The Bill of Rights, The Second Amendment essays

The Bill of Rights, The Second Amendment essays I decided to choose the second amendment, which deals with two separate issues. The first part ensures that the United States has a sufficient military, and the second part guarantees the right of the people to keep and bear arms. The amendment states that a well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed. Without this amendment, there would be no right for the United States to form a military under the Constitution. The importance of the latter is for people to have the right to protect them and there families from harm. I believe that this amendment is important because it allows the United States to produce the strongest military power. As a result of having the strongest military, the United States has emerged as a world leader and dominates many world issues. On October 21, 1998 Massachusetts legislation passed the Gun Control Act. This new law significantly changed the requirements regarding the purchase, possession, storage, licensing and carrying of firearms. This law also increases the criminal penalties for unlawful possessions and the use of firearms. I believe that this new law is beneficial and appeases to all of societys need for complete protection against the misuse of firearms. One aspect of this law is that all firearms must be stored in a locked container or have a locking device approved the state of Massachusetts. This particular aspect especially benefits families because it prevents any uncertified member of the household from mistreatment of the firearms. There were many situations where the mistreatment of household firearms resulted in child fatalities. However many citizens of Massachusetts opposed the new law because it was an inconvenience, and they felt that they could be held responsible for their own ac tions pertaining to the safety and security of their firearms. ...

Free Essays on Brad Nowell

Bradley Nowell made it big in the music industry in the early 1990’s. He was the lead singer in the rock band â€Å"Sublime†. His story has a sad ending. His music was getting nationwide attention and Bradley passed away. Like so many artist they do not make it big until death. This was Nowells story, after his death, his newly released self titled album â€Å"Sublime† flew off record shelves. (Boehlert, 26) The album was doing great but it was not a time for celebration. The group had been together for a while and it did not seem right without the lead singer. (Kemp, 104) They made it to the top only to be torn apart by a tragedy. Brad Nowell was fighting heroin addiction on May 25, 1996 he lost and the fight was over. Having his music go from a garage to the worlds stage, Bradley Nowell of the rock group â€Å"Sublime†, has developed the virtues of commitment, excellence, cooperation, and creativity. Everything that Brad Nowell tried he did one hundred percent. Everything that he did he succeeded. Bradley was always an excellent student in school. He was always a bright kid and always eager to do new things. (Cuda, 6) His father Jim Nowell always said that teachers were telling him â€Å"What a great kid he was.† (Cuda, 7) Brad was a very good writer and he loved history. In a few of his songs he would mention historical events. Even after Brad got out of school he still loved to talk about history with other people. People said that Brad like Dynamics he like to look at history and see how people interacted with each other. In this song you can see that, its called â€Å"Early Man†: Early man walked away as modern man took control Their minds weren't all the same, to conquer was their goal So he built his great empire and he slaughtered his own kind He died a confused man killed himself with his own mind ... Free Essays on Brad Nowell Free Essays on Brad Nowell Bradley Nowell made it big in the music industry in the early 1990’s. He was the lead singer in the rock band â€Å"Sublime†. His story has a sad ending. His music was getting nationwide attention and Bradley passed away. Like so many artist they do not make it big until death. This was Nowells story, after his death, his newly released self titled album â€Å"Sublime† flew off record shelves. (Boehlert, 26) The album was doing great but it was not a time for celebration. The group had been together for a while and it did not seem right without the lead singer. (Kemp, 104) They made it to the top only to be torn apart by a tragedy. Brad Nowell was fighting heroin addiction on May 25, 1996 he lost and the fight was over. Having his music go from a garage to the worlds stage, Bradley Nowell of the rock group â€Å"Sublime†, has developed the virtues of commitment, excellence, cooperation, and creativity. Everything that Brad Nowell tried he did one hundred percent. Everything that he did he succeeded. Bradley was always an excellent student in school. He was always a bright kid and always eager to do new things. (Cuda, 6) His father Jim Nowell always said that teachers were telling him â€Å"What a great kid he was.† (Cuda, 7) Brad was a very good writer and he loved history. In a few of his songs he would mention historical events. Even after Brad got out of school he still loved to talk about history with other people. People said that Brad like Dynamics he like to look at history and see how people interacted with each other. In this song you can see that, its called â€Å"Early Man†: Early man walked away as modern man took control Their minds weren't all the same, to conquer was their goal So he built his great empire and he slaughtered his own kind He died a confused man killed himself with his own mind ...

The role of divorce and single-parenting in creating poverty among Essay

The role of divorce and single-parenting in creating poverty among children - Essay Example The task of deciding how to engage fathers with their families is primarily under the purview of the provinces. Most provinces offer classes, mediation, and information for fathers and mothers on how fathers can maintain contact and be a positive influence in the lives of their children even after a divorce. Most provinces also offer such things as mental health services for children of separated or divorced parents. Although unstated, the policy of most provinces seems to be to try to keep the father mentally and physically involved with children even if they are not married or in a relationship with the mother. Unfortunately, the services offered to fathers seem to be almost an after-thought. Especially given the uphill battle unmarried fathers face in the Divorce Act. The primary target of the various departments is the single mother. Like most social welfare programs, the target of these policies is poor families. The Divorce Act complicates the relationship of poor faterhs with their children because poor fathers are more likely not able to meet the demands of their divorce or child-support decrees. At the same time, while not having a father affects all children, the results are especially damaging when the mother is poor. Similarly, tax benefits and allowances at the national and local levels (e.g. Canada Child Tax Benefit and national Child Benefit Supplement) are exclusively for the primary custody holder of the child. Meaning that although he is financially responsible for his children, fathers, even the very poor fathers, do not receive any support in trying to care for their child. This paper will show that while these efforts at engaging fathers are good and noble, the programs don't go far enough in encouraging parental involvement or assiting fathers who want to do the right thing for their children. Furthermore, those policies that try to encourage fathers to be more involved with their children are targeted primarily toward poor families, when in fact children of all economic classes would benefit from having fathers who better knew how to parent. Method In order to figure out provincial policies on educating and engaging fathers in the parenting process, I looked at reports published by various local governments. I also looked at what services were available to parents and specifically to fathers and to divorcing or separated families. There is a large amount of literature in the journals on the role of fathers in contributing to or helping to eliminate child poverty. The literature nearly universally agrees that the financial and parental contributions of a father are one of the most effective ways or reducing the number of children in poverty. Some of the literature is strongly in support of marriage, suggesting that the way to bring down the numbers of children living in poverty, it would be best to encourage unmarried mothers to marry and to help couples that are married stay that way. Others suggest that it would be far better to teach fathers how to be good parents and to provide them with support so that they can help provid e for their families whether or not they live with them. The governments seem to take this line. While many of the provinces offer some sort of marriage counseling, the vast majority of the services offered do not take into account whether or not the parents are married. Issues Addressed by the Policy The primary issue addressed by

