Modified Rules for Kick-ball Game Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Modified Rules for Kick-ball Game - Essay Example Every team shall include minimum three disabled players in their team, and out of those three; two disabled players shall be always on the ground. The disabled player shall be substituted by disabled fellow; however physical strong player upon injury will be allowed to leave the ground and can be substituted by physically strong or disabled player (Joseph, 2005). The disabilities of the participants have been elaborated as, some of the players can hearing problem and cannot hear well; some of the players are walk lamely. The players having hearing disability cannot hear anything unless it is extremely loud. It is important to specify that there is no physical damage to their hearing and locomotive organs of the human body, except for some defects, which has restricted their social life. It is important to highlight that any mischief towards disable players either from team players shall lead to voluntary win of the respective team, provided that referee are able to make consensus. The defensive team shall be allowed to setup in any order, and there shall be no rule for the placement of defending players. However the disabled player shall be the pitcher whenever the disabled player is the batter from the other team. ... The batter has no restriction for attempting to kick the ball, and the rule as per which the batter was previously suppose to wait for the ball to be within three feet of home plate shall be declared void. The batter has to attempt to kick the ball, even if he does not like to pitch. A runner who leaves the base before the pitch reaches home plate is invalid; the runner shall at least complete 2/3 of the runway instead of the entire length. The players with hearing disability shall be given the status of the game after every innings, and if the team leader believes that any information or tactics shall be shared with the disabled players, the team leader has the right for time-out. The frequency and interval of time-out shall be defined, the frequency of time-out shall be twice per innings, and the frequency shall be 2mins for each call-out. The game instructions have been modified such that the disabilities of the players are accounted for. The game shall be thoroughly communicated to the disabled players. Any violation on the part of disabled player shall be accepted, and the disabled student shall be re-communicated about the rules of the game. It is important for the disabled player not to make repeated fouls, if such situation occurs the decision of disqualification of the referee shall be final. The rules of the games have been modified such that the requirements of the players are accounted for. The disabled player with impartial hearing shall be communicated about the situation of the game after every ball, if desired by the team. The physical disabled lame player shall be given rest of three minutes after every

Harmful Effects of Genetically Modified Food Assignment

Harmful Effects of Genetically Modified Food - Assignment Example This is done by making the crops or plants resistant to diseases and or increasing their tolerance to herbicides. The future genetic modification aims at modifying the plants and or animals’ nutrients and reducing their allergenic potential mainly through improving food production efficiency. With these modifications, it is apparent that the production of GM foods are not healthy for the environment and their consumption is not good for the human health. There are many reasons why the production and consumption of GM foods should be minimized. Different research studies have indicated that the production of GM foods has numerous environment effects and health hazard to the consumers. For instance, GM food has been associated with multiple toxins that have been detected specifically in the fetal and maternal blood. This danger was shown in 2010 studies on the effects of the GM foods (Wolfensohn & Lloyd 158). The research identified the presence of Bt proteins the Cry1Ab in the fetal and maternal blood. This protein is usually found in the GM food products. This experiment was based on a research to detect the presence of Bt’s Cry1AB proteins in plants. In connection to the research, the same proteins were found in the blood of pregnant women who had taken several of GM foods specifically corns (Freedman 186). Notably, human beings usually have no receptor for this protein; thus, it might have fatal effects to the body. The GM foods are generated from modification of crops’ DNA, there are possibilities that these modifications can be transferred to the consumers. These conclusions were drawn from a 2013 study that detected a whole new gene in the human plasma. However, this realization did bot means that these foods were integrated into the human body system, but rather floating between cells (Liang & Skinner 177).

An Overview of Neo Colonialism

An Overview of Neo Colonialism What is Neo-colonialism? Discuss with reference to specific examples. Neo-colonialism is the control of less-developed countries by developed countries through indirect means. The term neo-colonialism was first used after World War II to refer to the continuing dependence of former colonies on foreign countries, but its meaning soon broadened to apply, more generally, to places where the power of developed countries was used to produce a colonial -like exploitation-for instance, in Latin America, where direct foreign rule had ended in the early 19th century. (halperin, n.d.) When the Queen of Britain felt that her duty her duty is to extend the model of government and culture to other parts of the world. Hence, she started neo-colonizing while exploited the resources of all such colonies. This happened primarily not with the white colonies. These were usually self-governed colonies with large number of settlers. The main problem makers or rebellions were only brown colonies which were dealt with a divide and rule policy together with a string of home treaties with sociable splinter groups who had their hidden interest involved to gain much from continued British Rule; like the Indian maharajas. Examples of neo-colonialism have been studied in most corners of the world since the end of the Second World War. In fact, its difficult to find a place that scholars do not claim has been subject to cultural imperialism of some sort since 1945. From Egypt to Belize to India to Britain to the United States of Americaall of these countries have observed some sort of influence over their culture from another country (Reid 57; Everitt 42; Altbach 902; Cooper and Cooper 61). This is hardly a surprise; after all, globalization is no secret. Cultural imperialism and hegemony, however, are not concepts that can be described so simply as globalization. Neo-colonialism, the modern colonialism, has emerged as an influential force; used by powerful countries for a variety of reasons, it is continually shaping not only individual cultures, but the global culture. There are two terms that most completely bring out the subtleties of neo-colonialism: cultural imperialism and cultural hegemony. Cultural imperialism is best summarized as the way that certain cultural products have attained a position of dominance in a foreign culture through a process of coercive imposition, usually through their ties to political or economic power (Dunch 302). While imperialism is characteristically determined by military control, this is definitely not the case with cultural imperialism. Cultural imperialism also differs slightly from the idea of cultural hegemony, which is an aspect of Marxist philosophy that calls attention to the promotion of one culture over another with the objective of that the ruling class worldview becomes the norm. This cultural assimilation is particularly useful in that it creates a situation ripe with potential for the economic benefit of the ruling class. By persuading the subordinate group that the profits from agreement outweigh the losses of not working together, the ruling culture is able to maintain their superior status (Schultz 275). It is the intertwin ing and collective definition of these related concepts -cultural imperialism and cultural hegemony that paint the ultimate picture of neo-colonialism and cross-cultural promotion in the interests of one country, often at the expense of another. It exists the power exercising control is often the State which formerly ruled the territory in question, but this is not necessarily so. For example, in the case of South Vietnam the former imperial power was France, but neo-colonial control of the State has now gone to the United States. It is possible that neo-colonial control may be exercised by a consortium of financial interests which are not specifically identifiable with any particular State. The control of the Congo by great international financial concerns is a case in point.The means by which a country may impose an unequal cultural relationship on another are wide ranging, but economics is by far the most common tool used in neo-colonialism (Petra 139). By providing monetary support and forming economic partnerships, the financial institutions, governments, and particularly the multinational corporations of the colonizing power ingratiate themselves to their subjects and integrate them into their own capitalist system. Th ere are two particular concepts that deeper explore this culturally hegemonic relationship. One is another Marxist theory, complimentary to cultural hegemony, which is understood as dependency theory. This theory declares that by the penetration of multinational corporations, economic sanctions, partnerships, and the like, developed countries intentionally foster and enforce a culture within developing countries that is economically dependent on their own. Dependency theory contends that the weaker nation is further impoverished to the benefit of the stronger country due to the subsequent capitalist use of the weaker countrys resources and labour. This practice continues because of the strong hegemony of the colonizing power. A concept that is similar, yet more functionalist than dependency theory is the world systems theory. This theory says that the world is divided into segments of a powerful core, a moderate semi-periphery, and weak periphery nations. The three categories of nat ions each engage in neo-colonialism with varying degrees of success on the other two kinds of nations. Essentially, world systems theory explains how the core can dominate and take control of the resources and labour supplied by the periphery for a profit. Just as in dependency theory, the core benefits because of these mechanics. Dissimilar to dependency theory, however, the peripherys marginal benefits are acknowledged since they are provided with some economic gain. World systems theory can definitely be extended to the broader methods of neo-colonialism if we think of the cultures of the core and periphery in the same way we would otherwise think of their economies. In the present era, we can also look to two key case studies of neo-colonialism: Sino-African relations and The United States of America as an economic power. To this day, more than one million Chinese are African residents, and Chinese investment in Africa exceeds 40 billion dollars. They have spread their money and culture throughout the continent, and are now trading in excess of 166 billion dollars per year with Africa; securing 50 billion in minerals. Africa receives goods in return, and most of these goods support further resource extraction and industrial development. While this relationship was once seen as quite exploitive, views are changing as China fosters goodwill in these nations with more equitable agreements (Africa and China). Similar Chinese examples of economic neo-colonialism have been identified all over the world, from Canada to Ecuador (Kay; Scheneyer and Perez). The United States of America is another core country that is heavily invested in neo-colonial pursuits. One of the most astute concepts that illustrates the worldwide flow of American culture by mostly economic means is called Coca-Colonization. This concept calls attention to Coca-Colas global pervasiveness as a symbol for the Americanization of nearly every corner of the earth (Kuisel 98). Through huge multinational corporations such as Coca-Cola, American values and culture have been strongly infused all over the world. As one of the most influential countries in the world, there are certainly many other tools that America uses to engage in neo-colonialism, (including many of the ones already mentioned), but economics and multi-national corporations are by far the most commonly referenced (Petras 2070). These historical examples, and others like them, provide a solid basis for examining the exact motivations that nations might have for their neo-colonial pursuits. This is because they show how core countries have benefitted from the cultural assimilation of the periphery, and identifying these benefits then exposes their motivations. Indeed, there are inherent economic benefits for powerful nations to realize as a result of their cultural imperialism: core countries can expand their business to the nations theyve culturally assimilated and also make use of the low-cost resources and labour that they are able to obtain from the periphery. Often times, the subordinate culture becomes dependent (as described by dependency theory) on these foreign operations within their own borders; they rely on outside multinationals for jobs and goods. Because of this dependency, the core is able to set low wages and prices for raw goods and operate at a high profit. As such, these practices pay off financially for the multinational corporations and (by the extension of taxes) the governments of the colonizing power. It can be concluded that the substantial fin ancial gain to be had as a result of neo-colonialism is definitely a motivating factor. While financial profit is one of the most straightforward ways that a nation can benefit from neo-colonialism, there are more motivations that might cause a country to engage in these pursuits. One of these is national security. Just as in the Cold War, nations have an interest in fostering goodwill and dependence in other parts of the world; creating allies and dependent states that would not go to war against them, or support them in the event of the war. Another motivating factor is to acquire resources. As the worlds population multiplies, valuable resources are being stretched thin. Growing countries such as China and India need to secure access to fuel and food to provide for their citizens, and neo-colonialism has been shown to allow them the influence to negotiate access to these resources. Diplomatic power also seems to be a reason to engage in neo-colonialism; countries that have similar cultures are likely to agree and vote identically on international issues. Even if they dont agree, countries that are dependent on another nation may feel obligated to act in the wishes of their neo-colonizer, as a derogatively titled puppet state. The new face of colonialism has shown itself in a wide variety of places around the world, and we can see that countries have benefited in various ways; exposing their motivations. It is also important to look at future implications should these activities continue. Cultural homogenization (most commonly referred to as globalization) is perhaps the most powerful force affecting the global landscape today. For instance, estimates include a ninety percent reduction in the number of languages spoken around the world by the year 2100 while others clearly show that the number of speakers will be highly concentrated in a handful of languages by this time (Ryan; Graddol 27). Global trends such as these are directly related to the practice of neo-colonialism. While the future prevalence of some languages is due to rising populations, it is no surprise that the languages at the top of these lists also have homelands that are known for engaging in neo-colonialism in the past and present. So, while the term globalization seems to indicate that the result is a diverse global culture, the reality is that this ongoing homogenization of ethos is more composed of the cultures that are most aggressive in neo-colonial pursuits. The core nations culturally imperialistic practices reduce the influence of other cultures and strengthen the influence of their own, indeed leading to a global culture that is more comprised of the core than the periphery. If neo-colonialism continues to be practiced, then the current situation of nations can be expected to expand. Many will be quick to point out that the periphery nations benefit in the same way as the core; that they would be a lot worse off should they limit their relationship with the core, and that their loss of culture is not all that significant (Bowen 179). Still more point out that these benefits are marginal, and require that the periphery countries submit to the exploitive objectives of the core pointing primarily to the issue of human rights, they contend that the wages received and benefits incurred (cultural or otherwise) are not nearly enough to compensate for the capitulated resources, labour, autonomy and culture; especially when considering the relative profits of the core (Koshy 26). Most agree that relatively small cultures will eventually be washed out by the cultures of the most powerful nations; that human rights issues must continue to be questioned. If neo-colonialism continues to perpetuate itself in this way, there is little hope that conditions will change for these nationsthe core will remain at the core, and the periphery and semi-periphery will struggle to flourish. This school of thought is quite large, and has given most of the terms already discussed an overwhelmingly negative connotation. However, as already mentioned in the case of Sino-African relations, the core is beginning to realize their own dependency on the periphery which is slowly improving these human rights conditionsthough the general cultural assimilation remains. The modern colonialism benefits countries that spread their culture throughout the world. The tools employed by those countries to this end are varied, ranging from economics to education. As beneficiaries of the financial, military, diplomatic, and resource stability that comes from having nations culturally assimilated to them, there seems to be no reason for powerful core nations to cease in their neo-colonial activities. Illustrated by concepts such as dependency theory, world systems theory, and Coca-Colonization, the forces of cultural imperialism and cultural hegemony are contributing to the globalized world in a way that favours the most powerful of nationsfor better or for worse.

