Saturday, August 31, 2019

Impressions of what life was like for the colonists Essay

Life in the new world for the colonists was like nothing that individuals in today’s society can understand. After taking the Would You Have Survived the Colony quiz on the website, it is easy to see that surviving the colonial atmosphere might have been one of the most difficult tasks on earth. This is because of the differences in culture, in food, in work load, and with other important aspects of life that would take an awful lot of adjusting. When the Europeans came across the pond to colonize America, they had a lot of adjusting to do, as well. The first way that they had to adjust to the new world was with the environmental changes. Life in America was rough because of all of the elements. Europe was a flat area with a lot of rain and average weather. When they came to America, they had to put up with mountains, with rivers, and with lots of other elements. There was also the animals that they had to adjust to. Because the United States was just being colonized and modernized, lots of wild animals were running around where people were living. Among them were predators like bears and big cats. When people went out to find food or to cut wood, they had to put up with this nuisance. This was how life was so difficult and it was something that people of today’s culture would struggle with. When taking that quiz, I thought about the clothes that people would wear if they had to go back to that time. I like to be in nice clothes. Though I do not have to have the latest in fashion, I do like to keep up with the times. Back then, the clothes had to last a long time and they had to be able to stand up to the elements. People had to track through the woods, so the clothes had to be able to put up with that challenge. Since there was no air conditioning or heating at the time, the clothes also had to be much more of an insulator in the difficult times. This would be a difficult adjustment for someone like myself if I were to go back in time. The last and most important thing is the overall work ethic and lifestyle that would have to be employed. Every time those people wanted something, they had to work hard for it. If they wanted a fire, they had to cut down some wood and start the fire. If they wanted to eat something, they had to go kill it and cook it. There were no fast food restaurants to go grab food at. Today, people go to work in order to make money to buy nice things. Those people had to go to work in order to keep themselves and their families alive. That was in addition to actually protecting themselves from the elements and the things in the environment that were so difficult. Overall, life in the colonial period was difficult and it would definitely be an adjustment for anyone who had to go back in time and face it. The differences in the economy and with the environment are so profound that people had to go through a whole lot each and every day. The main difference is that there were no days off if you felt bad or simply needed some rest.

Friday, August 30, 2019

Functionalist and Symbolic Interactionist

Functionalist and Symbolic Interactionist Functionalist and Symbolic Interactionist SO1050 Sociology Functionalist, also known as structural functionalism because of its views on the ways social structures accompanies social needs. In perspective, functionalism structures social influences by what is visible and in demand now. (Boundless. com/Sociology)Functionalism has been criticized for downplaying the role of individual action, and for being unable to account for social change. In the functionalist perspective, society and its institutions are the primary units of analysis.Individuals are significant only in terms of their places within social systems (i. e. , social status and position in patterns of social relations). Functionalists have been disputed because of its terms of how socialism is accounted, because of how it lacks the support and accredited ability of one’s actions and how socialization transforms during its process. Functionalist is the oldest theory but the most popular one used to determine groups because of its basic terms toward how social groups react and functions of how the mind and body works.The structure of how people interact with others and the ability to fit in certain groups are determined by the mind state of acceptability. When evaluating functionalism it is more of a hypothesis that could be proven right or wrong in its factor of determining how society works when it comes to grouping and organizations of people by characteristics. (Boundless. com/Sociology)Structural functionalism, or simply functionalism, is a framework for building theory that sees society as a complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability.Symbolic Interactionist, known also as symbolic interaction perspective, is a form of social grouping based on how people are forcefully placed into groups, events and social organizations. Unlike functionalism, Symbolic Interactionist believes that peer pressure and environmental ex posure has much effect over socialization and its developments. People adapt and form social lifestyles by what they are exposed to, such as cigarette smoking, drinking, dating, etc. When ressured into doing something for the first time just to have some forms of acceptance, people tend to try things and develop habitual behaviors that are introduced by peers. (Anderson, M. L. and Taylor, H. F. , 2009). Critics of this theory claim that symbolic interactionism neglects the macro level of social interpretation—the â€Å"big picture. † In other words, symbolic Interactionist may miss the larger issues of society by focusing too closely on the â€Å"trees† rather than the â€Å"forest†.The perspective also receives criticism for slighting the influence of social forces and institutions on individual interactions. The theory of Symbolic Interactionalist has been criticized because critics believe that it focused too much on individuals and how they react to p ersonal ways of how people react to wanting to be a part of a group and/or organization, that it lacked the focus of how groups and organizations are developed based on its biological influences.I believe that the symbolic theory has a better and clearer perspective of all theories because it focuses on how peer pressures and environmental behaviors has its influences on people as individuals, which eventually becomes a group or organization of socialization when manipulated by the growth of numbers. Functionalists do make a great point about how everything works together as one unit when it comes to social groups and the coordination of how socialism is formed.I do not agree with the full aspect of functionalists but the co-ordinance of its concept does make some sense. Symbolic Interactionalist forms its theory by reviewing probable causes using surroundings and its peers as a way of understanding social formations. I choose the Symbolic Theory because of its somewhat accuracy of how groups and organizations are formed and past down from generation to generation.I do believe peers and a person’s environmental surroundings have much to do with social connections and how its functions are developed. Reference Boundless. com- https://www. boundless. com/sociology/understanding-sociology/theoretical-perspectives-in-sociology/functionalist-perspective/ Copyright  © 2011-2012, Boundless Learning, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Anderson, M. L. and Taylor,

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Psychology: the Affects of Violent Video Games

Gavin Hoy PY102 Prof. Martin The Affects of Violent Video Games Video games haven’t been around for long, but they are heavily impacting the youth of America. As the years go by, video games become more realistic, and more violent. The first video game was bouncing a ball in between two paddles, which hardly seems amusing, couldn’t possibly have a violent effect on a child. Today, games have blood, decapitations, and guns and weapons all that look real and make the child feel like a real police officer, or a real criminal, or whichever character they are in that particular game.Research suggests that violent video games make children more aggressive, and violent in everyday situations. Also, children are likely to use one of their characters in a video game as a role model for them, and try to be like he or she while reenacting what their character does in the game. This article interests me because as a kid, I was allowed any video game I desired, and turns out I am no more aggressive then a bus driver.This paper will present two different articles that say I should be aggressive and try to reenact video games. The first article I read about violent video games was: â€Å"I wish I were a warrior: The role of wishful identification in the effects of violent video games on aggression in adolescent boys† by Brad Bushman. Bushman states that boys, when trying to figure out their own identity, tend to take shape of those identities in their video games (e. g. superhero police officer or a hero of some sort) Bushman also explains that the children with lower education are the ones who will express more aggression and violence in everyday life after playing a violent video game. (Bushman â€Å"I wish.. †). Bushman confirmed his hypothesis: â€Å"violent video games are especially likely to increase aggression when players identify with violent game characters† meaning, if a child plays a violent video game, they are likely to take o n the traits of that main character, including the violence.Bushman let 112 boys around 15 years of age play four different types of video games. Violent-realistic, violent fantasy, nonviolent-realistic, and nonviolent fantasy. The boys, after playing one of the games, were then set up with a partner of the same sex and started a â€Å"competitive reaction time task† (Bushman â€Å"I wish†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ), the task was to push a button, when told to do so, as fast as they could, the boy who lost would receive a blast of noise through their headphones.Each boy chose their partners punishment level for not winning the task, they set the level of noise their partner would receive if he lost. Of 25 trials with the reaction time task, 12 boys who played violent video games gave their partner a level 10 noise blast, even though the boys knew a level 10 will damage their hearing, one boy was quoted saying â€Å"I blasted him with Level 10 noise because he deserved it. I know he can get hearing damage, but I don't care! (Bushman â€Å"I wish†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ). So, the boys who played violent video games expressed a great deal more aggression towards their partner in the reaction time task, which confirms Bushman’s hypothesis. Out of the boys who played to nonviolent video games, they did not give their partner a high noise blast, which demonstrates low levels of aggression. I personally did not like this article, the results were hard to interpret and statistics were irrelevant to my purpose for reading the article.I think the article could be a quarter of the size it is and still be effective. The article uses too many abbreviations it expects the reader to 1) understand, and 2) remember once they were told about them. I think the article provided little information where it counted (e. g. statistics that matter, not the decibel level of the noise blasts (irrelevant)). This article should be revised, restructured, and scaled down for future psychology stu dents.

