Indigenous Peoples Free Essay Example, 2000 words

African Ethnic Groups Do They Need Recognition? Many sovereign countries such as the United s of America have long been questioned for the system by which it built its supremacy. The morals of its freedom may largely be a myth but it is not an isolated case. The moralistic myth or its own independence is the same delusion other countries have evangelized races and countries in order to take their land and identities away. Africa is one such case. There are more than 100 ethnic groups in Africa that trace their history through hundreds of years before people from the West started coming to conquer them. It is also this roots that makes the term Indigenous Peoples, not just ambivalent, but highly paradoxical. Definition of Indigenous Peoples The term Indigenous Peoples has been a subject of much debate but mainstream understanding indicates that people who lived in an area before the conquerors arrive are indigenous. This understanding, however, is muddled with confusion. Indians, for example, were in Louisiana before the arrival of white Americans but ask any American and they would claim original ownership of the land. We will write a custom essay sample on Indigenous Peoples or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now A further understanding would most likely present two concepts: 1) The First People pertains to the original settlers of a country or area. They are also often called ethnic group or aborigines. 2) Cultural Difference is also used as a major differentiating point between who is indigenous and who is not. Languages, religion or spiritual belief, and socio-economic structure define who is indigenous to the culture In a bid to have a universal understanding of indigenous peoples, a defition was developed by Jose Martinez Cobo in the Special Rapporteur on Discrimination against Indigenous Populations. This was, for a time, accepted internationally (Sanders 214): "Indigenous populations are composed of the existing descendants of the peoples who inhabited the present territory of a country wholly or partially at the time when persons of a different culture or ethnic origin arrived there from other parts of the world, overcame them, by conquest, settlement or other means, reduced them to a non-dominant or colonial condition; who today live more in conformity with their particular social, economic and cultural customs and traditions than with the institutions of the country of which they now form part, under a state structure which incorporates mainly national, social and cultural characteristics of other segments of the population which are predominant. " However, the definition resulted to many questions and challenged many political, cultural, and social beliefs.

reggae music Essay - 1128 Words

Reggae is the most internationally famous style of Caribbean music. Reggae, which is one of the world’s most influential music, was originated in Jamaica around the mid 1960’s. At first reggae was first performed by and for poor Jamaican’s, but quickly became popular throughout the Caribbean and around the world. Most reggae songs deal with social concerns and religious beliefs of the Afro-Caribbean awareness of the Rastafarian religion. The term reggae is also applied today to reggae’s precursor styles, including mento, ska, and rock steady. (World Book encyclopedia, 2000) The origins of reggae can be traced to the 1940s and the emergence of mento, a hybrid that combines African folk-music traditions with calypso, the carnival music of†¦show more content†¦Reggae started making its name in the mid 1960’s after Jamaica had just received their independence from Britain on August 6th 1962. Reggae music is closely affiliated with the Rastafarian religion because it does have a relationship with it and also because it’s main artists Jimmy Cliff and Robert Nesta Marley, known to the entire world as Bob Marley were Rastafarian. Jimmy Cliff became the first reggae performer to achieve international popularity, largely because of his lead role in the motion picture The Harder They Come (1973), for which he also performed the title song, while Bob Marley became the most popular artist. (Microsoft Encarta 2004) Bob Marley, became the most influential as well as the most popular reggae artist to date. Marley combined soulful melodies with strident lyrics that were informed by the Biblical mysticism and Afro-Caribbean awareness of the Rastafarian religion. During the 1970s, Marley and many other Jamaican musicians sang about black unification and liberation, while advocating the smoking of ganja (marijuana) as a religious sacrament. Marley gained mainstream recognition with his 1975 album Natty Dread. By the time of his death from cancer in 1981, Marley and his band the Wailers had won worldwide respect for their highly melodic, spiritually moving pop songs. Marley was such a strong influence in his native country of Jamaica,Show MoreRelatedThe Music Of Reggae Music1014 Words   |  5 PagesReggae music is the result of a number of different styles and genre of music being mixed together and interrupted by Jamaicans. Reggae was really created in the late 1960s as a result of music genres suc h as ska, rock steady, mento, American jazz, rhythm and blues, new Orleans R and B and calypso. Ska and rock steady are very much the foundations for not only Reggae but a number of these other genres too. Ska music originated in the late 1950s and was the precursor for rock steady music. Ska musicRead MoreJamaican Music: Reggae Essay1892 Words   |  8 PagesResearch Paper Bob Marley was the person who made Reggae a worldwide phenomena. Bob Marley was very succesful in the 1970s and it didnt take much time afore reggae became a genre of music. As a result of the development in Jamaica reggae was introduced. Everything commenced with ska and the rocksteady. Jamaica had made an astronomically immense impact on music worldwide in the last 60 years, it developed dramatically and impacted an abundance of people. People in Jamaica commenced to go to theRead More Reggae: The Music of Protest Essay2358 Words   |  10 Pages There are several theories about how the word reggae originated. The first theory claims that the word reggae was coined on a 1968 Pyramid dance single, quot;Do the Reggay (sic),quot; by Toots and the Maytals. Some believe that the word is originated from Regga, the name of a Bantu-speaking tribe on Lake Tanganyika. Others say that it is a corruption of the word streggae, which is Kingston street slang for prostitute (The Origins of Ska amp;#8230;,n.d.). On the other hand, Bob Marley claimedRead More An Overview of Reggae Music Essay1268 Words   |  6 Pages Reggae is a genre of music that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. It is known for the heavy and strong emphasis on the bass within the background beat. Reggae was perceived as a kind of music used to express feelings about the social, political, and economic hardships in Jamaica during the late 1960s and early 1970s. It was performed by musicians from black ghettos who used unhurried beats to make a style of music o f their own. Reggae became an important part of the lifestyle of manyRead MoreReggae Music : A Musical Genre That Influenced Jamaican Music1268 Words   |  6 Pages Reggae is a musical genre that has revolutionized Jamaican music. Reggae originated in Jamaica in the late sixties, early seventies. It’s slow jerky rhythm and spiritual lyrics have influenced many artists, genres, cultures, and societies throughout the world. This had contributed to the advancement of new counterculture movements, especially in the United States of America, as well as Europe and Africa. In the late seventies, it had impacted western punk and rock/pop cultures, which had resultedRead MoreReggae Is Not Only A Type Of Music1560 Words   |  7 Pagesworld, reggae is not only a type of music, but a culture. One of the most worldwide forms of popular culture, reggae is able to be found in many communities, such as Native American, Aboriginal Australian, Hawaiian and Pacific. Reggae has a very well k nown and well defined associated culture. It must be kept in mind the appeal of the Rastafarian ‘lifestyle’ associated with the reggae genre. For many youth in indigenous communities, this lifestyle may be seen as more attractive than the music itselfRead MoreEssay on The Evolution of Reggae Music733 Words   |  3 PagesThe Evolution of Reggae Music Reggae has sustained the test of time and remains one of the worlds last genuine folk music. The evolution of Reggae music can be traced back to the early 1900s with Mento, which is a simple music art form of Jamaican folk music with strong African roots. Reggae music is protest songs against racism, corruption and injustice. It has close links with a religion based around the Bible that is re-interpreted from a blacks perspective,Read MoreMusic : The Best Reggae Band From The Columbus Area861 Words   |  4 Pagesfinding a musical performance is not hard to come by. Luckily, as I was searching online for different performances I ran across The Flex Crew performing at Skully’s music diner. I have been to Skully’s once before to watch a folk band perform. The atmosphere was a lot different than when we saw The Flex Crew. Obviously, the genre of music was a lot different, along with the atmosphere of the crowd. I was very surprised by the number of people in the bar that evening. Mostly, because the performanceRead MoreMusic : The Best Reggae Band From The Columbus Area816 Words   |  4 Pagesmusical performance that could fit in my busy schedule. Luckily, as I was searching online for different performances I ran across The Flex Crew performing at Skully’s music diner. I have been to Skully’s once before to watch a folk band perform. The atmosphere was a lot different than when we saw The Flex Crew. Obviously, the genre of music was a lot different, along with the atmosphere of the crowd. I was very surprised by the number of people in the bar for the fact that the world series was on andRead MoreThe Effects Of Reggae Music On The Music1216 Words   |  5 PagesThere are many people who do not know about reggae music. I was one of those people who did not know the existence of the reggae music until I met this one beautiful girl. Julie, my beloved beautiful future wife, introduced me the reggae music. My first thought of this music was boring. After a while the more time I spent with her made me fall in love with the reggae music too. The love of the music gave me the curiosity of the music and why reggae music helped me with to relax and gave comfort as