The Female Martyr of Nineteenth Century Literature :: Literature Literary

The Female Martyr of Nineteenth Century Literature The literature of the nineteenth century is abundant with stories about children dying, partially because it was common for people to die young. One of the most popular forms of the dying child in literature is the martyr, who is almost always female. During the nineteenth century, white men held virtually all of the power in American society. The only way female characters could obtain power was through transcendence in death, but white males already had power and thus had nothing to gain by dying. The image of the pure girl who sacrifices herself for the sake of another seems very positive at first glance. However, this figure perpetuates the notion that girls should be selfless; rather than portray selflessness as a desirable characteristic for any morally upright human being, it is portrayed as a suitable characteristic for women. The female is supposedly the moral center of society, so she is the character who sacrifices herself for others. The martyr figure is a role model for all good girls to follow, while boys have brave heroes to look up to. Barbara Welter notes â€Å"the death of a young girl was so celebrated as a triumph of beauty and innocence that a whole ritual grew up around it† (11), but she doesn’t fully explain why the death of a young girl was so captivating to Americans of the time. The martyr is the ideal woman who will sacrifice herself for others, and in death she attains more importance than she ever could in life. The only way a woman could obtain any substantial degree of power in nineteenth century America was if she was dead. Because a martyr’s worth is only proven in death, this figure is the perfect role model to promote the sexist ideologies of that society because it encourages women to be good but denies them tangible power. â€Å"My Heroine†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"My Heroine†is a poem about a seven year-old girl who dies while protecting a baby. The author praises the child for her constancy at school, and reports that she is â€Å"never careless, never dull.† Of course, the child wouldn’t be a proper martyr if she wasn’t also â€Å"as sweet as any seven years’ child you’ll meet.

High school diploma Essay

Did you know that education in school is really important? Many parents believe that education is important because it leads to a degree which grants you a good job. With an education you can get a steady pay check. With that pay check you will get away to financial independence as an adult. Why is Education So Important? he first thing that strikes me about education is knowledge gain. Education gives us knowledge of the world around us. It develops in us a perspective of looking at life. It helps us build opinions and have points of view on things in life. People debate over the subject of whether education is the only thing that gives knowledge. Some say, education is the process of gaining information about the surrounding world while knowledge is something very different. They are right. But then, information cannot be converted into knowledge without the catalyst called education. Education makes us capable of interpreting things rightly. It is not just about lessons in textbooks. It is about the lessons of life. Did you know that education in school is really important? School and education help people you understand beyond the world around them. Education helps ones immediate family, area, region, country, culture, race, or civilization. These different subjects open up information and knowledge. An important aspect of education is learning how to learn in order differentiate fact from fiction. Education is important because it equips us with all that is needed to make our dreams come true. Education opens doors of brilliant career opportunities. It fetches better prospects in career and growth. Every employer of today requires his prospective employees to be well educated. He requires expertise. So, education becomes an eligibility criterion for employment into any sector of the industry. We are rewarded for exercising the expertise required for the field we venture. We are weighed in the market on the basis of our educational skills and how well we can apply them. Education brings about economic wealth, political stability and social prosperity; all these are hallmarks of a prosperous society. It can therefore be said that education playas an important role if a society is to be successful. Tertiary education is an important aspect in the development of any society that considers or aspires to be modern. It is by far the best investment that a nation or an individual can make in its youth or oneself respectively. Educated people are in a better position to contribute to the development of their country; these educated individuals get employment opportunities that give them satisfaction and also earn some form of respect among their work mates. It also plays an important role in the integration of a society in that by interacting with people from various areas, it will raise different issues that people in rural areas are facing thereby promoting knowledge and understanding of these areas Life is nothing without education? Life without education is like living in the streets. Without education you’ll become lost. You will not have a guaranteed future. You will no go home ridding your favorite car to your â€Å"Own’ home. By learning your basic alphabets you’ll work your way through to have a professional career. Therefore with out Education to school you will not learn at all. Life is never without education. In societies without formal schools, parents pass skills on to children. Education starts before you ever go to school and goes on after you finish school. That said, formal education is a great way to ensure that every child knows what is most necessary to live in a particular society. Without education you will be an illiterate person your children in the future will come up to you and you’re not going to know how to answer them with a right answer. Education will help build your own perspective. Schools are the place you school of started how to pronounce and count. Importance of education is needed in order to succeed in today’s world. In order to receive education you must go through some process. Your first process is to graduate from high school with your diploma. The next step is to attend college to obtain a degree in a trade that you would like to pursue. Without education you wouldn’t get good pay or promotion that you deserve. However, some people feel that they can get by in life without education, sadly that is not true. If you would like at the graphic at the bottom you will see that the higher the education you have the more money you can make. Education is important to have in today’s society. Importance of education able you to have a good job security and knowledge of your field supporting the hard work a person put into there education. Overall, school is the basic start that will drive you to your future. With knowledge you’ll get the sense of pride that you know must of the things. Education will help brighten your children’s future. 66% of the US population has a high school diploma or high. You should be amongst these people.