W7DQs Response Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

W7DQs Response - Assignment Example State building can be divided into two major phases. In the first phase, the state establishes control over a given territory; it monopolizes the force, and sets up vital institutions like those responsible for revenue and security. In the second phase the state continues to strengthen itself with the main objective of self support in provision of a wide range of services. In the first phase there is no need for democratization or introduction of pluralism. This is because it is when the state is establishing itself. However, in the next phase promotion of democracy will be compatible with and vital in the process of state building. Democratization help build institutions that can link the citizens to the state (Bratton, 2004). State building on the other hand improves the social welfare of the citizens. The misconception that authoritarian governments with stable states are better than the democratic states with less stable states should be avoided at all. In such countries the stat e may provide most of the needs of the people but the human rights are not respected. The wealth of such states is not equally shared. The political elites own most of the wealth while the majority of the masses are left poor. The people are oppressed and they do not live freely. The regimes saw the seed of their own destruction. They deny the citizens the political goods and their stability is short lived. The aggrieved or neglected sections of the society will rise up against the government to demand recognition and this might lead to overthrow of existing governments. It is also important to note that there can be no democracy without state building. A state with weak institutions cannot promise its citizens free and fair elections. These states lack both democracy and state building capacity. They are failed states. But I would not prefer to live in an authoritarian stable state as opposed to weak failed states

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Textbook Evaluation Justification Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Textbook Evaluation Justification - Assignment Example The first textbook limits the fourth grade students to classroom-based activities thus making in inappropriate. The second book enables teachers to equip students with the skills applicable both within and outside class. In many institutions of learning, teachers are recommended to use different learning strategies in order to make students complete and resourceful people both in school and after graduating. The second textbook balance the content provided to students thus making it the best for teaching fourth grade students (Harcourt School Publishers Staff 2012). Content of some textbooks such as the first one lack sequence thus sabotaging efforts of students to build upon their prior knowledge and foundation skills. The second textbook Harcourt Language becomes preferred choice because sequence of content. Harcourt Language is one of the few books which effectively transfer content from one writing level to another. It equips students with language and writing skills necessary in other levels of education. Null curriculum is unnecessary thus should not have any impact on learning operations of the students. The second book does this best thus making it the most suitable for teaching fourth grade students. Learning institutions comprises of students of different sex and they come from different social, ethnic, political and religious backgrounds. As such, the content taught should factor this aspect. The evaluation of the second book indicates that it meets this criterion thus making it more appropriate. A good textbook uses unlimited primary source materials. It should also encourage students to use higher order thinking skills through examples. Harcourt Language perfectly does it (Harcourt School Publishers Staff 2012). The organization of the chapters and the format of the book are excellent thus enabling the teachers and the students to easily use it. This is also facilitated by outstanding organizational

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Law of Evidence for Forensic Scientists Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Law of Evidence for Forensic Scientists - Essay Example Based on this research the defendant insured the plaintiff against loss and damage to his jewellery and property. In the insurance agreement, two notable exceptions were given by the defendant in the insurance contract: loss of jewellery to employees [or servants who worked in his premises] through dishonesty and breakage of antiques and chinas. The agreement made it clear that if any of these two incidents were to occur, the defendant would be free from any insurance payments. A robbery occurred at the plaintiff's premises and a safe was broken into and valuable jewels were stolen. The plaintiff had two employees, Mason and Brown. Mason had a group of friends who were members of a gang that was skilled in breaking into any safe. With knowledge of Mason's acquaintances, the defendant refused to pay the claims for insurance. They argued that Mason was a suspect and there was a big chance that he was involved in the robbery. The plaintiff argued against this position of the defendant. He stated that the burden of proof was on the defendant. This is because the defendant was alleging that Mason was part of the robbery and due to that, it was his responsibility to proof how he knew Mason was part of the theft. The defendant also argued that it is logical and obvious that Mason was involved in the robbery because his associates had insider information and could easily break into the plaintiff's premises and steal the jewels. ... The defendant also argued that it is logical and obvious that Mason was involved in the robbery because his associates had insider information and could easily break into the plaintiff's premises and steal the jewels. They went far to turn in evidence of Mason's character of a deviant. The circumstances showed clearly that the defendant had a strong point because Mason was likely to have brought in third parties to steal from his employers. Thus, both parties had a good case. The argument was who had the onus probandi to determine the facts of the situation at hand. The judge held that it was impossible to place the onus on the defendant. This is because the defendant is not the one who brought the case to court. It is the defendant who has been accused. There is therefore the need for some kind of evidence to be presented to show that he was liable to prosecution. The judge rendered the evidence presented by the defendant inadmissible and stated that in a criminal proceeding, such e vidence of the character of a party would lead to prejudice on the part of the judge. Thus, the plaintiff presented the contract for the insurance. The terms were read as the first form of evidence. The judge went through the case and identified the terms of the insurance contract and identified that there was a legal relationship between the defendant and the plaintiff. However, the plaintiff presented the contract for the insurance and indicated that the defendant was responsible to indemnify the loss. The judge insisted that the plaintiff showed evidence that the theft was of the nature that made the defendant liable to pay the insurance claims. In other words, the plaintiff had to turn

Monday, August 26, 2019

Research Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 13

Research Paper - Essay Example Therefore, this paper would major on the various methods that were used to encounter Islamic influence in mediaeval Europe. The Islamic social, economic and political changes that were taking place in medieval Europe were met by different responses from Christians. One major response used in Europe was the anti-Islamic discourse. Such discourses tended to stereotype anything that was Islamic in nature. The stereotypes would touch on the religious, social, military, and technology among others. They were meant to instill fear on people to create a state of discomfort. Here, European cultures were made to appear as superior to the Islamic civilisation. It was more or less like a state of competition between the two rival religious groups (Al-Shawaf 1). The two rival civilizations in Europe were unique in that both were embedded in Christian and Islamic religions. Thus, religion took a centre stage in the social, economic and political problems faced in medieval Europe. That marked the emergence of a complex state of crisis in the economic, religious and sociopolitical campaign that was also known as crusades. Crusades were to be used to solve the existing problems in Europe. They then became the central part of European history. Crusades is also believed to have begun at around 11th century and ended in 1798. It was used by Europe as a weapon against Islamic expansion and aggression. They lasted for two decades, leading to the questioning of the moral legitimacy of the church. To some extent, crusades brought religious wars that tainted the image of the church. Destruction of the existing social life in Europe is one of the factors which drought discomfort in Europe. Europe viewed Islamic culture as barbaric and inferior to theirs. Some scholars reveal that Europe referred to Islam and Islamic culture as â€Å"the other† and "people of heresy†. Issues like polygamy, as opposed to monogamy, must have brought sharp contrast

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Arms of mass Destruction and International Law Term Paper

Arms of mass Destruction and International Law - Term Paper Example Evidently, international law has a lasting association with the endeavors to manage weapons of mass destruction, which followed the development of prohibitions (treaty) on the employment of poisonous gases in war (Busch & Joyner, 2009). Three bodies on international law can be delineated as regulating WMD, namely: arms control treaties, international law guiding the use of force, and international humanitarian law. Historically, the most outstanding and direct utilization of international law in relation to WMD was via arms control treaties. This denotes international agreements fashioned to ban or limit the development, ownership, and employment of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons by states.The international law on the use of force addresses the threat or the application of force rather than the development of weapons. On the use of WMD, international law on the use of force establishes legal justifications for the alternative to force, rather than rules detailing the weapo ns states may utilize.   On the use of WMD, international humanitarian law outlines the kinds of weapons that can be employed in armed conflict such as outlawing the use of weapons that can render superfluous injury or unnecessary suffering.   Arms control treaties, on the other hand, specifically control the development of WMD and proscribe the utilization of chemical and biological weapons.   This body of international law mirrors the â€Å"arms control approach† to WMD detailing formal agreements among states to control the use and development of WMD.

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Research paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 2

Research Paper Example Additionally, the multitasking function of Oss also helps one or more programs to run simultaneously rewarding the virtues of real time function which allows users to obtain responses instantly for the input. The priority of OS in the modern scenario evolved to make the workload easier for the end users of computing systems which involves a coating of software which takes into account the technical aspects of computer operations. Notably, in the current scenario, there are varieties of OSs (Foster & Bachmann, 2005). In the context of this research study, the OSs including iOS, Android and Palm OS have been explained briefly. Hence, the scheduling, processes involved and security aspects of these OSs have been discussed henceforth. The study also reflects a brief comparison between these three OSs with relation to their application and uses. The study also reflects the future of the OSs taken into account in this study, concerning the modern scenario. Broader Description of Mobile Dev ice OSs iOS, Android, Palm OS iOS iOS is an OS established and distributed by Apple Incorporation, one of the leading global consumer electronics organizations. This particular OS has been promoted as an extended form of application to support the various innovative products of Apple such as iPad and Apple TV. iOS is noted as compatible with iPhones and iPods too. Contextually, the OS tends to manage the hardware of the device and offer technologies that are required to implement the applications (Apple Developer, 2013). Concerning the processes of iOS, it can be observed to involve three phases of development processes. In the initial phase, the applications required for the development of iOS is accumulated and encumbered to devices for multiple times to test functionality, designing efficiency and bug testing. The stages involved within the developing phase are broadly illustrated in the following flow chart (Apple Developer, 2013). In the second phase, i.e. termed as the AdHoc p hase, the configured iOS is used to test the application which has been downloaded from the application store of the Apple product. The next stages of AdHoc emphasizes on compiling the applications and installing it in the devices for further testing. Subsequently, the last phase includes the distribution process of the products which have already been configured with the applications and tested for the ultimate customers (Apple Developer, 2013). In this context, the iOS applications has been developed in synchronization to iTunes in particular (Apple Developer, 2013). The fundamentals for automatically scheduling iOS comprises of certain stages which mainly encompass the ‘jail broken iOS device’, elementary knowledge of Secure Shell (SSH) and its applications, focus on the acquaintance with terminal commands and knowledge of â€Å"bundle identifier† names for the applications to be executed appropriately (Apple Developer, 2013). Another significant feature of an y OS can be identified as its memory. The management of memory, in an OS, is a process that involves memory allocations during program’s runtime. It is in this context that a well scripted program such as iOS uses as little memory as possible (Apple Developer, 2013). In the similar context, the aspects related with security in boot chain, runtime process and signing of code during the application of iOS, helps to confirm that only reliable code and applications

