Analysis Of The Army Of God Terrorist Philosophy Essay

Analysis Of The Army Of God Terrorist Philosophy Essay In the current essay I would like to make an analysis of one of the U.S. terroristic organization so-called Army of God. I would like to consider what aims this organization wants to achieve, what methods it uses and how our society relates to this organization. As a matter of fact terrorism is a policy, based on the systematic use of terror.  The word terror is a synonymous to the words violence, intimidation and fear.  In the U.S. legal system terror is a premeditated, politically motivated violence, perpetrated against the civilian population or objects by different sub-national groups or clandestine agents in order to influence the mood of society.  There are different types of terrorism, among them are: By the nature of the subject, terrorism is divided into:  unorganized or individual in this case, the attack is made by one or two people and organized (collective) the terrorist activity is planned and implemented by a certain organization (Al-Qaeda, IRA, ETA and so on). As a rule, organized terrorism is the most common in the modern world.   Goals of terrorism are divided into following: nationalist pursues separatist or national liberation objectives;  religious can be linked to the struggle between the adherents of a religion (Muslims and Christians etc.). Social is intended to partial or radical changes in economic or political system, to attract public attention to any acute problem.  Sometimes this kind of terrorism is called revolutionary.  Of course, this division is conditional and terrorism similarities can be found in all its forms, as described in US Domestic Terrorism: Army of God. It can be said that Army of God is related to organized and social terrorism. On the one hand, Army of God is well organized group of people with common goals and on the other hand, partial changes in economic and political system of the U.S., specifically, complete ban of abortion. It should be noted that Army of God is an anti-abortion terrorist organization, which approves violence and terrorism to fight abortion in the United States.  AOG supports the Second Defensive Action Statement, which is issued by the Defenders of Life, which read: We, who sign below, announced that divine justice action is required, including the use of violence, to protect innocent human life (which was born and the unborn).We just announced any acts of violence and it is reasonable to maintain the life of a child born to defend the life of an unborn child, as stated in Army Of God? Body I presume that terroristic activity against abortion began in United States and Canada in the 70-ies of the XX century. As a fact, at first appeared terrorist organization Anti-Abortion Violence Movement (AAVM).  Terrorists set fire, blow up and destroy clinics, kill doctors and politicians and so on. As a rule, AAVM had training centers for like-minded people, where organization showed how to plan and organize military operations.  Terrorists have their own magazine; maintain contacts with right-wing movements, such as the Ku Klux Klan.   As a matter of fact, our country has a long history of small terrorist groups with religious nature, which carry out attacks on certain sectors of society who do not follow their own moral teachings and principals. One of such groups is the American Christian fundamentalist organization is known as the Army of God.  This group promotes the usage of violence against abortion clinics and homosexual community.  The Army of God has been linked to several bombings of such clinics, and uses biblical justification for an attack on the medical personnel who carry out abortions.  For example, Pastor Michael Bray one of the leading members of the organization was serving sentence in prison for the bombing of abortion clinics.  As a fact, army of God has developed a manual for counseling members on how to attack the clinic using arson, acid, as well as instructions on bomb making, as described in Army of God: Still Marching. It can be said that Army of God demonstrates the profound conviction as anti-abortion, homophobic, and sharply criticize the U.S. government for not holding to what it sees as Christian values.  In 1998, a member of the Army of God, James Kopp killed Dr. Barnett Slepian and it is considered that the organization has been linked to many other similar surveys between 1994 and 1997.  The Army of God have also tried to use public fears of terrorist biological attack with one member, Clayton Waagner, sending more than 550 letters to abortion clinics in 2001, claiming they contained anthrax and can infect those who opened them.   It is believed that the group operates major terrorist network.  In combination with a very close knit nature of communities, many of the members came to organization from the army; they seem to have lack of experience in funding or knowledge how to carry out large-scale effective attack.  It is believed that the Army of God may be involved in the attacks on gays and lesbians in May 1999, when 2 people were killed.  It is unlikely that the Army of God is real organization beyond the individual groups and no strong leadership has been defined, although several people have joined the group. The most famous terroristic act of the organization was bombings at the 1996 Olympics Atlanta that killed one person and injured more than hundreds of others.  The Army of God is a good example of a low level fundamentalist terrorists group, which get their limited knowledge and skills from the Internet or some ex-soldiers to carry out low level attacks and criminal activities in the future, what they see as their own moral code, as stated in History of the Army of God. Many experts consider that Army of God is the latest extremist religious group in the spotlight.  I would like to consider what an army of God is.  No one is sure, but the name has been used for 30 years. Here is an entry: in the early 1980s, womens clinic in Granite City, Illinois, was defeated repeatedly by fundamentalist protestors.  Then the operator of the clinic, Dr. Hector Zevallos and his wife Rosalie have been kidnapped by a group of men that called themselves as the Army of God.  Couple held for eight days in an abandoned munitions bunker.  The kidnappers said they killed them both, if Dr. Zevallos pledged to stop performing abortions he did, and they were released.  Then, these three men were later convicted for the kidnapping.  The leader, Don Benny Anderson, declared that God told him to wage war against abortion.  After that, Anderson received a 30-year prison sentence.  Also, he was convicted of setting fire in two Florida abortion clinics and drew t he second 30-year period. In 1984, when the Norfolk Womens Clinic was firebombed, the initials of Army of God were scrawled on the wall.  Soon after this, clinic near Washington was firebombed, and people claim that they represent the army of God. In 1993, the fundamentalist Rachelle Shannon had shot clinic doctor in Wichita, Oregon. She boasted that she was providing Gods will.  