Piece on “The lake” Essay

My head rested peacefully against the bark of the willow tree, my back floated on a bed of grass and my feet were gliding in the calm water of the lake, occasionally being nibbled by various fish. It was the perfect atmosphere to have a little nap; however I knew that if I fell asleep I would regret getting to admire the lake’s precious beauty on this spectacular day. The sky was as clear as sapphire, the sun was a rosy apricot colour and was surrounded by pillows of clouds and somehow my imagination managed to convince me that there were little angels dancing and prancing above them. The sky looked even more radiant in the lake’s refection; it added a glittery appeal to it, magical. I gazed wondrously towards the other side of the lake where the troop of trees stood, practically hugging each other. I enjoyed watching the giant trees sway with each other as if they were moving towards nature’s music. On my side of the lake, there was a choir of frogs chattering and birds chirping. I sang a little melody too, but the frogs and birds suddenly stopped, they must have disliked my tune. As I was about to rest my eyes a little, nature woke me up. The calming breeze tickled my ear lobes and I could faintly hear it whispering secrets to me. Every time the wind passed by, it left behind a scent of maple and berries so strong that it made my nose twitch. It smelt heavenly organic yet delightfully tasty. When I took a careful look at the lake, it looked similar to a heart shape; just one side was slightly bigger. The colour of the water was like an innocent girl’s eyes, so pure. It was a dark turquoise and if you looked  carefully you could see the luminous scales of various fish. Every now and then a heard of teeny tiny jump fish would be racing across the glowing surface of the lake as if they were being chased by the police. The lake was indescribably beautiful as it was but looking at what was on land around it was just the icing on top of the cake. Flowers bloomed as if they were living the last day of their life; bees flew as if there was no hurry; dears drank water as if there were no predators and birds sang as if they were in a symphony. The wind softly whispers through the trees as I rest on the soft green bed beneath me, peaceful feelings overtake me and my spirits seem to soar from within just like the birds circling above me.

Goats Plant and Goats Essay examples

Goats Plant and Goats Essay examples Goats: Plant and Goats Essay examples Miranda555 When people think of summer they think of brush, grass, weeds, and trees. People dread cleaning up there fields, well studies show now you don’t need too you can use goats. Who would have thought that goats would take care of our brush and weed problems and it would even be good for your fields. Today were going to look at some benefits of controlling brush with goats, how goats can help you fields and how many goats per acre. Some benefits of controlling brush with goats are that they prefer brush and weeds over grass so they won’t endanger to grazing land of cattle. Goats clear brush beneath the tree line, which leads to healthy grass growth beneath tree lines. They are also great producers of milk and cheese. Goats help fields in many ways. They can be utilized as an affective bio-control agent to reduce weed populations. They can eliminate the use of harm-full herbicides and pesticides. Goats eat poisonous plants like hemlock, poison oak, and blackberry bushes. Bru sh goats also help prevent forest fires, or at best slow a fire down by eating the underbrush. It generally takes 60 goats three to five days to clear  ¼ acre of brush that is moderately dense. There should be about three to four full sized goats per acre. Sometimes it depends on how big of goats you use, what type of weeds you have and how fast you want them to be gone. There is a specific type of goat that has been labeled â€Å"brush goat† by many goat breeders, but brush goats are simply goats

Free Essays on Immigration And The World Trade Center

In September 1929, "the Roaring Twenties," "the Era of Wonderful Nonsense," of sex, booze and jazz, ended with the stock market crash that began the Great Depression. There followed the "low dishonest decade" of poet W. H. Auden's depiction, as Western statesmen sought to appease their way to security and peace. On Sept. 11, 2001, as the 767s smashed into the twin towers of the World Trade Center and Pentagon, killing 5,000 Americans, another unserious era of sex scandals and stock market silliness came to an end. Recall, if you will, the summer of 2001. The story that had CNN, MSNBC and FOX News transfixed was the saga of Gary Condit. Nightly, talk-show hosts demanded answers to the great questions: Why did Gary throw away the watch box? Where did stewardess Anne Marie Smith spend her D.C. nights? By Sept. 11, the story seemed about to end in a great courtroom drama, with Anne Marie charging Gary with libel – for denying she committed adultery. What will the decade be remembered for? The Trial of O. J.? Who killed Jon-Benet Ramsey? The Oval Office trysts of Bill and Monica? Condit summer? Meanwhile, not to worry about the world. For America is "the last superpower," the "indispensable nation." The New Economy will take us to "Dow 36,000!" "Pax Americana" and "Global Democracy" are our destiny. On Sept. 11, the frivolous era came to an end. Suddenly, for the first time since Gen. Jackson drove the British army out of Louisiana, the enemy was inside the gates, slaughtering thousands. Why? Because we adopted an open-borders policy that left tens of millions of illegal aliens wandering about America, few of whom had any loyalty to us, some of whom were willing to murder us on the orders of their foreign masters. To keep the cost of labor down, we let millions of strangers, and not a few enemies, into our home. Never before has America been so vulnerable, and corporate greed and craven politics did it to us. Tuesda... Free Essays on Immigration And The World Trade Center Free Essays on Immigration And The World Trade Center In September 1929, "the Roaring Twenties," "the Era of Wonderful Nonsense," of sex, booze and jazz, ended with the stock market crash that began the Great Depression. There followed the "low dishonest decade" of poet W. H. Auden's depiction, as Western statesmen sought to appease their way to security and peace. On Sept. 11, 2001, as the 767s smashed into the twin towers of the World Trade Center and Pentagon, killing 5,000 Americans, another unserious era of sex scandals and stock market silliness came to an end. Recall, if you will, the summer of 2001. The story that had CNN, MSNBC and FOX News transfixed was the saga of Gary Condit. Nightly, talk-show hosts demanded answers to the great questions: Why did Gary throw away the watch box? Where did stewardess Anne Marie Smith spend her D.C. nights? By Sept. 11, the story seemed about to end in a great courtroom drama, with Anne Marie charging Gary with libel – for denying she committed adultery. What will the decade be remembered for? The Trial of O. J.? Who killed Jon-Benet Ramsey? The Oval Office trysts of Bill and Monica? Condit summer? Meanwhile, not to worry about the world. For America is "the last superpower," the "indispensable nation." The New Economy will take us to "Dow 36,000!" "Pax Americana" and "Global Democracy" are our destiny. On Sept. 11, the frivolous era came to an end. Suddenly, for the first time since Gen. Jackson drove the British army out of Louisiana, the enemy was inside the gates, slaughtering thousands. Why? Because we adopted an open-borders policy that left tens of millions of illegal aliens wandering about America, few of whom had any loyalty to us, some of whom were willing to murder us on the orders of their foreign masters. To keep the cost of labor down, we let millions of strangers, and not a few enemies, into our home. Never before has America been so vulnerable, and corporate greed and craven politics did it to us. Tuesda...

6 Unusual Online Certificate Programs

6 Unusual Online Certificate Programs So, you’re not interested in an online MBA. You’d prefer to lead a rally, write a memoir, or brew the perfect craft beer? Never fear. Several colleges offer online certificate programs that appeal less to sharp-suited business people and more to the garden-growing, media-sharing, beer-brewing types. Interested? Take a look at these unique distance education programs: The Business of Craft Brewing Online Certificate (Portland State University) Through this four-course series, â€Å"industry specialists† teach students everything they need to know to start up and run a successful craft brewery. Courses include â€Å"Basic Business for Craft Beverages,† â€Å"Craft Beverage Business Management,† â€Å"Strategic Craft Beverage Marketing,† and â€Å"Finance and Accounting for the Craft Brewery.† Students are also invited to fly out to Portland to take part in the optional â€Å"Craft Beverage Immersion Excursion,† spending three days meeting with brewery owners, tasting Portland beers, and touring the Oregon beer empire. Cheers. Certificate in Organic Agriculture (University of Washington) If you have a green thumb and a fondness for organic food, the University of Washington Certificate in Organic Agriculture might be for you. The college touts this 18-credit program as a good fit for â€Å"those wanting to pursue a career in organic agriculture, anyone interested in beginning a community supported agriculture (CSA) enterprise, [and] home gardeners.† As a student, you’ll take online courses such as â€Å"Organic Gardening and Farming,† â€Å"Agriculture, Environment, and Community,† and â€Å"Food Safety and Quality.†Ã‚   You’ll also be required to complete an internship, which can be done by volunteering through a local organic farm, organic certifying agency, or organic business. Sustainability Certificate (Harvard Extension School) If you want to promote a sustainability in your community or business, Harvard’s Sustainability Certificate provides instruction from world-class thinkers. Students in this program take five courses. â€Å"Knowledge Set† courses such as â€Å"Energy and the Environment,† â€Å"Strategies for Sustainability Management,† and â€Å"Sustainable Business and Technology,† provide students with a common foundation of understanding. â€Å"Skill Set† courses such as â€Å"Catalyzing Change: Sustainability Leadership for the Twenty-First Century† and â€Å"Introduction to Sustainable Buildings,† help students take action. It’s also important to note that, although this certificate is coming from an ivy-league school, it is an open-access program. Anyone can simply start taking courses towards certificate completion without the need to apply. New Urbanism Online Certificate (Miami School of Architecture) Those with a passion for cities community building may be interested in the New Urbanism Online Certificate. Students earning the certificate are prepared to take the Congress for New Urbanism accreditation exam. (Although you should also be aware that the exam can be taken without the certificate). The New Urbanism certificate is self-paced and takes students through the basics of creating walkable, sustainable places. Course units include: â€Å"A Crisis of Place and the Alternative of the New Urbanism,† â€Å"Ecology Built Legacy,† â€Å"Architecture, Local Culture, and Community Identity,† â€Å"Green Building and Historic Preservation,† and â€Å"Implementing New Urbanism.† Creative Nonfiction Writing Online Certificate (UCLA Extension Program) If you’re serious about writing that best-selling memoir, personal essay, or political history, take a look at this UCLA creative non-fiction program. You’ll focus most of your 36 credits on intensive creative non-fiction instruction. You’ll also have the opportunity to choose from electives in poetry, playwriting, and fiction. Best of all, students that complete the coursework are given a consultation with a UCLA Writer’s Program instructor, detailed notes, and an in-person or phone critique session. Certificate in Community Organizing (Empire State College) What would you like to see change in your community? If you have a quick answer to that question but don’t know how to make it happen, consider earning a Certificate in Community Organizing. Empire State’s program arms students with knowledge about justice, power dynamics, and navigating government environments. It aims to help learners develop a skill set that can be applied to create lasting change in their communities. This 12-credit program includes courses such as â€Å"Advocacy in State and Community-Level Government,† â€Å"Race, Gender, and Class in U.S. Public Policy,† and â€Å"Human Service Policy.† To complete the certificate, students are required to apply their learning by working with real communities while taking the capstone â€Å"Community Organizing† course. Free Learning Alternatives If youd rather not jump into a major time commitment and write a big check just yet, take a look at these less formal free online classes. Youll find options for a wide array of subjects including photography, guitar, and writing.