The principle source of income for the state of New York Free Essays

The principle source of income for the state of New York for 1998 is taxes. The priciple expenses of the stste of New York for 1998 are: Education is an expendature that should be increased. If education was increased children would get better jobs and better jobs pay more money which produces more taxes, taxes pay for better schools. We will write a custom essay sample on The principle source of income for the state of New York or any similar topic only for you Order Now More community centers with sports facilities should be created to get kids off the streets. Kids would have a place to go to have fun plus it would make alot of money all schools should be pdated with new computers to prepare students for entering the business community. The state should propose to start a partnership with computer companies and the board of education of education in purchasing the computers. The private companies would benefit from this because the more computers used the more computer orientated customers are created. A way to pay for expenditures is by cutting out the â€Å"pork barrel† pet projects by the legislatures. If the budget just passed there were 350 million â€Å"pork barrel† projects requested by the legislatures. If the government cut that in half it would pay for the increases I suggested. Conservative groups that believe the goverment play too much of a role in their lives of the voters would not be in favor of my proposals. In recent years there have been increasing numbers of strikes by public employees like teachers, transit, sanitation, and municipal workers. In many instances these acts were in violation of existing laws which prohibited such One reason why many states and federal government prohibited strikes is because of public safety. If the fire department was to strike lives would be at stake. Neighborhoods would would be burned down. Police shouldn’t strike because crime would rise , traffic enforcement people wouldn’t pay attention to light and possible riots. If sanitation had a strike it would cause a health hazard. The second reason is for business purposes and commerce. If the transit were to strike people wouldn’t be able to go to and back to work. The banks handle the money of civilians. If teachers were to strike kids wouldn’t get the ducation they need to get a good job and they might cause trouble on the On the other hand private bus services should be able to strike. Althogh some people may be hurt by this it does not affect the cities commerce. I do not believe that government employees should have the right to strike. They should sign a statement before they are hired because if they strike it puts the publics Arbitration should be the process that should be put in affect to settle disputes between the employees and the city. Te city chooses someone then the employees choose someone then they choose a third person. This panel determines the settlement of the contract of the employees strike. Striking has become a major problem in recent years because striking is the last weapon the employees have to defend their rights . For instance if workers are working in an unsafe environment they have the right to strike. In York there is a law which prohibits striking this is known as the Taylor Law. Punishment for striking could be dismissal or dock in pay. How to cite The principle source of income for the state of New York, Papers The principle source of income for the state of New York Free Essays The principle source of income for the state of New York for 1998 is taxes. The priciple expenses of the stste of New York for 1998 are: Education is an expendature that should be increased. If education was increased children would get better jobs and better jobs pay more money which produces more taxes, taxes pay for better schools. We will write a custom essay sample on The principle source of income for the state of New York or any similar topic only for you Order Now More community centers with sports facilities should be created to get kids off the streets. Kids would have a place to go to have fun plus it would make alot of money all schools should be pdated with new computers to prepare students for entering the business community. The state should propose to start a partnership with computer companies and the board of education of education in purchasing the computers. The private companies would benefit from this because the more computers used the more computer orientated customers are created. A way to pay for expenditures is by cutting out the â€Å"pork barrel† pet projects by the legislatures. If the budget just passed there were 350 million â€Å"pork barrel† projects requested by the legislatures. If the government cut that in half it would pay for the increases I suggested. Conservative groups that believe the goverment play too much of a role in their lives of the voters would not be in favor of my proposals. In recent years there have been increasing numbers of strikes by public employees like teachers, transit, sanitation, and municipal workers. In many instances these acts were in violation of existing laws which prohibited such One reason why many states and federal government prohibited strikes is because of public safety. If the fire department was to strike lives would be at stake. Neighborhoods would would be burned down. Police shouldn’t strike because crime would rise , traffic enforcement people wouldn’t pay attention to light and possible riots. If sanitation had a strike it would cause a health hazard. The second reason is for business purposes and commerce. If the transit were to strike people wouldn’t be able to go to and back to work. The banks handle the money of civilians. If teachers were to strike kids wouldn’t get the ducation they need to get a good job and they might cause trouble on the On the other hand private bus services should be able to strike. Althogh some people may be hurt by this it does not affect the cities commerce. I do not believe that government employees should have the right to strike. They should sign a statement before they are hired because if they strike it puts the publics Arbitration should be the process that should be put in affect to settle disputes between the employees and the city. Te city chooses someone then the employees choose someone then they choose a third person. This panel determines the settlement of the contract of the employees strike. Striking has become a major problem in recent years because striking is the last weapon the employees have to defend their rights . For instance if workers are working in an unsafe environment they have the right to strike. In York there is a law which prohibits striking this is known as the Taylor Law. Punishment for striking could be dismissal or dock in pay. How to cite The principle source of income for the state of New York, Papers

Edward Thomas - analysis of quote And yet I am half in love with pain free essay sample

Thomas expresses the view that he is ‘half in love with pain’ in various poems, particularly ‘Melancholy’ and ‘Rain’. In both of these poems he seems to resent his troubles but also appreciates them in a rather unusual way. He expresses this by juxtaposing his inner states of joy and melancholy and the outer states of weather and the natural world. Throughout ‘Melancholy’, we see a relationship between pain and pleasure as he presents them as two halves of a whole experience, where one is consistently reinforming the other, as an endless cycle and revolution, like the seasons. When looking at ‘Melancholy’, it is clear that Thomas is suffering and in sadness; it is a state of mind for him. This may also be due to his mother suffering from depression, that he too lived with. Although Thomas resents his illness in this poem, he does not want to change his ways, ‘so that if I feared the solitude / far more I feared all company: too sharp, too rude. ’ His disliking of being alone does not motivate him to find any company as he has found faults in this too. Instead, Thomas remains in this state, which shows the audience that maybe he does not want to escape this gloomy mind set; which then shows us that maybe a part of him takes pleasure in his own sadness. This strange behaviour is expressed more clearly throughout the poem, where he uses a metaphor of weather for his illness, (as we have seen in various other poems from Thomas, such as ‘March’), ‘The rain and wind, the rain and wind, raved endlessly.’ Considering dreary and terrible weather usually reflects Thomas’ own feelings, Thomas’ use of repetition accentuates the never ending pain he endures, as does the more to the point, ‘raved endlessly’. However, Thomas then goes on to say ‘On me the summer storm, and fever, and melancholy / Wrought magic’ Even from ‘summer storm’ we can infer that he has a bittersweet view of his own pain – Summer usually being something Thomas takes pleasure in (as in many poems such as ‘March’ and ‘But These Things Also’, he talks of his happiness as the Winter ends and the more enjoyable weather begins) paired with a storm; and then proceeding to openly addressing his own sadness as a ‘fever’ shows the direct link between the weather and his own emotions. Thomas’ enjoyment becomes clear when he states that this ‘fever and melancholy’ has ‘wrought magic’. Thomas has found something special and moving, although it is often seen as awful and displeasing. He seems to be trying to say that his own illness has cast a spell on him, which is interesting as he addresses it positively with  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœmagic’. This point is proven further when Thomas goes on to say ‘Yet naught did my despair / But sweeten the strange sweetness’; the fact that Thomas repeats the word ‘sweet’ twice exaggerates the extent to which he takes a curious joy in his own pain. In ‘Rain’ there is a link between rain and his own sadness, as Thomas frequently uses rain as a symbol of his own pain being present. However, this poem is somewhat confusing as he describes rain as a dissolver of pain, ‘And neither hear the rain nor give it thanks / for washing me cleaner than I have been’. In this extract Thomas shows the rain to be almost washing away his sins. The rain, in this poem, holds some religious connotations, as Thomas also states ‘Blessed are the dead that the rain rains upon’. Although the rain is seemingly a symbol of cleanliness and purity, it is also a constant reminder of his own solitude and fear of death, ‘nothing but the wild rain / On this bleak hut, and solitude, and me / Remembering again that I shall die’. Here the rain is constant, wild, never ending; the sound of the rain seems to be a reminder of his loneliness in the world. The rain is almost presented as both holy and as an evil reminder, perhaps as half pleasure and half pain. Thomas then goes on to say, ‘But here I pray that none whom once I loved / Is dying tonight or lying still awake / Solitary, listening to the rain’. Here we see that to Thomas, the sound of the rain is a sign of solitude and/or death; but this could perhaps be argued against, as death is the end to all pain. As we have seen earlier on in the poem, Thomas has resented death as it takes away his ability to enjoy the beauty of nature, ‘Remembering again that I shall die / And neither hear the rain nor give it thanks’. Thomas’ famous love for nature is taken away by death, and this is obviously a source of pain for him. However, towards the end of the poem, he states ‘If love it be towards what is perfect and / Cannot, the tempest tells me, disappoint.’ Thomas finds that death is in a way, perfect, as it will dissolve his pain, and can not ‘disappoint’. It is clear that Thomas is conflicted with whether he wants to die, as he finds pleasure in the pain of this, too. In conclusion, Thomas expresses that he is ‘half in love with pain’ through the juxtaposition of his inner views and comparing these with the states of weather: Thomas shows that pain often changes a human being in such a way that they become ‘magic’ and otherworldly, and this change of perspective makes him see the world in a different way, and this, is what Thomas takes pleasure in.

Brethren Essays - Brethren, Plymouth Brethren, Peace Churches

Brethren The book I read was The Brethren, by John Grisham. It was a suspense book. Three judges, called The Brethren by their fellow prisoners, lived in a very minimal security prison. They had just begun fine ? tuning a mail scam that extorted homosexuals with families and lots of money. Then, they snag the wrong person, someone very powerful on the outside. It seems The Brethren's days of scamming are over. This was a great book for many reasons. The first reason is it was sort of double sided. What I mean by that is it explained 2 stories at once, the story of Aaron Lake and the story of The Brethren. I liked this because it helped to understand the situation a lot better. It also helped understand the characters a lot more too. Another thing I liked about this book is the fact that the scam was brilliant. The Brethren had nothing to loose because they were already in prison, and they had so much to gain. These (the victims of the scam) were people who couldn't talk against The Brethren for fear of being caught by their families. One example of the fact that the victims couldn't report this to the police was when The Brethren snagged Quince Garbe, who lived in a small town and who's father owned a bank. If Quince spoke out against The Brethren, he would loose his father's inheritance to the bank, and the whole town would disrespect him. After he gave the Brethren their asking price of $100,000, they immediately asked for another $20,000. He had no choice but to pay them. Another reason I liked this book was it showed how corrupt our government could be. Aaron Lake pretty much bought the election, getting almost 60 million dollars from defense contractors in return to double the military budget. Of course, he did have quite a bit of help from the C.I.A. who staged events in the Middle East to increase enthusiasm for the doubled military budget. On a scale of one to five (five being the highest rating) I would give this book a 4. It was a pretty good plot and you didn't know what was going to happen next. You didn't know if The Brethren would nail Aaron Lake or if the C.I.A. would knock off The Brethren before they could nail him. I would first recommend this book to anyone that likes reading because you have to like reading in order to enjoy a longer book like this is. But if you are an experienced reader, and you know what you like, then this book is for people who enjoy mystery, drama, and great ending.