The police found the Army of God manual filled with quotations of the Bible, bomb-making instructions, and the declaration, saying that abortion should be stopped.  Guide said the army of God units did not stay in one place, so that the feds will never stop us, as describe in The Army of God: More Religious Killers? In 1996, two more nail-studded bombs hit Atlanta January 16, in a clinic for women and 21 February at gay nightclub.  After the second explosion, raw, unsigned, semi-literate letter was sent to Reuters, who passed it on to the FBI:  the letter said that both bombs were placed by the units of the army of God.  It also stated that those, who were involved with abortion can become victims of retaliation.  With regard to gay club, in latter there was ungrammatically described the following: We will target sodomites, there are organizations and all those who push there agenda, as stated in The Army of God: More Religious Killers? The police also found a letter, which threatened the United Nations and the United States government.  As a fact, it declared the following: We declare and will wage war to destroy the ungodly communist regime in New York and your legislative-bureaucratic lackey of Washington. It is you who are responsible and preside over the murder of children and the policy question that the wicked perversions destroy our nationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã‚  Death of the New Order world, according to FBI National Press Release. Now, the FBI circulated a letter nationally, in the hope that some citizens will recognize the language style and determine bombers. Unfortunately, the army of God saga emphasizes an unpleasant fact of life: the most dangerous people are often the most religious. Without any doubts many Americans are categorically against  this organization and its  methods  of struggle for  their  moral beliefs. As a matter of fact, in the 90s of the XX century the scandal erupted, when Nail Horsley posted on the Web so-called Nuremberg files. It was a list of doctors, owners of the clinic that make aborts, as well as their family members, judges, famous  political and social activists, lobbying for abortion.  Also in the file were listed women who have done abortions.  The files presented not only photo with the name of the murderers, but also their addresses, telephones, video anything that can be useful if you decided to find a person.  It should be noted that these files Horsley collected himself by walking, recognizing, photographing, and published it in the Internet.  In addition, he paid photographers and volunteers, who did pictures for his list.  Horsley strongly believes that doctors, who have helped to do the abortions, shou ld be judged in a Nuremberg trial. Horsley declared the following: The Nuremberg files remind people that the doctors who kill babies are criminals and should be judged just like the Nazis at Nuremberg, as described in The Army of God. To be more precise, the U.S. Supreme Court long ago made it clear that there is nothing against abortion. However, authorities did not find anything illegal in Horsleys action and explained that under the First Amendment, these actions have nothing criminal. In my opinion, this situation is connected with the fact, that among influential Americans there are a lot of supporters of abortion ban in the U.S., for example George Bush Senior is considered one of the opponents of abortion.  Moreover, after this Web publication Horney also stated the following: We do not want all of them to die. But then, three thousand babies will die today its a fact and this fact is ignored in the past 25 years, according to Anti-Abortion Violence Defines Army of God. In my opinion this characterizes AOG as organization of  implacable fanatics  on  the religious and  moral  grounds,  who believe that they  have a right to decide  what people  can, and  what can not  do.  As a re sult of this Web publication some abortion supporters were killed or wounded: doctor John Britton was murdered in 1994 by AOG activist Paul Hill, Dr. David Gunn was shot in 1993, Canadian  Dr. Garson Romalis and Hugh Short were wounded by snipers.   Moreover, Horsley became cross the names of dead doctors on his site. According to Anti-Abortion Violence Defines Army of God, Horsley declared: My position is that people, who kill babies are responsible for the abominable act, and we should not be surprised if other people rise to fight against them. That is why we should legally prohibit abortion. Otherwise, murder and terrorism will grow up around us. Many people interpreted this  as  an open  challenge to  society and demanded to punish AOG and its participants, but authorities stated that freedom of speech can not be prohibited in the U.S. However, Stephanie Mueller, from the National Abortion Federation, declared that Horsley did not tell the full story on the site link to the attacks on doctors.  She said that one doctor was attacked in the summer of 2000, after the fact that information about him was published by Horsley.  We know other doctors who have received death threats after being caught in the files.  We think that the site is really cause violence against those who do abortions, as stated in Anti-Abortion Extremism: The Army of God. Psychological aspect In order to understand AOG behavior and motives I would like to concentrate on the analysis of AOG relation to such concepts like human life, abortion and its consequences. It should be noted that human embryos is human life form.  Consequently, in the eyes of an absolutist religion, abortion is evil, that has no different from murder.  As a fact, one of the most vociferous opponents of abortion is the Catholic Church.  When George W. Bush came to power, authorities began to fiercely protect human life as long as it is in its infancy (or terminally ill) state, not hesitating to ban medical research that could save the lives.  Embryos topic, it seems, has on many religious persons truly hypnotic effect.  Mother Teresa of Calcutta, accepting the Nobel Prize, said bluntly in her speech: The worst enemy of peace is abortion. Returning to the theme of war against abortion, I suggest you listen to the founder of the Randall Terry rescue operation, according to Understanding Th e Army Of God, he said following: When I or my supporters will come to force in this country, you will be better to disappear soon, because we will find, judge for trial and punish you.  Im not kidding.  I will do my best to condemn and punish them all. Randall Terry is referring to abortion doctors. His Christian feelings are evident and in subsequent statements:  I want to see you on the head faced a wave of intolerance, a wave of hatred.  Yes, hate its what you needà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã‚  Our goal is a Christian nation.  Our duty is recorded in the Bible, God told us to conquer this country. We do not want pluralism.  Our goal must be simple.  