Advance taxation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Advance taxation - Essay Example If Watson considers a change in the payment of tax, the company will need to comply with the rules governing the calculation of tax for a period of more than 12 months. In the case of a period of 17 months, the tax computation will be apportioned into two chargeable accounting periods i.e. a period of 12 months and the other of 5 months. In this case, the trading income will be apportioned based on the time. Capital allowances will however be calculated separately for each of the chargeable accounting period (CAP) Moreover, property income will also be apportioned based on time. Non trade interest on the other hand will be considered in the period of accrual in case there are no details to assist in apportionment. Non chargeable gains will be computed for in the period of the gain while gift aid will be considered in the period in which they are paid. The company will not be entitled to repayment in the first three years since the company has not incurred losses. In the fourth yea, the company will carry forward their entitlement for the non recovered claims plus interest to subsequent years. The relief will therefore be realized in the year 2014 and after. In conclusion, companies must ensure that they compute their tax liability or make their tax claims as per the tax regulations to avoid unnecessary penalties and to ensure that they operate as per tax

Impact of Globalization in the Aviation Industry Essay - 1

Impact of Globalization in the Aviation Industry - Essay Example This paper illustrates that the deal saw Singapore airlines inject into the company capital worth 49 million pounds and virgin Atlantic investing capital to the amount of 51 million. These capital investments brought Virgin Atlantic’s total equity investment value to the tune of 1.225 billion pounds. Over the years, the company has become more suitably placed to be able to effectively compete with other well established International airlines such as the British Airways which happens to be the UK’s leading and biggest airline at the moment. Virgin Airways is a part of the Virgin Group Conglomerate that is owned by Sir Richard Branson. The Airways is currently regarded as a market leader in the aviation industry with its dedication to researching and implementing new innovations that have the innate potential of immensely improving the customer experience of all persons who use Virgin for their transportation. This is in line with the Virgin Group’s policy of givi ng the prefix Virgin to its various businesses to indicate that the business is exceptionally daring, innovative and daring. As a result of the Virgin group’s overall success, there are many businesses outside the Virgin Group that have recently been showing immense interest in their joining the group via the establishment of joint ventures. With the constant stream of innovations and a myriad of successful marketing strategies, the Richard Branson led virgin group conglomerate has grown in value to an excess of $3.5 billion and is one of the world’s most well recognized and powerful brands. The airline has come from humble beginnings since it launched its first flight flying from London all the way to New York on June 22, 1984. After this maiden voyage, the airline quickly expanded its operations to include flight services to other areas and regions such as Miami (1986), Tokyo (1989), Boston (1987), Los Angeles (1990) AND Orlando (1988). One of the major obstacles tha t the company has ever encountered was its inability to receive permission to be able to have its planes flying out of Britain’s busiest airport, the London Heathrow airport.

Maritime and Port Security Initiatives by Federal Agencies Research Paper

Maritime and Port Security Initiatives by Federal Agencies - Research Paper Example With the rise in terror threats, containers ships have become the area of security scrutiny as security agents view them as vulnerable to terrorist attacks and activities. Annually, seaports in the US host at least nine million marine containers hence provoking the need for them to undergo intense security checks so as avert terrorist infiltration. In order to raise security standards within ports, Congress passed into law the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002 that has come into scrutiny over its relevance and impact in serving this purpose. With this background information, this essay will delve on the Maritime and seaport security initiatives as applied by federal agencies, either in the US or by agencies across its international borders. Ideally, most of the cargo handling in the US is through major cargo hubs because of the quality of infrastructure available hence creating traffic for these hubs by cargo shipping firms. Further, the handling of energy related products is by certain ports while the US also has over one thousand harbors spread across its coastline. Other than US owned and crewed ships, foreign ships also call at this nation’s ports, which has been instrumental in influencing trading relations with other trading partners. The trading also spreads to cargo containers, which is one of the areas that attracted the concerns of both state and federal security agents to be keen on securing this area of commerce. In essence, a large container has a high load capacity and can safely ferry more than three thousand containers while offloading some of them at different ports. Mostly, these containers transport consumer goods that may include clothing, toys, shoes, electronic devices, automobile spare parts, among a list of other goods which characterizes the imports on containers. On the other hand, the containerized

Islamic Art history Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Islamic Art history - Essay Example history would necessitate understanding the various dynasties and the time when various classes of artwork were presented as it signifies the intent of the artists and the nature of the social structure at the time the art was developed (Lapidus & Grabar, 2010). The early Islamic artwork was majorly used for the legitimization of themes in Islam especially those of religion and the need to have faith in one God. The Islamic calligraphy entailing sections of the Quran or inscriptions of the holy books in the Islamic religion are examples with which the use of artwork was employed in the legitimization of the theme of religion in the society. However, during the nineteenth century and the wake of colonialism, the artwork of Islam was used for opposite purposes. The artwork was developed to sensitize people against the evils of colonialism and violence among the Islamic communities. Islamic painting in the 19th century often portrayed colonialism as an evil act in the community thus calling upon people of the Islamic world to rise against the colonizers as a liberation effort for the Muslims. The shift in the nature Islamic artwork was used in the representation of themes in the society emanated from the change in the mood of the society following colonialism and the perceived erosion of the Islamic culture. Historically, the changes in the representation of the themes by the Islamic artwork was equally influenced by the interactions and influence the form of artwork acquired from other regions and civilizations of the world like the Chinese who at that period were advocating for the disbandment of dynasty rules, thus this forms of movements influenced the Islamic artwork (Schimmel & Rivolta, 2012). In a way that can be seen to be a reinforcement of the theme of religion, the Islamic art in the dynasty of Umayyad represents some of the outstanding pieces of artwork. During this dynasty (661-750), new concepts and new plans were put in place to reform the nature of

Operational Analysis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Operational Analysis - Research Paper Example The capacity of the kitchen as of current data show that the establishment can serve up to 9,600 meals per day (Purtell, & Wagner, n.d). With reference to the number of meals the establishment is capable of serving per day and the overall number of ready customers, it’s obvious that the amount the Town of Millbridge pays MMWC for meals served to one customer per week is not enough to sustain the establishment thus, the customers have to add own funds to the township incentive. In this case, the total amount the establishment spends to manage the kitchen and the cost of preparing the meals as per the above assumptions is as follows: However, the total cost of the fixed and variable items amount to $170,400 per week. In this case, the cost of one meal should be 170,400/(9600x7) = $2.54 in order for MMWC to break even without making any profit. The operations of the establishment as of problem 1 show that MMWC spends $170,400 per week in both food preparation and in kitchen maintenance and operations. If the establishment takes into account capacity increase from 9,600 meals a day to 10,400, MMWC will therefore spend 10,400x7x2 (the assumption that one meal is prepared at a cost of $2.0 holds) and amounts to $145,600. This operations’ capacity will take into consideration the current $36,000 in fixed costs and an additional $625,000 of equipment. Additionally, while the expansion of the kitchen is a viable strategy, investing in the kitchen equipment will incur 12% opportunity cost if the same amount was invested in another area besides the kitchen capacity. In order to establish MMWC options, the original breakeven level is $2.54 per meal. The current bidder offers $1.25 less from the original breakeven level making the new meal price $1.29 for the establishment to breakeven without making any profit. While it was originally viable for the establishment

