the entire chapter. By creating an outline, you’ll be sifting through the information strategically and efficiently.  Outlining helps you to focus on the most important points and gloss over excess detail. When you make an outline, you’re effectively creating an exam study guide in advance. If you put together a good outline, you won’t even have to return to your textbook when exam time arrives. Reading assignments don’t have to feel like a dull slog. Creating an outline while you read will keep your brain stimulated and help you retain more information. To get started, follow this simple outlining process next time you read a textbook chapter.​​ 1. Carefully Read the First Paragraph of the Chapter In the first paragraph, the author establishes a basic structure for the entire chapter. This paragraph tells you what topics will be covered and what some of the chapter’s main themes will be. It may also include key questions that the author plans to answer in this chapter. Make sure you read this paragraph slowly and carefully. Absorbing this information now will save you a lot of time later. 2. Carefully Read the Last Paragraph of the Chapter Yes, that’s right: you get to skip ahead! In the very last paragraph, the author sums up the chapter’s conclusions about the main topics and themes and may provide brief answers to some of the key questions raised in the first paragraph. Again, read slowly and carefully. 3. Write Down Every Heading After reading the first and last paragraphs, you should have a broad sense of the chapter’s content. Now, return to the beginning of the chapter and write down the title of each section heading. These will be the largest headings in the chapter and should be identifiable by a big, bold font or bright color. These headings reflect the chapter’s main topics and/or themes. 4. Write Down Every Subheading Now its time to head back to the beginning of the chapter. Repeat the process from Step 3, but this time, write down the subheadings beneath every section heading.  The subheadings reflect the main points the author will make about each topic and/or theme covered in the chapter. 5. Read the First and Last Paragraph of Every Subheading Section, and Make Notes Are you sensing a theme yet? The first and last paragraphs of each subheading section typically contain that section’s most important content. Record that content in your outline. Don’t worry about using complete sentences; write in whatever style is easiest for you to understand. 6. Read the First and Last Sentence of Every Paragraph, and Make Notes Return to the beginning of the chapter. This time, read the first and last sentence of every paragraph. This process should reveal significant details that might not be included elsewhere in the chapter. Write down the important details you find in each subheading section of your outline. 7. Quickly Skim the Chapter, Looking for Bold Terms and/or Statements For the final time, flip through the entire chapter, skimming each paragraph for terms or statements that the author emphasizes with bold or highlighted text. Read each one and record it in the proper section in your outline. Remember, every textbook is a little different and may require a slightly modified outlining process. For example, if your textbook includes introductory paragraphs beneath every section heading, make a point of reading those in full and including a few notes in your outline. Your textbook might also include a table of contents at the beginning of each chapter, or better yet, a chapter summary or review.  When you finish your outline, you can double check your work by comparing it to these sources. You’ll be able to make sure your outline isn’t missing any of the major points highlighted by the author. At first, it might seem strange to skip over sentences. (â€Å"How can I understand the content if I dont read all of it?†) Counterintuitive though it may feel, this outlining process is a simpler, faster strategy for understanding what you read. By starting with a broad view of the chapter’s main points, you’ll be able to better comprehend (and retain) details and their significance. Plus, if you have extra time, you can always go back and read every line in the chapter from beginning to end. You’ll probably be surprised by how well you already know the material.

Any realistic and achievable environmental ethic must be based on a weak anthropocentrism