Friday, August 23, 2019

Home Visit with Sallie Mae Fisher Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Home Visit with Sallie Mae Fisher - Essay Example This paper will begin with such dialogue: Nurse: Good Morning, Salle Mae, my name is Jayden Kings and I will be your nurse today. From your history, I can see that you have a history of congestive heart failure, hypertension, and arterial fibrillation. What are the difficulties you are experiencing currently? Sallie Mae: Â  Pleasure to meet you, Jayden Kings. My name is Salle Mae. Currently, I am experiencing a decline in function of daily activities. Nurse: Â  The decline in function of daily activities is because of the acute medication condition at your age. It is common for older patients to experience such changes on their functional status after hospitalization. Do you check your weight? Sallie Mae: yes, I check my weight and I have discovered that I have been gaining weight at a very high rate. Nurse: weight gain is an indication that the body is retaining extra fluid, which is common in patients with congestive heart failure. However, you have to be strict with your diet or monitor your diet closely and ensure that you eliminate salt to prevent the body from retaining too much water. Whom do you live with? Sallie Mae: Â  I live alone since I am recently widowed and the death of my husband affects me so much. My daughter Thelma Jean lives in town, but she works full time and has family issues of her own therefore she cannot support me as well. Nurse: I am sorry for your loss Sallie. I now understand your frequent hospitalization for the past six months since you were hospitalized four times.

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Political Realism Essay Example for Free

Political Realism Essay According to realists, the conduct of international leaders differs very little from the conduct of a leader of a criminal organization. Realists’ underlying assumption, i. e. that the international system is in the condition of perpetual anarchy, is close to how crime bosses perceive the neverending competition between different gangs, clans or â€Å"crime families†, like the one Tony Soprano heads. Just like in relations between competing crews or between criminals and the government, no progress towards lasting peace is possible in international relations. International relations are by definition conflictual, unlike domestic matters of a state, since there is no supreme authority over sovereign subject which would possess monopoly on force similar to the one a state has on its territory. Conflicts in international relations, according to realists, are always resolved by the use of force. Here the analogy of Tony Soprano is particularly applicable, since he has killed at least eight people. Similarly, power in international relations, according to realists, is associated with military superiority and ability to defeat enemies. Crime families pursue their own interests using resources they command, but they are well aware of resources and capabilities of their competitors. The same way states in international relations make calculations of their power and interests vs. power and interests of their rivals. Therefore, intelligence information (everything that can be used against competitors) is equally valuable in international relations and criminal activity. Peace and stability is only possible when a durable balance of power exists that reflects actual standing of great powers on the international arena. The same happens in the criminal world. Although gangs and crime families have no moral obligations towards each other, they can sometimes cooperate against a common enemy (states on their part form international alliances). Balance of power among criminal organizations is of a paramount importance for peace and quiet in a city or neighborhood. As Sullivan (2000) informs, criminal groups sustain â€Å"spatial or economic spheres of influence – ‘turf’ or ‘markets’† (p. 86). The states act the same way when they perceive certain regions of the world as their spheres of influence. For the U. S. , the Middle East is a region of strategic importance, as its enduring military presence there clearly indicates. Similarly, Russia â€Å"is treating the former Soviet republics as a priority†¦in an effort both to obtain lucrative assets and to enhance its political influence† (Trenin 2006, p. 91). Realists also believe that there is a difference between private and political morality: for the public and private spheres, there should be different codes of ethical conduct, and some actions inacceptable in private morality terms can be indispensable in politics. This argument can be perhaps extended further to state that different ethical codes are applied to domestic matters and international relations: some actions that would be deemed inacceptable by domestic publics are carried out in or against foreign states, sometimes with the approval of the population at home. Here, an interesting example is the involvement of Henry Kissinger in the uprooting of Allende’s democratic regime in Chile. While it would be a plausible to assume Kissinger believed that democracy served the interests of American people (since he hasn’t made attempts to subvert the public order), he has been reported to comment on the Chilean election of socialist Alllende in the following way: â€Å"The issues are much too important for the Chilean voters to be left to decide for themselves† (cited in Zarembka 2006, p. ix). He has in fact denied that Chileans had a right to elect their own leaders, while Americans could teach other countries about right and wrong. In everyday life, this would be referred to as hypocrisy; however, according to political realists, this is how politics is made on the daily basis. In a similar fashion, many crime bosses are good at maintaining two distinct sets of values, one to be applied to intra-organizational matters and another one for the rest of the world. Inside their â€Å"crime family†, gangsters exhibit such qualities as loyalty, honesty, and nobility. All criminal organizations have a code of conduct that is strictly enforced, although such codes have little to do with morality and ethics in the conventional sense. That is why to the outside world, they appear as cruel, self-interested beasts. Similarly, political leaders have to maintain two sets of values: in their private affairs, they have to be an example of integrity and righteousness, as the scandal with Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky shows. Also, they have to be good to their electorates and even political rivals. However, in international relations, they are expected to defend vital interests of their country with determination and firmness. The Road to War This section will look into strange and unusual circumstances and events that lead to wars. The extent to which types of government and domestic publics have an impact on war proneness of states will be discussed. At a first glance, the recent U. S. attack of Iraq is an example of a war between a democracy and undemocratic country, so it is not particularly applicable for testing the democratic peace theory. In fact, the official reason for going to Iraq, as Scowcroft (2002) reports, was regime change: Saddam Hussein oppressed his own people and posed a threat to international security. It was exactly the undemocratic nature of Iraq that made it a tangible threat to the U. S. ; it was deemed that its democratization would automatically provide for peace. Saddam was portrayed as a leader that was impossible to deter by diplomatic means, sanctions, or the threat of force, therefore the invasion was deemed the only viable option for preventing Iraq from acquiring and deploying WMD (Mearsheimer Walt 2003). However, even before the actual deployment, there were forces in the foreign policy establishment calling for a more careful balancing of various U. S. interests at home and abroad. The war on Iraq, as Scowcroft (2002) then argued, would divert U. S. resources from other important pursuits such as the war on terror or resolution of Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As the difficulties in Iraq have powerfully brought home, realism for the U. S. nowadays does not mean the use of force but rather refraining from it. The Bush doctrine implied going to war and falling out with allies for the sake of furthering American ideals (Rose 2005), on the aforementioned assumption that democratization is a necessary prerequisite for peace. This neoconservative line is sometimes referred to as â€Å"democratic transformationalism†, which is essentially liberal interventionism (Goldberg 2005). In his second term, however, Bush has been increasingly more inclined towards realism and looking out for actual American interests. To that end, he mended relations with Europe and returned to negotiating with rogue states (Rose 2005). This is in line with the need to balance one’s power and interests against those of other great powers. Such a change in orientation once again suggests that changes in leadership have a significant bearing on the war-proneness of a democratic state, a conclusion Elman (1997) has reached after analyzing the 1982 war between Israel and Lebanon. While no change of leadership has taken place in the U. S. , a change in President’s orientation and some reshuffle in the foreign policy establishment were responsible for the shift. While people like Henry Kissinger are vilified as amoral hypocrites, moralism in foreign policy has never led to anything good for the U. S. : Harry Truman was responsible for the Korean War, John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson have initiated the Vietnam War, and Bill Clinton has presided over the Balkan conflict and a deterioration of relations with China. However, right- or left-wing moralists have almost always been succeeded by realists and foreign policy pragmatists who helped to clear the mess (Rose 2005). This mirrors the discussion by Postel (2004) of how democracy-spreading ambitions of George W. Bush worry American realists (together with libertarians and traditionalists). Realism’s main assumption is the primacy of state sovereignty, therefore an interference into the affairs of another state is only justified if an existential threat exists to one’s own country. Before that point is reached, â€Å"the internal organization of another country is [not] any of our business† (Goldberg 2005, para. 25). A far more important reason to worry about the spread of â€Å"democratic transformationalism† is the human and economic cost of it. As Johnson (2000) clearly shows, the U. S. is an overextended empire struggling to sustain its military commitments abroad, and â€Å"the people of the United States are neither militaristic enough nor rich enough to engage in the perpetual police actions, wars, and bailouts their government’s hegemonic policies will require† (p. 221). This argument suggests that populations at home ultimately have some say over foreign policy or at least over the economic cots of overseas military exercises. This point will be explored in greater detail further in this section. The supporters of â€Å"democratic transformationalism† think that the threat posed by Saddam at the turn of the century was the natural consequence of the limited nature of the U. S. intervention during the first Gulf War. Then the U. S. , in accordance with the U. N. mandate, focused on removal of Iraq from Kuwait and not the removal of Saddam from Iraq. Neoconservatives called it â€Å"an unfinished job†: the focus on stability instead of democratization has lead to the current mess, in their opinion (Goldberg 2005). Some commentators believe that the sole reason why the U. S. did not go to Iraq then was the â€Å"Vietnam syndrome† (Ferguson 2004). While historical evidence is mixed wit regard to the democratic peace theory (and therefore the feasibility of â€Å"democratic transformationalism†), it is too early to dismiss it as trivial. This theory might as well be applicable in the 21st century, even if it has failed for most of the 19th and 20th centuries, for two major reasons. First of all, with the advent of new technologies, the level of interconnectedness between peoples of the world has increased dramatically. Citizens of democratic states enjoy unrestricted access to the Internet and the ability to travel to other democratic countries, usually without a visa. Therefore, public opinion in a democratic country is unlikely to support a military action against another democratic country, since there are personal ties between citizens of both, or the consumption of cultural products from another country (e. g. French cinema or Danish design) has created an emotional attachment to a foreign land. The EU can be held up as a prime example. The European continent has been at war for most of its existence. However, nowadays no one can imagine a war between two EU members. Perhaps it was not the participation in common decision-making institutions (which are still weak and contested) but the strength of people-to-people contacts (encouraged by student mobility programs, the rise of an international professional class, cross-border marriages, and even the proposed mobility program for military staff) that has delivered the change. A valid objection to this reasoning would be that professionalization of armies has diminished the level of control publics have over armed forces. As Johnson (2000) explains, for most of the 20th century, national armies were formed by universal conscription, by volunteers, or by a combination of both. It was of paramount importance to sustain patriotic spirit among troops and persuade them by means of propaganda that an enemy poses an existential threat to their nation. If states failed to maintain a firmness of purpose among soldiers, insubordination, desertion and sabotage render an army effectively non-battleworthy. However, professional soldiers perceive their mission merely as a special kind of employment. Although states still initiate massive campaigns to convince their publics of necessity of a war, like it was in the case of Iraq, professional soldiers would be ready to battle any enemy their state commanded them to. Moreover, a state can hire private security providers to wage wars for them. Although there was no case when a war was waged by using such providers only, the involvement of private military companies (PMC) and private security companies (PSC) in Iraq has received a lot of attention (Singer 2004). Thus, a government can still wage a war against another country in opposition to domestic public opinion by relying on a professional armies or private security provides.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Unusual Practice Essay Essay Example for Free