Shianne Buie Compare and Contrast Chap 17 Both the Essays - Racism

Shianne Buie Compare and Contrast Chap 17 Both the Essays - Racism Shianne Buie Compare and Contrast Chap 17 Both the Jewish people and Native Americans were discriminated and targeted by political leaders, F hrer Adolf Hitler and President Andrew Jackson . Both men subjected these cultural groups to terribly devastating treatment and will forever be known as monsters for their actions. Even worse is the fact that these people were simply subjected to so much torture simply because of their different race s and religio n. The Holocaust and The Trail of Tears showcase the real horrors these cultural groups had to endure at the hands of these men. After Jackson issued the Indian Removal Act of 1830, numerous Native American tribes were gathered up by US soldiers to be taken to a reservation the government had set up for them. These people were forced out of their homes and told that if they didn't cooperate, they would be killed. They were then shuffled, on foot, by the army from their Southeastern US territ ories all the way to the Mississippi River. The Jews were also treated inhumanly by the Nazi army, they were dragged out of their homes in the night and forced into rundown Ghettos. Then they were all crowded into cattle cars and shipped off to Concentration Camps,also set up by the government, where they faced truly unspeakable horrors. Along the Trail of Tears many lives were lost by means of starvation, exhaustion, disease and even freezing to death. There was no regard not burial given for the dead, soldiers merely threw blankets over their bodies and pushed the others on their way. The way the Jews died was pretty much the same, there was also no type of proper burial for the deceased. It is said that there were actually mass graves that the Nazi ' s dumped the countless bodies of the dead in. Even after a century it seems men still hadn ' t learned how to act like human beings, in fact they seemed to have gotten worse. There were also a fair number a differences between these horrific events, one being the final death counts. From 1831 to 1838 nearly fifty-thousand Indians had walked the Trail of Tears, resulting in the deaths of 6,000. While during 1941 to 1945, nearly six million Jews, out of the 9.5 million that had populated Europe, had been killed. While they shared some of the main causes of death with the Native Americans on the Trail of Tears, the Jews also had to face gas chambers, being burned alive, exhaustion from overworking and even fatal medical experiments. Another difference between the two is the fact that the Trail of Tears was more of a periodic occurrence, only happening five times in a seven year period. While the Jewish victims were at the mercy of German soldiers for the entirely of the Holocaust period. The reasoning for these disasters is also different, t he Jews were targeted because Hitler managed to convince everyone that they were to blame for the failure of the economy in G ermany . As for the Indians, it was just a matter of white farmers wanting their land and needing a way to get them off it. Both causes were completely despicable all the same. While reading about the Trail of Tears in this chapter, I happened to recall a presentation my friend gave in high school about political leaders who had committed terrible crimes. Hitler was obviously on the list, but when she mentioned Jackson a lot of people were surprised, one guy even said and I quote, " But he was an American president. " My friend had responded that it didn't matter who the heck he was, because treating people like he did was absolutely repulsive and horrifying. I agreed with her reasoning and thought the presentation itself was really interesting, so I figured comparing and contrasting these two events would prove even more informative to me, as it certainly did.

Case Analysis - Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Case Analysis - Management - Essay Example The strengths and weaknesses of NASCAR go hand-in-hand, as often overlap each other. The biggest weakness is trying to make everyone happy. While Brian France wants to do one thing, his sponsors and other people in power, such as those at Nextel and ISC, want something completely different. The larger argument is that NASCAR is now being treated as though it were a source of entertainment, something that Brian claims is true. However, he is treating it as such for the sakes of the audience and fans. The external environment of NASCAR involves sponsors, fans, Nextel, and ISC. These are the groups and individual people that have the power to make things happen, as well as the power to stop other things from taking place. They are the ones to supply the money and the tracks. The fans play a large role, considering there would be no NASCAR if there were not people to watch and cheer the racers on. Brian France is the person whom the responsibilities of NASCAR were passed down to, after his father, Bill Jr., gave them up himself. All of the decisions to be made are now in the hands of Brian, as well as his sponsors and the company that is attached to NASCAR, ISC. There is much controversy between Brian and the others that are helping him out; constant debates are arising in regards to what there next steps should be concerning spreading NASCAR. Brian sees expanding the locations of races and the companies that broadcast them as benefiting the audience and fans, while his company believes he is in it for his own publicity, as well as for personal monetary benefits. As the costs go up to maintain the racing tracks, as well as the team, equipment, and other goods to keep the races running, Brian must convince his sponsors and companies to keep spending. To do this, Brian must convince them of his intentions, and prove to them that it is not for personal gain. Another thing that needs to be considered is that there are other tracks already available; it is

The differences and similarities between the Christian and Muslim Research Paper

The differences and similarities between the Christian and Muslim faiths - Research Paper Example In order to understand the two religions, this paper will discuss the differences and similarities between the Christian and Muslim faiths. The first main difference between Christian and Muslim faiths has to do with the recognition of Jesus. Even though both faiths recognize Jesus, their beliefs on him greatly differ. Both faiths believe that Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary and that he was infallible and sinless; however, while Christians see Jesus as God Himself, Muslims view Jesus a prophet of high regard (Renard, 2011). Christians are of the view that Jesus was a spiritual and not a political leader, and this is why most dominantly Christian nations practice separation of state and church. To Muslim, however, Muhammad was both a religious and political leaders, and this explains the integration of state and Islam religion in many Muslim countries. Related to this difference is believe in the Holy Trinity; Christians believe in the Holy Trinity, that is three persons in one divi ne nature, while Muslims believe that God is one person only. To Muslims, Jesus was not divine but was a human prophet who was sent by God just like prophets Moses and Muhammad (Riley-Smith, 2011). It is for this reason that Muslims are of the view that since these prophets were human beings, they should not be worshipped directly or indirectly. The other main difference between the two religions is in regard to their founders. To Christians, Jesus is the founder of Christianity and they ought to live according to His teachings. However, to Muslims, Muhammad is the founder of Islam; he was both the religious and political leader (Rousseau, 1999). It should be noted that both religions believe their founders are sinless and infallible. In addition, Christian and Muslim faiths differ on the idea of how salvation is obtained. On one hand, Christians believe that Adam and Eve committed sin and that all people, aside from Jesus, were born with this original sin (Al-Moghamis, 2002). They also believe that human beings are imperfect, and therefore man can only earn salvation through God’s grace and Jesus’ sacrifice. Besides, Christians believe that they can earn reparation and indulgences for their sins, through the saints’ good works (Riley-Smith, 2011). On the other hand, Muslims believe all humans are born sinless, and therefore they are responsible in maintaining this state throughout their life. Muslims also believe that all individuals are responsible for their individual salvation, and that no individual can receive an indulgence. The Quran cites two reasons why Muslims do not believe in the Original sin: God forgave Adam for his sin; and no one should bear the mistake or sin of someone else because it is unfair (Renard, 2011). In spite of the aforementioned differences between Christian and Muslim faiths, there are a number of identifiable similarities. The both have similar beliefs regarding what will happen at the end of time. They beli eve that all human beings will be judged and will go either to heaven or to hell (Rousseau, 1999). In addition, they both believe that heaven is eternal and all human beings should strive to go to heaven. Both Christianity and Islam have certain similar religious aspects: almsgiving, fasting, and prayer. They both have particular holy day where followers are obligated to prayer and engage in other religious rituals.

Race and stereotypical attitudes In the United States Research Paper

Race and stereotypical attitudes In the United States - Research Paper Example Stereotype is closely related with the other terms such as discrimination and prejudice but holds a different concept. According to Daniel Katz and Kenneth Braly, stereotyping can give rise to discrimination and racial prejudice among different groups within a society. For example; recently people in America can be seen reporting any activity of terrorism with Muslims. This is a typical example of a stereotypical thinking where any act of terrorism is being associated with a religious group. However, in the past, such acts of terrorism were observed being linked with the Blacks. Blacks were thought as the people who carry a gun or any weapon when they are walking around casually. They were considered as the robbers or buglers. However, this raised hostile behavior for the blacks by the whites and vice versa. Racial Inequality and Behavior in United States Racial inequality in the country has given rise to different societal issues that has adversely affected the behavior and quality of life of the people belonging from different cultural backgrounds in America including the native Americans. Racial inequality has given rise to unequal distribution of wealth, power, resources and other opportunities. This is had not given rise to different societal issues but it has also effected the behavior of Americans. Racial discrimination has outlined numerous cultural, legal, political and economic issues. Even American can be seen having biased against the people of color. According to a poll conducted by Washington Post regarding the incident of Trayvon Martin, who was shot brutally in Florida on the bases of his races. It was found out that 55% of Americans believe that people with different color are given more freedom when it comes to legal accountability as compare to whites. However, on the other hand, 80% of the African Americans believe that the legal accountability system in America holds a discriminative behavior against the people of color. This perception amo ng the people indicates that Americans are divided on the subject of racial issues. Also, it provokes a thought that is the legal accountability system is biased while treating the people of color differently? Racial bias in America has adversely affected the behavior of people and despite what the authorities claim this issue holds a significant position in the American history. During 1940s, African Americans faced a hostile behavior from the white people. The efforts of Martin Luther King, Jr. is an evidence to support to this hostility that how African Americans were deprived of their legal and social status by the majority of white people in America. In another piece of literature, James Weldon Johnson in his â€Å"The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man† has explained that how as an African American one was faced with racial discrimination and how that man preferred to live as a middle-class white man. This indicates that the thinking and behavior of that African America n man was changed due to the hostile attitude and behavior he had to face by the white groups. His circumstances led him to change his identity and lifestyle which could be seen how people today are shifting their identity from their roots to a new one. Similarly, he has explained in his story that how the behavior of the blacks were regarded as low as they never put an effort