We need a Christian nation, founded on the law of God, and without but, according to Understanding The Army Of God. Many experts consider that such intentions create something like Christian fascist state, which is very typical for religious organization in the U.S. This is almost an exact copy of an Islamic fascist state, of which many dream on the other side of the globe.  Fortunately, Randall Terry did not come to power, yet.  But those who are watching the developments on the American political scene there is no reason to particularly enjoy. Supporters of ethics or utilitarianism are likely estimate the issue of abortion from a different perspective and try to estimate the amount of suffering.  The most important question if the embryo is suffering? Doctors state that if the abortion is performed before the formation of his nervous system, most likely no, even if the nervous system is already there, it certainly suffers from less than an adult cow in a slaughterhouse. Does a pregnant woman or her family suffer in case the abortion is denied?  It is quite possible, and in any case, gi ven the almost complete absence of the embryo nervous system, is not it should give preference to well-developed nervous system of the mother?  In my opinion, it should be. We live in a free country with developed civil society, our right of choice should be guaranteed. As a fact, the advocates of ethical implications have their own reasons to oppose abortion.  It is assumed, that embryo does not suffer, but a culture that allows interrupting a human life can lead us too far.  Where do we draw the line?  Where is the line that separates us from killing children?  In my opinion, this line is natural birth, and perhaps we can say that in an earlier, embryonic, developing a similar milestone is hard to find. These arguments are also possible to put forward as the arguments against euthanasia.   However, AOG and other opponents of abortion do not care about these arguments.  From their point of view everything is much easier.  Embryo is a baby, its destruction is the murder. That is it, end of discussion.  From such an absolutist position it is difficult to make far-reaching conclusions.  They require, despite the dizzying medical perspective, to stop research on embryonic stem cells, because, as a result, embryos stem cells die.  Illogicality of the last argument is obvious when you think about what is now widely used by IVF (in vitro fertilization), during which doctors stimulate the production of the female body more ovum for in vitro fertilization.  At the same time receive up to a dozen viable embryos, of which the uterus is implanted two or three.  It is expected that one or two will survive.  Thus, the destruction of embryos occurs at two stages of IVF, but the procedure for the society as a whole have no complaints.  For over 25 years, IVF is a st andard practice that brings happiness to childless couples, as described in Annihilating abortuaries is our purest form of worship. A certain category of religious believers can not see the moral difference between destroying a microscopic group of cells on the one hand and the murder of an adult doctor on the other.  According to Doctor Chaplain and the Army of God: In a terrible book of Marc Yurgensmayer Terror in the name of God there is printed a photograph of the Rev. Michael Bray with his friend, the Rev. Paul Hill, holding a banner with the slogan: Is it possible not to hinder the murder of innocent  babies?. They and their associates from the Army of God are committed to  set fire to abortion clinics and do not hide their desire to kill doctors. As a fact, July 29, 1994 at the entrance to the clinic of the city of Pensacola, Florida, Paul Hill killed with a revolver Dr. John Britton and his bodyguard James Barrett. After he surrendered to the police,  he stated that shot the doctor to stop the killing of innocents.   Before proceeding to a discussion of abortion I would like to consider Paul Hills case, as one of the typical example of AOG participants behavior. As it was mentioned above, Paul Hill, with the full support took the law into his own hands and killed the doctor.  Hill started to defend his action by making a distinction between killings, say, retired doctor to vengeance and murder of a medical practitioner to stop them produce regular babies killing. In turn, abortion supporters stated that, despite the apparent sincerity of Paul Hills belief, he should not forget that if everyone starts to punish and pardon according to personal beliefs, not adopted by the laws, society will slide into a monstrous chaos.  Is it not correct to change the law in a democratic manner?  Paul Hill replied: Well, the problem here is that sometimes we have no real, genuine law, the law sometimes is fabricated on the spot of the head, as in the case of so-called law on abortion rights, a judge imposed on its peopleà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦, according to Doctor Chaplain and the Army of God.  In my opinion Paul Hills relation to these questions very much like the position of living in Britain of Muslims, who openly declare that they are subject only to Islamic law, and not accepted in a democratic manner the laws of country of their residence.   In 2003, Paul Hill was executed for the murder of Dr. Britton and his bodyguard; he claimed before the execution that to save the unborn would have killed again. He was speaking to reporters: I believe that by punishing me, the state makes me a martyr. Authorized by law, the murder of Hill, it is reasonable, but it may provoke new attacks by providing an effect opposite to the expected.  Paul Hill on the way to the death chamber was smiling, saying: I expect reward in heavenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ I look for fame.  He urged others to follow in his steps, as stated in Doctor Chaplain and the Army of God.   I presume that very interesting was the fact, that one of the representative of certain abortion clinic named Paul Hill as a dangerous psychopath.  But people like Hill, do not consider themselves as dangerous psychopaths, they consider themselves as good, moral people who perform the covenants of God.  Frankly, I do not think that Paul Hill was psycho.  In my opinion, he was just a very religious man.  Without any doubts he was dangerous man, but not a psychopath.  To be more precise, misinterpretation of religion made him dangerous.  In accordance with AOG religious beliefs, Hill was right and moral by killing Dr. Britton. It should be noted that almost all vehement opponents of abortion are deeply religious.  Army of God activists do not see the moral difference between killing the embryo and killing a doctor, except that the embryo, by their definition, is the innocent baby. Proponents of ethical implications are able to evaluate the differences. In the early stages of embryo development in their ability to feel and even in structure and appearance, does not exceed the tadpole.  The doctor, on the contrary is formed, endowed with the consciousness of the individual with hopes, aspirations, dreams, fears, a wealth of knowledge, ability to complex emotions, most likely leaving behind inconsolable widow, orphan children, perhaps a loving elderly parents.   