Any realistic and achievable environmental ethic must be based on a weak anthropocentrism Introduction Effective maintenance of environmental ethics is one of the main pillars that support harmonious existence of organisms within an ecosystem. However, this view has been affected by the practice of anthropocentrism which purports that human being is the most valuable and important factor in the universe.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Any realistic and achievable environmental ethic must be based on a ‘weak anthropocentrism’ specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It is without doubt that while anthropocentrism is widely supported as a major resource for human beings, it has significant implications.1 I fully agree with the latter perspective since the attitude which the idea of anthropocentrism creates gives human beings the potential to exploit resources. This is perhaps the main reason why there is widespread and unsustainable system of resource exploitation which has resulted into massive extin ction of animals such as Great Auk and Dodo among others. In addition, this form of exploitation has led to massive degradation of biological resources. In spite of the general consensus that anthropocentrism is unacceptable, it is agreeable that weak anthropocentrism is quite critical since it provides a platform that enables attainment of robust environmental ethics. In addition, it eliminates the incongruity of ascribing intrinsic worth on non-human subjects as explored in this paper. It is against this backdrop that this paper seeks to critically analyze the perceived inconsistencies of both strong anthropocentrism and weak anthropocentrism.Advertising Looking for essay on environmental studies? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Additionally, the paper will discuss alternative paradigms of weak anthropocentrism and explain how it enables realistic achievement of environmental ethics. Anthropocentrism It is a fact t hat the past, present and future welfare of human beings can never be separated from their relationship with the natural environment bearing in mind that both of these two aspects are interdependent. The current practice that supports the implementation of anthropocentrism has raised numerous concerns and questions on how best human beings should relate with their environment. McNab indicates that this creates multiple ethical frameworks.2 It is important to highlight that anthropocentrism offers an approach which suggests that human beings should be in control of nature. This goes against non-anthropocentric paradigms and related conceptual counterparts that suggest that there is need to appreciate nature. Moreover, according to the arguments posed by Pluhar, it can be attained through the processes of deep ecology, ecocentrism and biocentism.3 Pluhar further indicates that there are ardent supporters of non-anthropocentrism and anthropocentrism who espouse those that critic, point out their flaws and oppose their tenet flaws.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Any realistic and achievable environmental ethic must be based on a ‘weak anthropocentrism’ specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It is indeed plausible to mention the fact that anthropocentrism exclusively adheres to human perspective of pleasure and happiness. According to an analysis by conducted by Wolloch, it is evident that non-human animals as well as the non-human world are largely concerned with the production of human resources and factors of instrumental value.4 One would agree with the widespread and strong rejection of this view by animal liberation groups led by Tom Regan, Peter Singer and others. This group views and compares anthropocentrism to sexism, prejudice and filled with unwarranted bias. My view is that anthropocentrism might be objectionable since it gives humans the opportunity to exploit animals and othe r resources for the sake of trivial gains. In fact, some even use animals for experiments with little regard to the suffering which animals go through. Besides, various views held on anthropocentrism by businesses have caused major environmental issues and concerns. Over the last two decades, unacceptable business ethics have turned out to be a major facet in assimilation of a competitive advantage at the local and global market. This has been assimilated as a major shenanigan by the business managements even as the understanding of the resultant impacts on the environment and resources become more evident.Advertising Looking for essay on environmental studies? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More As a result, the economic effects have been very profound with analysts predicting future doom if the problem is not addressed promptly. Poor business ethics form one of the most important factors that negatively affect the national and global economy. This has been especially evident in the recent past whereby more business units tend to assimilate unethical operational practices that largely promote their short term gains while inducing long term dents to the economy. The last two decades have seen some of the most remarkable destructions of the natural systems in the history of the globe. Equally important have been the heightening calls for greater efforts to reduce the negative impacts of environmental degradation. Whereas many individuals as well as business enterprises understand the role played by the natural systems in facilitating their overall production capacity, little efforts have been put in place to counter the same problem. According to Pluhar, the modern market pla ce has forced most of the businesses to view environmental resources as being free and therefore indefinite in nature.5 However, this is not true as exhibited by the current revelation of the finite status of the petroleum resources. As a result, there has been a strong withdrawal of resources from the natural environment with little focus to their resilience capacities. Though it has been viewed as a minor shenanigan under the business practices of minimizing their overall costs, the economic growth is highly unsustainable in the long term bearing in mind that there is no guarantee of the same products in future. In addition to the above facts, many industries have been directly associated with vast pollution of the natural environment. In a complex tie up, the US has over the years failed to ratify the Kyoto Protocol, a notion that has been interpreted to give the business units a direct leeway to act unethically on the same line. Due to the trans-boundary nature of the air pollut ants, the impacts are felt on a global scale with US equally included. Global warming, resilience of the tropical diseases, and harsh climatic conditions has prompted the need for many nations to shift their resources towards addressing these disasters as opposed to concentrating on its economic development. According to the observations made by Sztybel, pollution of the environment has been a major player in reducing the ability of the economic resources that are needed to holistically support the fast enlarging economies of the various countries across the world.6 For instance, water pollution usually interfere with the stable nature of water resources since it reduces the usability of water resources for domestic purposes as well as the demand and pre-treatment processes before being put to industrial use. Consequently, there have been further increases in the overall cost of production and subsequent poor competition of the manufactured products at the market place. Weak anthrop ocentrism It is agreeable that anthropocentrism is a disaster to environmental ethics. However, my view concurs with that of Sztybel. The latter author is of the opinion that discarding this process to embrace non- anthropocentrism for satisfactory environmental ethics is not the solution.7 Rather, we can adopt a weak anthropocentrism. Boesch uses Henry David Thoreau’s view on nature and posits that it has more than a simple instrumental value. In fact, it is independent of human consciousness.8 In my perspective, this perspective has a direct correlation to certain religious beliefs and practices especially those drawn from Jainism and Hinduism. these two religions value nature and explicitly advocate for safe practices that may not harm the environment. Utilitarianism While this theory has been concerned with pain and pleasure, animal liberation members such as Peter Singer use it to indicate that animals, just like human beings, are capable of experiencing pleasure and pai n and as such, should be treated with the much needed respect9. A redefinition can also be made on the central principle of the theory to include non-animal entities. However, critics of the theory are of the view that some of the species in an environment neither experience negative nor positive effects. While considerations should be made to determine the balance of interests and pleasure between human beings and the environment, weak anthropocentrism is critical since it provides the rule of utilitarianism. In other words, it allows human activities to continue, but encourages sustainable development and organic farming among other practices. Aggreably, my view is that conceptual approaches which weigh the consequences of human actions on the immediate environment should be embraced. Kant’s ethical theory While Kant perceives nature as a phenomenon that has no intrinsic value, one cannot fail to see the areas in his theory that support weak anthropocentrism. It is true fro m his perspective that trees and other non-human animals do not have any inherent worth.10 Kant’s perspective can largely be used as a hypothetical model of evaluating actions and determining whether they are good or bad. By being categorically imperative, we are tasked to universalize actions by answering questions whether others would act in a similar manner if faced with similar situations. Categorical imperative as Kant argued should be driven out of motivation and intent for one to be considered dutiful. Deontological ethics The philosophy was developed in early 1930s by Broad. D. who emphasized that people’s actions should be judged according to their obligation to duty.11 In particular, the philosophy contrasts the previous consequentialist perspective by emphasizing that an action should be considered good if only the underlying will is fine. It is important to mention that Broad’s consideration of deontological ethics was greatly shaped by the previous work of Emmanuel Kant who brought out the first tenet of deontological philosophy of categorical imperative.12 Under this consideration, individuals should always act in a manner that quantifies their actions into universal laws. This notion has made the philosophy to be of great importance in the practice of weak anthropocentrism and conservation of the environment because people tend to review their actions to ensure that the outcome is positive and based on acceptable virtues. Deontological ethics further advocate for non-aggression principle by indicating that the ultimate intent of such actions is to cause harm and therefore the actions are wrong.   This is in line with the natural law which encourages conservation and rejects environmental abuse. According to the ideas presented by Acampora, deontological philosophy give exceptions to this non aggressive orientation by pointing towards weak anthropocentrism in the sense that it is acceptable to use resources when in need and for whatever reasons.13 The tenet which elicited greatest debate in the 20th century is the consideration of categorical imperative when dealing with the environment. Under this tenet, Andrew reports that people are allowed to implement anthropocentrism if its intention is to cause greater good.14 A good example is the felling of trees to provide fuel for energy. However, the perspective sharply contrasts with existentialism which refers to nature as unique and therefore important. This philosophy greatly informed and guided leaders, managers and workers on the need to develop the correct values and attitudes towards the environment. Viable ethical approaches Libertarian extensions Libertarian extension is an important approach that calls for equal rights to everything existing in a community. In an environmental understanding, human and non human aspects are part of a community and have an ethical worth. The social movements and civil liberty approach which requires harmony to be established between the products considerations of reality appears to be more promising in the sense that it factors the demands of human beings and non-human animals. Andrew agrees with the social movements’ consideration that indeed anthropocentrism presents a high level of uncertainty to the environment and therefore the need to take effective precaution. In addition, their emphasis on ecological sustainability presents their inter-generational concerns for mankind. On the other hand, though governments have the overriding forces in influencing the use of biotechnology, it is no doubt that their supporters are fast becoming highly polarized and may eventually face mass resistance as more people through unions and social movements join the fight. Ecological extensions All abiological and biological entities have a fundamental interdependence which largely calls for the recognition of their rights.15 While addressing the problem of strong ecological extensions, Serpell argue s that there is great omission of environmental ethical concerns.16 Serpell further argues that though feeding people is indeed very crucial, it is more dangerous to threaten the survival of animals and resources because of two core factors. First, the expected negative results are unclear and therefore making it even harder to prepare for it. Then the resulting problem may indeed obscure the benefits that had been accrued and perhaps form an expanded basis. For example, the act of deforestation results to ecological breakdown. The resulting implication could include climate change, irregular weather patterns, and loss of biodiversity which are very hard to restore. Conclusions I have held the opinion over the years that embracing weak anthropocentrism is the best way to go and that opponents of this notion are not genuine. In particular, the reports and pictures of environmental destruction strengthen my conclusion. As a result, my mind became highly polarized towards anthropocentr ism as opposed to holistically analyzing it and its possible negative implications. However, this study has effectively revealed new insights on related problems that should be considered simultaneously if the current environmental problems are to be addressed effectively. There is need to assess the possible future impacts of strong anthropocentrism in society before it can be considered safe. In addition, it is crucial to involve all the stakeholders in the society by incorporating their concerns to gather greater support at all levels of environmental conservation. In order to effectively address this perspective, it must be viewed from the global point of view as opposed to the localized outlook. Finally, I will seek to create a forum that can bring together major stakeholders who will dialogue on key issues and therefore harmonize their understanding on the problem. From this forum, I will seek to expand the involvement of the different professionals and consequently make key r ecommendations that can address environmental issues. Bibliography Acampora, R, Anthropocentrism and Its Discontents: The Moral Status of Animals in the History of Western Philosophy, Journal of the History of Philosophy, vol. 44, no. 3, 2006, pp. 480-481. Boesch, C, Away from ethnocentrism and anthropocentrism: Towards a scientific understanding of what makes us human, Behavioral and Brain Sciences, vol. 33, no. 2-3, 2010, pp. 86-87. Coward, M, Against anthropocentrism: the destruction of the built environment as a distinct form of political violence, Review of International Studies, vol. 32, no. 3, 2006, pp. 419-420. Gabriel, AK, Beyond Anthropocentrism in Barths Doctrine of Creation: Searching for a Theology of Nature, Religious Studies and Theology, vol. 28, no. 2, 2009, pp. 175-187. McNab, K, Anthropocentrism: are humans the centre of existence?† Peace Research, vol. 34, no. 1, 2002, pp. 113-116. Pluhar, EB, Non-Obligatory Anthropocentrism, Journal of Agricultural and Env ironmental Ethics, vol. 13, no. 3-4, 2000, pp. 329-330. Serpell, JA, Anthropocentrism and Its Discontents: The Moral Status of Animals in the History of Western Philosophy, Bulletin of the history of medicine, vol. 82, no. 1, 2008, pp. 219-220. Sztybel, D, Taking Humanism Seriously: Obligatory Anthropocentrism, Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics, vol. 13, no. 3-4, 2000, pp. 181-203. Wolloch, N, Animals, Extraterrestrial Life and Anthropocentrism in the Seventeenth Century, The Seventeenth Century, vol. 17, no. 2, 2002, pp. 235-253. Footnotes 1 K McNab Anthropocentrism: are humans the centre of existence?, Peace Research, vol. 34, no. 1, 2002, pp. 113-116. 2 McNab pp. 115 3 EB Pluhar Non-Obligatory Anthropocentrism, Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics, vol. 13, no. 3-4, 2000, pp. 329-329. 4 N Wolloch Animals, Extraterrestrial Life and Anthropocentrism in the Seventeenth Century, The Seventeenth Century, vol. 17, no. 2, 2002, pp. 235-253. 5 Pluhar pp. 329 6 D Sztybel Taking Humanism Seriously: Obligatory Anthropocentrism, Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics, vol. 13, no. 3-4, 2000, pp. 181-203. 7 Ibid 8 C Boesch Away from ethnocentrism and anthropocentrism: Towards a scientific understanding of what makes us human, Behavioral and Brain Sciences, vol. 33, no. 2-3, 2010, pp. 86-7. 9 R Acampora Anthropocentrism and Its Discontents: The Moral Status of Animals in the History of Western Philosophy, Journal of the History of Philosophy, vol. 44, no. 3, 2006, pp. 480-481. 10 R Acampora, pp.48- 481. 11 Boesch pp. 87 12 R Acampora Anthropocentrism and Its Discontents: The Moral Status of Animals in the History of Western Philosophy, Journal of the History of Philosophy, vol. 44, no. 3, 2006, pp. 480-481. 13 Acampora pp. 480 14 AK Gabriel, Beyond Anthropocentrism in Barths Doctrine of Creation: Searching for a Theology of Nature, Religious Studies and Theology, vol. 28, no. 2, 2009, pp. 175-187 15 M Coward, Against anthropocentrism: the destruction of the built environment as a distinct form of political violence, Review of International Studies, vol. 32, no. 3, 2006, pp. 419-419. 16 JA Serpell , Anthropocentrism and Its Discontents: The Moral Status of Animals in the History of Western Philosophy, Bulletin of the history of medicine, vol. 82, no. 1, 2008, pp. 219-220