The CFO & the Performance and Budget Review Assignment

The CFO & the Performance and Budget Review - Assignment Example If budget is over or underutilized then VP Marketing can give its justification and on the basis of whichperformance of entire marketing department can be evaluated. CFO has no role either in budget utilization of Marketing Department or achieving performance objectives of marketing except in analyzing ROI, Revenue & Profits. CFO approves finances against proposals or case presented by Marketing Department. So CFO also has good idea about the marketing campaigns launched by the company. CFO can only be involved in order to analyze actual financial impact of marketing budget and its performance (Miller, 200). Main objective of Marketing budget is to increase salesby attracting new customers and retaining existing ones through marketing activities. Increase in customer base will eventually lead to increase in revenue. President will call the CFO if marketing expenses and performance is not justifiable as per financial outlook. Marketing expenditure is considered as an investment for the Company. These expenditures have both short term goals (get new leads, retention of existing customers) and long term impacts such as relationship building, brand awareness etc. CFO role in this scenario would be to analyze facts such as why budgets are over or underutilized, what is actual ROI as per existing and new customers on the basis of yearly marketing expenditure, whether campaigns launched by the Marketing Department during the year generated any revenue or not, financial impact of the proposals presented by the Marketing Department VS their actual output, variance analysis of Marketing budget, and other financial factors which lead to the particular result. CFO in the meeting can also suggestto decrease or increase the Marketing budget after reviewing the performance, which marketing ventures feasibility will be effective and how company can improve the revenue

Mark Twain Short Stories Essay Essay Example for Free

Mark Twain Short Stories Essay Essay Mark Twain has composed a myriad of short stories over a long period of time. Twain writes with the passion to charm and amuse the reader. Every single sentence he writes makes one want to keep reading on to see what happens next. His stories also offer a comment on human nature and Twain often questions conventional wisdom. Just because someone’s life did not attach to with what many people see normal, Twain seems to be asking if that makes them lucky when they don’t fail. He responds to that question and challenges the reader to think twice in his short stories. Mark Twain’s stories seem to never be lacking hilariousness. In Luck, for example, he brings out the subject, Lieutenant-General Lord Arthur Scoresby, as a dignified and decorated soldier but then makes a quick turn by quoting the town Reverend saying, â€Å"Privately – he’s an absolute fool† (Twain 265). This blunt change allows Twain the chance to recount the tale told by the Reverend concerning Scoresby’s many failures in battle. Additionally, he sets up the reader in The Story of the Bad Little Boy by painting a dreary picture as to what could happen to the main character. Twain then excitedly breaks the ice with an amusing reveal of what actually happened. Twain writes, â€Å"Is it right to disobey my mother? Isn’t it sinful to do this? Where do bad little boys go who gobble up their good kind mother’s jam?† and then he didn’t kneel down all alone and promise to never to be wicked any more, no that is the way with all other bad boys in the books†¦ He ate that jam, and said it was bully; and he put in the tar, and said that was bully, also, and laughed, and observed that the old woman would get up and snort† (11). This process of creating a sullen circumstance and then flamboyantly reversing course is depicted in most of Twain’s stories and was used to have a great effect. Mark Twain used humor to thrill the reader, which he did effectively and consistently, but he also used it make a clear point. The most frequent point he was trying to make was that society is too uptight. In The Story of the Bad Little Boy, he underlines a wide range of â€Å"bad† things that the main character does but wraps it up that it had little bearing on him when he became a man. Twain writes, â€Å"And he grew up and married, and raised a large family, and brained them all with an ax one night, and got wealthy by all manner of cheating and rascality; and now he is the infernalest wickedest  scoundrel in his native village, and is universally respected, and belongs to the legislature† (13). This was Twain’s way of getting at the notion that a naughty child will always be a bad person. He does this again in Science vs. Luck in which he pokes fun at the over-the-top laws against gambling and games of chance. Twain does this through the main character, a nifty attorney, who argues that the game of seven-up is actually a game of science rather than chance so should not be considered gambling. Twain writes, â€Å"We, the jury in the case do hereby unanimously decide that the game commonly known as old sledge or seven-up is eminently a game of science and not chance†¦ In demonstration where of it is hereby and herein stated, iterated, reiterated, set forth and made manifest that, during the entire night, the â€Å"chance† men never won a game† (73). By using humor to sink in the message, Twain was able to poke fun at the conservative folks that ruled his day, and ours. Conservative thinking includes the presumption that people who succeed while acting in an unconventional manner must be lucky. Twain also poked fun at that thinking as well. The hero in Luck, Lieutenant-General Lord Arthur Scoresby, was privately thought to be a fool and the luckiest man on earth to survive in the military for decades. Twain then brings up nearly a dozen events in which Scoresby went against conventional wisdom and managed to live, leaving the reader to wonder the question, â€Å"Was it really luck or was Scoresby just good at what he did?† He also attains a familiar and similar goal in The Story of the Bad Little Boy in which the main character survives many near-fatal events to become a pillar of society. Twain seems to ask, â€Å"Was the boy really lucky to survive his childhood or was society too uptight?† Finally, in Science vs. Luck, Twain points out that games of â€Å"chance† are nothing more than complicated science or math problems. Once again, Twain intrigues the reader to consider whether the conservative view is the one and only view. Mark Twain wrote short stories with strong intent. He had a critical yet comical perspective that allowed him to see the humor in serious matters. Twain wrote about them in a way that was entertaining while also serving to share his perspective on his literature. For those readers who took themselves too seriously, they probably only saw the humor part. To those who chose to read between the lines laughed, but also probably stopped to reflect on the message. In his unique way, Mark Twain may have changed the course of human nature and society with his writings. Works Cited Twain, Mark. The Complete Short Stories. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2012. Print.