Economic of Immigration Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Economic of Immigration - Research Paper Example From the study it is clear that acquisition of technical knowledge imparts the adequate skills to the masses in the USA while low level of education and hence lack of high-end skills for immigrants from Mexico enables Americans to keep top level jobs. Implementation of different trade policies and immigration programs between the US and the Mexican government led to greater influx of immigrants into the USA. According to the paper findings the economics of immigration in Mexico is of interest because Mexico borders an economic superpower-USA. This it means that immigrants from Mexico affect many different sectors of a world class economy. Immigration has social, demographic, economic effects some of which are good while others detrimental. Most legal immigrants are not subject to a great deal of public scrutiny and suspicion because of the belief that they are rightfully there while the illegal ones are subject to both police and public scrutiny because of the belief that they affect the economy and society negatively. In order to enhance economic welfare the US government tries to reduce the number of illegal immigrants from Mexico by converting them to legal immigrants or by not allowing them near the border. In Mexico the immigration policy requires that immigration of individuals with skills that are limited in supply and those whose tax contributions and net cost of public services received are large should be well monitored. It implies that those who contribute positively to economic growth are the ones who should be granted the legal admission. Also admission of immigrants in limited occupations leads to increased aggregate income as a result of high labor demand and mobility across borders e.g. for international trade. Cortes (2005) states that continuing high levels of immigration weaken the enforcement of labor market regulations by the USA as a result of the influx of Mexican immigrants. This is because the inflows of aliens relax the commitment of employers in USA and create a population of workers who are not adequately equipped with the necessary skills. This is as a result of lower education levels thereby earning less as compared to the highly educated and well paid Americans resulting into lower tax payments and thus increased poverty levels. The Mexican Immigrants Act offers subsidy to those businesses that employ lowly skilled workers since they contribute a small portion of the aggregate income. Wayne (2001) states that illegal immigrants have

Operational Analysis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Operational Analysis - Research Paper Example The capacity of the kitchen as of current data show that the establishment can serve up to 9,600 meals per day (Purtell, & Wagner, n.d). With reference to the number of meals the establishment is capable of serving per day and the overall number of ready customers, it’s obvious that the amount the Town of Millbridge pays MMWC for meals served to one customer per week is not enough to sustain the establishment thus, the customers have to add own funds to the township incentive. In this case, the total amount the establishment spends to manage the kitchen and the cost of preparing the meals as per the above assumptions is as follows: However, the total cost of the fixed and variable items amount to $170,400 per week. In this case, the cost of one meal should be 170,400/(9600x7) = $2.54 in order for MMWC to break even without making any profit. The operations of the establishment as of problem 1 show that MMWC spends $170,400 per week in both food preparation and in kitchen maintenance and operations. If the establishment takes into account capacity increase from 9,600 meals a day to 10,400, MMWC will therefore spend 10,400x7x2 (the assumption that one meal is prepared at a cost of $2.0 holds) and amounts to $145,600. This operations’ capacity will take into consideration the current $36,000 in fixed costs and an additional $625,000 of equipment. Additionally, while the expansion of the kitchen is a viable strategy, investing in the kitchen equipment will incur 12% opportunity cost if the same amount was invested in another area besides the kitchen capacity. In order to establish MMWC options, the original breakeven level is $2.54 per meal. The current bidder offers $1.25 less from the original breakeven level making the new meal price $1.29 for the establishment to breakeven without making any profit. While it was originally viable for the establishment

Remedial Reading Essay Example for Free

Remedial Reading Essay Proficient reading is an essential tool for learning a large part of the subject matter taught at school. Reading is the gateway to learning: without it, children cannot access a broad and balanced curriculum. Reading difficulties are associated with negative educational, employment and economic outcomes, making reading- related issues relevant to various policy domains. The negative effects of reading problems are well documented. There is evidence that reading disability is associated with social, economic and psychological problems. Traditional approaches to dealing with reading problems, such as tracing and grade retention, do not help ( especially if it going about dyslexic children. Remedial reading is an extremely important class for children who are struggling with reading. Because these children have difficulties reading, they generally do not like it. It is crucial for remedial reading teachers to make reading fun at the students level. This involved me to find interesting and lively reading materials. play games, use art and creativity during the lessons. First of all I determined the goals of remedial reading : Comprehension- understanding the meaning of words and sentences, integrating this meaning across texts and making inferences beyond the printed words. Decoding- converting printed words to spoken words. Phonics –linking sounds with letters and using these correspondences to read words. Teaching phonics takes account of the fact that there is not always a one-to-one correspondence between letters and sounds: ship has 4 letters, but only 3 sounds. Phonological awareness-awareness and manipulation of the sound structure of speech. This has different levels: syllables( foot-ball), onset-rime( f-oot-b-all), phonemes(f-oo-t-b-a-ll). Spelling and writing- mapping sounds to print, moving from individual letters, to groups of letters ( such as oa and sh), to word, to sentences . This support phonic knowledge for reading. Vocabulary- knowing the meaning of words. Fluency ( one of the major goals)- reading accurately and with sufficient speed. There is clear evidence that unless students become fluent in there ability to identify words, they will have difficulty concentrating their attention on comprehending and responding to the texts the read. I believe reading is an active, meaningful, constructive process. Students are taught to monitor their reading to ensure that what they are reading makes sense. This â€Å" mini remedial reading course† consists of 14 lessons. The duration of the lesson is 45 minutes. The type of the lessons is pupil-to teacher ratio. There is no question that one-to-one tutoring is the most powerful form of teaching invention. It seems highly likely that at least some children who are encountering very serious problems in learning to read need the intense support of one-to-one tutoring. For my lessons I was going to use the book â€Å" You Can Do It ! † by Dr Sharon Azaria. I chose it because the units in it are well- organized . Each unit consists of several reading rules, a text based on them reading comprehension and writing activities. New vocabulary is given as well. The types of texts are very predictable which is excellent in early intervention programs. They have recurring language patterns, and include repetition of language elements, which makes them easy for students to read. I think even children with very restricted word recognition capabilities can quickly begin to think of themselves as readers because they are successful with these predictable texts. It is great that the degree of predictability decreases from unit to unit to ensure that students attend to the printed texts in order to build a multifaceted word recognition strategy that will make them increasingly independent readers. I like the fact that texts and exercises become longer and more challenged as the reading capabilities of students grow. So there are many reasons to choose this book: length of texts, challenge of vocabulary, complexity of language, sophistication of concepts, etc. , so that students are challenged to apply the strategies and skills they are learning. MEANS OF TEACHING THE CHILD Texts are carefully selected and sequenced to ensure student success. The stories of the book â€Å" You Can Do It â€Å" contain a great amount of words with a letter or a letter combination on the topic of the lesson. It’s good they are followed by pictures. Reading for meaning . The book â€Å"You Can Do It† will provide me with a series of lessons which can be used as a very effective program for remedial reading. It reflects a model of reading as an active, meaningful, constructive process. Before-reading activities are used to build relevant background knowledge, concepts and vocabulary. With the help of this book the pupil will be taught to monitor his reading to ensure that what he is reading makes sense. The texts he’ll be asked to read are for enjoyment and for the information. Other activities are developed within the framework of reading for meaning. Reading for meaning is the constant point of reference. Intervention instruction is frequent, regular and of sufficient duration to make a difference. Weekly contact with a student ensures that progress is steady and allows me to become very familiar with the pupil and his strengths and needs. It also allows the teacher to reinforce and extend strategic behaviors that the student is acquiring. An instructional period of at least 15-20 minutes allows time for instruction and practice along a number of demonstrations that provide the pupil with the strategies he needs to become an effective reader. Pupil-to-teacher ratio. It seems reasonable to begin with group instruction for most students and to switch to individual instruction for those ones who have difficulty making progress. Word learning activities are used to help children become very familiar with print. Reading new texts and rereading familiar ones ensure that the pupil engages in meaningful, connected reading. This reading course (â€Å" I Can Do It†) includes activities that help students focus on and become familiar with printed words. The student is presented with the letters that form a word from a selection he read. Words are selected because they contain word identification elements that will be useful to the student. Progressively longer words are built from the letters. I can begin by asking the pupil to make take two letters and form the word ( for example the word â€Å"at† ). Next, he can be asked to add a letter to form rat, to change a letter to form cat, to rearrange the letters to form act. Using similar directions he can move through eat, ate, tea. Writing is used to teach and extend word identification skills. It has been recognized that asking students to write words ( not to copy them) is a very effective approach to developing word recognition and reading. For example, my pupil has difficulty with phonemic  awareness ( according to the test analysis) I can draw a box for each of the sounds in the word. The pupil is guided to think about the number of sounds in a word and the letters that represent those sounds. Activities completed at home extend student opportunities for reading. I always mention the importance of cooperation between home and school ( or individual lessons like in our case). Parents will be informed about the nature of our course and regularly updated on their child’s progress, and told about ways in which they can support the child and contribute to his progress. They can reread familiar texts for building fluency. I will care to send home only materials that the pupil can successfully respond to at home without teacher support. Again, the emphasis is on consistent success and the avoidance of failure. Conclusion: Every child has the right to develop into a thoughtful, competent reader. The remedial reading course ( the book â€Å" I Can Do It†) like many other programs calls for considerable teacher decision making, but within a well- defined sequence of instructional activities. When the pupil is reading aloud, I must decide when to coach a child in the use of strategic behavior and which strategies and skills to teach the child to use. When the pupil is writing, decisions must be about how and which forms of support should be given. Through the use of a regular sequence of activities, the pupil quickly come to know what will be happening in each instructional session and the order in which it will happen. Time is not lost in transition or deciding on activities.