In my opinion, Paul Hill has caused a real, deep, prolonged suffering to human being that was able to feel and has a complex nervous system.  His victim, a doctor did not do this.  As a fact, embryos do not have the nervous system on early stage of development, and undoubtedly, are not affected. Moreover, even at a later stage embryos with nervous systems suffer not because they are human, but because they are living beings. In other words, there is no reason to believe that human embryos at any age suffer more than cows or sheep embryos of similar age.  And there are many reasons to argue that all embryos, including human, suffer much less than an adult cow or a sheep to the slaughter, and even more so slaughtered during the ritual killing of animals in some Muslims countries, when, according to religious requirements, they must be fully conscious  at the time of cutting the throat.   Of course, it is not easy to evaluate the suffering. You can argue about the details, but this does not change the main idea, which regards the differences between the position of opponents and supporters of the ethics implications of religious, absolutist moral philosophy. The first concerned whether the embryos suffer. The second concern, whether those are human beings.  Religious moralists argue when embryo becomes a person, a human being.  Despite this, abortion supporters, most likely, will put the question differently: it does not matter whether it is a person, more important questions, in what age the developing embryo is capable to feel pain, no matter what kind of animal it is. Conclusion To sum it up, I would like to say that Army of God is a terrorist organization within the U.S., which main purpose is in achieve a complete prohibition of abortion on the territory of the United States and also to punish medical  personnel  as well as  women  who  have had  abortions by different prison sentence and death penalty. Especially I would like to mention the fact that according to AOG, every doctor who made an abortion (kill the embryo) must be killed, because he deprived a human being of life. As a fact, AOG began its activity from 1982 and exist even today. From that moment AOG issue manual instructions how you can make a bomb or fire up abortion clinic. Also, there is AOG website, on which every person can enter the organization and help to their right case. Moreover, in its activity AOG is based on religion, namely Catholic Christianity and approve all violence by interpretation of the Bible. It can be said that the organization is responsible for two bombi ngs in 1996 in Atlanta, a series of murders and cases of kidnappings in relation to doctors and other medical staff of abortion clinics all over the country. As a fact, the advocates of ethical implications have their own reasons to oppose abortion.  It is assumed, that embryo does not suffer, but a culture that allows interrupting a human life can lead us too far. However, AOG and other opponents of abortion do not care about these arguments.  From their point of view everything is much easier.  Embryo is a baby, its destruction is the murder. That is it, end of discussion.  From such an absolutist position it is difficult to make far-reaching conclusions. In my opinion, this whole nightmare comes from the usual differences of perception.  There are people because of their religious beliefs considering abortion as murder, and ready to open fire, protecting embryos, which they prefer to call their babies.  On the other hand, there are people, no less sincere support abortion without any religious views, but with principles of morality.  They also see themselves as champions of the idea of providing medical care to the patients in need, who otherwise would have had to turn to unskilled underground healers.  Each side believes the other murderers or accomplices of the killers.  And each in his own way sincere. It is difficult to find a common ground in this situation. I think that first of all each side should show  greater understanding and  reduce  the level  of aggression  towards  the opponents. As a solution, I propose to consider the possibility to build abortion clinics in certain areas, similar to gambling th at allowed only in several areas. On the one hand, women will have an opportunity to make an abortion in safe conditions and doctors will no longer fear for their lives. On the other hand, abortion opponents will be satisfied with the fact that abortion is legal only in several areas in the country and every woman on her way to the clinic will have an opportunity to think if she really needs to take this step. I strongly believe that our society should take measures to solve this problem, and such organizations like Army of God with its violence will no longer have support of our citizens.

Free Catch-22 Essays: A War Comedy :: Catch-22

Catch-22 - A Comedy    The novel, Catch-22, is a comedy about soldiers during World War II. However, this comic scenes and phrases are quite tragic when they are thought about, as most things related to war are, which makes this comedy completely absurd. The best way to represent this idea is through the characters in the book, specifically, Yossarian, Huple, and Nately’s whore’s kid sister and the events that occur with their thoughts and their actions. Clearly, the main character and one whose life is chiefly described, is Yossarian. Yossarian has a slightly sick sense of humor and way of looking at things. In the first chapter, Heller tells us that letters sent by the soldiers had to be reviewed in order to prevent any secret information going out to the public, or, even worse, to the enemy. Yossarian, from lack of anything better to do, censors all the letters. Sometimes he crosses out everything but a, an and the, sometimes adjectives, whatever he feels like that day. For his final gag h e signs these letters as Washington Irving to totally confuse the readers of these letters. This is funny, however it is ultimately tragic. These are the letters that every wife, mother and daughter runs to the mailbox for in order to see that their husbands, fathers and sons are all right. This is a letter that could say: â€Å"Honey, I’m coming home†, or â€Å"I love you. When I come home I want to marry you.† These letters could change the whole lifestyle of so many people and Yossarian alone is tampering with them. The absurdity of that is immense. A gag of slightly higher consequence occurred in Chapter 12, when Yossarian decided to move the bomb line over Bologna. What I believe is the most ridiculous in the whole process was his reason for doing it. Everyone did not want to go on this mission to capture Bologna. They prayed the rain would never go away, or that the bomb line would mysteriously move, anything just mot to go on this mission. Clevinger, in d isbelief at the stupidity of these men, tells Yossarian: â€Å"They really believe that we wouldn’t have to fly that mission tomorrow if someone would only tiptoe up to the map in the middle of the night and move the bomb line over Bologna. Can you imagine?† So Yossarian figures â€Å"Why not?