Essay --

Daniel Urbina Mr. LaVigne English 101 (WC 1110) 4 October 2013 Symbolizing Savagery In William Golding's Lord of the Flies, symbolism is portrayed throughout the novel and impacts the story in such a way that it sculpts almost the entire theme. The boys who are stranded on the island come in contact with many unique elements that Golding uses to symbolize ideas or concepts. Each boy represents a specific element of society, and each object Golding presents throughout the novel also has particular importance to the novel. Through the use of symbols such as the beast, the pig's head, and even Piggy's specs, Golding demonstrates that humans, when liberated from society's rules and taboos, allow their natural capacity for evil to dominate their existence. One of the most important symbols in Lord of the Flies is the also what gives the novel its name, the pig head. Golding's description of the slaughtered animal head on a sharpened spear is very graphic and even frightening. The pig head is depicted as "dim-eyed, grinning faintly, blood blackening between the teeth," (Golding 137) and the obscenity is swarmed with a "black blob of flies" that "tickled under his nostrils" (Golding 138). As a result of this detailed, striking image, the reader becomes aware of the great evil and darkness on the island that the pig head represents. When Simon begins to converse with the seemingly inanimate, devil-like pig head, the source of that wickedness is revealed. Even though the conversation may be entirely a hallucination, Simon learns that the beast, which has long since frightened the other boys on the island, is not an external force. In fact, the head of the severed pig tells him, "Fancy thinking the beast was something you could hunt and k. .. ...d thump of living things," Piggy's specs are stolen, leaving him virtually blind (Golding 167). Meanwhile, Jack returns to Castle Rock, "trotting steadily, exulting in his achievement," as he has practically abandoned all ties to his previous civilized life (Golding 168). Although there are plenty of other allegories important to the book, the symbols that represent the most drastic changes are the beast, the pig head, and Piggy’s specs. The beast symbolizes the inborn savage nature within all of mankind, and shows that this evil will prevail no matter what. Piggy’s specs represent science, civilization, and order, but are destroyed due to the overpowering evil in the boys. Golding clearly uses the novel Lord of the Flies to project the unfortunate truth that evil is present within all of humanity, and if let loose, will destroy anything that tries to suppress it.

Reagan Revolution

Ronald Wilson Reagan, the fortieth president of the United States of America. He was well known for his economic policies during is first term, which later on became well known as â€Å"Reaganomics†. This policy included large tax cuts which was started and implemented in 1981. â€Å"Reaganomics† was told to rejuvenate the morale of the American people and then let them not be dependent on the government. Supply-side economics is the basis for this economic policy which aimed to stimulate growth of the economy.By implementing this policy, Reagan had the country’s gross domestic product or GDP recover from the 1982 recession and began to progress at 3. 4% per annum and also decreasing inflation.. Unemployment reached to an all time high during the first years of Reagan’s term but gradually decreased till the end of his presidency, thus strengthening the American economy. Then the stock market crashed in 1987 creating a huge governmental budget deficit which had raised the national debt substantially.The cause of this is unknown, yet detractors point out that Reaganomics was the mainly the cause of this crash yet remain inconclusive. In his second term in the presidential seat, he focused on strengthening the nation’s defense capabilities due to the significant build-up of arms in the Soviet Union. His second term was also marked by his foreign policies that deemed him as a war monger. His term also included the cessation of the Cold War and â€Å"Star Wars†. As nation’s economy grew steadily stronger, Reagan now focused on international relation, he was known as â€Å"The Great Communicator† in these affairs.Starting talks with Mikhail Gorbachev, Reagan initiated to have the Berlin wall be torn down as a start of a peace process and a new era to begin. Reagan has noticed that the arms of the Soviet Union was technologically advanced and had initiated defense projects that would enable the nation’s de fense systems to be at par or much superior than others. The space program boomed in that decade with the â€Å"Space Race† competing with the Soviet Union starting a â€Å"Star Wars† program that would rival any nation’s capabilities.