Writing Tips Metaphors and Similes - Get Writing Tips with Proofed!

Writing Tips Metaphors and Similes - Get Writing Tips with Proofed! Writing Tips: Metaphors and Similes Metaphors and similes are common in creative writing, and both use comparisons to tell us something about the world. However, there are some important distinctions between the two. So, before you dive into the seas of literature, let us offer the life jacket of knowledge as we explain the differences between metaphors and similes. We will apologize in advance for all the nautical imagery, but we do enjoy a theme. What Are Metaphors? Metaphors are words or phrases applied in a non-literal way to make a comparison. For example: The winter sea was a dark blue wasteland stretching to the horizon. Here, the metaphor is calling the sea a â€Å"dark blue wasteland.† The sea is not literally a wasteland; if it were, it would be considerably drier. However, by making this comparison, we can suggest that the winter sea shares qualities with a wasteland (e.g., being inhospitable and empty). The essence of a metaphor is that, even though it is not literal, it is stated as if it were. It is not just a comparison: We are saying that the sea is a wasteland, which looks like a literal statement on the surface, so we have to know that it is a metaphor before we can understand it. Metaphors are common in poetry and literature, but they’re also in some everyday phrases. If we say we are â€Å"all at sea,† for instance, we mean that we’re confused, not literally that we are lost on the ocean! Even the term â€Å"table leg† is technically a metaphor, since â€Å"leg† originally applied to limbs only, but it so common now we don’t even notice it. It is therefore known as a dead metaphor. What Are Similes? While metaphors involve suggesting that something is something else, similes are more modest. If we use a simile, we are only saying that something is like something else. For example: The sky rumbled like an argument in the heavens. Here, we’re not suggesting that there was actually an argument going on; we are simply saying that the thunder reminds us of an argument. Similes therefore use terms such as â€Å"like† or â€Å"as if† to indicate they are not literal (e.g., â€Å"the wind seemed angry† or â€Å"we ate as if we were starving†). Metaphors vs. Similes Ultimately, you don’t need to know the differences between metaphors and similes to use them. However, knowing this is essential if you’re writing about literature for a college paper! Remember: A metaphor involves claiming that something is something else to make a comparison A simile only involves claiming that something is like something else

Employment-At-Will Doctrine Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Employment-At-Will Doctrine - Essay Example However, if the matter is personal and not related to business the employer has no cause for firing John. Dismissing John violates "Montana good cause rule" because the employer does not have appropriate reason to fire John since personal issues should be dragged into business. The use of Aristotle theory of Eudaimonism will instil a sense of morality to John and impact on the language he uses with others (Twomey, 2009). The employer should warn John against abuse in order to avoid hurting customers. The employer can dismiss Jim for inciting his colleagues’ to boycott business activities. The public policies protect employees against dismissal for engaging in issues of public interest. Workers are entitled to better pay hence they should express their discontent whenever they feel the employer is acting unfairly (Mader-Clark, 2013). The employer should meet with the employees and discuss the issue of bonuses and commissions and agree on the best rate for both the employees and the organization according to utilitarianism theory. The employer can dismiss Ellen for abusing her bosses. However, statutory exceptions prohibit employers from taking retaliatory action against Ellen hence the employer may face legal charges on retaliatory claim. Employers should show fairness to employees when carrying out promotion of workers. According to rights theory, the employer deserves respect irrespective of their level of education or other issues (Melden, 2008). The employer can dismiss Bill for using the organization’s property for personal gain (Mader-Clark, 2013). However, the statutory protection against such action, hence the employer should warn Bill adequately and threaten to sue him if he continues misusing business property. The employer cannot dismiss the secretaries for their protest against the installation of

Letter of Complaint Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Letter of Complaint - Essay Example Despite the urgency of the situation, I could not move the car. I have to confess that it was embarrassing, and I did not anticipate this to happen to me while driving such a well-established car brand. I was also extremely disappointed since none of the cars I have driven over the last years has given me this kind of problem. We called, in a tow truck, to help us move the car to the Auto-world Frontier service station. Our conversation with the dealership’s advisor went well enough as she accepted that the company had, indeed, neglected to carry out ground clearance and that this model was meant for German roads. I left the car there for the replacement of the oil chamber. The insurance company will cover this bill. I was informed to pick the car up after two days. As I returned to pick up the car, the advisor informed me that while the chamber’s replacement had gone off smoothly, the oil was still leaking when the engine was started. I was asked to call at two PM since the mechanics were still on the car. When I called, his phone was off. The landline number went through, only to be informed that the advisor was on a two-week leave and that I should get in touch with a Mr. Brandon. Brandon, for his part, told me that he would call me back after twenty minutes with the status on my car. When he did, he informed me that my car was badly damaged and that the engine required repair. The insurance company, apparently, would not cover the cost for repairs. No one between the insurance company and the service centre seems willing to take responsibility for my car’s damage. I would like to ascertain that the fault lies directly with VW and its ground clearance design for the model of my car. It is also worth noting that my car was not running when my misfortune occurred, and thus, the incident might not have been caused by an engine trouble before the incident. I would