Unusual Practice Essay Essay In this essay, we try to study the unusual practice, which is found in United States of America. Recently, there has been great increase in desire to wear some ornaments in parts of the body like tongue. This practice is referred as oral body art. However, this is done by piercing some parts of the body. During the beginning of 20th century, it was not very popular among the people of America. However, recently, it has become widespread practice among people to pierce their tongues, nose, ear and other parts of body with needles. After piercing their body, they insert some jewellery into their body. This is considered as part of new fashion era. Piercing the body has become widespread among the American youth in the 21st century. Piercing practice is done by using a needle to pierce a part of the body such as tongue, lips, and ears or any other soft part of the body. Usually, this is done by self-trained professionals. While doing so, they do not use anesthesia. This means pierced object remains almost permanent part of the body. This practice is also known as oral or body art. They are in the form of metal studs. This practice of piercing needles into the body is found among some of the tribes of India and Africa. It is also found among the tribes of Indians in America. Due to contact with Indian tribal practices, it became popular among the Americans. Perhaps due to dissemination of knowledge regarding these tribes, some Americans might have taken interest in this unusual practice. Some Americans pierce their tongue with needle. However, this practice has led to certain undesirable consequences to the society and culture of America. This practice has resulted in certain complications related to health. Those who followed this practice have suffered from problems such as trauma, fractured teeth. However, the youth have great craze for this practice because of the peer pressure. After piercing the body, they keep some metal items in their body. This practice has been criticized by many physicians since it is unhealthy practice. This shows that the present generation is changing. This has given shock to the earlier generation of Americans. This practice is also found among some westernized people in other parts of the world. Perhaps this is part of the global cultural pattern. This practice indicates the interest among the people for cosmetics. It is believed by some sections of population that by piercing metals into tongue it is possible to attract the opposite sex. This may give heightened sexual pleasure to the sex partner. This means that there are some sexual connotations connected with this unusual practice. For the sake of sex, some people are ready to bear any pain and other consequences. This unusual practice implies the importance given to sex, pleasure and enjoyment by the modern generation of American society. This section of people wants some change in their practices and fashions and thus they resorted to piercing metals into their body parts. This will create close affinity among those who follow this unusual practice. This practice indicates the psyche of some sections of American population. This represents the changing definition of culture among the American youth. This practice among American youth may be considered as representing the revolt of youth against the traditional cultural norms of American society. This revolt is due to lack of direction among the youth. This means that the youth are confused, as they do not know about their future course of action. The very fact that the American youth have decided to take up new practice of piercing indicates that the youth have lost belief in earlier values of American culture. People with body art can be associated with undesirable habits like alcoholism, drug addiction and crimes, although there might be few exceptions. This demonstrates that body art symbolizes decay of American culture. Hence, we may suggest that this practice believed in non-orthodox philosophy. An attempt is made by the American youth to redefine the cultural symbols and practices. This practice has disturbed the social peace and harmony. This is because it has denied due respect to traditional cultural values of earlier generation of America. The unusual practice of body art has disturbed the status quo of American cultural pattern. It has disturbed the balance in the society. It has further led to emergence of problems like drug addiction, crime, and alcoholism among youth. The fact that youth have taken up this practice indicates the youth need guidance. Nevertheless, those youth who took to the body art did not have belief in earlier values like religion, traditions, etc. This has resulted in unnecessary conflict between traditional cultural values and new cultural pattern of youth. Hence, this may be considered as a disturbing practice. There are certain negative consequences of this unusual practice. These negative consequences are denial of traditional cultural values like religion, importance given to habits like drug addiction and alcoholism. Another negative consequence of this practice is that it is not a good model for the future generation of Americans because it encourages other habits such as drug addiction and alcoholism. This has led to increase in crimes committed by the youth. There is need to provide better model for future development of American society. Health problems created by this practice are its another negative consequence. Conclusion Although this practice was not very popular earlier, in the recent times, many younger generation people have decided to follow this unusual practice. It has several negative consequences including social and cultural complications. This practice can be considered as questioning of the traditional cultural pattern of America. The attempt to revolt against established cultural pattern is also due to feeling of fear and insecurity. This is because of the fact that youth have lost their faith in traditional cultural values. This is the attempt to establish their identity in the homogenous society. Therefore, it represents the identity crisis among the youth. There is a need to prevent increase of this unusual practice among the American youth.

Documentary Analysis Of Control Room

Documentary Analysis Of 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. 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 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 Control Room another high profile entrant in the current sweepstakes of anti-Bush, anti- imperialist documentaries. As in her 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 the 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. Therefore, 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 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 a 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 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 of 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.

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Agony And The Ecstacy :: essays research papers

The Agony and the Ecstacy depicts Michelangelo’s struggle to become the embodiment of Renaissance humanism. In the course of the novel Michelangelo must overcome the interference of his family, religious dogma, political intrigue, papal patronage, military campaigns, and artistic jealousy to realize his artistic ambition. Despite his father’s opposition, twelve-year-old Michelangelo becomes an apprentice, first to painter Ghirlandaio and then to Bertoldo, a sculptor, who directs a school financed by Lorenzo de’ Medici, patron of Florentine art. Michelangelo quickly wins Lorenzo’s esteem, meets his children (among Them two future popes, Giulio and Giovanni, and Contessina, his first love), suffers the first of several attacks by jealous colleagues (his nose is broken by Trrigiani, whose later appearances always threaten Michelangelo), and through forbidden dissection learns the anatomy and physiology he needs. Eventually Savonarola, a reform priest, comes to power, and his crusading zeal threatens Lorenzo de’ Medici’s family and the Florentine art world. When Savonarola gains political, as well as religious control, Michelangelo flees Florence and travels to Bologna, where he meets the sensuous Clarissa Saffi and carves the Bambino that attracts the attention of Leo Baglioni. In Rome for the first time, Michelangelo meets Jacopo Galli, a banker, who commissions a sculpture; Giuliano Sangallo, an architect; and Bramante, another architect and an adversary. In Rome, Michelangelo carves the Pieta, learns about the whims of religious patrons, and becomes interested in St. Peter’s – the building of the new St. Peter’s will embroil him in controversy and ultimately consume his last years. Michelangelo return to Florence, where he carves â€Å"the Giant,† a sculpture of David which becomes the symbol of Florence. There he meets Leonardo da Vinci, his principal rival, and Raphael, the painter – the three become the triumvirate of Renaissance Italian art. Jealous of Leonardo Michelangelo competes with him as the two artists paint frescoes for the rulers of Florence. Word of Michelangelo’s work reaches Pope Julius, who forces Michelangelo to work in bronze, rather than his beloved marble, and to paint the Sistine Chapel ceiling. It is Julius who resolves to build a new St. Peter’s. Julius is followed by two Medici popes who only add to Michelangelo’s problems: Giovanni, by forcing him to work with marble from Pietrasanta, an almost inaccessible region, thereby making Michelangelo an engineer, and Giulio, against whose forces Michelangelo must use his engineering talents to fortify the city of Florence. The Medici popes are followed by Pope Paul III, who commissions Michelangelo to paint the Last Judgment and who, after bitter disputes about the ongoing building of St.