Old Testament-Writings Essay

Our world today has many books within reach, both fiction and nonfiction. However, does a person fully understand what the author is trying to convey in their meaning and message to the audience? The same goes with the Bible, particularly, Lamentations, which is found in the Old Testament Scriptures. An individual has to understand where the book originated from, and what each chapter implies as well as what message the author was trying to convey then and now. Origin Title The word Lamentations means to weep, and the sorrow, which was caused â€Å"by the destruction of the city of Jerusalem by the Babylonian army in 587. † (Reyburn, 1992). Authorship According to tradition, many believe that Jeremiah wrote Lamentations, which include the church father, despite his name not located anywhere in the text. A couple of witnesses are also the Septuagint and Vulgate. Some more evidence is displayed in 2 Chronicles 35:25; consequently, it refers to King Josiah’s death. Since he greatly loved Jerusalem and the people, this shows that he is quite qualified to write the book (Keil, Delitzsch and Wiesmann, 1956). Date Jeremiah most likely was the author (Goldingay, 2003). He most likely saw Jerusalem’s destruction due to eyewitnessing and lamenting over it. â€Å"There is almost universal agreement that the book was written soon after 587 B. C. , while the events were still vivid in the author’s memory. Attempts to prove that Jeremiah wrote Lamentations prophetically after King Josiah’s death in 609 have no merit (Rudolph, 1962). Some unconvincing evidence is when others have attempted to date the book many years later, especially during the Maccabean period (Rudolph, 1962). Background of the Book. One name appears in Lamentations, and that is Edom, which is found in 4:22. However, when the Chaldeans overthrew Jerusalem and made them fall in 586 B. C. , this is what brought about the book of Lamentations. 2 Kings 25 is a connection that cannot give about any other conclusions. The siege that lasted for eighteen months brought about terrible suffering, but spiritually, they lost Zion as well the Temple, which also made it devastating psychologically (Smith, 1992). Theme of the Book. Lamentations has four laments from chapters one to four as well one prayer that is noted in chapter five, which is intended to help the audience understand how the people felt once Jerusalem fell. The writer basically shared his experience with the people by not using much imagination in the process. In general, this book contains a detailed description of what occurred nationally in regards to suffering (Smith, 1992). Structure of the Book Lamentations consists of five poems. Each poem is unique because a theme â€Å"of sorrow over Jerusalem’s fall, though from different perspectives† (Gottwald, 1985). On other occasions, the grief is individual. â€Å"The funeral mood was communicated to those who first heard or read Lamentations by the dirgelike meter (Qinah meter) that characterizes much of the book† (Budde, 1883). To break it down, two lines are the simplest, but the first three are syllables as well as two for the second. When it was heard, the sound was mournful (Budde, 1883). No one can explanation with full agreement in regards to the acrostic structure with the five poems in the book. â€Å"Some think they were composed as a pedagogic device to teach schoolboys the alphabet. Some think the acrostic was intended to facilitate memorization of the poems. Some believe it reveals a belief in the magical powers of letters. Others believe the poems were deliberately structured as acrostics with a view to liturgical usage to commemorate Jerusalem’s destruction in solemn religious services† (Kraus, 1960). Historical Setting â€Å"The Babylonians’ capture of Jerusalem in 587 B. C. was not the first time the city had experienced invasion and plunder by enemies (cf. 1 Kgs 14:25–26; 2 Kgs 14:13–14; 23:33; 2 Chr 21:16–17; 2 Chr 25:22–24; 33:11)† (Hayes, 1997). However, â€Å"In 588 King Zedekiah† chose to rebel against King Nebuchadnezzar, so that Judah can have its independence. Jerusalem was taken and completely destroyed eighteen months later (Hayes, 1997). â€Å"Many of its inhabitants were put to death, enslaved, exiled, or fled to Egypt. King Zedekiah and other leaders were taken to Babylon (Jer 39:1–10; 52:29)† (Hayes, 1997). Theological Values A theological dilemma came about due to the low morale in Judah, which is more devastating than the temple’s destruction due to the catastrophe. â€Å"Human suffering always precipitates probing questions about God. The faith of many Jews must have been shattered by the events. They had believed that Jerusalem was inviolable and that God’s temple could not be destroyed because he dwelt there (cf. Jer 7:1–8)† (Gottwald, Weiser, Kraus and Moore, 1983). God would fight the battles for his people. He later delivered Jerusalem in 701 B. C. from Sennacherib as seen in 2 Kings 19 (Gottwald, Weiser, Kraus and Moore, 1983). Individuals were shocked that God did not help them, but thought in their minds that He abandoned them. Maybe a select few realized it was the Lord punishing them due to the recent events because they refused to obey the warnings from various prophets during that time, so His wrath was upon them both as a nation and for the people. For those who understood the prophets’ words, they realized that a remnant is spared, so that a nation is rebuilt as seen in Jeremiah 24:5–6; 29:10, 14 and Ezekiel 6:8–9; 11:17 (Gottwald, Weiser, Kraus and Moore, 1983). Purpose of the Book. In general, Lamentations is not the lone book found from ancient times. Several bemoans over great cities that fell were unveiled in the heart of Mesopotamia (Smith, 1992). The book of Lamentations gave the people a reason to express their pain over what had happened to them, so as to help them out psychologically. However, the poems serve to allow the Israelites could express their grief over the sorrow of what was lost nationally from a liturgical point of view (Smith, 1992). Foreshadowing â€Å"Jeremiah was known as the ‘weeping prophet’ for his deep and abiding passion for his people and their city (Lamentations 3:48-49). This same sorrow over the sins of the people and their rejection of God was expressed by Jesus as He