Describe and analyze Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Describe and analyze - Essay Example Being the biggest democratic country and the second most heavily populated country in the world, India’s progress is watched with curiosity by scholars and economists. Many people believe that India may become another superpower in the world in near future itself. It should be noted that the recent recession has caused less problems to India’s economy even though it caused many problems in America and Europe. Prominent companies are targeting India as a manufacturing destination because of the availability of cheap labor in India. Distance is no more a problem for overseas companies in targeting India because of the development of internet related business strategies. Offshoring and outsourcing like new business principles and the development of internet related business technologies helped India immensely in changing its destiny from a poor country to a prosperous country. Neither technology nor the dimensions of distance are a problem for India as far as development i s concerned. This paper analyses India’s dimensions of distance, institutions, industrial clusters, and diffusion of technology. â€Å"Distance between two countries can manifest itself along four basic dimensions: cultural, administrative, geographic, and economic† (Ghemawat, Distance Still, p.138). ... For Indians, Pakistan is a different country culturally, politically and economically whereas China is a different country in terms of politics and culture. So these countries are not in good relations with India even though they are geographically close to India. On the other hand, geographically distant countries such as America and Europe are good trade partners of India. â€Å"Economists often rely on the so-called gravity theory of trade flows, which says there is a positive relationship between economic size and trade and a negative relationship between distance and trade† (Ghemawat, Distance Still, p.138). Traditional economic principles says that it is easy to increase global trade between countries of proximity. However, India is a country, which has trade relations with even distant countries. It should be noted that Europe and America are some of the distant regions from India; yet India has strong economic relationships with these countries. In fact, India is a pro minent member country of the Group of 20 (G-20) developing nations, even though majority of the members of this group are from Europe and America. â€Å"The largest IT services markets are the most advanced economies, whose per capita incomes make them distant economically from India† (Ghemawat, The Cosmopolitan, p.95). For example, America and majority of the European countries are much more developed than India. These regions or countries are the largest IT services market in the world. The per capita income these countries are much higher than that of the Indians. However, it should not be forgotten that India is one of the largest service IT provider and the second largest country in terms

Discussion board Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Discussion board - Assignment Example Laws to force people to reveal encryption keys are still comparatively new and contentious. limitations are ease of access to children and insight of anonymity has given predators of sexual a way to reach child victims in the internet, the vulnerability of computers to the hacker attacks is a constant prompt of security issues surrounding the data stored digitally, and lastly, since the computers control almost all our infrastructure this makes the technology an appetizing target for the terrorists (Saferstein, 2011). 2. The document is reliable to examination in criminal and civil cases in that it avails a very broad and can include information from just about any software program. WordPerfect and Microsoft Word processing programs typically producing text based files like documents which are typed and correspondence. These programs and other host of word-processing programs have substituted the typewriter and are the common sources of evidence in the cases of criminals, especially those who are involved in white-collar crime. There are also information related to the personal and business finance which are significant in white-collar crime and same financial investigation. Programs like QuickBooks and Peachtree accounting packages which can run the whole financial of retail business. Likewise, it is not easy to get an individual bank account records in a computer being managed by the personal software like Microsoft Money and Quicken. More, over the criminals may use these programs as well as a pplications of spread sheets to track bank accounts stolen from the unsuspecting victims. Therefore computer forensic examiners make acquainted with these programs, the way data is stored, recovering data and reading the data (Saferstein, 2011). 3. There are mainly two web browsers: Internet Explorer and Firefox. There features are; two Web browsers use a caching system for the expedition of Web browsing and

Sustainability in Food production and fair trade Essay

Sustainability in Food production and fair trade - Essay Example It also increases inequality in the distribution of wealth and income. Secondly, at the community level, discontinuing the food supply and food production expansion has varied effects such as loss of productive employment to the local communities in the agro ecological zones. Thirdly, national level suffers. The nutritional status of citizens may be affected, cut foreign exchange earnings from agriculture, divert country’s resources to import food and may frustrate a nation and prevent her from exploiting comparative advantage. In addition, it brings about uncertainty as the levels of agricultural investment decreases. According to Chadwick and Marsh (61), despite the increase in food production per person in the world, most countries especially those in the sub – Saharan Africa have in the recent decades faced the challenges brought about by production fall in foodstuff. The world food problem has been attributed to the changes of production, income, growth, demand and trade. Fair Trade Issues According to Zaccai (15), fair trade refers to partnership between traders and the producers wrapped under equality and fairness. In most cases, traders are based in the developed countries while the producers are in the underdeveloped or even developing countries.

Discussion board Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Discussion board - Assignment Example Laws to force people to reveal encryption keys are still comparatively new and contentious. limitations are ease of access to children and insight of anonymity has given predators of sexual a way to reach child victims in the internet, the vulnerability of computers to the hacker attacks is a constant prompt of security issues surrounding the data stored digitally, and lastly, since the computers control almost all our infrastructure this makes the technology an appetizing target for the terrorists (Saferstein, 2011). 2. The document is reliable to examination in criminal and civil cases in that it avails a very broad and can include information from just about any software program. WordPerfect and Microsoft Word processing programs typically producing text based files like documents which are typed and correspondence. These programs and other host of word-processing programs have substituted the typewriter and are the common sources of evidence in the cases of criminals, especially those who are involved in white-collar crime. There are also information related to the personal and business finance which are significant in white-collar crime and same financial investigation. Programs like QuickBooks and Peachtree accounting packages which can run the whole financial of retail business. Likewise, it is not easy to get an individual bank account records in a computer being managed by the personal software like Microsoft Money and Quicken. More, over the criminals may use these programs as well as a pplications of spread sheets to track bank accounts stolen from the unsuspecting victims. Therefore computer forensic examiners make acquainted with these programs, the way data is stored, recovering data and reading the data (Saferstein, 2011). 3. There are mainly two web browsers: Internet Explorer and Firefox. There features are; two Web browsers use a caching system for the expedition of Web browsing and

The Most Important Events during the Period 1900-1940 Essay

The Most Important Events during the Period 1900-1940 - Essay Example World War I, women suffrage, mass production, and economic prosperity are among the most remarkable events which cause great worldwide disorder yet through them, human beings discovered the capacity to transform in character and hope to impact progress either by individual or collective means. In the past, even dating to the most ancient of ages, woman had constantly been perceived as a man’s unequal counterpart or more specifically, the type whose strengths and potentials were often underestimated compared with those of the dominant male opposite. Centuries prior to the 1900-1940 span had witnessed women under conditions of weakness and low self-worth having been subject to the rules and ways by which men desired to materialize their ideas of civilization and societies in which women were only allowed and expected to take a meager part of. This suppression which chiefly denied women of confidence and dues to express their preferences in the manner of living, by course of natu re, led to women suffrage which began as early as the 1820s by advocates of women in support of free secular education, abolition of slavery, birth control, and divorce laws that were more flexible in terms to favor both parties. As it proceeds for more than 100 years, women suffrage had met with success of being taken to a level where powerful men, like Pres. Woodrow Wilson in 1918 believed that the nation is of dire necessity of it during wars as â€Å"war measure† (USA History). Thus, the federal women suffrage required amendment in order to redefine and seek extension to the legal rights of women accordingly. At this stage, it is essential to note then that such event brought about a turning point wherein women were empowered to fight for their freedom of choice and raise arguments concerning equality with men so they eventually reached the extent of realizing that they could profess just as men did in fields such as of education, science, engineering, commerce, and medic ine besides or instead of sole confinement to domestic tasks. In the words of C. Eastman, an active campaigner: â€Å"The problem of women’s freedom is how to arrange the world so that women can be human beings, with a chance to exercise their infinitely varied gifts in infinitely many ways, instead of being destined by the accident of their sex to one field of activity – housework and child-raising.† Though the World War I followed a period of peace with extremely destructive measures by former world powers, its significance is greatly proven through the height of social and political awareness at the time as majority of people the world over exhibited a sense of nationalism, unified contempt against imperialism, advanced degree of militarism and ideals thereof, along with the notion that rival alliances would require another war prior to settlement (Zaide & Zaide 335). Apparently, these underlying grounds stirred the nations involved to action, thereby enablin g them to think critically and learn the essence of courage, national liberty, as well as suffering with