Electronic Voting and What Should be Done Essay -- essays research pap

There’s been a lot of talk about this new computer system that casts election votes. Ideally, using electronic equipment has many advantages but there are disadvantages hiding in the cave ready to attack. We’ve all seen electronic equipment often work as expected but more importantly, it’s not uncommon for electronic equipment to fail and when this sort of concept is applied to voting, miscounting is simply unacceptable. I think the best way to solve this type problem is to try to make the voting machines work without fail but to never assume it won’t fail. As we’ve seen from the arrogance of the engineers of the Titanic or from the 2004 New York Yankees, just because it looks and sounds workable, we should never assume these machines will do what it should. By this, I don’t mean the system should fail completely but we should design the system to constantly self-check itself to insure no errors have been made. In addition, the system should friendly so that at least at the user point-of-view, there should not be problems with confusion or misinterpretation. Overall, making an e-voting system work requires the engineer to consider the logical, defensive (security against hacking) and personal standpoint of design and do so in a sensitive, introspective manner. First and foremost, the system should be ethical. What this means is the system should be created to an acceptable and mainstream protocol. Ethics means different things to different people but we can’t satisfy all of these morals that people have all on one system since some might contradict one another so we need to decide on what the majority would find acceptable. Right off the bat, it’s important to prevent hacker attacks because people want a fair election and not a tailored one. We go to vote to voice our opinion and not that of someone else. Secondly, it’s important to let the public know what these voting machines do and how they’re secured, letting the public know that the e-voting companies care about their security and that these voting machines are engineered with exhaustive research on how to keep it secure. Lastly, the user interface, the user interface should be unbiased (it shouldn’t look like the one candidate is better than the ot her). Another thing about the user interface is that it should be easy to understand as to not intimidate voters. I think there also should be the option t... ...oting systems should use tickets, or signatures that identify each voter uniquely and each vote should be logged with user token in memory so that the voter can’t vote twice. Although, any security measure isn’t entirely secure from clever hackers, keeping security very strict would prevent many attempts. Once you’ve voted from an e-voting machine and somehow passed all the security that was involved I think it would be appropriate to give the user a receipt showing exactly what was stored in memory because like I said early, we should never assume everything will work and if the voter can verify by eye what was stored then this would allow corrections if needed. In addition this type of system could be used for hand recounts or to check user errors which would probably be 90% of all the complaints given that the programming was planned properly. Yes, it may be possible for deceiving information to be printed out, making the vote look correct but if all the aforementioned methods of checking, security, and logging and provided that everything was executed well, an electronic problem to this point should be very rare. Comparatively, this should be no more secure than paper ballots.

Marry sherry

Critical Response In Mary Sherrys essay In Praise of the F Word she describes how she feels that students are being cheated by schools, not learning material and being passed on. She calls the diplomas that some kids get meaningless and also goes as far to say that these graduates are semiliterate. Sherrys solution to the problem as she sees it is to use flunking students as a general policy, or at least threatening to flunk them to motivate them.She feels that the students who make it to educational- repair shops or adult-literacy programs are fortunate. It is here in these educational repair shops hat Sherry states these students discover that they have been cheated by the educational system. I do not think that Sherry is fair in making these statements. She did not present enough evidence to me to get me to buy into her arguments. There are several concerns with this essay that make her views unacceptable. My first problem with this Essay is that Sherry teaches an adult-literacy p rogram.From that viewpoint she does have some firsthand knowledge about the population of people in need of basic grammar and writing skills, but it also makes her bias. She states that Tens of Thousands of eighteen-year-olds will graduate this year and be handed meaningless diplomas. † This statement raises many questions for me and Sherry was not effective in convincing me of her views expressed. I feel like this statement was made to make her point seem more reasonable. I would like to know what percentage overall is that number.I do not feel like she took into consideration that many of these students may have learning and or developmental disabilities. How many of these students needed extra help and the schools in their district lacked the resources to appropriately help them? Were these tens of thousands of students really cheated or did the teachers and schools do the best they could to teach these students with the resources they had. Teachers are already overworked a nd underpaid and now Sherry is basically saying they are cheats.If the students were cheated that is saying that the teachers are cheaters. The definition of cheater is to defraud, swindle, deceive, influence by fraud, to elude and to deprive something expected. This to me is very harsh and shines a bad light on teachers who dedicate their lives to teaching. I found that her one experience with her son who was hreatened by a teacher to be flunked does not prove that flunking is a positive tool. Yes it worked for him, his mother was an English teacher. How many of the other tens of thousands that Sherry speaks of had this same advantage?I do agree with Sherrys viewpoint that teachers have to get students attention in order for them to concentrate. In that one circumstance, with her son, threatening to flunk him worked. In that case I see that her son was cheating himself, not the teacher or the educational system being the cheater. Sherry does admit that this one example, her son, do es not make the case. Once again I am left feeling like there is not enough evidence presented to get me to Jump on the bandwagon and agree that the teachers of these tens of thousands of students are† cheats†.Sherry goes on to speak about passing students who have not mastered work. â€Å"Passing students who nave not mastered the work cheats them and the employers who expect graduates to have basic skills. We excuse this dishonest behavior by saying kids can't learn if they come from terrible environments. † So now from Sherrys viewpoint the overworked, underpaid teachers are not only cheating these students, they are cheating mployers that hire them. This is very unreasonable. Sherrys views might be more acceptable to me if she held the student more accountable.A great teacher should not be labeled a â€Å"cheat† because they have limited resources or students with very low academic standards for themselves. Flunking as a regular policy may work in some cases but as a fix all for all students, I disagree. It worked in the case of her son and kudos to them. Many students don't have Published English teachers to help and guide them. Not all students have support of their parents and their opportunity to succeed or fail rests purely on their shoulders.