Proselytism, Conversion and the Freedom to Change Religion

Proselytism, Conversion and the Freedom to Change Religion A Critical Analysis Abstract This dissertation seeks to critique the extent to which Article 9 of the ECHR upholds an individuals â€Å"freedom to change his religion and belief†. It is respectfully submitted that the landmark decisions of the European court have provided inconsistent guidance with respect to the issues surrounding proselytism, conversion and the freedom to change ones religion; consequently, this will have significant implications on interreligious dialogue and the protections on the rights of adherents of new religious movements, minority religions, and religious converts. This paper proposes that the ECtHR jurisprudence ought to consider the theoretical perspectives advanced by Stahnke, Danchin, and Taylor to strengthen the protections of ones freedom to change their religion, underscoring that a careful consideration of these theoretical approaches may provide a positive contribution to protecting the freedom of religion more generally. Introduction Chapter 1: Issues surrounding proselytism, conversion and the Freedom of Religion 1.1: Introduction Stahnke highlights that the development of international principles governing the issues surrounding proselytism ‘is no easy task, especially in consideration of the varied state approaches to proselytism.[1] After reflecting upon the Strasbourg jurisprudence in relation to the complicated issues arising from cases relating to proselytism, an individuals right to change his or her religion, and the freedom of religion espoused by Article 9,[2] this paper asserts that Stahnkes statement is not only true in the global context, but is particularly acute in the European context as well. In this connection, it is evident that that the issues relating to proselytism pose pragmatic difficulties for jurists because it requires them to adjudicate between competing and conflicting rights claims.[3] As Malcolm Evans highlights, â€Å"how can the fundamental right of one individual to the freedom of thought, conscience and religion be reconciled with the fundamental right to another to th e same freedom, when the very possession of those beliefs might require a believer to present his views to others?†[4] In other words, the court has to determine, as Witte has concisely stated, â€Å"Whose rites get rights?†[5] This paper begins its analysis by suggesting that the protections of an individuals right to change his or her religion as well as its corresponding links with proselytism is further complicated by the theoretical disagreements concerning the legal definitions of religion, and the freedom of religion. For example, Carolyn Evans notes that even if a collection of states agree to be bound by an international agreement adhering to a general principle protecting the freedom of religion, it is possible that the states conceptual understanding over the rights and values at stake may differ significantly.[6] She further contends that the subsequent interpretations of Article 9 in the European court mirror the aforementioned problem. Similarly, the complexity of human rights issues relating to religion contribute to the challenges of formulating an overarching framework of adjudication since religion is inextricably linked with nationalistic and political participation, particular family his tories and cultures, spiritual and philosophical sentiments, and differing conceptions of morality.[7] 1.2: Religion and the difficulties of definition According to Gunn, a judge sitting on the European Court and their particularly personal definitions of ‘religion plays a considerable role in shaping that judges interpretations of Article 9 under the European Convention and how cases ought to be decided.[8] For example, judicial conceptions of religion may have significant practical implications on applicants seeking to determine whether or not a new religious movement or minority religion receives tax exemption status, or whether a persecuted religious asylum seeker is able to claim refugee status.[9] As we will soon discover, a judges conception of religion is likely to influence his/her decisions in cases involving proselytism and conversion.[10] However, this is complicated by the fact that the actual definition of religion under Article 9 does not exist since the issues of definition have been fraught with controversy since the drafting of the United Nations International Instruments, on which Article 9 is based.[11] Gunn astutely observes that there are underlying methodological difficulties concerning the natural definition of religion which necessarily involve assumptions concerning the nature of a religion—i.e., religions metaphysical nature and/or theological conceptions of religion, the psychological experience of adherents, and the socio-cultural impact of religion—and whether or not there are features that all religions share in common—i.e., does a religion have to possess a theistic element, or would a polytheistic, atheistic, or non-theistic conception of religion suffice?[12] Carolyn Evans highlights that although the European Court and Commission have adopted a broad, generous and liberal approach to defining religion, it is important to note that the courts have ruled that a religion ought to attain a sufficient degree of â€Å"cogency, seriousness, cohesion, and importance† to justify protection under Article 9.[13] Consequently, as Evan notes, vague conc eptions of religion are beyond the scope of the protections under Article 9. However, she also suggests that although there may be a genuine sincerity of an applicants beliefs, the requirement that an applicants belief possess a level of sufficient coherence â€Å"has the potential to exclude some more individualistic and personal beliefs†.[14] In this connection, it has been argued that legal definitions must also consider a range of other factors such as (a) ‘protecting freedom of religion, or (b) ‘prohibiting discrimination of religion—tasks that are difficult to adjudicate because of the range of different opinions as to what exactly constitutes the nature of religion, and what specific manifestations of religion warrant protection.[15] The jurisprudence surrounding freedom of religion cases under Article 9 appear to distinguish between the ‘private boundaries of religion and its inextricable links to the ‘internal adoption of a particular religious belief, with the ‘public boundaries and its corresponding links to ‘external manifestations of religious belief; these concepts are occasionally referred to as the forum internum and forum externum respectively.[16] Evans highlights that the interpretation of Article 9 typically underscores the primacy of the forum internum—that is, â€Å"the private thought, conscience, and religion of the individual†[17] and it is generally asserted that the state is prohibited from interfering with the forum internum.[18] However, it is unclear as to where the line between the ‘private conscience and ‘public expression, or forum internum and forum externum is to be drawn, especially considering that many religions do not necessarily de fine themselves in such dualistic terms.[19] For example, in highlighting the theoretical uncertainty in relation to the scope of the forum internum, Sullivan argues â€Å"many religious doctrines or beliefs dictate standards of social conduct and responsibility, and require believers to act accordingly. For those who follow such precepts of social responsibility, the distinction between religious and political activities may be artificial†.[20] Similarly, Gunn underscores the importance for judges to consider the multifaceted nature of religion in that it not only comprises an applicants ‘belief, but also an applicants ‘identity and ‘way of life.[21] Thus, he argues that â€Å"the adjudicator should seek to understand the religious facets of such cases not from the perspective of a person who might attend religious services a few times a year, but from the perspective of those who have chosen to devote their lives fully to their religion as they understand it†.[22] In other words, a prudential approach from the standpoint of an adjudicator would not merely reduce the definition of religion to the mere domain of the private sphere, but would take account of how an individuals private belief intersects and overlaps with his or her public manifestation of belief. Nowhere is the overlap between an individuals private belief and public manifestation of belief more evident than in the issues surrounding proselytism and conversion—a subject to which we now turn. 1.3: Linkages between, and issues surrounding, proselytism, conversion and the freedom of religion Given that Article 9 aims not only to protect an applicants private conceptions of religion, but also an individuals right to manifest his or her religion subject to certain limitations, Danchin and Stahnke similarly argue that because proclaiming and sharing ones faith is such an important and integral aspect of a host of world religions, it would be logically inconsistent if the attempt to convince another to adopt ones religious belief, experiences and faith was beyond the scope of protections under the freedom to manifest religion.[23] Additionally, it has also been suggested that â€Å"in modern human rights law, the right to change ones religion, in the absence of coercion and as a result of free will is considered a recognised freedom†.[24] Stahnke observes that the issues surrounding proselytism and conversion involve competing rights between the ‘source—that is, the proselytiser, the ‘target—that is, the individual receiving the information, and the role that the state should play in balancing the conflicting and competing rights between ‘source and ‘target.[25] Hence, it is evident that the multifaceted nature of proselytism and conversion present significant challenges for the jurist in reconciling competing claims to the freedom of religion under article 9. Witte concisely summarises the ‘modern problems of proselytism by asking, How does the state balance ones community right to exercise and expand its faith versus another persons or community right to be left alone to its own traditions? How does the state protect the juxtaposed rights claims of majority and minority religions or of foreign and indigenous religions? How does the state craft a general rule to govern multiple theological understandings of conversion or change of religion?[26] Although an analysis of the array of theological perspectives of conversion and the change of religion is beyond the scope of this study,[27] this subject is worth mentioning in order to illuminate the challenges of protecting the freedom of an individuals right to change his or her religion. For example, Witte notes that most Western conceptions of Christianity â€Å"have easy conversion into and out of the faith†, whereas â€Å"most Jews have difficult conversion into and out of the faith†.[28] However, traditional Islamic perspectives prohibit proselytism directed towards Muslims, but encourage Islamic proselytism towards nonbelievers.[29] Although traditional Islamic perspectives on proselytism have significantly influenced state policies restricting proselytism,[30] it is evident that the phenomenon of the pervasive role of religion and its influence on state practices is undoubtedly mirrored in the European context as illustrated by the facts in Kokkinakis v. Gree ce. Chapter 2: Freedom to change religion: The seminal case: Kokkinakis The decisive judgment concerning the protections of religious freedoms as well as the issues surrounding proselytism is illustrated in Kokkinakis v. Greece.[31] Gunn notes that between 1955 and 1993, only 45 of 20,000 applications challenging Article 9 were published by the European Commission, and Kokkinakis was the first case to be considered under Article 9[32] where the court found a member state in violation of the provisions protecting the freedom of religion.[33] 2.1 The facts In 1936 at the age of 17, Mr. Kokkinakis converted from Greek Orthodoxy into the minority Jehovahs Witness religion and was arrested over 60 times, and imprisoned on several occasions for proselytism throughout the course of his life.[34] After exhausting all domestic remedies, Mr. Kokkinakis applied to the European Commission on Human Rights in 1988, who unanimously declared that there had been a violation of Article 9.[35] His case was then submitted to the European court. By a 6-3 majority, the court held that there had been a breach of Mr. Kokkanakis freedom of religion under article 9. 2.2: The reasoning of the court The court reasoned that the â€Å"freedom of thought, conscience and religion† is one of the hallmarks of a pluralistic democratic society—serving not only as a protection for ardent religious believers—but also for â€Å"atheists, agnostics, sceptics and the unconcerned†.[36] In this connection, the court affirmed the right to manifest ones religion encompasses not only public and private expressions of belief, but also â€Å"includes in principle the right to try to convince ones neighbour†.[37] Otherwise, the provision in Article 9 protecting the ‘freedom to change [ones] religion or belief â€Å"would be likely to remain a dead letter†.[38] However, the court issued a caveat, acknowledging that in democratic societies, in which several religions coexist within one and the same population, it may be necessary to place restrictions on this freedom in order to reconcile the interests of the various groups and ensure that everyones beliefs are respected.[39] To sum up the courts ruling, under Article 9(1), sections 31-36 of the judgment highlight that the sentence imposed by the Greek government interfered with Mr. Kokkanakiss right to manifest his religion under Article 9. However, the court then sought to determine whether the restrictions imposed on Mr. Kokkanakis by the Greek government were permissible under Article 9(2) by referring to the three tests of whether the actions were ‘prescribed by law, had a ‘legitimate aim, and whether the actions were ‘necessary in a democratic society. Firstly, in paragraphs 40-41, the court highlighted that the existence of domestic case law prohibiting proselytism fell within the meaning of ‘prescribed by law within ‘Article 9(2) of the convention.[40] Secondly, the courts sought to determine whether the governments ‘measure was in pursuit of a legitimate aim. The courts affirmed the Greek governments arguments that it was obliged to protect â€Å"the peaceful enjoyment of the person freedoms of all those living on its territory†, and therefore, â€Å"the impugned measure was in pursuit of a legitimate aim under Article 9(2), namely the protection of the rights and freedoms of others†.[41] Finally, the court referred to the doctrine of the ‘margin of appreciation—which permits States to â€Å"assess the existence and extent of the necessity of an interferencesubject to European supervision†.[42] To do this, the court distinguished between ‘proper and ‘improper proselytism, highlighting that the former is a reflection of â€Å"true evangelismand the responsibility of every Christian and every church† whereas the latter is a â€Å"corruption or deformation of it†.[43] The court also noted that a coercive expression of proselytism could â€Å"take the form of activities offering material or social advantages with a view to gaining new members for a Church or exerting improper pressure on people in distress or in need; it may even entail the use of violence or brainwashing†[44]. Thus, any coercive expression would be deemed incompatible with the provisions set out in Article 9(2). Consequently, the court held that the Gr eek government failed to demonstrate that Mr. Kokkinakiss proselytising activities were of a coercive nature. Furthermore, the Strasbourg Court highlighted that Mr. Kokkinakiss criminal conviction was unjustified on the grounds of a ‘pressing social need; therefore, Court ruled in favour of Mr. Kokkinakis, citing the measures enacted by the Greek government failed to demonstrate that they were â€Å"proportionate to the legitimate aim pursued† or â€Å"necessary in a democratic societyfor the protection of the rights and freedoms of others†.