Political Culture of Russia Essay Example for Free

Political Culture of Russia Essay The nature of Russian political culture and by extension its politics has been shaped and molded over the previous centuries. While we can by no means attribute its entire political culture to a single event or time period, we also can’t point to a time period, say the Soviet time, and draw our perception of Russia’s political culture from that alone. That being said, the totalitarian nature of the Soviet State is by partial means attributable to Marxist-Leninist philosophies. The nature of Russian political culture was (and still is in many regards) authoritarian. Throughout Russia’s history there has been an authoritarian attitude in how the country should be ruled. The state was always there, the state was behind forced modernization policies from Peter the Great through Joseph Stalin, and today Vladimir Putin. Russia for the large part of its history been just as vast as it is today. The sheer size of it requires a centralized power to keep regional autonomy down. Every country that followed or still follows Marxist doctrine did (does) so with different flavors of Marxism, none of which are exactly and entirely what Karl envisioned. China and Russia were rivals in several policy areas throughout the 20th century. The same dichotomy can be seen between China and its smaller (communist) Southeastern Asian neighbors such as Cambodia and Vietnam. Communist countries were partially authoritarian because of Marxism. The nature of establishing and perpetuating a command economy demanded authoritarianism. While China has wiggled out of many of the responsibilities and pitfalls of running a command economy by establishing market-driven economic reform, it remains authoritarian. This illustrates that while the key components of Marxism are abandoned, the system and its actors continue to grasp to power as it seeks to adapt and integrate itself into the world system. This is counter to previous attempts to establish a parallel world system behind Soviet ideology. Bottom line: the only way a Communist system can take continued hold and root itself into the political system is through authoritarianism. Not to mention the guise under which many of the Soviet Republics were brought into the fold and behind the Iron Curtain. These weren’t spontaneous Communist Revolutions toppling several governments around the world; it was the Russian’s moving in after having kicked the Germans out and act ing marionette to their new puppets. If it were populist support that kept Communist governments in power around the world one would not see states efforts to cripple freedoms of the press, of assembly, and of religion. Current Communist governments fear a slippery slope, and perhaps rightfully so, where an inch of social freedom given would mimic Mikhail Gorbachev’s reforms in the late 1980’s and lead to an eventual collapse. Russia’s Political culture is more authoritarian than a lot of countries around the world, but today it is a functioning quasi-democracy with authoritarian overtones. This goes to show that in the right circumstances, Russian’s can and will subject themselves to semi-authoritarian rule. Under other circumstances, such as the situation in the 1990’s that followed the collapse of the Soviet system, it’s a wonder that authoritarianism didn’t come back in force. Putin still governs with legitimacy at the front of his mind, and hasn’t suspended the constitution or ruled by decree. True democracy can and will eventually be realized, but realistically this is only possible through generational replacement and hard, slow change. The privatization process can be viewed with much rightful criticism, it didn’t take into account Russians lack of understanding of the West’s definition of ‘rational economic behavior’, nor did it find a happy middle ground between the two extremes of command economy and wild-west capitalism. What it did do was change the rules of the game being played. We can fault the broad shock therapy method for any number of shortcomings in the economic policy in the Russian arsenal, but it accomplished one incredibly more important goal. It changed the rules of the game. People who knew the rules (or knew which new rules were coming), mobsters, party officials, and Western interests, leapt upon the opportunity to make money hand over fist. This is still a vastly improved scenario as opposed to gradual economic reform, with the state greedily holding onto the â€Å"commanding heights† of the economy, and leaving the unprofitable sectors open for private investment and development. The large majority of the Russian people didn’t have a firm grasp on private property, or selling one of two cows to buy a bull, or how to ‘invest’ with these vouchers. The sharks ate them up in the incredibly free market. This is a point that was necessary for the facilitation o f real capitalism and eventually democracy in Russia. How does one instill in its population the concepts that go hand in hand with capitalism? My answer would be to force them to adapt to a changed environment. Gradual change would’ve perpetuated for a longer time the stagnation and poor cost-management of the Soviet period. An aggressive and immediate changing of the environment began the painful instilling of capitalist values into the populace and government. After the dust cleared and a new millennia unveiled, Vladimir Putin inherited a new Russia, with new problems, and an semi-regulated albeit capitalist system. I also reject the notion that a stake in a company translates to a certain level of commitment and productivity associated with it. I can think of just in my own history a number of bosses with a small level of commitment to the company, they weren’t there to operate or manage, they were there to own. That being said I’ve also experienced several hands-on owners, who corrected the techniques of severa l employees to their liking. My other inference comes from day-traders on the Stock Market. People with no vested interest in a company putting their money up because they think the stock will go up, not necessarily because they believe in the product. One doesn’t need a stake in a company to incentivize success within it, it sure helps, but it is not required and wouldn’t have made the Russian transition any less painful. The decades of propaganda had really affected some 10% of the population and they were the ones who fell off the cliff when the system changed. Russia in the 1990’s was bad, but it was nothing compared to the massive famines that led to the deaths of millions of Russians, or the Great Depression. Many Russian’s who bought into the Soviet ideology were left out in the cold, yet others found jobs, and others made easy money. 1991 was a turbulent time in Russia, the collapse of the system left countless questions unanswered about what the Russian state and its business sector would look like after the dust settled. I see absolutel y no way, no system, no path that could’ve mediated such a drastic change with minimal economic displacement and suffering. We could’ve lessened the blow with a Russian version of the Marshall Plan, but frankly that was much too much to expect from America. We were in a position of triumph after decades of struggle, and the prospect of the massive new markets had American businesspeople salivating. The Marshall plan also wouldn’t have worked as well as it did in Western Europe because the political and economic culture of Russia was very different from Western Europe. Saturating a country with cash and loans to build (or rebuild in the case of Western Europe) modern infrastructure was out of the question. Half the reasoning behind the Marshall Plan in the first place was to cultivate capitalism, and combat the spread of communism. What is to be gained from a US policy of propping up our old foe? This is especially true when there was so much money to be made via exploitation. Russia in the 1990’s was exactly was America desired it to be, complacent. The Russian mob played a major role in blocking true market reforms; they reveled in the post-collapse chaos and orchestrated the major piece of the Russian economy that is sti ll today conducted underground, and more importantly, free of tax revenue. While this percentage has decreased considerably, it still accounts for nearly a double digit hole in economic exchanges. Along with the mob, the Communist Party knew what was going to happen and planned accordingly. They snapped up the profitable sectors of the economy for pennies on the dollar and became fabulously wealthy. Both groups served as major obstacles in the path of real reform, and real democracy for Russia. The fact is that the reforms proposed were free-market in principle and not free-market in practice. Favors, subsidies, inside information, and possessing capital (not to mention the knowledge of how to use it) made for a grossly tilted economic playing field in Russia. Just like water, the money flowed down the tilt and into the hands of elites and future oligarchs, leaving real policy and progress for later leaders and generations to wrestle with. To quote Winston Churchill, â€Å"Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.† Western style democracy is by no means the pinnacle of human achievement, it is however a necessary condition to providing the basis for equality of opportunity, rule of law, and political representation. That is not to say that there is no value in the Russian path, or that it is inherently wrong. Order just isn’t as valuable (according to the West) when one holds the aforementioned societal values. Order works for Russia, much better than it ever could’ve worked in the â€Å"Go west, young man† America that encompassed so much of the formation of our identity. Order keeps the barbarians out, order keeps the serfs from rebelling, order centralizes power in an Empire. Russia, without the concept of order built in like ours of liberty, would’ve faltered and fell from the world stage many times, of this I have no doubt.. The two biggest examples of Order trumping Liberty (in Russia) I can imagine are the invasions of Napoleon and Hitler. In the former and the latter, slash and burn tactics were employed. Hell, Moscow was a husk in the dead of winter when Napoleon got there, and I have no doubt that similarly drastic measures would’ve been taken to preserve the Soviet state. People throughout the best land in Russia, burned their property, poisoned their livestock, poisoned their water, destroyed everything of use, and fled. The enormous sense of communal responsibility and togetherness that these behaviors exhibit illustrate that Order worked and may continue to work for Russians, in the same manner that Liberty worked for Americans. I could never imagine American’s destroying everything in the face of invasion and retreating. That’s sacrilegious in this country; luckily we didn’t have quite as aggressive neighbors as Russia had. The Russian political system must meet several criteria I believe before it is widely accepted as completely legitimate. First off, centrist parties crafted by United Russia have to dissipate. They’re there to fracture opposition support, and nullify the voices of the overriding political currents that sway governments to control of one party or another. Representative politics works best when it represents the electorate, if there are pressures to decrease opposition support via backhanded ways, then that is where one sees wide-spread dissent. United Russia may have the backing of a majority of the Russian citizenry, for now, but by treating the opposition as the problem rather than part of the solution, Putin and by extension United Russia is alienating many mainstream voters on the left and right. Their reaction is to then become more extreme and problemati c because they’re being talked down to. When legitimate political parties and beliefs aren’t represented, parties and organizations that hold them have nothing to lose by taking up much more extremist views. If they felt that United Russia would play ball, they wouldn’t be taking the positions that they have taken. They would come to the table with more of a pragmatist view and plan of compromise. The military’s role in the democratization of Russia needs to be minimal. I am of the belief that a Roman-style coup utilizing the military is a very real albeit remote possibility. Civilians need to be the head of their equivalent to the Department of Defense, and ending discrimination in the armed services is a must for minorities in Russia to truly feel that they have a say and a stake in the country as it moves forwards. Divided government demands compromise, and it is yet to be seen whether Russia is ready to grapple with and deal with people who don’t agree with you. As of this point, the answer has been to silence them, or to shuffle them into a centrist party like sheep, or to run up the tally of people who think like you. For Russia to move past the post-Soviet period it must start engaging opposition, utilize independent parties, and stop fighting the opposition. This is very possible, just not at a breakneck pace. Russia’s value of Liberty will inevitably keep the country moving towards a more representative and legitimate democracy, but its value of Order will make sure that it is a slow and deliberate process.