Bar and Bat Mitzvahs

Rites of passage are a common element of various populations. These rites indicate a change in the lives of those involved. This change usually includes more responsibilities of one kind or another and the rite takes the participant into that next phase of life. One such rite for those of the Jewish faith is the passage into adulthood in a religious, and to an extent, a social sense. The b’nai mitzvah, bar mitzvah for boys and bat mitzvah for girls, are the ceremonies established for this purpose.The ceremony takes place when a boy turns thirteen, or a girl twelve or thirteen, and afterwards, the child is then considered an adult within the religion, expected to take on the responsibilities thereof so that they may help to teach others the ways of the Jewish faith. These responsibilities include praying, observance of the Sabbath, fasting when it is required, and other such things.While such things were considered mainly the responsibilities of those who were becoming adult ma les, it has evolved over the centuries to include females to one extent or the other as well, although Orthodox churches still tend to exclude women from performing many of the tasks that have traditionally been the roles of the male. The word â€Å"mitzvah† is defined as a commandment, while â€Å"bar† and â€Å"bat,† respectively, mean son and daughter.These terms indicate that those going through the ritual are now at a point where they can fulfill the commandments, becoming responsible members of the faith and be welcomed into the adult population. From that point on, the child is considered an adult â€Å"for purposes of participating in synagogue ritual† (Fox and Zimbler 18-19). According to Cohen and Weinrott, â€Å"The goal of the bar and bat mitzvah is to enter the larger community, while at the same time recognizing one’s own unique individual spiritual and social circumstances† (5). Bar and Bat Mitzvahs Page 2 of 9The first indica tion of the practice of the bar mitzvah seems to be in the Talmud several centuries ago during the Second Temple, when it is recorded that the sages would â€Å"bless a child who had reached the age of thirteen and who had fasted on Yom Kippur† (Lewit and Epstein 5). At that time there was no ceremony involved, only the declaring of the boy as bar mitzvah on his thirteenth birthday. He was considered an adult then, expected to follow the laws and take responsibility for himself instead of being considered the responsibility of his father.It was in the thirteenth or fourteenth century that this transition became formalized in such a way that resembles the ritual practiced today. The ceremony then led into a meal to celebrate the boy’s transition, and by 1595, this feast became â€Å"so sumptuous that a communal tax was placed on the celebration to stop such excesses† (Cohen and Weinrott 11). The bat mitzvah was not such an illustrious occasion as early as the bar mitzvah. The Talmud records that, around the second or third century, girls came of age at twelve to fulfill the commandments.Women were not obligated like men to engage in most religious exercises, their responsibilities instead revolving around home and family. While this age was considered important, it was not until the seventeenth century that it was considered important to celebrate the occasion. France and Italy celebrated with a ceremony in the middle of the nineteenth century at the latest, but it was not until 1922 that girls were accorded the same ceremony as boys with their bat mitzvah, when Mordecai Kaplan of the Society for the Advancement of Judaism, who founded Reconstructive Judaism, held the ceremony for his daughter.In some congregations, a girl becomes bat mitzvah at twelve, while in others the ceremony is performed at thirteen, Bar and Bat Mitzvahs Page 3 of 9 like it is for boys. Different congregations of Judaism treat the coming of age of boys and girls in d ifferent ways. While some give equal credence to the two genders during this time in belief that both should be on equal footing, there are others who believe that the religious obligations of boys and girls are different and therefore they should follow different rules.This leads to even more differences in the observance of this special time for girls than it does before, as some congregations have the identical ceremony for both genders while others give the girls less religious responsibility during the occasion. It is not that they consider the duties of a female to be less important, only separate and distinct from those expected from males. The celebration of these ceremonies took on different aspects in different countries starting late in the Middle Ages.The differences included such things as on which days the ceremony took place and how much of the service was conducted by the boy himself. The Marranos in Spain and Portugal were forced to practice their religion in secret , and the day of the bat mitzvah was when a boy was introduced to the religion. This secrecy helped to preserve the religion for more than 300 years in those countries. The traditional day for the bar or bat mitzvah to take place is on Saturday, which is known as Shabbat, or Sabbath.Bat mitzvahs are often held on Fridays, different congregations either giving the choice as to whether to hold it on Shabbat or requiring that it be done on Friday night. It is also possible for either ceremony to be held on Mondays or Thursdays, which were days in the days of the Temple when the Torah was read. Bar and Bat Mitzvahs Page 4 of 9 While some may choose to enhance the event by combining it to some extent with existing Jewish holidays, there are certain days which are usually avoided.The traditions of these holidays can help to make the day even more special and memorable. However, there are certain days that involve the remembrance of tragic times for the Jewish people, and these days, such as Yom Ha-Shoah, when the lives of those lost in the Holocaust are remembered, are considered inappropriate for the occasion due to the solemnity and focus on those who have been lost. Many children who are approaching their time of bar or bat mitzvah take part in a course of study to help prepare them for the occasion.Children are often taught in groups, and during this time they learn the blessings which are said at the ceremony as well as the basic skills that are needed for the synagogue, which include â€Å"the use of the tallit, tefillin; the blowing of a shofar; how to lift and dress the Torah, and other Jewish practices† (Lewit and Epstein 35). In addition to this training of the children in groups comes more individualized training with the cantor. Each child will usually spend four to six months training in this way.Other tutors may be utilized as well, giving the children a well-rounded and intensive study of what is to come and what is expected of them. Study aids such as the Tikkun are also helpful for this purpose. The Tikkun is a book that is used to help practice reading