[45] 2.3: The polarised responses of the judges It is interesting to highlight the polarised responses between some of the judges, as it is clear that particular understandings of religion and proselytism played a decisive role in shaping the judicial opinion in Kokkinakis. On the one hand, it is apparent that Judge Martens analysis prioritised the rights of the proselytiser,[46] where he reasoned that it is not within the province of the State to interfere in this ‘conflict between proselytiser and proselytised. First, because—since respect for human dignity and human freedom implies that the State is bound to accept that in principle everybody is capable of determining his fate in a way that he deems best—there is no justification for the State to use its power ‘to protect the proselytisedSecondly, because even the ‘public order argument cannot justify use of coercive State power in a field where tolerance demands that ‘free argument and debate should be decisive. And thirdly, because under the Convention all religions and beliefs should, as far as the State is concerned, be equal.[47] Judge Martens further argues that the â€Å"State, being bound to strict neutrality in religious matters, lacks the necessary touchstone and therefore should not set itself up as the arbiter for assessing whether particular religious behaviour is ‘proper or ‘improper. [secondly], the rising tide of religious intolerance makes it imperative to keep the States powers in this field within the strictest possible boundaries.[48] In other words, states are under a strict duty to minimise interfering in an individuals freedom to manifest religion as much as possible. Conversely, on the opposite extreme, Judge Valtico gave primacy to the rights of the target by arguing that the recipient of a ‘conversion effort has a right to a peaceful enjoyment of his or her religion, and therefore ought to be protected from unwanted attempts to changing his or her religion: Let us look now at the facts of the case. On the one hand, we have a militant Jehovahs Witness, a hardbitten adept of proselytism, a specialist in conversion, a martyr of the criminal courts whose earlier convictions have served only to harden him in his militancy, and, on the other hand, the ideal victim, a naive woman, the wife of a cantor in the Orthodox Church (if he manages to convert her, what a triumph!). He swoops on her, trumpets that he has good news for her (the play on words is obvious but no doubt to her), manages to get himself let in and, as an experienced commercial traveller and cunning purveyor of a faith he wants to spread, expounds to her his intellectual wares cunningly wrapped up in a mantle of universal peace and radiant happiness. Who, indeed, would not like peace and happiness? But in this the mere exposition of Mr. Kokkinakiss beliefs or is it not rather an attempt to beguile the simple soul of the cantors wife? Does the Convention afford its protection to s uch undertakings? Certainly not.[49] We now turn to the criticisms of Kokkinakis and the subsequent case law and its relationship to proselytism, conversion and the Freedom of Religion. Chapter 3: Criticisms and observations of the case law 3.1 Critique of Judge Martens Judge Valtico Naivety and prejudice in legal reasoning As mentioned in the previous chapter, both judges reasoning reflect extreme positions of adjudication. On the one hand, judge Martens—a judge aligning his perspective with the majority— upheld a strict position of minimal state interference into an individuals freedom to manifest his or her religion by appealing to a principle of ‘strict neutrality whereas judge Valticos dissenting judgement reflected a hostile view of the applicants particular manifestation of religion. It is respectfully submitted that the reasoning of both judges illustrated naivety[50] and prejudice[51] respectively. 3.1.1: Naivety It has been argued Judge Martens position merely reduced the issues surrounding proselytism to the competing rights claims of the personal, autonomous, and individualistic manifestation of the proselytiser with the rights claims of adherents of the majority religion and the majoritys attendant conceptions of the ‘common good.[52] Whilst true that the court had to adjudicate between the competing rights claims of the adherent of a minority religion with the ‘collective good, it is submitted that judge Martens not only overlooked the competing and conflicting individual rights claims of the proselytisers right to share his/her faith with the individual rights claims of the recipient of the attempted proselytism to peacefully enjoy and practice his/her freedom of religion, but also the competing and conflicting conceptions of the common good as well.[53] Moreover, judge Martens also referred to the notion that the state is bound to ‘strict neutrality with respect to â €˜religious matters; however, his contention begs the question of whether there is such a concept of ‘religious neutrality in the first place?[54] 3.1.2: Prejudice: Privileging majority over minority religions Conversely, judge Valticos position has been widely criticised on the grounds that it demonstrates a biased and prejudicial approach consequently privileging the rights of adherents of the established religion over the rights of adherents of minority religions.[55] At one point, judge Valtico even suggested that proselytism amounts to â€Å"rape of the belief of others†[56] but it is apparent that this perspective dismisses the centrality of proselytism to the beliefs of Jehovahs Witnesses and that such beliefs could potentially contribute to the common good.[57] Consequently, it is evident that judge Valticos position demonstrates significant hostility towards the practices of minority religions such as the Jehovahs Witnesses as well as an individuals freedom of religion. By casting a minority religious group in such negative terms, an unsettling consequence nevertheless arises in that religious liberty becomes further threatened, and a public backlash towards such groups could potentially ensue.[58] Moreover, this could have insidious and deleterious effects on interreligious dialogue between adherents of majority religious groups, with adherents of new, minority religious movements aiming to promote a heightened understanding of their novel religious practices, hopes of integrating into the broader socio-cultural milieu, and quest for legitimacy.[59] Additionally, it is contended that judge Valticos view is an affront to the hallmarks of human rights law and its corresponding commitments to non-discrimination and equality.[60] Perhaps judge Valticos position reflects the deference of the European Court to the constitutions, practices and statutes of member states overtly privileging the position of established churches, whilst correspondingly neglecting the impact of such laws on adherents of minority religious groups.[61] Interestingly, there is evidence to suggest that acts of proselytism conducted by adherents of the Greek Orthodox faith have not resulted in arrest, unlike the proselytising actions of religious minorities; consequently, an implicit value in judicial support of the Greek Governments actions is the notion that â€Å"the law is applied in Greece to allow prosecutorial decisions based on an individuals religious status, not his or her actions†.[62] Furthermore, one of the pressing anxieties over the privileged position of the established churches in member states is that such protections create a ‘two-tiered system of religious rights which will continue to afford major mainstr eam churches the full rights, privileges, and immunities that are associated with traditional parameters of religious freedom, while simultaneously denying minority religions and new religious movements both equal legal status for their organizations and equal protection for their adherents.[63] In doing so, this paper submits that the reasoning offered by the European Court potentially inhibits the protections of religious freedom more generally. Furthermore, this paper maintains that judge Valticos perspective could have insidious and deleterious effects not only on the freedom of religion of religious minorities, but also the freedom of religion for adherents of dominant religious faiths as well. For example, some national legislators may claim to be enacting general or ‘neutrally applicable laws, but the outcomes do not necessarily reflect this; rather, they serve as an indicia of a privileged majority restricting the expansion of specific religious minorities, especially in member states where powerful churches aligned with the state can wield formidable political pressure on governments.[64] In this connection, perhaps we can surmise that if a hypothetical faction within a privileged religious group were to dissent from a religious majority powerfully aligned wit h the state, the faction could potentially encounter significant limitations to their religious freedom. Perhaps the astute observations of a revolutionary writing from prison in 1916 underscoring the importance of protecting the freedoms of minority groups would provide some insight to assist the courts adjudication: â€Å"Freedom only for supporters of the government, for members of the party—though they are quite numerous—is no freedom at all. Freedom always means freedom for the dissenters†.[65] Consequently, the Kokkinakis decision has been problematic because the judges seemed to have minimised and dismissed the complexity of the theoretical and substantive issues relating to justified state intervention in cases involving proselytism, and only found an ‘impermissible violation of an individuals freedom of religion when the specific facts arose in the case, rather than attempting to develop broader principles surrounding proselytism when given the opportunity.[66] We now turn to the critiques surrounding the courts adjudication regarding the limitations to religious freedom and permissible scope of state restrictions under article 9(2) of the ECHR. 3.2 Prescribed by law: Implications and the purpose of domestic legislation Although the court accepted that the Greek governments restrictions on proselytism were prescribed by law and had a legitimate aim in Kokkinakis, the Court eventually held that the Greek government failed to demonstrate that the measures were ‘necessary and ‘proportionate in a democratic society. However, a common criticism of the Kokkinakis decision is that the courts failed to develop substantive protections of the rights of religious minorities and unpopular religions to proselytise as well as the concomitant rights of individuals to change their religion. For example, Taylor highlights that the European courts failure to â€Å"impugn Greeces anti-proselytism law† consequently ignored both the purpose of the legislation and the reality that the domestic law was often consistently applied as an instrument of discrimination.[67] Similarly, it is also worthwhile to note that the courts only adjudicated on the particular facts of the case rather than developing broader principles in relation to proselytism and the freedom to change ones religion.[68] In this connection, by merely narrowing its focus on Mr. Kokkinakis conviction, it is evident that the court failed to critique Greeces anti-proselytism measures—measures which have been used as an instrument of disc rimination as evidenced by the frequency of incarceration rates of minority believers.[69] Not only was the bias against unpopular and minority religious groups evident in Kokkinakis, but the reality that the domestic law has been used in a discriminatory fashion has also been reflected in the subsequent case law. For example, in Larissis, a group of Greek Pentecostal air force officers were convicted of proselytising to several of their ‘subordinate fellow servicemen as well as a number of civilians under Greek law. The European court held that the Greek authorities were justified in protecting the rights of the subordinate servicemen and therefore did not find a violation of Article 9 in that particular instance because of the likelihood that the lower ranking airmen could potentially be subjected to ‘improper pressure; however, the European court found that the Greek government could not justify the convictions of the Pentecostal Air Force officers in relation to the attempts of proselytising the civilians since the civilians were not subject to the same con straints and pressures of the lower-ranking airmen, and therefore, in violation of Article 9.[70] The court reasoned, [The] hierarchical structures which are a feature of life in the armed forces may colour every aspect of the relations between military personnel, making it difficult for a subordinate to rebuff the approaches of an individual of superior rank or to withdraw from a conversation initiated by him. Thus, what would in the civilian world be seen as an innocuous exchange of ideas which the recipient is free to accept or reject, may, within the confines of military life, be viewed as a form of harassment or the application of undue pressure in abuse of power.[71] Whilst understandable that the State was justified to intervene in order to protect the rights of the lower-ranking airmen since ‘hierarchical structures of military life could make â€Å"it difficult for a subordinate to rebuff the approaches of an individual of superior rank†,[72] the court avoided considering the question of whether the Greek legislation prohibiting proselytism was in and of itself a violation of Article 9.[73] In this connection, it is evident that the courts failure to address whether the Greek criminalisation of the proselytism law ought to be reformed or abolished appears to demonstrate the European courts tacit approval of systematic state justifications of laws discriminating and negatively impacting the rights of religious minorities[74] and new religious movements seeking to attract converts.[75] In doing so, it appears that the court instituted its own objective assessment of how the laws would discriminate against the rights of religious min orities to proselytise rather than adopting a perspective acknowledging the vantage point of the religious minorities themselves.[76] In other words, the court appears to dismiss the subjective experiences of the religious minorities in question; consequently, the courts â€Å"have shown little regard for the plight of sincere, committed believers whose claims that States actions interfere with their religion or belief are routinely dismissed by institutions prepared to substitute their judgment for the judgment of the believers†.[77] 3.3 Legitimate Aim The court noted that the ‘impugned measures of the Greek government were â€Å"in pursuit of a legitimate aim under Article 9(2)† in protecting â€Å"the rights and freedoms of others†.[78] However, one of the most unsettling features of the courts reasoning in Kokkinakis is its failure to further develop this conclusion.[79] Under Article 9(2), state limitations to the manifestation of belief are only justified â€Å"in the interests of public safety, for the protection of public order, health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others†,[80] but one criticism levelled towards the approach in Kokkinakis is that â€Å"the Court effectively holds that a government satisfies its burden by offering any justification that can be tied, however remotely, to the ‘protection of the rights and freedoms of others†.[81] In other words, a government may sufficiently meet the ‘legitimate aim requirement at its own discretion, irrespective of whether the government arrived at its conclusion in an arbitrary or capricious manner as lo