Odour Of Chrysanthemums | Analysis Of Themes

Odour Of Chrysanthemums | Analysis Of Themes Odour of Chrysanthemums, by D. H. Lawrence, once again is full of themes and motifs. One could study this text and come up with many different interpretations. Lawrence also seems to reference rolls of sex in his story. Lawrence stresses the essential separation of all people, particularly the separation of men and women. This is indicated by Elizabeth Batess emotional distance from all those around her, with the exception of her daughter, Annie, and with the way in which characters talk at, rather than engage in dialogue with, each other. Recognition of the separation of all people and particularly of men and women, for Lawrence, must take place in the dark, through the sensual channels of dimmed sight, muffled odors, and touch rather than through intellectual understanding. Elizabeth Bates recognizes the apartness of her husband by gazing on and touching his still-warm body. She recognizes that he is now apart from her in the world of death, just as during his life he was apart from her in his sexual difference, his masculinity. Similarly, his son John, who resembles his father, is described as being separate from his mother in his shadow y darkness and even in his play-world. Finally aware of the infinite separation between herself and her husband whom she had known falsely, Elizabeth will submit to life, her new master, as she had not submitted to her husband by acknowledging his essential otherness. Death also plays a big role in Odour of Chrysanthemums. The delivery of Walter Batess dead body at the Batess home introduces the storys climactic final phase. This phase addresses the relationship between death and life, in light of a consideration of the relationship between men and women. From the beginning, darkness and gloom and a sense of dread seem to hang over Elizabeth Bates. In the first paragraph, the mine and its train are presented as life-destroying forces which startle animals and cramp human lives. Knowing the dangers of underground work, Elizabeth Bates and her neighbors seem to be aware that Walter Bates may have died in the mine. These different elements foreshadow the focus on death at the conclusion of the story and the way it will inform the future life of Elizabeth Bates. While Walter Bates has probably been dead for the first part of the story, a period coinciding with Elizabeth Batess anxious anticipation of his arrival, the story shifts into a mythic dimension with the stark presence of his half-naked body. The two women kneeling by the untouched and still body conjure up images of the scene of the Virgin Mary holding the body of the crucified Christ. Encountering the dignity and finality of death, she realizes that she has been misguided in her futile attempts to criticize and change her husband. The story implies that she will spend the rest of her life attempting to incorporate this realization, achieved through an encounter with death, into her life. She will live, the story implies, anticipating a meeting with her husband in the realm of the dead. Lawrence also writes about the difference in social class. Odour of Chrysanthemums is set in a rural mining village, and there are strong indications that Elizabeth Bates considers herself socially superior to her husband and his working-class friends who labor underground; however, by the end of the story, through her mythic encounter with his dead body, she comes to value her husband, and by implication, to ignore his class position. Elizabeth Bates is described as a woman of imperious mien, who scolds her son when he tears up the flowers because it looks nasty and appears to censure her fathers decision to remarry soon after being widowed because it violates social propriety. Unlike her neighbors, she does not use the local dialect, an indication of class position, but she is not above criticizing one neighbors unkempt house. Unlike other miners wives in the community, she refuses to demean herself by entering the local pubs to entice her husband home. She is distressed when her c hildren mimic their fathers habits and preferences. Most significantly, however, Elizabeth Bates indicates her disdain for the social position of her community by fighting against her husband and his values. Probably lulled into marrying him by his good looks and his lust for life, she now resents him for making her feel like a fool living in this dirty hole. She seems to despise the manual nature of her husbands work, indicated by her unwillingness to wash the residue of pit-dirt from his body when he emerges from his shift in the mine. Awaiting his return, she angrily says she will force him to sleep on the floor. However, her attitude dramatically shifts when she learns about the accident. She even entertains a fleeting, deluded notion that she may transform her husband morally while nursing him back to health, but her illusions disappear when the dead body of her husband is carried into her home by miners supervised by the pit manager. Viewing the body lying in the naive dignity of death, she is appalled and humbled at what appear s to be her husbands new distance from her, but she slowly comprehends that their former connection was based solely on an unnamed attraction above and beyond the conditioning of social class, and the lure of compatible personality, common interest, or shared experience. She now acknowledges that their relationship was part of a different order of experience, which belonged to a mythic dimension. It is a dimension which includes the physical work of the dark mine, the sexual attraction of the body, and the mysterious world of the dead. The story ends with the laws of this new mythic dimension overriding Elizabeth Batess former concerns about social class. Control Room | Documentary | Analysis Control Room | Documentary | Analysis Documentary film analysis of â€Å"CONTROL ROOM†. In March 2003, American and British forces invaded Iraq with the intention to overthrow the regime of the dictator Saddam Hussein, and the Gulf War erupts. The countless military troops and thousands of journalists from all around the world, descend upon the region in order to secure potential news coverage. â€Å"Truth ultimately finds its way to peoples eyes and ears and hearts†. This is the sentence, uttered by Secretary of Defence Donald H. Rumsfeld, and is heard midway through â€Å"Control Room† Jahane Noujaims bristling documentary about Al Jazeera, the satellite news network during the war. You can only hope that Mr. Rumsfeld is right, though his words inevitably call to mind the proverb, that in war, truth is the first casualty. (Scott, 2004; commondreams.com). Jehane Noujaims â€Å"Control Room† another high profile entrant in the current sweepstakes of anti-Bush, anti- imperialist documentaries. As in her â€Å"Start up.com†, Noujaim focuses less on abstract issues and more on the personalities of the players as they react to events taking place. She was born and raised in Egypt before moving to America and that is probably one of the reasons of her unusual access and trust on both sides. Al- Jazeera (one of the most popular channel in the Middle East with over 40 million Arab viewers) was launched in 1996. This observational documentary records the wide range of opinions that surrounds the Qatar television news network during Iraq invasion. Turning up at the stations headquarters in Qatar, Noujaim got to know reporter Hassan Ibrahim and senior producer Sameer Khadar, both from Al- Jazeera channel network, whose sympathy to her project enabled its success. Most of ordinary people including journalists, who come into view in the documentary film are doubtful, to say the least of the Bush administrations policies, but they also stick to a journalistic ethic of objectivity and fairness, trying to navigate between their political allegiances and the code of their craft. (Walters, New York Times 2004) This particular documentary film is made of conversations of journalists and different people involved in the news industry. Though there are shots of dead civilians and bombardments with meat corpses, it is not the main subject in the film. The main subject is the real documentary shots showing people, journalists and their reaction to the events, their conversations and their actions. The shots of innocent Iraqi civilians being killed make the viewer feel very sorry for everything that is happening to them and their families. There for, the complete documentary film represents American military troops in the cruel and very ‘devil light. An Observational documentary mode: This film uses a ‘fly on the wall technique to observe the Al Jazeera journalists (and other media organisations) as they record stories and interact with the U.S. military media spokespersons. The main commentator in the name of Al Jazeera is the senior producer Sameer Khader. Conversation between the two organizations, which are Al Jazeera and US Central Command, is embodied in the interview between two individuals Hassan Ibrahim and the American press officer Lt. Rushing. Their conversations focus around conflict and the reason of the war, agendas and images and privy to many debates about neutrality and objectivity.In the observational documentary, the camera crew is not normally seen. The people who are being filmed are meant to forget, that the camera crew is there, this is aimed to give to the audience a â€Å"slice of reality†. (Predovnik, 2009 http/socio-political-documentaries. suite) The observational mode (as technology advanced by the 1960s and cameras became smaller and lighter, able to document life in a less intrusive manner, there is less control required over lighting etc, leaving the social actors free to act and the documentaries free to record without interacting with each other). (www.mediaknowall.com/Documentary/definitions.htm) Despite being seen as the most direct form of documentary film, there are a number of problems inherent in the genre, which has caused to be viewed with some suspicion. One of the main problems centres on the extent to which `verite` can be seen as offering a `real` or `true` picture of the subject it is involved in. Lukacs, for example has claimed that the cameras attention to the `here and now` is an inadequate mode of knowing. Events and objects are all caught in process of change and networks of causal relations that require representation, if the `true` story is to be understood. Lukacs claim, however that â€Å"the extensive totality of reality is beyond the scope of any artistic creation†. In short, he is implying that `verite` is incapable of offering a true picture of its subject, because as an approach to documentary it is so limited in its scope. (Praxis international issue: 1/1986 p 82-94) Within the context of this piece of work, I am going to look on how editing can and does affect my documentary film. Editing can be defined as the art of being able to tell a story by connecting a series of shots together to make a sequence and thereby having a series of shots put together make a whole film. When editing is done well, it creates a continuity of sequence, which can make the film interesting and watchable. The way in which the camera is used, its many movements and angels of vision in relation to the object being photographed, the speed in which it reproduces actions and the very appearance of person and things before it, are governed by the many ways in which editing is fulfilled. (Rotha, 1966:79) In this particular documentary film, I have focused on the details of the opening scenes in the different aspects, whether it is a sound, camera angels or emotional influences, and if to pay attention, it is easy to see and understand the scenes and the way that the director expresses the key moments by using very sad music, dialogues and actions. Dialogues between the journalists and some other people related to the war story within the film are very crucial and important in order to follow the story. Those conversations give you a brief explanation of what is going on and who is probably the victim in the story. However, director of the film knew how to send a message to the viewer and most of all what kind of message, by finishing it all with a very clever and very provocative angle of editing in this film. There are two scenes in this film, which I would like to highlight. One of them is when, on the fifteenths minute of the documentary, the director has showed us the archive footage of ordinary, unarmed, innocent people being humiliated and attacked by the U.S military troops right in their houses. The second scene, when the statue of Saddam Hussein being removed on the square and when people shown to us, are very cheerful about it, in my opinion, gives a very strong evidence of what director was trying to say in this documentary. Most importantly, when several journalists give us their thoughts and views about the moment, when this is all happening on the square, is vital for the whole structure of the film. That is probably, the essential part in order to understand and make your own `truth` about this documentary film. By the end ofâ€Å" Control Room† documentary, viewers make their own conclusion. In fact, in this documentary, we have been given a `truth`, which every single viewer will decide for him/her self. We are also presented with filmic evidence, in which Al Jazeera is keen to show both sides of an argument and engage in lots of discussions, including the airing of an American perspective. In my view, the editing of the shots and conversations, along with interviews, wounded pictures of children, played a key role in this documentary. Bibliography A Portrait of Al Jazeera, Scott A. O, 2004; 09/12/2009 www. commondreams.com. Ben Walters, Film Notes, New York Times 2004 Politics of War Predovnik, 09/12/ 2009 http/socio-political-documentaries. Suite Rotha, Paul 1966 Documentary Film, 3rd edn, London: Farber Documentary modes; 1935 09/12/2009 www.mediaknowall.com/Documentary/definitions.htm Praxis international issue: 1/1986 p 82-94 An Introduction to Television Documentary (1998) ; Richard Kilborn and John Izod: Manchester University Press