Louis Vuitton and Gucci: Marketing Mix

Louis Vuitton and Gucci: Marketing Mix Louis Vuitton, a famous French brand, was created by a leather designer named Louis Vuitton (1821-1892). In 1837, 16-year-old Louis Vuitton left his hometown, to Paris to pack for the elite. He opened his first store in London and made the production with high-skilled. Thus make Louis Vuitton become the most delicate symbol of leather traveling articles. A century later, it is a leader in the field of leather goods and also was a favorite in polite society. It includes clothing, shoes, jewelry and so on. (Louis Vuitton inc, 2010). In 1987, Louis Vuitton and Moet Hennessy merging into prevent LVMH Group. In 1906, Gucci Augustine chi established the Gucci brand and named it after himself. Products of Gucci include fashion, leather goods, and watches. (Gucci inc, 2010) Gucci with its high fashion, sexy style popular around the world. As a symbol of status and wealth, it is a love of rich society. Now, Gucci is Italys largest fashion group. 1.2 Theory 1.2.1 Market Segmentation. Market segmentation can be defined as dividing different groups with similar chrematistic in the market. Business accord different features to product and services for each of them. (Hall et al 2008 p66) 1.22 Marketing Mix In order to market its products effectively and meet its customers needs. Business must consider its marketing mix. (Hall et al 2008 p75) Mastering four main parts of marketing mix plays a vital role in business, product, price, promotion and place. 1.3 Aims The aims of this report are to analyze the information of Louis Vuitton and Gucci to compare their differences. The comparison will focus on their differences in market segmentation and marketing mix, especially in Chinese market . 2. Findings 17 years ago, Louis Vuitton as one of the first luxury brands to enter Chinese market open its first store in Beijing. At that time, none of Chinese can understand why the value of a handbag worth more than 10000 RMB. But with its promotion in China and the growth of Chinese economic, the sales of handbags from Louis Vuitton rise quickly. Reasons of the success in Chinese market are also the reasons for the success of its brand, excellent market segmentation and holding well four parts of marketing market. The successful reasons of Gucci is similar to Louis Vuitton. For example, it launched a series of Chinese customs production. ( Paris Fashionable Clothing Week Day 9, 2010) and using Chinese language in its stores. For Chinese market to design the Chinese style products its its segmentation. In addition, the aim of Gucci is to open more stores in Asia and eastern Europe. (Reuters, Nov, 27) Discussion 3.1 Market segmentation Market segmentations of Louis Vuitton and Gucci are similar. The targets are promoting their brands and meeting the richs needs. The differences are that the price of most Louis Vuittons handbags is higher the price of Gucci and their different styles. à ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"High quality and civility are the selling points of Louis Vuitton which focuses on its classical product leather handbags. In the other hand, Gucci adapts to the younger customersà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢ demands. Because of the differences of their features and prices, their market segmentations also different. Louis Vuitton targets the customers who are love high quality and noble. The young ladies who are fond of fashion, sex and convenient items will choose Gucci. 3.2 Marketing Mix 3.2.1 Product Product is a main type of marketing mix. Innovation is the secret of Louis Vuitton handbags to maintain its position, it has a series innovation with the change of generation. In order to attract young woman, Louis Vuitton cooperated with artists Stephen Sprouse, thus Epi handbags with colourful style promoted to the market. Now, in order to meet the needs of the younger generation, launch a series of graffiti handbags. (Spring and summer fashion show of LV in 2010) However, Louis Vuitton still continues its style of noble and high quality, its handbags more suitable in semi-formal occasions. Gucci pays a great attention to its design in its development of 100 years. The style of its handbags is convenient and fashion, they are also its unique selling points. But compare the quality between Louis Vuitton and Gucci, the handbags of Gucci worse than Louis Vuitton. The reason is that Louis Vuitton focus on the quality of leather and Gucci pay more attention to its fashion. 3.2.2 Price Another element of marketing mix is price. The pricing policy that a business chooses is often a reflection of the market at which it is aiming (Hall et al 2008 p75) Louis vuitton is more better in leather material, the majority of handbags of Louis Vuitton is more than Gucci. For instance, the price of flower handbag of Louis Vuitton is RMB 17800, the new style of handbag of Gucci is RMB 6800 in 2008. From these comparative results, it can found that the handbag of Gucci is cheaper than Louis Vuittons. The conclusion is that Gucci target the middle class while Louis Vuitton target upper class. 3.2.3 Promotion Nowadays, promotion plays an important role in marketing mix. Gucci and Louis Vuitton focus on the advertising on TV and fashion magazine. Sophisticated fashion magazines are their main promotion media, which help their segmentations become clear and promote worldwide. Such as >. The style of advertising of Louis Vuitton is noble and the feeling of Gucci presented to customers is sexy. Both companies promote their production with popular stars. For example,Gucci show its new style with famous Hollywood in Oscar or Canned movie awards ( 2010 Oscar Movie Award). But Louis Vuitton appears its handbags with famous models even the successful politician because it meet its practical style. Moreover, Louis Vuitton promotes its products with Chinese stars Zhang Ziyi to attracts Chinese market. ( 2010, The Waiting City) 3.2.4 Place Both of Louis Vuitton and Gucci are international brands and luxury goods, it results in their requirements on the choice of stores are very high. Therefore, they open stores in the upscale business district, such as and Champs Elysees. They divide into different level stores to meet different society classes, flagship stores and specialty stores. Flagship stores with higher level, in which not only focused the design of stores but also reflect the spirits of the brand. In this year, Louis Vuitton opens two stores in major city on the same day in China, Shanghai. ( Shanghai Daily, 2010) From this can reflect that the economy and the population of cities also are the important factors to luxury brands while they choosing places. 4. Conclusion According the comparisons between Loris Edition and Guard, getting the conclusion is that these two brands are quiet similar in market segmentations and marketing mix. It can found that differences in their styles and price, which lead their aims are different. The style of Loris Edition is noble and targets a higher line than Guard, particularly reflected in the price of a handbag. The features of handbags are convenient and sexy and it more suitable for middle class. 5. Recommendation According the information mentioned above, the line for Louis Vuitton is sophisticated line and its price is too high for the young even it innovate the new styles to meet the yongs needs. Louis Vuitton can promote its products with lower price to meet the young, it is good for the development of its market segmentation. Gucci needs to care more about its quality of handbags and it can attract more customers to buy it, especially the more richer class.