approached Jerusalem and looked ahead to her destruction at the hands of the Romans (Luke 19:41-44). Because of the Jews’ rejection of their Messiah, God used the Roman siege to punish His people† (Book of Lamentations, 2009). The Lord does not find it joyous when He has punish His own children, but later offered Jesus as a final sacrifice for everyone’s sins (Book of Lamentations, 2009). Key Verses Three key verses are worth noting. One, Lamentations 2:17 (New International Version) says, â€Å"The LORD has done what he planned; he has fulfilled his word, which he decreed long ago. He has overthrown you without pity, he has let the enemy gloat over you, he has exalted the horn of your foes† (Book of Lamentations, 2009). The second verse is Lamentations 3:22-23 (NIV), which says that because of God’s wonderful love no one is consumed because He never fails us because they are always new and faithful (Book of Lamentations, 2009). Last is Lamentations 5:19-22 (NIV), which says, â€Å"You, O LORD, reign forever; your throne endures from generation to generation. Why do you always forget us? Why do you forsake us so long? Restore us to yourself, O LORD, that we may return; renew our days as of old unless you have utterly rejected us and are angry with us beyond measure†(Book of Lamentations, 2009). Meaning 1:1–22 The author uses lots of imagery to express the current state of Jerusalem, which is the city of Zion. â€Å"Babylon, Egypt, Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon,† and Judah was close friends with them (Hughes, 2001). The roads were now deserted as seen in 1:4. â€Å"Like Zedekiah, Israel’s leadership fled from Jerusalem (1:6; cf. Jer. 39:4–7). The siege conditions in Jerusalem were reflected in 1:11, when people exchanged their precious treasures for food. The figures of â€Å"fire† (meaning â€Å"total destruction†) and a â€Å"trap† (that is, â€Å"captivity†) describe the calamities that befell Jerusalem (1:13)† (Hughes, 2001). In the Hebrew, the word â€Å"Allies† (1:19) is easily translated to â€Å"lovers† as seen in 1:2. The author of Lamentations prayed for God to bring Babylon’s judgment on â€Å"the day†(1:21; cf. Jer. 50–51) (Hughes, 2001). 2:1–22 Zion’s sorrows came about because of judgment from the Lord. They experienced a famine as mentioned in Lamentations 2:11–12, which happened because of warfare (Hughes, 2001). â€Å"The false prophets had predicted a return to peace and prosperity (2:14; cf. Jer. 14:13). Jeering and scoffing were ancient gestures of malicious joy and contempt (Lam. 2:15). In ancient times the night was divided into three four-hour periods (2:19)† (Hughes, 2001). During each of the periods, the writer of Lamentations wanted the people to wake up, so weeping could continue. A judgment that was placed on them due to their disobedience was cannibalism through starvation of the Judeans, who lived in Jerusalem, which was prophesied in Deuteronomy 28:53 (Hughes, 2001). 3:1–66 Many personal experiences took place in the life of the author’s ministry. Much encouragement was received and consolation through reflecting on God’s faithfulness through the ages (Goldingay, 2003). The writer used hyperbole frequently, which is to exaggerate in hopes to emphasize the important points. For example, â€Å"unfailing love,† when it is translated from the Hebrew, it means â€Å"stork,† and upon breaking it down more so indicates motherly love (Hughes, 2001). 4:1–22 Jeremiah made much reflection on what he saw with his own eyes in the heart of Jerusalem, especially when the Babylonians siege in Jerusalem took place (Goldingay, 2003). â€Å"Those ‘who once lived in palaces’ (Lam. 4:5) were the wealthy. No one helped Sodom (4:6). After their true character was recognized, the false prophets and wicked priests were condemned as ‘defiled’ like lepers (4:15; cf. Lev. 13:45–46)† (Hughes, 2001). 5:1–22 Jeremiah confessed on behalf of the nation their sins, and then asked the Lord for a complete restoration. One can become confused on 5:6, when there is a reference to Assyria unless a person understands it was in reference to Babylon. At one time, the Empire inherited Assyria. â€Å"According to Jewish custom, the request of 5:21 is repeated at the conclusion of the book in order to avoid ending on an unpleasant note. But history has shown that God had certainly not rejected his people (Rom. 11:1–5)† (Hughes, 2001). Message Old Testament Application God made it clear back then that the people who lived in the heart of Judah needed to follow and obey Him. This meant that they could not worship other gods, commit adultery, covet, and so forth. These people needed to understand the depth of God’s love for them, but He made them face judgment, so that they would turn to Him, and this is seen frequently throughout the Old Testament. For example, in the book of Judges, God placed them in a cycle. This cycle consisted of a Judge would prophecy about the coming judgment, they would face judgment, and then all would turn back to God through repentance of their sin. Throughout Scripture, God never rejected anyone. He demonstrated His love for them in every book that is mentioned in the cannon. No one is perfect, but each day is a learning process to strive to live for Him, and not for the pleasures of this world. The issue back then is that the Judeans lived for what the world had to offer instead of what God has done for them, and continues to do. He deserves the glory, and not us. A similar concept is used today when it comes to God’s wrath, and for all of us to repent of our transgressions. Today’s Application The book of Lamentations applies to our setting today too. One, when people are wicked a society eventually disappears. Two, a person should not ask for a blessing that happened from the past, and continue to live in sin in the midst of it. Three, all countries of the world and churches will face judgment, if they do not remain faithful. Fourth, the Lord sticks to His Word, and make it come to pass. Fifth, many solutions are possible in the midst of suffering, but ultimately it comes down to a total faith in God (Hughes, 2001). Here are some more ways of looking at the book as well in a contemporary context. In attempting to understand what the book is trying to convey to the audience who reads it, then much can come from