The Life of Frederick Douglass Essay -- Slaves Slavery American Histor

The Life of Frederick Douglass Frederick Douglass brilliantly intelligent and defiant once led a minor insurrection against his masters and escapes his venture alive. Douglass’s career as a militant, uncompromising leader of the American Negro. A fugitive slave who was taught to read by his slave mistress, and who as an ex-slave, became the most famous and articulate rebuke to the monstrous institution of slavery ever to speak or to write in America. In autumn of 1828, Frederick Douglass began his new life as a freeman in the old whaling city of New Bedford, Massachusetts. Ambition, sensitivity, and a high degree of self-consciousness created in the young slave Douglass an unquenchable thirst for freedom and he became what every slave master feared, a smart and uppity Negro who would be content with nothing less than his freedom. A first attempt at escape ended in failure and with time in jail. The second attempt, however, was successful. He fled to New York City, where he married a free Negro woman with whom he moved to New Bedford. He was to date his freedom form September 3, 1838. Douglas relentless exposure of the moral ambiguity of a Christian civilization which was built upon the gross inhumanity of chattel slavery. The White Christian South saw no such moral ambiguity. In fact, they read the Bible as a justification of their way of life, and resented bitterly the charge of northerners that they were un-Christian and immoral because of their support of slavery. They delighted in pointing out that nowhere in scripture is slavery condemned, and they even suggested that slavery was a form of evangelism without which the poor ignorant heirs of Africa would never have heard of the gospel and thus would be unable to know the joys of heaven. Christianity stands against everything which is represented in a culture that makes peace with oppression on this subject there can be neither apology nor compromise. With new found wealth purchased his freedom, a controversial more objected to by certain of the abolitionist who regarded the purchase of liberty as recognition of the legitimacy of bondage. The term of the slave code: a piece of property, a beast of burden, chattel personal. Slavery was a poor school for the human intellect and heart. By the slave code, they are adjudged to be as incompetent to testify against a white man, as... ...ility to manage slaves, to whip, alarm their fears a strike terror. Look word motion mistake accident want of powers all matters for which a slave may be whipped at anytime. Minds had been starved by their cruel masters. Been shut up in mental darkness. To make a contented slave, it is necessary to make a thoughtless one. It is necessary to darken his moral and mental vision and as far as possible, to annihilate the power of reason. He must be able to detect no inconsistencies in slavery; he must be made to feel that slavery is right; and he can be brought to that only when deceases to be a man. The motto which I adopted when I started from slavery was this trusts no man. I saw in every white man an enemy and in almost every colored man cause for distrust. Douglass changed his surname to conceal his identity after escaping slavery in 1838. Life in the city was a turning point in Douglass life. It was there he learned how to read. Douglass later wrote that literacy was his pathway from slavery to freedom. Douglass made an unsuccessful attempt to escape slavery. In 1838 Douglass posing as a freedman sailor successfully escaped to Philadelphia and then to New York.

Gothic Cathedral Essay

Gothic architecture was developed from a Christian perspective, and therefore attained its most meaningful expression in churches. Clerics began to demand taller churches with more windows than had been present in the dark, but sturdy Romanesque churches. This desire was derived from new intellectual and spiritual concepts that took a more rational view of God, and saw God encompassed many things, such as light, reason and proportion. The Gothic church displayed a visual attempt to leave behind the mysterious world of the Romanesque, and create a setting that was drawn toward light and purity that could be an image of heaven. The middle class also had a great influence on the Gothic style as they desired churches that could reflect their economic power and social status. The most magnificent characteristics of Gothic style were the use of light and relationship between structure and appearance. Other defining characteristics were that the massive thickness of the walls from Romanesque architecture were replaced with membrane-thin frameworks used for enclosure which could support nothing but their own weight. Ribbed vaults were used to allow lighter materials to be placed between stone ribs, thus reducing weight. The weight of the walls and roof were no longer supported by columns, but by external flying buttresses. They also used pointed arches and slender columns to lift the ceiling, which created an overwhelming height. Wall paintings, which had been common in the Romanesque, were now replaced with beautiful and enormous stained glass windows that allowed more light into the structures, imbuing all with a sense of warmth and color. Chartres Cathedral-Interior Chartres Cathedral–Interior The cathedral at Chartres was built during the Gothic period, and it showed an ideal of harmony within its structure and contents. Work on the cathedral started in 1194, and was mostly completed in 1220. It emphasizes strong vertical lines in its structure. The stained glass windows that are used in this cathedral, (it has 176), are recognized as the finest example from the gothic style. Today, 94% of the stained glass is original, and it is the largest, most extensive collection of medieval glass in the world. Rose windows were used. The primary subject of the great roses is the Virgin and the Child. The rose windows created wholeness and completeness. Indeed, it  has a special relationship to the Virgin Mary in that it portrayed more realistic and humane qualities of the Virgin Mary. The cathedral reflects the strong influence that God held over the people at that time. It shows an expression of piety and local identity to those that were proud to live in the vicinity of the cathedral itself. It enhanced civic pride, and was the focus of the town itself.

Film maker Essay

Kenneth Anger is a well known American underground avant-garde film maker and author who is well known not only for his films but also for this novels. Born in Santa Monica, California as Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer, Kenneth Anger first became well known in 1959 for his publication of the French version of Hollywood Babylon in Paris. While this drove him to certain fame, it also brought him notoriety because it was a tell all book on the scandals of the A-list crowd of Hollywood. He started his career at a very early age. Commentaries place his silver screen beginnings at the age of nine but it was not until 1947 that he became well known for his first film, Fireworks. In 1949, he expanded his repertoire to include The Love That Whirls and also a documentary of the ruins of Crowley’s Thelema Abbey. While most of his films only spanned 3. 5 minutes to 30 minutes, his works were considered works of arts, capturing the essence in such a short span of time. The influence that Kenneth Anger had on the avant garde scene during his time was so profound. There is no denying that fact that his films greatly influenced many other film makers in his genre but there is also the fact that some of his works were considered as controversial. As one magazine puts it, Anger was known to insert certain â€Å"artistic† twists on his works that were either offensive or brash, resorting to trickery on certain occasions. One such occasion was the filming of Lucifer Rising, which was supposed to star Bobby Beausoleil, which was a critical film that arguably started his fascination with the occult and eventually led to his association with the Church of Satan. Anger was also associated with the Ordo Templi Orientis and other such groups. While later on in life he decided to return to his films, there is no denying that Kenneth Anger was ahead of his time and widely misunderstood by his peers. Bibliography: Cohen. M eds. (1985) Film Theory and Criticism: Introductory Readings Oxford University Press, Oxford. Pray, M(2007) Avant-Garde Film: Forms, Themes and Passions Wallflower, London. Sitney, A(1979) Visionary Film: The American Avant-Garde 1943-78 2nd Edition, Oxford University Press, Oxford

Free Essays on Steven Dunn

Professor Stephen Dunn Wins Pulitzer Prize, â€Å"I didn’t think I had a chance.†By Brandi Fornicola Just yesterday poet Stephen Dunn sat casually awaiting questions from the students of a journalism class at Brookdale Community College. He entered the room, took off the layers of winter, and got settled. Dunn, a 2001 Pulitzer Prize winner for Poetry was also scheduled to recite his poems later on, these students had the benefit of meeting him in a more personal setting. After a long silence many inquiries were addressed towards Dunn. When asked if he will feel more pressured with his work since winning the Pulitzer he answered, â€Å" No. Not at all, I will however be more scrutinized because of it.† Dunn addressed each question directed towards him. As he chewed on the tip of his eyeglasses, he informed the students that he liked the attention that his work was getting more than the attention that he was receiving because of the award. â€Å"I think it is one of the dilemmas of being an American poet, that perhaps even if you are famous, you are more famous for being famous than if people know your poetry,† Dunn mentioned in a past interview. After the conference Dunn attended dinner at a nearby restaurant. At 7:30 p.m. he then attended a forum open to the public to commence on the reading of his poetry. The Pulitzer Prize winning collection of poetry, ‘Different Hours’ received the most attention from Dunn. Nine poems from that collection were recited, and over ten poems from additional collections. The Pulitzer Prizes, which are awarded annually by Columbia University in N.Y.C., are not easily obtained. With 2,000 entries submitted each year and only twenty-one awards normally given in a number of fields Dunn knew of the odds against him. When previously asked what he thought his chances were in winning the Pulitzer he stated, â€Å"I didn’t think I had a chance.† There was a stir throughout the audience as the p... Free Essays on Steven Dunn Free Essays on Steven Dunn Professor Stephen Dunn Wins Pulitzer Prize, â€Å"I didn’t think I had a chance.†By Brandi Fornicola Just yesterday poet Stephen Dunn sat casually awaiting questions from the students of a journalism class at Brookdale Community College. He entered the room, took off the layers of winter, and got settled. Dunn, a 2001 Pulitzer Prize winner for Poetry was also scheduled to recite his poems later on, these students had the benefit of meeting him in a more personal setting. After a long silence many inquiries were addressed towards Dunn. When asked if he will feel more pressured with his work since winning the Pulitzer he answered, â€Å" No. Not at all, I will however be more scrutinized because of it.† Dunn addressed each question directed towards him. As he chewed on the tip of his eyeglasses, he informed the students that he liked the attention that his work was getting more than the attention that he was receiving because of the award. â€Å"I think it is one of the dilemmas of being an American poet, that perhaps even if you are famous, you are more famous for being famous than if people know your poetry,† Dunn mentioned in a past interview. After the conference Dunn attended dinner at a nearby restaurant. At 7:30 p.m. he then attended a forum open to the public to commence on the reading of his poetry. The Pulitzer Prize winning collection of poetry, ‘Different Hours’ received the most attention from Dunn. Nine poems from that collection were recited, and over ten poems from additional collections. The Pulitzer Prizes, which are awarded annually by Columbia University in N.Y.C., are not easily obtained. With 2,000 entries submitted each year and only twenty-one awards normally given in a number of fields Dunn knew of the odds against him. When previously asked what he thought his chances were in winning the Pulitzer he stated, â€Å"I didn’t think I had a chance.† There was a stir throughout the audience as the p...