Monday, August 19, 2019

The Arts in Boston Overcome Hard Times Essay -- Ballet Economy Economi

The Arts in Boston Overcome Hard Times Visions of the Sugar Plum Fairy may be dancing in some people’s heads for this up-coming Christmas season, but for the Boston Ballet, a non-profit organization, these visions are being high kicked out of the way by the Radio City Rockettes, who will be replacing the Nutcracker at the Wang Theatre in the 2004 season. With the poor economy that has engulfed the nation, many non-profit organizations in the Boston area are feeling a financial burden, most recently the Boston Ballet. The ballet, which is famous for its annual Christmas production of the Nutcracker, faced a $3.5 million budget cut this year, in addition to losing their space to the Rockettes and having to find a new home for next year. One ballet board member told The Boston Herald that the Nutcracker is leaving because attendance has â€Å"been a drain for some time and people are tired of it. The attendance has been falling like a rock year after year.† Despite the Boston Ballet’s recent bad fortune, many non-profit organizations in this area admit that they have seen a drop within the past couple of years, but say they are back on their feet again as far as donations and attendance. One major non-profit organization, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, or BSO, said despite the poor economy they continue their mission, which, according the their website www.bso.org, is â€Å"to increase the understanding and enjoyment of music by creating performances and by providing educational and training programs at the highest level of excellence.† The BSO admits that while they have seen some drops in donations as well as attendance, it does seem to be leveling off. â€Å"The poor economy has absolutely caused a problem as far as attendance a... ...ttract student discounts, and I think I will look into getting one for myself,† said Galanter. The success of the MFA is closely tied to the quality of its exhibits. â€Å"We currently have Rembrandt's Journey on view. Our next major exhibition is Gauguin Tahiti which opens in February,† said Petruccelli. Our cultural neighbors struggled somewhat because of the poor economy. However, these non-profit organizations have fared well in these hard times, both in terms of income and assets, and have since been recovering strongly enough that meeting their financial goals in the future seems promising. For the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Huntington Theatre Company, and the Museum of Fine arts, the worst is behind them, and they are optimistic about their future. The Boston Ballet, on the other hand, has yet to finalize a home for the 2004 production of the Nutcracker.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Aristotle on Paideia of Principles :: Philosophy Philosophical Essays

Aristotle on Paideia of Principles ABSTRACT: Aristotle maintains that paideia enables one to judge the method used by a given speaker without judging the conclusions drawn as well (I.1 De Partibus Animalium). He contends that this "paideia of principles" requires three things: seeing that principles are not derived from one another; seeing that there is nothing before them within reason; and, seeing that they are the source of much knowledge. In order to grasp these principles, one must respectively learn to recognize what distinguishes the subject matters studied in different disciplines, see first principles as coming from experience and acquire the habit of seeking them in one’s experience and, finally, see first principles as being the source of conclusions. While the second and third points might at first seem to pertain to "nous" and science, respectively, rather than to paideia, the case can be made that paideia involves more of a firm grasp of principles than "nous" and a less perfect way of relating co nclusion to principles than science. Aristotle speaks explicitly of paideia of method, the most noteworthy passage being Bk. 1, c. 1 of The Parts of Animals. He also explicitly identifies certain thinkers as lacking paideia this sort of paideia. Paideia of method allows a person to judge the way a speaker is proceeding without for so much being able to judge his conclusions (639a15). What is less obvious is that Aristotle holds that there is paideia of principles. However, there is one passage which makes this fairly clear (NE 1098b5, cited below). In addition, careful examination of passages where Aristotle calls attention to judgments or misjudgments pertaining to paideia reveals that there is not one but many reasons for calling a method either good or bad, some of which reasons have to do with principles. This can be seen by contrasting the following two cases: Aristotle is critical of ethicists who insist on proceeding solely by demonstration because such rigor is inappropriate to ethical matters (NE 1094b20-28). However, the reason he criticizes Pythagoras for explaining moral virtue in terms of mathematical principles,(1) is that Pythagoras is starting from principles which are inadequate to explaining this matter. Of the two mistakes, that as to the starting point is plainly more serious. Every error as to starting point entails error as to one's subseque nt proceeding, but not vice versa. A principle is always a principle of something, and every method or orderly proceeding has a principle or starting point.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

First Aid and Buttercups Cc Pin

Name: Kirsty Beale Nursery: Buttercups CC PIN: MU2. 4 Contribute to Children and Young People’s Health and Safety 3. 1 Identify non medical incidents and emergencies that may occur in the work setting * Fires * Flooding * Loss of property * Lack or loss of electricity,gas,water and heat * Data loss * Breach of confidentiality * Legal issues * Personal relationships * Bad management * Bad planning . 1 Identify the signs and symptoms which may indicate that a child or young person in injured or unwell. * Temperature over 37. 5c * Unresponsive * Lethargic * Nausea * Vomiting * Dizziness * Difficulty breathing * Rash * Diarrhoea * Chronic Headaches * Stomach pains 4. 2 Identify circumstances where children or young people may need urgent medical attention. * Broken bones * Unconscious/unresponsive * Shallow Breathing Asthma attack * Temperature over 80c * In severe pain * Dislocation * Confusion * Allergies * Chocking 4. 3 Outline own role and responsibilities in the event of a ch ild or young person requiring urgent medical attention. If I found a child showing any of the above symptoms I would evaluate what the symptoms are to the treatment needed if non-emergency I would immediately alert the appointed first aider so the child’s care can proceed. Related reading: Situations That Require Urgent Medical AttentionIf the child needs more substantial medical care an ambulance will be called and the parent/carer of the child will be informed what is wrong and where the child will be, when the situation is under control the settings medical forms will be filled out for legal purposes. 6. 2 Describe Personal Protective Clothing that is used to protect spread of infection. * Disposable gloves * Disposable aprons * Wounds to be dressed properly * Appropriate clothing and footwear to be worn * Body piercing’s covered or removed * Offensive tattoo’s covered or removed * Hair tied back

Friday, August 16, 2019

Psychology and Stress Essay

In our world today there are factors that make our life a little more difficult. We all go through these frustrations every day and some more than other are affected by them. These factors come in many different forms, yet they all lay under one category, it is called stress. Stress can impact a person physically, emotionally and, may be reasonable for people’s actions out of the norm. Setting up a stress management plan is a good way to find out how to overcome this problem in our everyday lives. Stress can be addressed through finding out what type of stress it is, how it impacts our bodies, and how to deal with stress. First of all stress can be managed just by finding out what type of stress is the cause. Stress causes our bodies to react to event that can be good or bad. According to Melinda Smith, M.A., Robert Segal, M.A., and Jeanne Segal, Ph.D. authors of the article on Understanding Stress, explains the course our bodies take during stress. Our bodies can kick into super hero mode and take us out of danger this is called â€Å"fight or flight†. Our bodies own defenses want to save our lives by confronting the problem or getting away. This can further lead on to cause conflict in our lives. One type of stress that causes this is Acute Stress. This type of stress is cause by a full force event. This can lead to after-effects reoccurring for one month. A study was conducted by the Fourth Military Medical University, Xi’an, People’s Republic of China, with this study consisted of analyzing acute stress. The researchers took people with acute stress and tested patients on different levels of symptoms. The study came up with a scale; six dimensions and symptoms a person my experience. The results were helpful to better assist the degree of stress a person has. Also they connected how acute stress could lead to Post Traumatic Syndrome. It’s very important to find good consisting research to be able to find the proper treatment for each person. The next step to manage stress is the impact it has on a person. How could this affect a person’s health in a positive or a negative way. An example of acute stress is a person who has experienced an earthquake afterwards has nightmares of being in the situation again. Their body is responding to emotional impact this event had on them. If we were to go back into the moment the event happened, we would be able to see how stress got this person to react and out of the situation to save their life. People go through a moments of being unstoppable like the hulk. The body gives a person strength and increase other senses to escape. That’s a good way our body response in a time of need. After the fact is when problems start, that can change a person’s life. If this problem is not addressed lead to psychological and mental issues. Stress can start with symptoms of cognitive, emotional, physical, and behavioral (Smith, Segal, Segal). This is why people have different be haviors out of the ordinary. Also how important it is to know how much is too much stress (Smith, Segal, Segal). Letting a person get this far can lead to health problems such as high blood pressure, depression and many other issues. Lastly finding steps to manage stress is the key. Finding a good plan that works for each person is a must. For example if a person gets stuck at the end of the line at the store and is late for work can be frustrating. People have to learn see the stressors and talk their way out of it. Tell them self’s its ok, review the situation and come to decision. At the end you’re the one who gets mad and then have to get happy again. So if a person starts from the beginning there’s so much that could be avoided. Another example is the people that were in 911 that had acute stress. This event was affecting many in different forms. Seeking treatment with a psychologist would help with the ordeal. Discussing the feelings behind the event helped many overcome their acute stress. In addition a good way to overcome stress comes from the article of Stress Management Health Center. The article notes how relax a person mind by writing, show a person’s emotions, and getting busy by destructions. This type of mental health treatment focuses on reliving the tension one carries. Taking walks, keeping an exercise plan to help focus the energy in another direction, these goals are good to maintain health balanced. A person may also due mediation to easy be the body and relax the mind. They can slowly start to change their outlook on life in more positive way. This can help with so much stress one deal with on a daily bases. In conclusion stress can be managed by taking control over lives by finding out what type of stress a person has, how it affects a person, and by learning to deal with it. Learning what stress is and its affects a person’s life is very important to improving oneself. It’s also a way to target the factors that are negative and replaces them with positive ones. Working one’s health one step at a time can avoid stress that affects people every day. Also learning to relax and taking the time for one self, makes life easier on the soul. If we let stress take ownership we will never overcome it. References YEBING, Y., JINGJING, T., YUAN, J., XUFENG, L., YUNFENG, S., XIA, Z., & DANMIN, M. (2011). DEVELOPMENT OF THE ACUTE STRESS RESPONSE SCALE. Social Behavior & Personality: An International Journal, 39(5), 713-720. doi:10.2224/sbp.2011.39.5.713 Smith, Melinda, Robert Segal, and Jeanne Segal. â€Å"Understanding Stress: Symptoms, Signs, Causes, and Effects.† Helpguide.org: Expert, Ad-free Articles Help Empower You with Knowledge, Support & Hope. Web. 07 Oct. 2011. . Stuff. â€Å"Techniques, Exercises and Therapies for Relieving Stress.† WebMD – Better Information. Better Health. Healthwise, 14 Oct. 2009. Web. 07 Oct. 2011. .