studying Lamentations. â€Å"First, the book can speak to any, including Christians, who feel alone or even abandoned by God. In this respect it is like those Psalms which we have called ‘laments’. It is good to give honest expression to such feelings and to know the reassurance of God’s grace in the midst of them† (Carson, 1994). Lamentations also can help the reader to identify with those around them, who are facing difficult situations. For example, our world faces daily disasters, such as wars and famines, which are constantly brought to our attention through the media on television. For us humans, all of us have the tendency to ask, â€Å"Where is God in the midst of our circumstances? † Of course, we can wonder more so, when our brothers and sisters are caught up in the chaos of it all as well, but end up sympathizing with them through identifying their pain. â€Å"The book of Lamentations enables us to express our grief, not only on our own behalf, but also on behalf of others† (Carson, 1994). Another possibility is that an individual requires discipline. Much discipline goes into writing a phenomenal book, which can help in the present. A decision that a person makes is in seriousness, so that he or she is disciplined, so that problems, which are sometimes difficult to face are dealt with at the time. God’ Word can help us by teaching us how to deal with difficult circumstances by allowing us to express our hurts that are at times too deep as well as coaching our mind and heart throughout it too (Carson, 1994). Confession is difficult for anyone, this goes for both believer and non-believer. â€Å"The people of Judah knew that their exile was due to their disobedience to the covenant made by their ancestors with God. We cannot treat all suffering in the same way. Nevertheless, here too we can identify with our ancestors in faith, by simply recognizing that human sin—in which each of us has a part—is the root cause of the world’s grief† (Carson, 1994). When someone questions, this too is an act of confession. God grants both justice and mercy while judging others. His justice does not finally issue only in judgment, but also, and decisively, in mercy (Carson, 1994). Even in terrible judgment, God is a God of hope (Lamentations 3:24-25). No matter how far we have gone from Him, we have the hope that we can return to Him and find Him compassionate and forgiving (1 John 1:9). Our God is a loving God (Lamentations 3:22), and because of His great love and compassion, He sent His Son so that we would not perish in our sins, but can live eternally with Him (John 3:16). God’s faithfulness (Lamentations 3:23) and deliverance (Lamentations 3:26) are attributes that give us great hope and comfort. He is not a disinterested, capricious god, but a God who will deliver all those who turn to Him, admit they can do nothing to earn His favor, and call upon the Lord’s mercy so that we will not be consumed (Lamentations 3:22) (Book of Lamentations, 2009). How are we to live in our current day and age? â€Å"We must live with realism, and we must live by faith† (Cameron, 1994). A person needs to look deep into themselves as well as circumstances. When an individual looks beyond what is happening in their lives, and then he or she will have faith because of what God has done for them. The church is quite sad, and God is the final judge of it all. For example, â€Å"How the gold has grown dim,† which is seen in Lamentations 4:1. However, we are disgraced as the church has become secularized, and our inheritance is given to strangers (5:2). No joy is present in our lives because it has turned into mourning. In our world, which includes the church, we will find it difficult to rejoice (Cameron, 1994). All of us seek answers to life’s questions, particularly from Psalm 137: 4, which states (NIV), â€Å"How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land†(Cameron, 1994)† When a person walks and talks with God, then he or she receives full joy in the Lord. The book of Lamentations may come across sad while reading what happened to the Judeans, but they soon realized that He wanted a relationship with them all along, so they eventually turned back to Him despite the current judgment that was upon them. In Lamentations 3:22, which says (NIV),‘The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end† (Cameron, 1994). To describe what it means for steadfastness, this is to indicate that the Lord is faithful with His enduring love. He is the same forever. God is wonderful to those who confess and turn to Him for their hope. We can praise God for His faithfulness from the past to the present. All of us are a testimony to His love because there is courage to face the future of whatever it is to come. He will supply our every need, and has proven it throughout history, which includes Lamentations. No need to worry because He already knows (Cameron, 1994). References Cameron, C. M. (1994). Lamentations. Retrieved February 21, 2009, from Biblestudies. org. uk: http://www. biblicalstudies. org. uk/lamentations. php Carson, D. (1994). New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition. 4th edition. Downers Grove: Inter-Varsity Press, 281-289. Goldingay, J. (2003). Old Testament Theology (Volume 1 ed. ). Downers Grove: Intervarsity Press, 295-305. Gottwald, N. (1985). The Hebrew Bible: A Socio-Literary Introduction. Philadelphia: Fortress. Hayes, J. a. (1988). A New Chronology for the Kings of Israel and Judah and Its Implications for Biblical History and Literature. Atlanta: John Knox. Hughes, R. B. (2001). Tyndale Concise Bible Commentary. Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers. Keil, C. a. (1956). The Prophecies of Jeremiah. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, . Kraus, H. (1960). Klaelieder (Threni). Neukirchen: Neukirchener. Reyburn, W. D. (1992). A Handbook on Lamentations. New York: United Bible Societies. Richards, L. (1991). The Bible Readers Companion. Wheaton: Victor Books, 65-68. Rudolph, W. (1962). Das Buch Ruth, Das Hohe Lied, Die Klagelider. Gutersloh: Gutersloher Verlaghaus Gerd Mohn. Smith, J. E. (1992). The Major Prophets. Joplin: College Press, 123-134. The Book of Lamentations. (2009). Retrieved 21 February, 2009, from Gotquestions. org: http://www. gotquestions. org/Book-of-Lamentations. html