Essay --

Reason, Desire, and Sexuality: The Meaning of Gender in Northern Afghanistan This article by AUDREY C. SHALINSKY, discuss the life of men and woman during the year that citizen of Uzbekistan was migrated from Uzbekistan to northern Afghanistan known as the Muhajiren. â€Å"The Meaning of Gender in Northern Afghanistan† article talks about the life men and women and sexual relationship and the forbidden of sexuality in the religion of Islam also, it views gender as symbolic meanings mediated and interpreted through social experience and discourse. AUDREY C. SHALINSKY also, talk over the two interrelated sets of gender that are the symbolic statements about the nature of men and women and the other symbolic statements about the interaction of men and women. Similarly the author finally mentioned the ideas about marriage, veiling, and adultery. This article also talk about the Alimaste â€Å"witchlike figure† the statements about a woman`s passionate and uncontrolled nature. In the analysis this article focuses on traditional, norms, values, and a ttitudes and about the Islamic rule and current society of Afghanistan. These data’s were selected during the year of 1976-1977 in Kundoz a province of Afghanistan located in the Northern of Afghanistan. The Islamic terms, which are used in this article, are nafs, aql and fitna and there were mosques that educate both men and women about these Islamic theories. This article also covers about the Good women and the Bad women and describes the meaning of good and bad. In addition the author firs discussed about the Islamic theory of individual and gender. In this theory the Muhajirin who are the migrants of Uzbekistan used three terms, which are aql, nafs, and fitna and learned these terms in mosques i... ...o sisters and a brother. Because, it’s something common to now a days happening in the rural areas of Afghanistan. We have many stories of teenage girls who are raped by such powerful and wealthy people in far provinces of Afghanistan. And has it mentioned in the book that the girl is blamed, harassed and punished harshly for the sin or crime she has not committed. It`s too similar to life of today’s teenagers and younger girls of Afghanistan. Whom, do their families sell for money or in gambling to powerful and wealthy people? Not only this but the idea of woman not getting education. Still Afghan woman suffering the same problems is a far province and they are banned to get education. However, in Islam it`s not forbidden and Quran says equal education for women and men. But the traditionalist people use their own ideologies and stop women from getting education. Essay -- Reason, Desire, and Sexuality: The Meaning of Gender in Northern Afghanistan This article by AUDREY C. SHALINSKY, discuss the life of men and woman during the year that citizen of Uzbekistan was migrated from Uzbekistan to northern Afghanistan known as the Muhajiren. â€Å"The Meaning of Gender in Northern Afghanistan† article talks about the life men and women and sexual relationship and the forbidden of sexuality in the religion of Islam also, it views gender as symbolic meanings mediated and interpreted through social experience and discourse. AUDREY C. SHALINSKY also, talk over the two interrelated sets of gender that are the symbolic statements about the nature of men and women and the other symbolic statements about the interaction of men and women. Similarly the author finally mentioned the ideas about marriage, veiling, and adultery. This article also talk about the Alimaste â€Å"witchlike figure† the statements about a woman`s passionate and uncontrolled nature. In the analysis this article focuses on traditional, norms, values, and a ttitudes and about the Islamic rule and current society of Afghanistan. These data’s were selected during the year of 1976-1977 in Kundoz a province of Afghanistan located in the Northern of Afghanistan. The Islamic terms, which are used in this article, are nafs, aql and fitna and there were mosques that educate both men and women about these Islamic theories. This article also covers about the Good women and the Bad women and describes the meaning of good and bad. In addition the author firs discussed about the Islamic theory of individual and gender. In this theory the Muhajirin who are the migrants of Uzbekistan used three terms, which are aql, nafs, and fitna and learned these terms in mosques i... ...o sisters and a brother. Because, it’s something common to now a days happening in the rural areas of Afghanistan. We have many stories of teenage girls who are raped by such powerful and wealthy people in far provinces of Afghanistan. And has it mentioned in the book that the girl is blamed, harassed and punished harshly for the sin or crime she has not committed. It`s too similar to life of today’s teenagers and younger girls of Afghanistan. Whom, do their families sell for money or in gambling to powerful and wealthy people? Not only this but the idea of woman not getting education. Still Afghan woman suffering the same problems is a far province and they are banned to get education. However, in Islam it`s not forbidden and Quran says equal education for women and men. But the traditionalist people use their own ideologies and stop women from getting education.