A Dirty Job Chapter 15

15 THE CALL OF BOOTY Fuck puppets,† Ray said out of nowhere. He was on the stair-climbing machine next to Charlie and they were both sweating and staring at a row of six, perfectly tuned female bottoms aimed at them from the machines in front of them. â€Å"What was that?† Charlie said. â€Å"Fuck puppets,† Ray said. â€Å"That's what they are.† Ray had talked Charlie into coming to his health club with him under the pretense of getting him into the flow of being single. Actually, because Ray was an ex-cop, watched people more closely than really was healthy, had too much time on his hands, and didn't get out much himself, the real reason he asked Charlie to come work out with him was so he could get to know him outside of the shop. He'd noticed a strange pattern that had developed since Rachel's death, of Charlie showing up with people's property shortly after their obituary appeared in the paper. Because Charlie kept to himself socially and was secretive about what he did when he was out of the shop, not to mention all the little animals that ended up dead in Charlie's apartment, Ray suspected that he might be a serial killer. Ray decided to try to get close to his boss and find out for sure. â€Å"Keep your voice down, Ray,† Charlie said. â€Å"Jeez.† Since Ray couldn't turn his head, he was talking right at the women's butts. â€Å"They can't hear me; look, every single one has on a headset.† He was right, every one of them was talking on a cell phone. â€Å"You and I are invisible to them.† Having actually been invisible to people, or nearly so, Charlie did a double take. It was midmorning and the gym was full of lean spandex-clad women in their twenties with disproportionately large breasts, perfect skin, and expensive hair, who seemed to have the ability to look right through him the way that everyone did when he was in pursuit of a soul vessel. In fact, when he and Ray had first come into the gym, Charlie had actually looked around for some object, pulsing red, thinking that he might have missed a name on his date book that morning. â€Å"After I was shot I dated a physical therapist that worked here for a while,† Ray said. â€Å"She called them that: fuck puppets. Every one of them has an apartment that some older executive guy is paying for – just like he paid for the health-club membership and the fake tits. They spend their days getting facials and manicures, and their nights under some suit out of his suit.† Charlie was wildly uncomfortable with Ray's litany, talking about these women who were only a couple of feet away. Like any Beta Male, he would have been wildly uncomfortable in the presence of so many beautiful women anyway, but this made it worse. â€Å"So like they're like trophy wives?† Charlie said. â€Å"Nuh-uh, like wannabe trophy wives. They don't get the guy, the house, whatever. They just exist to be his perfect piece of ass.† â€Å"Fuck puppets?† Charlie said. â€Å"Fuck puppets,† said Ray. â€Å"But forget them, they're not why you're here.† Ray was right, of course. They weren't why Charlie was there. Five years had passed since Rachel's death, and everyone had been telling him he needed to get back in the game, but that's not why he agreed to accompany the ex-cop to the gym. Because Charlie spent too much time on his own, especially since Sophie had started school, and because he'd been hiding a secret identity and avocation, he'd started to suspect that everyone might have one. And since Ray kept to himself, talked a lot about people in the neighborhood who had died, and because he really didn't seem to have a social life beyond the Filipino women he contacted online, Charlie suspected Ray might be a serial killer. Charlie thought he'd try to get closer to Ray and find out. â€Å"So they're like mistresses?† Charlie said. â€Å"Like in Europe?† â€Å"I suppose,† Ray said. â€Å"But did you ever get the impression that mistresses worked this hard to look good? I think fuck puppet is more accurate, because when they get too old to hold the attention of their guy, they've got nothing more going. They'll be done, like marionettes with no one at the strings.† â€Å"Jeez, Ray, that's harsh.† Maybe Ray is stalking one of these women, Charlie thought. Ray shrugged. Charlie looked up and down the line of perfect derrieres, then felt the weight of his years alone or in the company of a child and two giant dogs, and said, â€Å"I want a fuck puppet.† Aha! thought Ray. He's picking a victim. â€Å"Me, too,† he said. â€Å"But guys like us don't get fuck puppets, Charlie. We just get ignored by them.† Aha! Charlie thought. The bitter sociopath comes out. â€Å"So that's why you brought me here, so I could show I was out of shape in front of gorgeous women who wouldn't notice?† â€Å"No, the fuck puppets are fun to look at, but there's some normal women who come here, too.† Who won't talk to me either, Ray thought. â€Å"Who won't talk to you either,† Charlie said. Because they can tell that you are a psychokiller. â€Å"We'll see in the juice bar after our workout,† Ray said. Where I'll sit at an angle so I can watch you pick your victim. You sick fuck, they thought. Charlie awoke to find not one, but three new names in his date book, and the last one, a Madison McKerny, had only three days for him to retrieve her soul vessel. Charlie kept a stack of newspapers in the house and, typically, would go back for a month looking for an obituary of his new client. More often, if the hellhounds would give him some peace, he would simply wait for the name to appear in the obituary section, then go find the soul vessel when it was easy to get into the house, with mourners or posing as an estate buyer. But this time he had only three days, and Madison McKerny hadn't appeared in the obituaries, so that meant she was probably still alive, and he couldn't find her in the phone book either, so he was going to need to get moving quickly. Mrs. Ling and Mrs. Korjev liked to do their marketing on Saturdays, so he called his sister, Jane, and asked her to come watch Sophie. â€Å"I want a baby brother,† Sophie announced to her Auntie Jane. â€Å"Oh, sweetie, I'm sorry, you can't have a baby brother, because that would mean that Daddy had sex, and that's never going to happen again.† â€Å"Jane, don't talk to her that way,† Charlie said. He was making sandwiches for them and wondering why he always got stuck making the sandwiches. To Sophie, he said, â€Å"Honey, why don't you go in your room and play with Alvin and Mohammed, Daddy needs to talk with Auntie Jane.† â€Å"Okay,† Sophie said, skipping off to her room. â€Å"And don't change clothes again, those are fine,† Charlie said. â€Å"That's the fourth outfit she's had on today,† he said to Jane. â€Å"She changes clothes like you change girlfriends.† â€Å"Ouch. Be gentle, Chuck, I'm sensitive and I can still kick your ass.† Charlie spanked some mayonnaise onto a whole wheat slice to show he was serious. â€Å"Jane, I'm not sure it's healthy for her to have all these different aunties around. She's already had a hard time losing her mother, and now you've moved away – I just don't think she should keep getting attached to these women only to have them yanked out of her life. She needs a consistent female influence.† â€Å"First, I have not moved away, I've moved across town, and I see her every bit as often as when I lived in the building. Second, it's not like I'm promiscuous, I'm just shitty at relationships. Third, Cassie and I have been together for three months, and we're doing fine so far, which is why I've moved out. And fourth, Sophie did not lose her mother, she never had her mother, she had you, and if you're going to be a decent human being, you need to get laid.† â€Å"That's what I mean, you can't talk like that in front of Sophie.† â€Å"Charlie, it's true! Even Sophie can see it. She doesn't even know what it is and she can tell that you're not getting any.† Charlie stopped constructing sandwiches and came over to the counter. â€Å"It's not sex, Jane. It's human contact. I was getting my hair cut the other day and the hairdresser's breast rubbed against my shoulder and I almost came. Then I almost cried.† â€Å"Sounds like sex to me, little brother. Have you been with anyone since Rachel died?† â€Å"You know I haven't.† â€Å"That's wrong. Rachel wouldn't want that for you. You have to know that. I mean she took pity on you and hooked up with you, and that couldn't have been easy for her, knowing she could do so much better.† â€Å"Took pity on me?† â€Å"That's what I'm saying. She was a sweet woman, and you're much more pitiful now than you were then. You had more hair then, and you didn't have a kid and two dogs the size of Volvos. Hell, there's probably some order of nuns that would do you now, just as a holy act of mercy. Or penance.† â€Å"Stop it, Jane.† â€Å"The Sisters of Perpetual Nookiless Suffering.† â€Å"I'm not that bad,† Charlie said. â€Å"The Holy Order of Saint Bonny of the BJ, patron saint of Web porn and incurable wankers.† â€Å"Okay, Jane, I'm sorry I said that about you changing girlfriends. I was out of line.† Jane leaned back on her bar stool and crossed her arms, looking satisfied but skeptical. â€Å"But the problem remains.† â€Å"I'm fine. I have Sophie and I have the business, I don't need a girlfriend.† â€Å"A girlfriend? A girlfriend is too ambitious for you. You just need someone to have sex with.† â€Å"I do not.† â€Å"Yes, you do.† â€Å"Yes, I do,† Charlie said, defeated. â€Å"But I have to go. Are you okay to watch Sophie?† â€Å"Sure, I'm going to take her to my place. I have an obnoxious neighbor up the street that I'd like to introduce to the puppies. Will they poop on command?† â€Å"They will if Sophie tells them.† â€Å"Perfect. We'll see you tonight. Promise me you'll ask someone out. Or at least look for someone to ask out.† â€Å"I promise.† â€Å"Good. Did you get that new blue pinstripe tailored yet?† â€Å"Stay out of my closet.† â€Å"Don't you need to get going?† Ray figured that it had probably started when Charlie murdered all those little animals he brought home for his daughter. Maybe buying the big black dogs was a cry for help – pets that someone would really notice being gone. According to the movies, they all started out that way – with the little animals, then before long they moved up to hitchhikers, hookers, and pretty soon they were mummifying a whole flock of counselors at some remote summer camp and posing the crusty remains around a card table in their mountain lair. The mountain lair didn't fit the profile for Charlie, since he had allergies, but that might just be an indication of his diabolical genius. (Ray had been a street cop, so it hadn't really been necessary for him to study criminal profiling, and his theories tended toward the colorful, a side effect of his Beta Male imagination and large DVD collection.) But Charlie had asked Ray to use his contacts on the force and at the DMV a half-dozen times to locate people, all of whom ended up dead a few weeks later. But not murders. And while a lot of items belonging to the recently deceased had turned up in the shop in the last few years (Ray had found antitheft numbers etched on a dozen items and called them in to a friend on the force who identified the owners), none of them had been murdered either. There were a few accidents, but mostly it was natural causes. Either Charlie was devious to an extraordinary degree, or Ray was out of his mind, a possibility that he didn't discount completely, if for no other reason than he had three ex-wives who would testify to it. Thus, he'd devised the workout ruse to draw Charlie out. Then again, Charlie had always treated him really well, and if it turned out he didn't have a mountain lair full of mummified camp counselors, Ray knew he'd feel bad about tricking him. What if there was nothing wrong with Charlie except that he needed to get laid? Ray was chatting with Eduardo, his new girlfriend at when Charlie came down the back steps. â€Å"Ray, I need you to find someone for me.