Job Study on the Australian Air Force :: essays research papers

JOB STUDY Training and Advancement 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Are there any educational or other qualifications your employer would expect for the job you are doing? Following appointment as an Officer in the Air Force, you'll undergo an Initial Officer Course (IOC) at the Officer Training School, RAAF Base Williams (Point Cook) 20 km south west of Melbourne, Victoria. This course aims to teach you the leadership skills needed to become an Air Force Officer. The course is a combination of theory and practical training. While leadership forms the core of your training, the major elements of the course are designed to introduce you to military life, Air Force values and attitudes, personal development, organisational management, communication skills, general and specific military skills, security, drill and Air Force operations studies. Not only will you be taught Air Force specific subjects, but you'll also take part in a wide variety of subjects such as ground defence training, where you'll be taught weapons handling, field craft, communications, defences, patrolling, various types of warfare and the Rules of Engagement. A reasonable level of fitness is required for entry, however any active person who spends some of their time exercising or playing competitive sport should not have difficulty meeting the standards. 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Would you have to do a special course of study? An Australian Defence Force Careers Adviser says that officer applicants must demonstrate excellent leadership, management, organisational and communication skills, and be highly disciplined and fit. Everyone who completes officer training is guaranteed a job in the RAAF. Due to the high level of training that is involved, a minimum service period of 6 to 12 years is required. During training, ADFA first year cadets earn about $16,000, which increases to $25,000 in the fourth year. Once fully qualified, salaries range from $40,270 up to $63,249. Airforce pilots and navigators are entitled to a flying allowance, which is based on years of qualified flying service and is added to the base salary. The starting salary for direct entry officer cadets (non degree qualified) is $23,692 and $25,185 for qualified officers. Options For Potential Officers There are two pathways you can take to become an officer in the RAAF. You can go into the Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA) as a University level entrant, but you must have completed Year 12 and be between the age of 17 and 26. Not only are you paid to study at ADFA, but also you are immediately employed as an officer in the RAAF.

John Wilkes Booth and the Politics of Assassination

The reading assignment from chapter 27 from our text entitled, â€Å"John Wilkes Booth and the Politics of Assassination† written by James W. Clarke discusses the authors belief that Abraham Lincoln’s death was brought on by political ideologies and not because of mental health issues as some have widely claimed. The author believes that what were happening at that period in time were the breeding grounds for Booth’s drive to assassinate Lincoln.Clarke writes, â€Å"political context of the assassination facts such as Lincoln’s unpopularity in the North as well as in the South, the vicious opposition within his cabinet and Congress along with the controversy surrounding his re-election of 1864† (306) were the true reasons behind his motives. Clarke uses examples from Booth’s childhood as everyone viewing him with a positive view and that view was shared by many including his friends and family. He points to his happy and health childhood as f act to his mental stability.Booth’s education was exceptional and along with his aspirations of following in his fathers footsteps into acting made him a very stable and intellectual man. He was considered to have gaiety and a passion for life. Clarke goes on to discuss how at 14 Booth lost his father and soon after, 3 years, he began acting. But when he began he had very harsh reviews that were critical of his ability in acting or his inexperience. Clarke believes he took these in stride and pushed forward in earnest to make a name all his own.Because the South seemed to praise his acting abilities more than the North, some theorize that this changed his attitude and he began to favor Southerner in lifestyle and beliefs that directed him to assassinate. Clark contends that although Booth did favor Southern audiences, the Northern audiences soon began to appreciate the actor’s abilities. Clarke asserts that women loved him and men from all walks of life wanted his frie ndship because they saw him as a man with wit and magnetism.The author maintains that this is the evidence for his motives being political instead of being pathological. Political events of 1864 such as the Civil War and the horrors of that bloody war along with the hatred the nation felt for Lincoln motivated the actor. So this sympathy for the South and because of his passions of justice and duty gave way to Booth’s actions. I find this very difficult to swallow. In my eyes and from what I read, Booth was a very self centered person and a very passionate actor that helped to make him feel invincible.The proof was in Clarke’s article when over and over he kept discussing Booth’s physical attractiveness and popularity among women as well as men. I believe that in Booth’s mind the assassination was a performance and felt he would gain even more popularity by his actions. I believe Booth did have some mental issues because anyone who kills another, for what ever motives has to have some level of mental illness. I’m sure that many at the time considered killing Lincoln, but only one person actually did the act.Charlie Manson was politically motivated when he told his followers to kill, but that didn’t diminish the fact he was totally insane. The same I holds true for Booth. Many can put excuses to another person’s actions, and especially when that person has been dead for quite sometime, but the fact remains that murder is an abnormal act in society; it’s against the societal norm and anyone who kills for whatever reason has mental health issues. Reference: Roberts, R. & Olson, J. S. (1986). American Experiences. Glenview, Ill. : Scott, Foreman.

Kevin Van Dam

Kevin Van Dam is a professional bass angler. Kevin has always had a love for fishing, but did not start fishing professionally until 1990. Kevin Van Dam may not be a household name to most people, but anyone who enjoys bass fishing has heard of him. Bass fishing is my passion and I look up to Kevin Van Dam, as he is the best in the world in this era of bass fishing. Kevin Van Dam was born on October 14, 1967 in Kalamazoo, Michigan.Growing up in Michigan gave Kevin the chance to fish a lot of different lakes and rivers for a variety of species of fish including trout, salmon, muskies, walleyes, and northern pike. â€Å"You can learn a lot by fishing different species in the diverse variety of lakes and rivers we have in Michigan,† Kevin once said when asked about fishing in his childhood. Kevin loved to fish and was in the perfect environment to hone his skills. Although he fished for many species of fish, bass fishing was his favorite.Kevin dominated the tournament circuits, w inning the Michigan Bass Anglers Sportsman Society Angler of the Year twice before going pro. Kevin graduated from Otsege High School, and married his high school sweetheart Sherry. Kevin and Sherry settled in their home town of Kalamazoo, and continue to live there today with there twin boys, Jackson and Nicholas. Kevin is a devoted dad and enjoys taking his children fishing and deer hunting. Kevin worked various jobs until deciding to become a professional bass angler at the age of twenty three.Kevin began one of the most successful bass fishing careers ever under shadows of doubt, that he was going pro too young. He soon proved all that doubted his abilities wrong by winning the Toyota Tundra Angler of the Year, and was the youngest ever to win this prestiges title. Kevin also won the Bass Anglers Sportsman Society Angler of the Year title at age twenty five. The Bassmaster classic is the highest regarded title in professional bass fishing, to qualify for the Bassmaster classic y ou must go through a series of tournaments fished by the toughest anglers in the world.Van Dam has qualified for twenty consecutive Bassmaster classics since 1991, this is the longest running qualification streak in history. He has won the Bassmaster classic three times in 2001, 2005, and 2010. Kevin has fished in two hundred and twenty one Bassmaster events, he has won nineteen, finished second eleven times and finished in the top ten ninety times. Kevin Van Dam is a serious force to be reckoned with in the professional bass fishing world, and is simply nicknamed KVD.He has become a ambassador for the sport as it has grown in public attention, and is now featured on ESPN. Van Dam was awarded the first ever ESPN Outdoor Sportsman of the Year in 2002. KVD was grateful to receive this award, since it was not about his lifetime records which are amazing, but his promotion of the sport. Kevin Van Dam in my opinion and many others is the greatest Angler to pass threw the professional wor ld of bass fishing some may not admit it, but statistically this is true. Kevin is a true role model for young bass anglers today.