the Torah, giving help not only with pronunciation, but also with melody, which is a large part of the ceremonies in many congregations. The duties of the bar or bat mitzvah vary from congregation to congregation. At the simplest, it is simply the responsibility of the newly proclaimed adult to recite a blessing at the Torah.This is the most sacred of books in the Jewish faith, and is Bar and Bat Mitzvahs Page 5 of 9 handwritten on a scroll made of parchment. It is considered an honor to recite a blessing at the Torah, and is the most important part of the bar or bat mitzvah. Depending upon the congregation, he or she will read part or all of the passage, and then the Torah is taken around the synagogue before being returned to its place in the ark which is either at the front or the center of every synagogue.Another common duty of the bar or bat mitzvah is to read the H aftarah, which is a reading from the Prophets. It, as the Torah, has its own melodies that are usually followed and which take much practice to get right. In some Reform congregations it and the Torah are merely recited. Some congregations can require even more responsibility from the bar or bat mitzvah. He or she can be expected not just to recite the entire Torah portion of the service, but also to lead some of the service or to take over with certain prayers.A speech can also be required, and the father usually recites a blessing as well, officially relinquishing responsibility for the child who has now become an adult. Some congregations also require the child to spend time writing what is known as a dvar Torah for the ceremony. This is a commentary on a portion or portions of the Torah that the child is expected to study and interpret in his or her own way. He or she usually relates it somehow to his or her life and the significance of the Jewish faith to the individual writing it. The length of the document does not matter so long as it expresses something meaningful.In addition to the duties expected from the bar or bat mitzvah, others can play a significant role in the ceremony. The number of these can vary in different congregations, but it is considered an honor to the participants who perform those duties. Those who Bar and Bat Mitzvahs Page 6 of 9 take part in this are usually close to the child, and it is a duty that those asked to participate take very seriously. However, Orthodox churches tend to disallow the participation of women in most, if not all, of these. The most important role for one of these honorees is that of the aliyah.This is when one is allowed to go to the pulpit and both before and after one section is read from the Torah, to recite a blessing. The number of people who can be an aliyah can be as high as eight, with the last one being that of the child, who is to the final blessing, which is known as the Maftir. This demonstrate s the first real responsibility that a child is accorded in the congregation to illustrate his or her adult status. Other honors can include family members who are allowed to read a section of the Torah as well as tasks that can be taken on in some cases by younger children.There are also tasks that can be taken on by those who are not allowed to participate in the Torah service. They can help to hand things out, serve as ushers, or even decorate the synagogue for the ceremony and bake refreshments. There is also a tradition for many of those in the congregation to throw nuts and candies at the newly proclaimed adult after the ceremony, and passing out such things is a job often taken on by younger family members. After the service, many Jewish families throw a celebration.This has been a big change from earlier days, when there was no pomp but simply a declaration of the child becoming an adult. But these celebrations have become an important part of some congregations, particularl y those of American Jews. Many more traditional Jews frown upon the seeming need of many families to try and outdo each other in the extravagance of this celebration. Bar and Bat Mitzvahs Page 7 of 9 One of the traditions that is often followed at Jewish celebrations, including the b’nai mitzvah, is called the Kiddush.This is a prayer over wine that is defined as sanctification. Red wine is the most commonly used for this purpose and it is decided by the family who will chant the Kiddush. This can be one or more people, depending on their preference. The only one who is required to drink from the goblet of wine is the chanter of the blessing, but some prefer to pass it around so that all may have a taste, or with larger groups, cups may be provided for all. Another blessing that is given is the Motzi, which is the blessing over bread.Bread is a very important part of the Jewish meal, and a braided bread known as challah is used for such a purpose as important ceremonies. They are symbolic, and â€Å"represent not just the staff of life, but unity and peace as well† (Cohen and Weinrott 151). The bread is blessed after the wine, giving thanks for the feast that is to be shared. During the Kiddush, the challah is covered with a cloth, some traditions stating that this is to protect the bread from being embarrassed because the wine is blessed first.After the blessing of the bread, there is no need for blessings to be said over any of the following courses. It is usually tradition for a grandparent, or eldest member of the family, to say the blessing over the bread as well as cut it after the blessing. It may then be sliced and then passed around to all present, although some prefer to tear the bread with hands instead of cutting it with a knife. It is then usually salted before being eaten, and then the rest of the meal follows. A more recent tradition among the American Jews is that of the candle lighting ceremony.Thirteen or fourteen people are com monly chosen to light candles that are often placed on a cake, and sometimes make a blessing over the candles for the child. A Bar and Bat Mitzvahs Page 8 of 9 cake is not always used, however, with some people preferring a candelabra or other setting. When the candles are lit is also optional, some preferring it before the meal while others wait until after. Music is often used to announce the tradition, and special words are often said by those lighting them and occasionally by the child as well.During the celebration is also a time when many choose to make toasts to the child and his or her future and to wish that child well. The parents might choose to give speeches, and usually anyone is invited to say something if they wish, although brevity is often appreciated. The ceremony of Havdalah, which means separation, is often incorporated into Saturday night celebrations, and regarding bar and bat mitzvahs, â€Å"it is a special reminder of the bittersweet separation of youth and adulthood† (Cohen and Weinrott 159).After the celebratory meal, it is a tradition to say the Birkat Ha-Mazon, which means â€Å"grace after the meal. † Four prayers make this