Matching Cube Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Matching Cube Analysis - Essay Example The matching cube depicted above shows the comparison of different personality traits which are common or different in me and my spouse. We are living a very healthy life because of the fact that we have inculcated the fact that the trust and sacrifice are the most important traits in any relationship. If we will become itchy and problematic in every matter, there will be no coexistence and the relationship will come to breakup very soon. Me and my spouse have been living a healthy life for past two years and despite of all the problems that are common in every relationship, we have dealt with every issue and there is no serious problem that is challenging our relationship. There are many factors that are matching in our relationship. Physical attraction is the first and foremost common trait that is increasing our love bond. My spouse has a very healthy body and a good height of 5’ 10†. She is weighing around 132lbs which is totally perfect according to her BMI. I have a height of around 6’2† and my weight is around 165lbs which is almost according to the BMI. There is also a great love bond between me and her because of the perfect physical matching. Our needs are satisfied and we both look forward to increase the love relationship. Physical attraction with each otter gives us a chance to be confident all the time and my attention never deviates from her to other women because of her beauty. Similarly she is also very happy because of my physical attraction and we always feel sexually attracted to each other even after years of relationship with each other. The political ideology and interests are also a great match between us because of the fact that I am also of the favor of the secular system in which the religion and politics don’t have to overlap and my spouse is also of the view that the religion and politics must be segregated. This gives us a great chance to work for the same cause because we spend our time together di scussing these issues with each other and we also work on a website t promote this ideology. There is also an increased love bond between each other because of the social thinking we have developed for the political system in our country as she is also from a well educated background. Spiritual factor is also a great match between me and my spouse. we both belong to Christian background ( catholic) and we go to church every now and then to refresh our faith. This gives us chance to come close to God and each other. The spiritual factors give a great sense of responsibility and soothing to us. Me and my spouse are from well educated background and this gives a great advantage for us to come close to each other. There is no communication gap between us and put thinking perspectives are matching most of the time. Educated background gives us a chance to share the same feelings and thoughts about different events happening around us. As far as the differences are concerned, there are ma ny, and differences are a beauty of any relationship because humans are prone to get bored of the monotonous routines. If there will be no differences, we will not get any chance to learn new things and ideologies. Me and my spouse have different interest for example when I am watching cricket on TV, She always insists to change the channel and switch on different soaps and talk shows whereas I get always bored of the talk shows. But we never tend to

Proposal for Exec Hotels for Business Improvement Essay

Proposal for Exec Hotels for Business Improvement - Essay Example However, the costs associated with a new focus on tourism business are currently beyond the company’s capabilities. It has been determined that renewed local marketing is the best methodology to ensure revenue growth outside of the London centre of operations. 2. The business case Occupancy rates at hotels in Europe have seen stability in the last few years, with an average rate of 63 percent in London (Carlson Wagonlit, 2011). However, many European capitals are being hit hard currently with the economic global downturn, therefore the business should focus on its local business and presence (brand reputation) in the United Kingdom rather than expanding abroad. The company staff and executive leadership team are currently well-versed in local UK cultures, values and systems and by remaining in the UK for expansion, it will avoid the high costs of training and human resources restructuring for other European countries. The goal is to improve occupancy rates during the weekend where business is the most incapacitated, however the challenge to Exec Hotels is ensuring a method to fill weekend rooms without focusing on the new tourism market. This can be accomplished by staying true to the current values and operational know-how that currently exists in the UK marketplace. 3. The methodology for revenue improvements Competitive advantage for medium-sized hotels lays specifically in market innovation practices (Lin & Wu, 2008).

Reflection Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 78

Reflection - Essay Example The first priority of the HR managers and officers are staffing, employment, and recruitment of staff (HR’s Evolving Role†¦, 2008). However, today the HR practitioners are performing roles such as performance management, policy development, and employee communication. In addition, the HR professionals have adopted other responsibilities such as employee counseling, and account administration, which helps in utilizing the full potential of the resource managers. The other roles currently performed by the HR managers are organizational development and legal compliance. In addition, the HR managers enable organizations to perform efficiently and compete with the other businesses. Technology plays an important role in several organizations and the HR departments are currently engaging in human resource information systems. The systems help in the performance and development of the entire organization. The factors, which have contributed to the changes in the HR profession, are the technology advancement, competition, and the need to utilize the innovative potential of every employee. The development in the modern technology affects all departments in any organization especially the HR. human resource information systems management is a vital role played by the HR professionals in their daily activities. Keeping employee data and any other information requires the HR staff to be conversant with computer knowledge and many of the application software (HR’s Evolving Role..., 2008). Competition is nowadays a challenge to many organizations as everyone strives to take the organization to a higher level. Competition, therefore, has made many organizations make use of all the staff including the HR professionals to help in brainstorming and giving ideas for a positive progress of the company. Innovation is very important in ensuring the growth of