Architect Antonio Gaudi Essay

The work of Antonio Gaudi can be seen as visionary. Ahead of his time in many respects, it becomes clear when viewing his work that he influenced many of the great revolutionary artists of the early 21st century. The significance of his life-works as an artist and particularly as an architect reveals extraordinary contributions to the thought processes of the ‘Modernists’. Looking at some two of his architectural pieces, we can discover an entirely new meaning to architecture altogether. Antonio Gaudi displays many of the fantasy elements indicative of the Surrealist movement, although his work was categorised as Art Nouveau. His progression from Art Nouveau to near-Surrealist work can be seen in comparing the reasonably modest Palau Guell (1886-1890) to Casa Battlo (1906-1908). Palau Guell is a grand scale expression of extravagance which still has many of the attributes of Classicism. It is beautiful and decadent with every aspect of glamour and frivolity related to the Art Nouveau period. Gaudi, I feel has restrained his imagination in the sense that he has not indulged in the same fantasy world we see in his later works. The Palau Guell is almost a modern incantation of the ancient Greek and Roman Colloseums. Casa Battlo represents a rather unusual perspective of the artistic movement itself. The Casa Battlo in its design resembles more of a candy-castle than a functional building. The exterior of the building is scattered with ceramic designs that Gaudi had plastered into the facade. At face value this gives the viewer a sense of the ‘other world’, a place where children go in their dreams. This was in fact, in my opinion, the beginning of the Surrealist manifesto. Completely out of keeping with the original idea of architecture, Gaudi creates a building that not only performs a function but contributes to the aesthetic value of the surroundings into which it is placed. The roof of the Casa Battlo is covered in what appears to be scales, almost aquatic in its construction, but at the same time not intrusive. At this stage it is difficult to ascertain in ones own mind whether you like it or hate it. The balconies extending from the large bay-windows are also intricately carved and resemble to a degree, alien-like heads with large gaping eyes. The vision of Art Nouveau as outrageously decorative, embellished and facetious is clearly visible in this particular piece of Gaudi’s work. The exploration of the fantasy world gives it an uncanny feel of something out of the fairytale Hansel and Gretel and can make you fell uneasy. In the strict sense of the word ‘influence’, I can be certain that I see the predecessor to the Surrealist movement in Gaudi’s work. The idea of dreams rather than reality begins to emerge in his later work which is passionately infused with richly decorative mosaics and other ceramic artefacts. If one takes into account the impression Art Nouveau wanted to make, I think Gaudi surpassed it with the kind of architectural eloquence worthy of being called a ‘visionary’. Art Nouveau’s mantra of snubbing Classical rigidity was flouted by Gaudi and his contemporaries and led to the influence of architectural movements such as Bauhaus and sculptural artistic endeavours such as Tatlin, Dali and Leger. The previous attempts at breaking from traditional art as explored by the Impressionists served to fuel a more fertile mind in terms of the architecture of Gaudi. In Gaudi’s work we see the expression of the mind in tactile form. Looking at the features built around Guell Park, evidences of the movement into the exploration of colour in architecture is also visible. The water fountains are embellished with mosaic fish and other aquatic-like creatures that by some people’s standards would be described as ‘kitsch’. However, for me this fantasy world does exactly what it was intended to do: create a feeling of euphoria and joy. It is not functional beyond the aesthetic. Gaudi is ahead of his time.

If official corruption is such a problem for the legitimacy of the Essay

If official corruption is such a problem for the legitimacy of the People's Republic of China, then why have the Chinese Commu - Essay Example The main reasons why PRC has waged war against corruption is the fact that it undermines the legitimacy of the Chinese Communist party, it fuels societal unrest, and adds to the economic inequality in the country. If the communist party does not formulate policies that will contain the wide spread corruption in China, then it will be spelling doom for the economic future of the country and the political stability too. Analysis and Causes As pointed out earlier, the major forms of corruption in the PRC are embezzlement of funds, bribery, nepotism, statistical falsification, patronage, backdoor deals, and grafts.All these are common and rampant in power positions. This explains why the standard definition of corruption in China is the use of public authority and resources for personal and private interests. When any state functionary takes advantage of their office and appropriates, steals, or swindles public money, or takes it in to their possession by any other illegal means, then it is said that corruption has occurred. Moreover, when a state functionary extorts money or property from an individual for the benefit of another person or illegally accepts money from a person in order to secure benefits for that individual, or the state functionary misappropriates public funds for either personal use, illegal dealings, or for profit making purposes, then corruption has occurred. If any citizen gives money or property to a state functionary, or introduces a bribe to them for the purpose of securing certain benefits, then the two can be accused of being involved in corrupt dealings. All these occurrences are in accordance with articles 382 and 396 of the criminal law of the People’s Republic of China. Combating corruption has been a main agenda for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) over the last three decades with every transition of government. During this period, two major anti-corruption campaigns were launched; one in the late 1970’s, and the other in 1989 following the Tiananmen crackdown on the pro-democracy movement. This paper will mainly focus on the 1989 campaign and all other attempted reforms that followed as they fall under the 25 year period that is under study. The efforts of China to eradicate poverty are often frustrated by the enforcement constrains in the country. The CCP employed a strategy dubbed enforcement swapping. This strategy relied on intensive periodic campaigns which were targeted at the big fish. This strategy was credited to have successfully lowered the levels of corruption beyond the tipping point; a point which if surpassed, would have resulted in to a crisis of corruption and overwhelmed the parties enforcement resources (Manion, 2004. P.158). This strategy is said to have been employed out of necessity simply because the CCP lacked enforcement resources and the capacity to wipe out corruption. According to Wedeman, (2004,p.899), the campaign style of enforcement is aimed at controlling corrupt ion rather than eradicating it. This is irrespective of the manner in which it is used; randomized or recreational. This is the very first reason why attempts to eradicate corruption in China by CCP have failed. The communist’s party strategy to eradicate poverty was misguided simply because this strategy is formulated to specifically control corruption, not eradicate it. There is also the probability that the CCP knew exactly what the strategy was

Thinking Through Religion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Thinking Through Religion - Essay Example The assertion, "The unexamined life is not worth living", by Socrates is great for the clear-cut and straightforward message it gives. No ambiguity is involved, and it gives no scope for doubt. No purpose is served in the life of an individual, who is born and walks up to the grave! Every human being is endowed with an inner world to delve deep into it and to understand the real purpose of life and develop the technique to lead a spiritual life. The nobler instincts are more powerful than the desire that draws one to the secular comforts. The core desire of a human being is to search for meaning and purpose of life. The divine beauty of the inner world is the subject of practical experience. Wise men have written millions of pages about joy and happiness, but unless one crosses the barrier of mind and reaches the level of transcendence to enjoy the state of bliss, one’s life remains unexamined and it is the state of incompleteness. When one possesses the will to grow, not bein g satisfied with the state of status-quo, take it as the beginning of progress. The process of investigation is the continuous one and inner search means practical spirituality in which state every thought and action is positive and the individual visualizes divinity and unity in the working of the cosmos. He sees unity in diversity. Man’s search for meaning of life is the fundamental force of life and it is within everyone. With the procedure detailed in the sacred texts, the practical vision of divinity is attainable reality and that is the true purpose of life. To know the essence of human existence is the be all and end all of life. Each individual has to find the answer to his question, with investigation. Life is a continuous process of search of the unknown and the challenges on the path of investigation provide an opportunity for an individual to test his determination and will. Personal growth and spiritual growth are alternative beats of the same heart. Moreover, it is equally important to know that one's life happiness does not come from or depends on the other or though conditionings in the external world. Others can only contribute to trigger feelings, but an individual must search one’s own happiness. Thus, one's life is worth living when one remains involved in the process of self-examination in order to find true meaning and happiness of life. An unexamined life is not worth living. 2. Anthropic Principle means relating to human beings or their existence. Our existence on this Planet Earth depends on many cosmological considerations and even if a slight deviation in those factors would mean that we will not exist at all. The cosmos functions on countless alignments. The question arises, is it possible that such an arrangement exists merely by chance? Philosophers and the well-meaning scientists conclude that it is God who has that ultimate and immeasurable capacity and He has fine-tuned this Planet Earth for our existence. The rec ent advances in astronomy and physics have led the scientists to strongly conclude that there is ‘the soul at the heart of the universe’. This has led them to the process of self-examination and questions like: Who are we? Why are we here? What is God? For the first time in the known history of humankind, the contemporary scientists, theologians and mathematicians are likely to arrive on a common platform and their unanimous decision about the existence of God! â€Å"The Soul of the Universe†, is a remarkable program (video) on this fascinating and mind-boggling issue. I entirely agree with the anthropic principle and it goes in tandem with the spiritual truth. In fact, spirituality is the science of sciences. That which is not practical, and amenable to experiments, cannot be spiritual either. Consider the structure of protons. It has direct bearing on the livability of our Planet and consequently on the life of humankind. Some more examples that go to prove the