SCARED SHITLESS Professor Ramos Blog

SCARED SHITLESS Imagine being in a foreign country, it’s raining, you are cold, you do not have the slightest idea of where you are at, and people are screaming at you in a language you do not understand. This is how my first day in Germany went. It was September of 2018, I was eighteen years old when my grandma had taken me to Munich, Germany for my high school graduation gift. My grandma and I had just dropped our stuff off at our hotel and wanted to walk around for a bit. We had taken the subway from near our hotel to the center of town. We got off of the train and made our way to the surface. When we got to the surface, it was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. I could hear my grandma say, â€Å"Oh my God.†, under her breathe as she looked up in amazement. There was a huge beautiful church with gold statues all over it. There were also statues of kings that used to rule and knights on horses. There were flowers all over the church as well that were blooming with vib rant shades of pink and blue. After checking the church out, we walked around Marienplatz, which is the center hub of Munich, just getting the feel for where we would be staying at for the next two weeks. It was about thirty five degrees out and there was a downpour of rain. My grandma and I had no idea where we were headed, but we were just going with the flow. We had seen a great deal of wonderful places until we made a wrong turn. We turned right in the center of a huge Syrian protest that was going on. We tried to quickly make our way out of a possible disastrous situation by moving along the outside of the crowd. People were waving around Syrian flags while there were other people with megaphones chanting phrases in Arabic while the crowd chanted along. We could see police on the other end of the square with riot gear on carrying sub machine guns trying to control the crowd, but it was not working. The crowd was getting even angrier. As we were swiftly walking through the crowd, there were men screaming at my grandma and I had no idea why. It’s pouring rain, we were cold, we were scared, we had no idea where we are at and there are people screaming at us in Arabic and German. What a great way to celebrate. As my grandma and I were now making our way out of the crowd when we finally spotted a familiar sight. It was the subway tunnel we had come out of when we first arrived. We now had an idea of where we were at and headed to the subway. I had noticed my shoe was untied, so we stopped so I could tie it. That is when we saw 3 police officers walking our way. I did not think anything of it since we had done nothing wrong. I quickly tied my shoe and we headed to the subway. Before we walked down the stairs leading to the train, we turned around and looked to see if they were still following right behind us and sure enough, there they were. As we made our way down the stairs, my grandma whispered to me, â€Å"What should we do?† We came up with two options: turn around and talk to them or just keep going and see if they even stop us. Of course in the heat of the moment, we chose to keep going and avoid a situation that might not even happen. As we were headed to the train, just as we thought we were in the clear, we could see even more men with Syrian flags getting off of the train. Some of them were screaming and chanting and harrassing people that passed by them or even simply looked at them. We looked back yet again and the police were still behind us. In that very moment, I was glad they were. I knew they would protect us if something were to happen to us or anyone near us. One of the protestors ended up getting in a scuffle with a German man, so the police officers that were following us, now had to intervene in the situation. We still have no idea why they were following us for so long. Our train had finally arrived. As we got on the train, yet another pair of police officers got on at the same time. Again, we thought nothing of it since we have still yet to do anything wrong or to even get their attention. My grandma and I found a couple of spots to sit at in the back corner of the train. We just sat there, silent, cold and our clothes soaking wet. We both looked up at each other at the same time and she cried as I laughed. We both had very different reactions to stress and fear. Just as our emotions and adrenaline were settled, the same police officers that got on the train with us were now staring at us walking our way. All I could think was, â€Å"Oh great.† They came up to my grandma and I and were trying to talk to us. Of course we could not understand them since we do not speak German. â€Å"Do you speak English?†, we kept repeating. It was apparent they did not because they just kept raising their voices at us to the point where they were scre aming in our faces. For the second time within two hours, we were getting yelled at in a foreign language. Finally a nice young lady stepped in that spoke both English and German. She turned to us and calmly said, â€Å"They want to see your train tickets.† So we pulled our tickets out and handed them over. The police officers checked our tickets, handed them back and then walked away. I don’t know how the young lady was so calm in such a hectic situation, but I’m grateful she was. We finally made it to our stop and walked back to our hotel. We headed straight to the bar in the lobby. As my grandma and I had sat down at the bar and grabbed our well overdue drinks, my grandma turned to me and said, â€Å"What a fucking day†, and proceeded to take a sip of her drink. This was the most surprising thing that had happened all day to me because I have never heard my grandma use profane language in my whole life. The very next day, we went on a tour of the city, who could’ve guessed who our guide was. It was the same young lady that helped us on the train. We ended up having a wonderful trip and we did not let the ordeal discourage us from having fun.