† â€Å"Hang on a second, I have to sign off. Charlie, check out my new squeeze.† Ray pulled up a photo on the screen of a heavily made-up but attractive Asian woman. â€Å"She's pretty, Ray. I can't give you any time off right now to go to the Philippines, though. Not until we hire someone to take Lily's shifts.† Charlie leaned into the screen. â€Å"Dude, her name is Eduardo.† â€Å"I know. It's a Filipino thing, like Edwina.† â€Å"She has a five-o'clock shadow.† â€Å"You're just being a racist. Some races have more facial hair than others. I don't care about that, I just want someone who is honest and caring and attractive.† â€Å"She has an Adam's apple.† Ray squinted at the screen, then quickly clicked off the monitor and spun around on the stool. â€Å"So who do you need me to find?† â€Å"It's okay, Ray,† Charlie said. â€Å"An Adam's apple doesn't preclude someone from being honest, caring, and attractive, it just makes it less likely.† â€Å"Right. It was just bad lighting, I think. Anyway, who do you need to find?† â€Å"All I have is the name Madison McKerny. I know he or she lives in the city, but that's all I know.† â€Å"It's a she.† â€Å"Pardon me?† â€Å"Madison, it's a stripper's name.† Charlie shook his head. â€Å"You know this woman?† â€Å"I don't know her, although the name seems familiar. But Madison is a new-generation stripper name. Like Reagan and Morgan.† â€Å"Lost me, Ray.† â€Å"I've spent some time in strip joints, Charlie. I'm not proud of it, but it's sort of what you do when you're a cop. And you pick up on the pattern of stripper names.† â€Å"Didn't know that.† â€Å"Yeah, and there's sort of a progression going back to the fifties: Bubbles, Boom Boom, and Blaze begat Bambi, Candy, and Jewel, who begat Sunshine, Brandy, and Cinnamon, who begat Amber, Brittany, and Brie, who begat Reagan, Morgan, and Madison. Madison is a stripper name.† â€Å"Ray, you weren't even alive in the fifties.† â€Å"No, I wasn't alive during the forties either, but I know about World War Two and big-band music. I'm into history.† â€Å"Right. So, I need to look for a stripper? Doesn't help. I don't even know where to start.† â€Å"I'll go through the DMV and the tax records. If she's in town we'll have an address on her by this afternoon. Why do you need to find her?† There was a pause while Charlie pretended to find a smudge on the glass of the counter display case, wiped it away, then said, â€Å"Uh, it's an estate thing. One of the estates we got recently had some items that were left to her.† â€Å"Shouldn't the executor of the estate take care of that, or his lawyer?† â€Å"It's minutiae, not named in the will. The executor asked me to handle it. There's fifty bucks in it for you.† Ray grinned. â€Å"That's okay, I was going to help anyway, but if she turns out to be a stripper I get to go with you, okay?† â€Å"Deal,† Charlie said. Three hours later Ray gave the address to Charlie and watched as his boss bolted out of the shop and grabbed a cab. Why a cab? Why not take the van? Ray wanted to follow, needed to follow, but he had to find someone to cover the store. He should have anticipated this, but he'd been distracted. Ray had been distracted since talking to Charlie, not just by the search for Madison McKerny, but also because he was trying to figure out how to work â€Å"Do you have a penis?† casually into the conversation with his sweetheart, Eduardo. After a couple of teasing e-mails, he could stand it no longer and had just typed out, Eduardo, not that it makes any difference, but I'm thinking of sending you some sexy lingerie as a friendship present, and I wondered if I should make any special accommodations for the panties. Then he waited. And waited. And granted that it was five in the morning in Manila, he was second-guessing himself. Had he been too vague, or had he not been vague enough? And now he had to go. He knew where Charlie was going, but he had to get there before anything happened. He dialed Lily's cell phone, hoping that she wouldn't be working at her other job and would do him a favor. â€Å"Speak, ingrate,† Lily answered. â€Å"How did you know it was me?† Ray asked. â€Å"Ray?† â€Å"Yeah, how did you know it was me?† â€Å"I didn't,† Lily said. â€Å"What do you want?† â€Å"Can you come cover the store for me for a couple of hours?† Then, as he heard her take a deep breath that he was pretty sure would be propellant for verbal abuse, he added, â€Å"There's fifty bucks extra in it for you.† Ray heard her exhale. Yes! After graduating from the Culinary Institute, Lily had gotten a job as a sous chef at a bistro in North Beach, but she didn't make enough to move out of her mother's apartment yet, so she let Charlie talk her into keeping a couple of shifts at Asher's Secondhand, at least until he could find a replacement. â€Å"Okay, Ray, I'll come in for a couple of hours, but I have to be at the restaurant by five, so be back or I'm closing up early.† â€Å"Thanks, Lily.† Charlie sincerely hoped that Ray wasn't a serial killer, despite all the indications to the contrary. He would never have found this woman without Ray's police contacts, and what would he do in the future if he needed to find someone and Ray was in jail? Then again, Ray's experience as a cop could account for his never leaving any evidence. But why, then, would he continue to pursue the Filipino women over the Internet if he was just looking to kill people? Maybe that's what he did when he went to the Philippines to visit his paramours. Maybe he killed desperate Filipinas. Maybe Ray was a tourist serial killer. Deal with it later, Charlie thought. For now, there's a soul vessel to retrieve. Charlie got out of the cab outside of the Fontana, an apartment building just a block up from Ghirardelli Square, the waterfront chocolate factory turned tourist mall. The Fontana was a great, curved, concrete-and-glass building that commanded views of Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge, and that had drawn the disdain of San Franciscans since it had been built in the 1960s. It wasn't that it was an ugly building, although no one would argue that it wasn't, but with the Victorian and Edwardian structures all around it, it looked very much like a giant air conditioner from outer space attacking a nineteenth-century neighborhood. However, the views from the apartments were exquisite, there was a doorman, underground parking, and a pool on the roof, so if you could handle the stigma of residing in an architectural pariah, it was a great place to live. The address Ray had given him for Madison was on the twenty-second floor, and so, presumably, was her soul vessel. Charlie wasn't sure of the exact range of his unnoticeability (he refused to think of it as invisibility, because it wasn't), but he hoped that it reached twenty-two floors. He was going to have to get past the doorman and into an elevator, and posing as an estate buyer wasn't going to work. Ah, well, nothing ventured, nothing gained. If he got caught, he'd just have to find another way in. He waited by the door until a young woman in business attire went in, then followed her into the lobby. The doorman didn't even look at him. Ray saw Charlie get out of the cab and told his own driver to stop a block away, where he hopped out, threw the driver a five and told him to keep the change, then dug in his pocket for the rest of the fare while the driver pounded on the wheel impatiently and cursed under his breath in Urdu. â€Å"Sorry, it's been a while since I took a cab,† Ray said. Ray had a car, a nice little Toyota, but the only parking place he could find was eight blocks away from his apartment in the parking lot of a hotel managed by a friend of his, and when you got a parking place in San Francisco, you kept it, so Ray mostly used public transportation and only drove the car on his days off to keep the battery charged. He'd jumped in a taxi outside Charlie's shop and shouted, â€Å"Follow that cab!† thus completely terrifying the Japanese family in the back. â€Å"Sorry,† Ray said. â€Å"Konichiwa. It's been a while since I took a cab.† Then he jumped back out and caught a cab that didn't have a fare. He sneaked quickly up the street, going from light post, to newspaper machine, to ad kiosk, ducking behind each, staying in his stealth-crouch, and achieving nothing whatsoever except to look like a complete loon to the kid standing at the bus stop across the street. He reached the underground parking entrance of the Fontana just as Charlie was making for the door. Ray crouched behind the key-card pillar. He wasn't sure what he was going to do if Charlie went for the building. Fortunately, he'd memorized Madison McKerny's phone number, and he could warn her that Charlie was coming. In the cab on the way down here he'd remembered where he'd seen her name: on the register at his health club. Madison McKerny was one of the midmorning fuck puppets from the gym, and as Ray suspected, Charlie was stalking her. He watched Charlie fall in behind a young woman in business dress who was heading up the walk into the Fontana, then Charlie was gone. Just gone. Ray came out onto the sidewalk to get a better angle. The woman was still there, she'd gone only a couple of steps, but he couldn't see Charlie. There were no bushes, no walls, the whole damn lobby was glass, where the hell had he gone? Ray was sure he hadn't looked away, he didn't even think he had blinked, and he would have seen any sudden move Charlie might have made. Reverting to the Beta Male's tendency to blame himself, Ray wondered if maybe he'd had some kind of petit mal seizure that had made him black out for a second. Whether he did or not, he had to warn Madison McKerny. He reached to his belt and felt the empty cell-phone clip, then remembered putting his phone under the register when he'd gotten to work that morning. Charlie found the right apartment and rang the bell. If he could get Madison McKerny to come out into the hallway, he could slip in behind her and look through her apartment for her soul vessel. Just down the hall there was a table with an artificial flower arrangement. He'd tipped it over, hoping she was compulsive or curious enough to come out of her apartment to get a closer look. If she wasn't home, well, he'd have to break in. Odds were that with a doorman downstairs, she didn't have an alarm system. But what if she could see him? Sometimes they could, the clients. Not often, but it happened, and – She opened the door. Charlie was stunned. She was stunning. Charlie stopped breathing and stared at her breasts. It wasn't that she was a young and gorgeous brunette, with perfect hair and perfect skin. Nor was it that she was wearing a thin, white silk robe that just barely concealed her swimsuit-model figure. Nor was it because she had disproportionately large but alert breasts that were straining against the robe and peeking out of the plunging neckline as she leaned out the door, although that would have been enough to render the hapless Beta breathless under any circumstances. It was that her breasts were glowing red, right through the silk robe, glowing right out of the dcolletage like twin rising suns, pulsating like the lightbulb boobies of a kitschy Hawaiian hula girl lamp. Madison McKerny's soul was residing in her breast implants. â€Å"I've got to get my hands on those,† Charlie said, forgetting that he wasn't exactly alone and he wasn't exactly thinking to himself. Then Madison McKerny noticed that Charlie was there and the screaming started.