up, and then there are also psalms and blessing said as well. There are many choices as to who can lead this service, from the rabbi to the bar or bat mitzvah. However, there are also those who prefer less formal graces, and they might even include a poem or other prayers. The conclusion of this grace is a prayer for peace. Music has always been a large part of the Jewish culture; therefore it is often included as an important part of the celebration.The offerings of this can range anywhere from the simple to the more elaborate, depending upon the tastes of those involved. It is preferable to involve the guests with this, and that can be done in a variety of ways, from singing to dancing, which usually includes the hora. Bar and Bat Mitzvahs Page 9 of 9 The hora is a traditional dance used during J ewish celebrations. It was developed early in the twentieth century in Israel, and is a group dance, where the dancers are linked to each other in a circle, arms linked and hands on the shoulders of those next to them.This represents the closeness of the community and the equality of value of all of the people involved†¦ After the hora often comes the chair dance, in which the child sits in a chair and then that chair is lifted above their shoulders by those present. They are then danced that way, and often parents and other family members are allowed to share in the feelings of exultation by having their own turn in the chair. This dance emphasizes not only the individual who is put in the spotlight, but the community around that person who supports the chair and the individual during that time.The sense of community is very important to those of the Jewish faith, and this dance is a demonstration of this. Ceremony is a very crucial part of Judaism. This can be seen in many of their holidays and ceremonies, and the importance of the b’nai mitzvah can be considered to be the fact that it is this that pulls yet another into the community of Jewish adults. The new adult is allowed then to participate in ways that only adults can, and this strengthens the religion as a whole, passing the traditions and beliefs on to another generation so that it may again be passed on to that person’s children.Perhaps the fact that the Jewish people have been through much pain and difficulty throughout their history has helped to make these ceremonies even more important than they once were, transitioning them from a simple announcement of adulthood and breaking off of responsibility by the father to the elaborate celebrations that many have today. Bibliography Cohen, Jayne and Lori Weinrott. 2004. The Ultimate Bar/Bat Mitzvah Celebration Book. New York: Clarkson Potter/Publishers. Fox, Karen L. and Phylliz Zimbler Miller.1992. Seasons for Celebratoin: A Contem porary Guide to the Joys, Practices, and Traditions of the Jewish Holidays. New York: The Putnam Publishing Group. Himelstein, Dr. Shmuel. 1990. The Jewish Prayer: Questions and Answers on Jewish Faith and Cuture. New York: Facts on File, Inc. Lewit, Jane and Ellen Epstein. 1996. The Bar/Bat Mitzvah Planbook. Lanham, MD: Scarborough House. Oppenheimer, Mark. 2005. Thirteen and a Day: The Bar and Bat Mitzvah Across America. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux.

Rhetorical Analysis Essay

Thesis: Technology, such as texting, while driving is unsafe and can be a hazard to teen drivers and others. In the Knox News opinion column, there was an article found titled â€Å"Twits texting, tweeting behind the wheel.† The author of this article, Ina Hughs, is arguing that texting, MP3 players, and other electronic devices are unsafe to use when behind the wheel. She is writing to inform teenagers and other drivers about the dangers of driving while texting. Even though Hughes makes some excellent points in her column, she may not be the most qualified person to be writing about the dangers of texting and how tempting it may be. Hughes indeed has a cell phone, but she had the texting enabled on her phone so she does not text with it. The only information that she gets that makes her qualified to write this article would be the fact that her eleven-year-old grandson just got a cell phone. Even with this information, it still does not qualify her since her grandson cannot drive. She did though get facts from reliable magazines and researchers to back her up. Hughs’ format of her article shows a lot about whom she is and her qualifications. Just about every paragraph she either has some sort of statistical evidence or an example of why texting and driving is bad. She does not have any real connection to the audience she is trying to address. The author uses logos a lot in this text to support her many claims as to driving while texting. One thing she mentions is, â€Å"according to the New York Times, one in five drivers admits to texting while driving on a somewhat regular basis, and they say they won’t stop because they are ‘literally addicted.’† This claim reinforces her purpose of texting while driving by giving statistical evidence of why it is so dangerous. So many people do it. â€Å"According to research, every time you get a text, tweet, instant message, or call, ‘your brain squirts out a little dopamine- the pleasure chemical- and left to our own devices, we spin out of control.

The Influence of OBAOR Strategy in the GCC Countries Thesis Proposal

The Influence of OBAOR Strategy in the GCC Countries - Thesis Proposal Example This essay analyzes that UAE is considered as one of the advancing economies globally in a list that has India and China. While UAE enjoys close ties with nations such as the EU and the U.S. the nation’s still maintain close trade ties with Iran and other nations in the Middle East. It is known that the Western nations have placed trade sanctions on some nations that are considered to have violated human rights as well as being led by authoritarian administrations. It is from this context that it remains to be seen how the U.S. and the EU will precede in terms of the trade relations with UAE and other nations in the Gulf Region. The decision by GCC nations to form a regional economic block and by extension a free trade area is seen as one of the greatest step by the nations in the region. It is also significant Middle East states to take control of international trade, not just in the region but other regions such as Europe and Southern parts of the world. However, the strateg ies put in place can be said to be working as trade activities appear to be on the rise in the said regions. It is often assumed that the formation of trading blocs is aimed at creating some form of monopoly, particularly when the nations involved have some common characteristics. GCC nations are primarily oil producing countries. It can, therefore, be argued that the major motivation of the GCC was to try and monopolize oil prices and by extension the oil industry. Despite the numerous challenges, the general economic prospects in this region remain positive.