Strategic Information System Essay Example for Free

Strategic Information System Essay 1. Introduction Given the rise of competition in the modern business industry, it is essential for firms to apply strategic use of information system (IS) to achieve competitive advantage (CA). In the recent years, top management of firms have little interest in the relationship between IS functions and corporate strategy leading to many problems because of failure in achieving strategies. According to Holsapple (2000), modern organizations are increasingly seen as knowledge-based enterprises in which proactive knowledge management is important for competitiveness. One of the major factors in competitive environment is knowledge management and companies for achieving the competitive advantage should concentrate in its IS. IS plays an important role in business operations as well as financial and non-financial aspects of the firm such as decision making as a big role of management. There has a growing realization to make ISs of strategic importance to an organization in the 80’s and 90’s. Systems that shape or support business unit’s competitive strategy are known as Strategic IS (Callon 1996, an Neumann 1994). According to Turban et al (2006), SIS is the ability to significantly change the manner in which business is conducted in order to give the firm strategic advantage. Porter (1996) believes that competitive advantage is at the core of a firm success or failure, such advantage seeks lead to control the market and to larger-than-average profits. This research paper provides information on how organizations apply strategic use of IS/It to achieve competitive advantage over its competitors. This paper pays particular attention to factors influencing the success or failure of organization attempts at gaining or enhancing competitive advantages, and how competitive advantages can be sustained. 1.1Background IS is a set of interrelated elements that collect (input), manipulate (process), store, and disseminate (output) data and information and provide a reaction (feedback mechanism) to meet an objective (refer to Figure 1). Figure 1.1: The Components of an Information System IS is a combination of people’s activities and information technologies that supports organisation’s operation and decisions making and strategies for competitive advantage. IS plays a vital role in business operation and financial and non-financial aspect such as decision-making. IS are classified either operations or management information systems. They are being grouped this way to identify the major roles each plays in the operations and managements of a business. An Information System consists of five basic resources: i) People Resources (end users and IS specialist) ii) Software Resources (programs and procedures) iii) Hardware Resources (machines and medias) iv) Data Resources (data and knowledge bases) v) Network Resources (communications media and network support) SISs are systems used to supports or shape a business unit’s competitive strategy (Callon, 1996, and Nerumann, 1944). It is characterised by its ability significantly revamp the way in which a business is conducted in order to provide the firm strategic advantage. SIS is classified by its ability to change the manner a business is conducted, in order to achieve strategic advantage for the firm (Turban et al, 2006). SISs play strategic roles helping firm to gain competitive advantage or reduces competitive disadvantage by changing goals, products or processes through information systems. A competitive strategy is a broad-based formula for how a business is going to compete, what its goals should be, and what plans and policies will be required to carry out those goals (Porter, 1985). Through its competitive strategy, firms seek a competitive advantage in the industry advantage over competitors in measures such as cost, quality, or speed. The success or failure of a firm fully depends on its competitive advantage against its competitors (Porter and Millar, 1985, and Porter, 1996), such advantage seeks to lead to control of the marker and to larger-than-average profits. Through contribution to strategic goals of an organization and ability to increase performance and productivity, SIS aids an organization gain a competitive advantage over its competitors. SISs enable firms to gain competitive advantage and benefit greatly at the expense of those subjected to competitive disadvantage (Turban et al, 2006). SIS focus on improving the firm’s competitive position through increasing employees’ productivity, streamlining business processes and making better decisions (Turban et al, 2006). An organization can survive and succeed in the long run as long as it have effectively develops strategies to go up against the five competitive forces that shape the structure of competition in its industry. The Porter five competitive forces are: Businesses can counter the threat of competitive forces in which they face by implementing one or more of the five basic competitive strategies. The five basic competitive strategies are: i) Cost Leadership Strategy ii) Differentiation Strategy iii) Innovation Strategy iv) Growth Strategies v) Alliance Strategy An organization can counter the forces of competition from its competitors by implementing one, some or all the strategies in different degrees. 2.Companies using IS/IT to gain competitive advantages 2.1Cigna HealthCare CRM System In 1999, Cigna HealthCare decided to upgrade its outdated and almost extinct CRM system to improve the efficiency of business operations and then improving customer satisfaction. Cigna was operating nearly two-decade-old CRM systems to handle its daily operation needs. It had multiple units for different roles such as membership enrollment, processing medical claims and verifying customer eligibility and they were not interconnected. Furthermore, Cigna received numerous complaints from doctors as the old and disintegrating processing systems delayed their medical benefits claim payment and was heftily slapped with a US$ 300,000 fine on 29th January 2001. Cigna’s Chief Information Officer (CIO), Andrea Anania planned to combine the information from the different information systems and develops a new integrated systems to handle all the process. Anania goal was for the CRM system to act like a â€Å"one-stop† portal, thus improving efficiency. Cigna awarded a budget of US$ 1 billion to develop the CRM system, which aims to reduce human intervention while speeding up the processing time of medical claims. During the implementation of the CRM, Cigna had a net loss of US$ 398 million for fiscal year 2002. This project had already exceeded the original budget of US$1 billion and had done substantial financial damaged to Cigna. 2.2Bank of America – MasterNet System Bank of America (BoA) developed Master Net trust accounting system in 1982 with a plan completion date of 31 December 1984. MasterNet consist of a large trust accounting system, TrustPlus, and eight smaller systems that augmented the core system. In 1986, migration process was greatly affected by technical problems such as poor response time and day long system crashes. In 1988, BoA announced that its trust business was being given to a subsidiary as it could no longer handle the operation requirements after a $78 million loss in the MasterNet project . 2.3 American Airlines – Knowledge Management System American Airlines understand the needs to analyze data collected through their computer reservation system, SABRE, an automated system with the ability to check flight and seats availability and making a reservation for customer developed in 1960s with IBM. In 1990, AA developed a knowledge management system, SMARTSTM (Sales Management and Report Tracking System) as a tool to leverage CRS reservation data and AA internal historical data on performance and bookings. SMARTS is able to run analysis for AA to develop finely tailored scheme based on AA’s market shares. The combination of SABRE and SMARTS creates the expertise exploitation capability for AA whose impact can be systematically assessed against the access to reservation system, which has become market-standard for competitive parity. 2.4 Wal-Mart – Point-of-Sale System Successful implementations of IS into daily practices have aided Wal-Mart in their quest to maintain the position of low cost leader (Thomas Wailgum, 2007). Wal-Mart had adopted the â€Å"point-of-sale† system; a computerized system which identifies sales of individual items, updates information into its server and modifies the on-hand quantity automatically. The system also analyzed data mined from the universal bar code and effectively transformed data collected from bar codes to useful information such as keeping track of sales trends for individual items as they are identified as an individual entity. 2.5Lesson Learned and Success Factors The author believed that the failure of Cigna CRM system was due to poor leadership and communication skills of Cigna’s CIO. Anania did not consulted professional to design the IT systems architecture required for transformation, instead she pooled 1400 employees from Cigna’s IT department and formed a team, made up of experienced project managers and new hires. Anania made an unethical decision to migrate 3.5 million customer’s data at one go instead of 10,000 per group to the new platform with out testing the integrity of the system due to pressing date lines leading to serious customer service problems surfacing immediately. As Cigna had lay off majority of its service center employee, believing that the new CRM will improved its productivity with lesser human input therefore leading to a shortage of experience staffs. Feedbacks and input from stakeholders was ignored by the managements during the development of the system, thus leading to the down fall of the CRM system and hitting Cigna with substantial financial damaged. The author feels if Cigna’s management culture had led to the failure of the IS. MasterNet have a leader who have a vision of technology but was not well versed technically and was too involve in other problems to focus on the project. BoA made two critical mistakes in handling of MasterNet. Firstly, BoA did not understand the difficulty involved and scope of MasterNet and sufficiently assess it risks when it was proposed. Secondly, BoA failed to take necessary fire-fighting actions when the project rolled out of control to minimize damage. The management only took notice of MasterNet when it performed so badly that it merited $23 million loss. Many mistakes made with respect to MasterNet were not specifically related to IS. The combinations of SMARTS and SABRE have assisted AA to become a market-standard for competitive parity. SMARTS is a system with ability to organize data by city, zone and territory of sales representative with analytical and presentation capabilities. SMARTS was design to provide reliable detailed information to sales representatives to influence travel agencies behavior strategically. Previously, sales representatives doesn’t have complete information about market shares and performance data of travel agencies in his territory and the job consisted mainly preserving a good working relationship with the travel agent. With the aid of SMARTS, the sales representatives are able to analyse market trends in detail and could easily identify opportunities than before, thus maximising productivity. Through the use of SMARTS system, AA’s intangible sales knowledge is enhanced as it is able to interpret movements in share and market. Aside to that, SMARTS help representatives highlight weak markets to the travel agency mangers to focus on. According to Mr. Jack Williams, Senior Vice-President of AA, SMARTS have introduced a huge culture change in their sales-force associated with the leveraging of the expertise as a result of the information in the system thus bringing an enormous advantage to AA, not easily copied by their competitors. The introduction of the barcode system have help Wal-Mart to maintain its low cost leadership. This system helped Wal-Mart to speed up its checkout cashier efficiency and eliminate problems of cashier keying in the wrong price for a product by scanning the barcode as previously the cashier have to manually key in the prices of all the goods according to the price tag. Aside to that, Wal-Mart was able to track its stock level and placed order when required. The system also has the ability to identify slow running products and prevents Wal-Mart from overstocking them. Through improving its information system, Wal-Mart has created a high barrier of entry for any company who wishes to enter the chain hyper-market industry. 3.Discussion Factors influencing organization to use IS as it business strategy are relatively dependent on internal and external forces of the business surrounding environment (Bob William, 2009). Internal forces that require considered and looked into are the current financial position of the firm. Budget required for IS implementation are considerably high, management allocating the funds for investment must be ensured minimal or perfect deployment of the IS. On top of that, employees capabilities also plays an important role during IS implementation. Firm needs to ensure that employees are at least computer literate and will have no problem operating or accessing the new system, else additional cost may be bared by the firm for training. The firm also needs to access the efficiency and effectiveness of its existing system and whether there is a need to upgrade or revise the current system to gain a competitive advantage over its competitors. Changes in consumer tastes, preference and purchasing pattern are external factors driving organization to implement IS. Consumers are becoming more IT savvy and surveys have shown customer swaying their purchasing pattern to electronic purchase due to convenient and time saving (James D. Gwartney, 2006). Companies need to understand and study consumer expectation and needs in order to analyse and implement business strategies to ensure business growth. Therefore, both internal and external factors are important consideration for implementation of IS to gain a competitive advantage as they complement each other. From the above examples, correct implementation of IS will give the firm a competitive advantage over its competition. Firms must understand their position from Porter’s five competitive forces and develop strategies and counter it to maintain competitive. As Howard et al, (1999) believed that competitive advantage could be gained if strategy development and ISs design are addressed simultaneously. Porter’s model identifies five competitive forces that affect competitive advantage in the market place. In order to establish a profitable and sustainable position, company needs to develop strategies of performing activities differently from its competitors to overcome these five forces. Strategy| Definition| Example| Strategic use of IS| Business Benefits| Cost Leadership| Produce products and/or services at the lowest cost in the industry| Dell Computer| Online build to order| Lowest-cost producer| Differentiation| Offer different products, services, or product features| Moen Inc| Online customer design| Increase in market share| Innovation| Introduce new products and services, put new features into existing products and services, or develop new ways to produce them| American Airlines| Analyse data| Market Leadership| Growth| Increase market share, acquire more customers, or sell more products| Wal-Mart| Merchandise ordering by global satellite network| Market Leadership| Alliance| Work with business partners in partnerships, alliances, joint ventures, or virtual companies| Wal-Mart/ Procter Gamble| Auto inventory replenishment by supplier| Reduced inventory cost/increased sales| Information systems can be used to help firms gain competitive advantage with the help of Porter’s competitive forces model for analyzing competitiveness and proper implementation of IS. According to Michael Porter, the main types of competitive advantage are low cost provider, differentiation and focus. Companies have use porter’s model to increase competitive edge and also demonstrated how IS can enhance competitiveness of corporation (Turban et al. 2006). Finally, firms need to sustain competitive advantages gained from the implementation of IS. In the real world, competitive advantage doesn’t normally last very long and is generally not sustainable over the long term (O’Brien 2011). When a firm gains competitive advantage over its competitors through innovation, competitors figure out how it was done through organizational learning. To neutralize the effect, competitors adopt the same or similar innovation and what was once a competitive advantage is now a competitive necessity. When these occur, firm needs to figure out new innovation to gain a competitive edge and the cycle starts. 4.Conclusion Technologies have changed the way business operates today. Manual processes in the past are now being automated and electronic communications have been heavily introduced in today’s business world. IS have evolved over the years and offer new possibilities to gain competitive advantage. Many businesses today have realized the important of technology and power it possess, but fail to understand the possible benefit achievable. The author learned that through proper planning and implementation of IS will lead to a competitive advantage gain for the organization. With the aid of IS, it will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of staff in the organization which in turn will save labor and consumable cost. 5.Reference Ahlemann Frederik. (2009). Towards a conceptual reference model for project management information system. International Journal of Project Management, Vol. 27, No.1, pp. 19-30 Ankit Bhatnagar. (2006). Strategic Information System Planning: Alignment of ‘IS/IT’ Planning and Business Planning, Unitee New Zealand. Amber S., Brooke W., Cheri E., Ismael M. Wesley B. (2011). Wal-Mart Information System Benjamin, R.I., D.W. Long, and M.S. Moron (1990). Electronic Data Interchange: How Much Competitive Advantage?. Long Range Planning, 23:1, pp. 29-40. Bruns, W,J, and F,W, McFarlan (1987). Information Technology Puts Power in Control Systems, Harvard Business Review, Sep-Oct, pp. 89-94 Callon, J. D., (1996). Competitive Advantage through Information Technology. New York: McGraw Hill, USA. Christiaanse, Ellen., Venkatraman, N. (2002). Beyand Sabre: An empricial test of expertise exploitation in electronic channels. MIS Quarterly, Vol. 26, No.1, pp. 15.38. Davenport, T.H., M. Hammer, and T.J. Metisto (1989). How Executives Can Shape Their Company’s Information Systems, Harvard Business Review. H. Russell Johnston and Michael R. Vitale (1988). Creating Competitive Advantage With Inter-organizational Information Systems. MIS Quartely, Jun 1988, pp. 153-165. Ives B., and G. P. Learmouth (1984). The Information System as a Competitive Weapon. Communication of the ACM Jeffery. G. Szilagyi. Bank of America’s Masternet System: A Case study in Risk Assessment Jeremy A. (2011). Supply Chain Management at Wal-Mart Johnston, H.R. and Carrico, S. R. (1988). Developing Capabilities to use Information Strategically. MIS Quarterly, pp. 37-48. Mahmood Hemmatfar (2010). Competitive Advantages and Strategic Information System. International Journal of Business and Management, Vol. 5, No 7, pp 158-169 M. Vinaya Kumar (2007). CRM Implementation Failure at Cigna Corporation, ICFAI Center for Management Research. Porter, M. E. (1996). What is a Strategy? Harvard Business Review, November – December 1996, pp 45-59. Porter, M. E. (2001). Strategic and the Internet. Harvard Business Review, Vol. 79, No. 3, pp 62-74. Porter, M.E., and V. E. Millar (1985). How information gives you competitive advantage. Harvard Business Review, Vol. 62, No. 4, pp. 149-158. Ross, J. W. et al. (1996). Develop Long-Term Competitiveness through IT Assets. Sloan Management Review, Vol. 60, No 4, pp. 132-148. Teo, T. S. H. (2000). Using the Internet for Competitve Intelligence in Singapore. Competitive Intelligence Review, Vol. 8 Issue 2, pp. 16-23.