Thursday, August 15, 2019

Citizen Kane Essay

An extremely wonderful, but definitely not a movie I would ever watch again because I wouldn’t be able to handle it a second time, Citizen Kane’s very title has become a masterpiece. â€Å"The Citizen Kane of its genre is about as great of praise as any film might hope to achieve. Citizen Kane’s unique status in the world of American cinema is held in its place in Hollywood history. At the height of the Hollywood studio system, when studio bosses controlled every aspect of filmmaking from production to exhibition, this film was made by a handful of brilliant artists who were given freedom to do whatever they wanted. The examples in the film of why Citizen Kane is arguably the greatest film of all time: Introduction to Xanadu.  Kane’s Death. News on the March. Introduction to Susan Alexander. Kane’s childhood, Kane Buys his First Newspaper. Introduction to Mr. Bernstein. Visual symbolism: Mr. Bernstein’s image reflected in table. Visual symbolism: Mr. Bernstein stands beneath painting of Kane. The Early Days, the Happy Days. Declaration of Principles Scene. Kane Celebrates Birth of His Newspaper Empire. Kane Returns from Paris with Wedding Engagement. Leland Recalls the Breakdown of Kane’s Marriage to Emily Norton. Kane Meets Susan Alexander. Gettys Springs His Trap. Kane Marries Susan Alexander; Her Opening Night at the The Missing Review. Susan Alexander at the El Rancho. Susan Alexander Rehearses for Opening Night. Susan Alexander’s Opening Night at the New Opera House. Argument over the Bad Reviews. Susan Alexander on Tour. After Susan’s Suicide Attempt. Life is Boring in Xanadu. Susan Leaves Kane. As Susan confronts Kane. As Kane pleads with her. As Susan realizes Kane just doesn’t get it. Kane, watching Susan walks down long corridors and out of his life. Susan walking away from camera. Visual symbolism, Susan walking out of his life, and Kane’s Rampage After Susan Leaves a Symbolic action, Kane picks up the glass ball. Symbolic dialogue, Kane says â€Å"Rosebud† metaphor: Kane’s reflections in the mirrors Answer to the Riddle of â€Å"Rosebud.† Visual symbolism, fence, No Trespassing Sign, K sign in fence in foreground, Xanadu looming in the background Visually, Welles and legendary cinematographer Gregg Toland forged a dramatic style combining such techniques as extreme deep focus, varied camera angles  including low angles revealing set ceilings, and unconventional use of lighting and deep shadows anticipating the film noir style. Individually, most of these techniques had been pioneered in other films, but Citizen Kane masterfully brought them together with unprecedented acumen and maturity. Narratively, Welles and veteran writer Herman J. Mankiewicz jointly crafted a storytelling tour de force combining non-linear narrative, composite storytelling from multiple points of view (a technique that would later be indelibly associated with Kurosawa’s Rashomon), varying narrative forms including the famous opening newsreel segment as well as interviews and flashbacks, and a dramatic span of decades with characters aging from young adulthood (or even childhood) to old age. Their characters are complex and ambiguous, and their dialogue crackles with wit and insight. Thematically, the film tackles the mystery of man from nearly every conceivable angle except religion — love, happiness, money, power, sex, marriage, divorce, politics, the media, celebrity, despair, death — in a sweepingly ambitious study that asks anew the 2000-year-old question, â€Å"What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his soul?† What’s more, Kane accomplishes all this not as a rarefied art film for the ambitious few, but as a popular story for the masses, a riddle picture with the most famous twist ending in Hollywood history. This ending, of course, is the explanation of Charles Foster Kane’s dying word, â€Å"Rosebud.† The twist behind the twist is that while the final shot satisfyingly resolves the question with which the picture began, the whole notion that that the answer to that question would somehow provide the key to Kane’s life was only a journalistic conceit. The film answers the question, but refrains from offering any final explanation or judgment of its complex protagonist, suggesting that a man’s life is more than a riddle to be explained or resolved. That’s not to say that Rosebud isn’t significant. It is. It signifies innocence lost, regret, the failure of the American dream of rags-to-riches  success. It also represents what Kane lost at an early age when he was taken from his mother and father and raised by an unloving guardian. Deprived of love, burdened by too much money and power, Kane grows up with a ravenous desire to be loved despite being incapable of love himself, as well as an arrogance and sense of entitlement to getting his way. The tragedy of his life epitomizes the dark side of the pursuit of happiness, with failed marriages, broken friendships, dashed political aspirations, rapacious acquisitiveness, isolation, and despair. Controversy surrounding the release of the film has become an enduring part of its legend. The character of Charles Foster Kane was widely recognized at least in part as a fictionalized version of newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst, and Hearst furiously did his best to suppress the picture and have it destroyed. While working on Citizen Kane, Welles joked that â€Å"If they ever let me do a second picture, I’m lucky.† He was only half right. He was lucky enough to make many additional pictures, some of them masterpieces in their own right. That super awesome level of control and magic was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and Welles made the most of it. This is Citizen Kane.