The History of Spains Gran Dolina

The History of Spain's Gran Dolina Gran Dolina is a cave site in the Sierra de Atapuerca region of central Spain, approximately 15 kilometers from the town of Burgos. It is one of six important paleolithic sites located in the Atapuerca cave system; Gran Dolina represents the longest occupied, with occupations dated from the Lower and Middle Paleolithic periods of human history. Gran Dolina has 18-19 meters of archaeological deposits, including 19 levels of which eleven include human occupations. Most of the human deposits, which date between 300,000 and 780,000 years ago, are rich in animal bone and stone tools. The Aurora Stratum at Gran Dolina The oldest layer at Gran Dolina is called the Aurora stratum (or TD6). Recovered from TD6 were stone core-choppers, chipping debris, animal bone and hominin remains. TD6 was dated using electron spin resonance to approximately 780,000 years ago or a little earlier. Gran Dolina is one of the oldest human sites in Europe as only Dmanisi in Georgia is older. The Aurora stratum contained the remains of six individuals, of a hominid ancestor called Homo antecessor, or perhaps H. erectus: there is some debate of the specific hominid at Gran Dolina, in part because of some Neanderthal-like characteristics of the hominid skeletons (see Bermà ºdez Bermudez de Castro 2012 for a discussion). Elements of all six exhibited cut marks and other evidence of butchering, including dismembering, defleshing, and skinning of the hominids and thus Gran Dolina is the oldest evidence of human cannibalism found to date. Bone Tools From Gran Dolina Stratum TD-10 at Gran Dolina is described in the archaeological literature as transitional between Acheulean and Mousterian, within Marine Isotope Stage 9, or approximately 330,000 to 350,000 years ago. Within this level were recovered more than 20,000 stone artifacts, mostly of chert, quartzite, quartz, and sandstone, and denticulates and side-scrapers are the primary tools. Bone have been identified within TD-10, a handful of which are believed to represent tools, including a bone hammer. The hammer, similar to ones found in several other Middle Paleolithic sites, appears to have been used for soft-hammer percussion, that is, as a tool for making stone tools. See the description of the evidence in Rosell et al. listed below. Archaeology at Gran Dolina The complex of caves in Atapuerca was discovered when a railway trench was excavated through them in the mid-19th century; professional archaeological excavations were conducted in the 1960s and the Atapuerca Project began in 1978 and continues to this day. Source: Aguirre E, and Carbonell E. 2001. Early human expansions into Eurasia: The Atapuerca evidence. Quaternary International 75(1):11-18. Bermudez de Castro JM, Carbonell E, Caceres I, Diez JC, Fernandez-Jalvo Y, Mosquera M, Olle A, Rodriguez J, Rodriguez XP, Rosas A et al. 1999. The TD6 (Aurora stratum) hominid site, Final remarks and new questions. Journal of Human Evolution 37:695-700. Bermudez de Castro JM, Martinon-Torres M, Carbonell E, Sarmiento S, Rosas, Van der Made J, and Lozano M. 2004. The Atapuerca sites and their contribution to the knowledge of human evolution in Europe. Evolutionary Anthropology 13(1):25-41. Bermà ºdez de Castro JM, Carretero JM, Garcà ­a-Gonzlez R, Rodrà ­guez-Garcà ­a L, Martinà ³n-Torres M, Rosell J, Blasco R, Martà ­n-Francà ©s L, Modesto M, and Carbonell E. 2012. Early pleistocene human humeri from the Gran Dolina-TD6 site (Sierra de Atapuerca, Spain). American Journal of Physical Anthropology 147(4):604-617. Cuenca-Bescà ³s G, Melero-Rubio M, Rofes J, Martà ­nez I, Arsuaga JL, Blain HA, Là ³pez-Garcà ­a JM, Carbonell E, and Bermudez de Castro JM. 2011. The Early-Middle Pleistocene environmental and climatic change and the human expansion in Western Europe: A case study with small vertebrates (Gran Dolina, Atapuerca, Spain). Journal of Human Evolution 60(4):481-491. Fernndez-Jalvo Y, Dà ­ez JC, Cceres I, and Rosell J. 1999. Human cannibalism in the Early Pleistocene of Europe (Gran Dolina, Sierra de Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain). Journal of Human Evolution 37(3-4):591-622. Là ³pez Antoà ±anzas R, and Cuenca Bescà ³s G. 2002. The Gran Dolina site (Lower to Middle Pleistocene, Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain): new palaeoenvironmental data based on the distribution of small mammals. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 186(3-4):311-334. Rosell J, Blasco R, Campeny G, Dà ­ez JC, Alcalde RA, Menà ©ndez L, Arsuaga JL, Bermà ºdez de Castro JM, and Carbonell E. 2011. Bone as a technological raw material at the Gran Dolina site (Sierra de Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain). Journal of Human Evolution 61(1):125-131. Rightmire, GP. 2008 Homo in the Middle Pleistocene: Hypodigms, variation, and species recognition. Evolutionary Anthropology 17(1):8-21.

Dad The Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Dad The - Movie Review Example For DAD we can say that the sender that is the director has been able to successfully transmit the message of family ties to the receiver that is the audience through an effective channel that is the movie. Along with the sensitive issue which has been handled by the movie very efficiently, the movie has also shown perfect physical appearance of actors through make-up and the artifacts which have been used were also of high quality. Thus the movie has achieved both technically as well as aesthetically. Dad was an old man who had retired from his blue collar job and his wife Bette (played by Olympia Dukakis) was constantly regulating and complementing his life. It is true that work is worship but work cannot go to such an extent that we start avoiding our near and dear ones especially our parents because it is for this bonding of love that we work hard so that we can make them happy. In the movie we see that John Tremont, son of Jake Tremont is a workaholic and his only goal in life is work more and more. Suddenly when his father fell sick John returns to his family and realizes that he was missing one of the best things of life that is family ties and in the process he rediscovers his emotional self which is very different from the cognitive self and the material self and he says after returning, â€Å"This place hasnt changed a bit†. The movie works as an intensifying instrument for family ties. As John returns a feeling of remorse is triggered in him and he decides to let go off the past and start anew. Jake is a man of high self-esteem and is not ready to take assistance from anybody but his pathetic physical condition pushes hi m towards a situation of acceptance. He is as if engulfed by a fallacy of helplessness. The movie was basically hinting on the symbiotic relationship of a family life and the trigger words of it which the director wants to portray is â€Å"identify your feelings† towards your close ties. During the

Area studies 3rd draft Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Area studies 3rd draft - Research Paper Example There is no definite response the question of the reasons due to which this civilization came to an end. But there are various studies associated with this question and these theories may simply be myths or true facts. Various historians have tried to identify the reasons that caused the seizure of the Indus Valley civilization and they have provided various speculative stories in relation to the incident. The end of the civilization started taking place around the period of 1800 BC and the society completely eroded away by the period of 1700 BC (Kenoyer 160). The two main reasons that are said to have caused the decline include natural reasons such as climatic changes and manmade reasons such as the wars that might have taken place at that time. According to historians three separate instances of natural disasters including intense funds is one of the reasons of the end of the Indus Valley civilization. Evidence provided by the historians is the huge deposits of silty clay along with huge piles of buildings that had been destroyed (Wheeler 11). The materials from these destroyed buildings contained clay which depicts that the city of Mohenjodaro had experienced floods. Other historians even belie ve that floods were not only the reason for destruction; they believe that the region of Mohenjodaro may have even experienced tectonic uplift. The historians are of the idea that earthquakes might have occurred and due to this the floods in the lower region of the river of Indus might have been raised (Wheeler 11). The increase in the floods caused due to earthquakes is credited to the long existence of the city of Mohenjodaro. The historians even argue that the regions such as the Makran region housed a sea port for the civilization and due to the floods in those regions resulted in the end of the commercial trade of the civilization. The last theory