Types of Cardiovascular Disease

Types of Cardiovascular Disease Jeanette Mullen Abstract Cardiovascular disease (CVD) affects many people throughout their lives, there are some that are living with the disease and dont even know it because they dont go to the doctor, and even when they do, many dont adhere to the warnings. There are a lot of programs out there for families that take care of older adults with CVD, the problem with this is most people dont know how to access these programs. They dont know where to go or who to talk too, and because of this many people dont get the help that they need for their loved ones. The program that I would like to create is sort of like a workshop that is geared towards helping families that are caring for older adults, by providing them with a wealth of knowledge that will aid them in their journey of finding the help they need. I hope to show you through my research that many people can live longer, healthier lives if they knew more about CVD and how to protect themselves and their loved ones from getting it. Cardiovascular Disease: What You Should Know! It is important for people who have cardiovascular disease or families caring for someone with CVD to understand everything there is to know about the disease so they will be able to do what is necessary to combat the disease; my program will do just that. I would begin the workshop getting to know my audience and congratulating them on taking the first step towards a better life and by telling a true story to them in hopes that it will give them a better perspective of just how serious and real this disease is. Sometimes hearing what happened to someone else can shock a person into wanting to learn all they can so the same thing wont happen to them. Discussion Being told that your heart is only pumping at ten percent has got to be one of the hardest things to hear in your life. That was my brothers fate. He was offered a pacemaker and chose not to get it because he said since they told him its a 50/50 chance of survival, he said he would take his chances. Its sad to say that he lived another three years before suffering a massive heart attack and dying, he was 44. His fate could have been different had he listened to his doctor and changed his lifestyle. My father was in his late 50s when he was told that the only way he would live is if he received a heart transplant. He was suffering from congestive heart failure and already had three heart attacks. He had the transplant and has lived so far for 14 years. Goals My goal for this program is fairly simple. It would be free to the public, anyone regardless of gender; race or socioeconomic background would be able to attend if they choose to do so. At the end of the workshop there will be an answer and question session and there would be volunteers available to help anyone that is having a hard time understanding what do or what is being said. I would have a building that is centrally located so that it is easily accessible for people that dont have transportation and may be on the bus line. My target age for this workshop is from the young old to the oldest old but will be open to anyone interested in learning about cardiovascular disease. Types of Cardiovascular Disease Research The text by Hooyman Kiyak, states Cardiovascular diseases (CVD), which include coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke, are the leading cause of death among older adults (Hooyman Kiyak, 2011). There are many diseases of the cardiovascular system such as: Coronary heart disease is a condition in which blood to the heart is deficient because of narrowing or constricting of the cardiac vessels that supply it. Acute myocardial infarction results from blockage of an artery supplying blood to a portion of the heart muscle. Congestive heart failure indicates a set of symptoms related to the impaired pumping performance of the heart, so that one or more chambers of the heart do not empty adequately during the hearts contractions (Hooyman Kiyak, 2011). Risks of Cardiovascular Disease Most cardiovascular diseases can be prevented by changing your diet, becoming more active, and taking all medications that is prescribed to you. Once the group you are teaching know what types of cardiovascular diseases are out there and what they actually mean, you can then tell them what risks can cause the disease and how to possibly prevent it from happening. Take diet for instance, by changing the things you consume everyday you can decrease the risk of heart disease. One scholarly article I read suggested that eliminating saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat would most likely decrease the amount of deaths in Coronary heart disease (CHD), but according the dietary guidelines it is suggested that Americans cut back on both saturated and unsaturated fats from their diet; eating lots of red meat and eggs can also be problematic. But eating a diet high in vegetables, beans, fish and poultry could significantly lower your risks of CHD and stroke (Yu et al,, 2016). Changing from a sedentary lifestyle to a more physical lifestyle can lower your risk of developing heart disease, such as taking a brisk walk. Another risk factor is smoking, studies in the article showed that cutting out smoking decreases your risk of CHD, and suggested that smoking cessation is more favorable, even though it can cause weight gain. All of these risks are associated with cardiovascular disease but there are times when a person is leading a healthy lifestyle and can still suffer from CVD. Genetic factors and socioeconomic factors can play a big role leading in developing the disease (Yu et al., 2016). Another article I found very interesting did a study on how Living in poorer neighborhoods with low levels of social cohesion and high rates of crime, violence, and disorder have been found to be detrimental to health as they create environments that induce stress, elevate blood pressure, and may not be conducive to healthy behaviors such as physical activity (Barber et al., 2016). This article goes hand in hand with the previous one in saying that Low socioeconomic status (SES) has also consistently been identified as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and people that are living in areas where it is heavily polluted have been known to be associated with the increased risk of CVD (Chi et al., 2016). Study There were a few studies done on the risk of cardiovascular disease. One study done by (Larsson and Wolk, 2016) was Potato consumption and risk of cardiovascular disease..., they stated that Potatoes is a starchy food that is something that people eat a lot of and they have a high-glycemic index and have been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. The results of that study showed no evidence that potatoes posed a risk in CVD. Another study was done by (Mu et al., 2016) on Dairy fat and risk of cardiovascular disease in 3 cohorts of US adults. It is stated in this scholarly article that Saturated fat intake increases LDL cholesterol and may induce chronic inflammation, and thus may increase risk of cardiovascular disease (Mu et al., 2016). But after studying 3 cohorts it was determined that compared with an equivalent amount of energy from carbohydrates (excluding fruits and vegetables), eating dairy fats was not associated with risk of CVD (Mu et al., 2016). Statistics Throughout our text (Hooyman Kiyak, 2011), discuss many statistics reported about heart disease such as White men age 70 and older are more likely to report heart disease than their Latino or African American counterparts (p. 123). Another article talks about how 1 in 3 women at risk for CVD dont consider themselves as being candidates of heart disease even though both men and women have died from the disease and the statistics also shows that heart disease and stroke are the first and third causes of death among women in the United States (Vaid, et al., 2011). As I mentioned earlier, cigarette smoking is one of the risks of cardiovascular disease. Statistics in an article written by (Shishani, Sohn, Okada, Froelicher, 2008), says Cigarette smokers are 2 to 3 times likely to die due to smoking related cardiovascular diseases and Patients with CVD experience as much as a 50% reduction in risk of reinfarction, sudden cardiac death, and total mortality if they quit smoking ( Shishani, et al., 2008). Conclusion Even though Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, it is my hope that with the help of educating individuals dealing with the disease, they are reassured that if you change your lifestyle and the bad habits that you have, you will begin to see a change in your health and your life. My brother never changed his eating habits and he never stopped smoking, which resulted in his unfortunate death. But after three heart attacks, and after his heart transplant, my dad finally stopped smoking. As long as you have the desire to change and the tools to point you in the right direction, you too can live a healthier life. References Barber, S., Hickson, D. A., Xu, W., Sims, M., Nelson, C., Diez-Roux, A. V. (2016). Neighborhood Disadvantage, Poor Social Conditions, and Cardiovascular Disease Incidence Among African American Adults in the Jackson Heart Study. American Journal of Public Health, 106(12). 2219-2226, doi.10.2105/AJPH.2016.303471 Chi, G. C., Hajal, A., Bird, C. E., Cullen, M. R., Griffin, B. A., Miller, K. A., Kaufman, J. D. (2016). Individual and Neighborhood Socioeconomic Status and the Association between Air Pollution and Cardiovascular Disease. Environmental Health Perspectives. 124(12), 1840-1847. doi.10.1289/EHP199 Hooyman, N. R. Kiyak, H. A. (2011). Social Gerontology: A Multidisciplinary Perspective. 9th ed. Pearson Education Larsson, S. C. Wolk, A. (2016). Potato Consumption and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease: 2 Prospective Cohort Studies. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 104(5). 1245-1252, doi.10.3945/ajon.116.142422 Mu. C., Yanping, L., Qi, S., An, P., Manson, J. E., Rexrode, K. M. Hu, F. B. (2016). Dairy Fat and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease in 3 Cohorts of U.S. Adults. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 104(5), 1209-1217. doi.10.3945/ajon. 116.134460 Shishani, K., Sohn. M., Okada, A. Froelicher, E. (2009). Nursing Interventions in Tobacco- dependent Patients with Cardiovascular Diseases. Annual Review of Nursing Research, 27221-242.doi.10.1891/0739-6686.27.221 Vaid, L., Wiginton, C., Borbely, D., Ferry, P., Manheim, D. (2011). WISEWOMAN: Addressing the Needs of Women at High Risk for Cardiovascular Disease. Journal of Womens Health (15409996), 20(7), 997.doi.1089/jwh.2011.2850