Can Guns Protect Your Life Essays - , Term Papers

Can Guns Protect Your Life? Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness. These are the most commonly recited of out fundamental, natural rights. It seems fitting that the right to life would be mentioned first. Without the right to remain alive, to be safe from attack, to defend oneself against attack, the other rights become meaning less. It is impossible to enjoy liberty, the pursuit of happiness, or anything else if one is not alive, or if one's life is threatened. As a society, we have taken steps to try to protect this most basic, and most precious right. Our Constitution including the Bill of Rights, was intended in part to protect the lives of U.S. citizens against the use of government power. Additionally, state and federal laws have enacted to punish individuals who take others lives without justification. Together these laws, along with the threat of capture and punishment for breaking them, are intended to prevent people from wrongly taking others lives. Despite these efforts, murder, manslaughter and assault will still occur. Our system of law enforcement, and punishment serves to prevent crimes, not to eliminate it entirely. When these efforts fail, and one is under criminal attack, there is only one alternative left: to preserve one's right to live. If we don't protect ourselves we are leaving our lives in th hands of others for protection. To have the ability to carry a handgun we will be protecting the one thing we have Life. While we want to protect ourselves from crimes such as robberies, rape and murders, we may not always depend on the law to be there for us. While we should trust the government to protect us, everyday we take responsibility to protect ourselves. Without delay, every state in the nation should modify its handgun carry laws so that, in a world where the government fails to protect victims, the victims can choose to legally carry their own means of self-protection. In an article to enhance gun safety Michael McNeil states that, ?The weight of evidence, suggests that gun bans and draconian restrictions will not reduce criminals' access to guns, but will instead disproportionately disarm good citizens who cannot be effectively protected by the police.?(McNeil pp1 of 1) He has a strong opinion on the fact that gun control will do more harm then good. I think it is important to remember that the purchasing of a gun legally is much harder to get then an illegal weapon. He makes a good point by saying More lives are protected by guns than taken by guns?, I agree with him because even though there are crimes committed and accidents with concealed weapons do occur, without the use of guns where do we put our lives? We can no longer protect ourselves with the trust of government actions, its sort of like taking the law into our own hands. Since the right to life implies a right to the means to protect that life, the individual's right to his own life necessarily implies a right to keep and bear arms suitable for self-defense. In this place and time, that means a handgun, small enough to be carried at almost all times. A

Sin in Scarlet Letter essays

Sin in Scarlet Letter essays Hawthorne, the author of The Scarlet Letter, uses sin in his novel as the main theme. Each of the main characters; Hester Pryne, Roger Chillingworth, and Arthur Dimmesdale, have sinned in the novel. Hesters sin was committing adultery, Dimmesdales sin was that he covered up the fact that he and Hester had an affair and Chillingworths sin was marrying a younger woman which then turns into greater sins. Hester Pryne, the lead female character in this novel, is a strong and loveable woman. Due to Hesters sin, adultery, she has to wear a scarlet A on her chest. Hester does not cover up her sin in the novel, she openly appreciates the letter because she knows that her sin was not done in order to hurt others, but because of her love for Dimmesdale. She wore the letter proudly and it was elaborately designed. Hesters sin was not the worst committed among the other characters in the novel, it is the basis for the novel yet she has recompense for her sin. Hesters character grows stronger throughout the novel because of her sin; unlike Dimmesdale and Chillingworth whose sins cause the downfall of their characters. In The Scarlet Letter Dimmesdale is weak and portrayed as a cowardly character. He is also a selfish character because while Hester is up on the scaffold confessing her adultery, Dimmesdale stands and does not confess himself. He does this in order to save himself, although his sin led to the downfall of his character. Dimmesdale is so caught up in his own guilt that he does not realize that he is hurting himself over it and making himself sick because he will not confess. Although he does try to plead with Hester while she is on the scaffold and he asks her to speak out the name of thy fellow-sinner and fellow-sufferer! it does not work and Dimmesdale still has the guilt cast over him. This affects his life greatly, his sermons have become tor ...

Produce a critical analysis of the completed video that involves Essay

Produce a critical analysis of the completed video that involves theorising the possible practices, i.e., setting the practice i - Essay Example The film accomplishes its goal in creating an unexpected ending, but some of the work in the beginning could better frame the intentions for the reactions of the viewer. Blindside is a film that provides a classic point of view with a cleanly performed twist at the end. The film genre that Blindside is most similar to is that of the film noir, although just as film noir does, it slips effortlessly into the many aspects of the thriller. One of the aspects of film noir is in the crisis of masculinity that is defined through alienation and despair (Silver, 5). The two male characters in Blindside create two sides of the criminal aspects of masculine crisis and alienation and despair. As the viewer first watches the film, the alienation and despair of seeking a criminal that commits horrific and bloody crimes is clear in the way in which the first character, named Michael, is framed as he works with seriousness and intensity at his desk, while the frailty of life and the vulnerability of the human existence is exampled in the way in which Neeson, the second character, is at the side of the road, shivering in the wind as he waits for Michael to appear at the crime scene. One of the most obvious ways in which the filmmakers recreate an example of the genre of film noir is through filming most of the short in black and white. However, the film does diverge from this type of film when scenes from the murder are revealed in short bursts of cinematic cuts. However, a film needs to exhibit more qualities other than the simple quality of being black and white in order to be a type of film noir. The film must build suspense and must have an essential number of basic characteristics in the building of its storyline. Silver frames these themes which are embodied in characters as follows: Alienated characters Existentialism Obsessed characters Freudianism Proletarian characters Marxism Femme fatales Feminism All of the above Structuralism While this short film does not ha ve the space in which to reflect all of these concepts, the two main characters have a duality that both reflects alienated and obsessed characters, thus providing for existentialist aspects and Freudian aspects of characterization. In addition, they appear to have the working class aspect of their character, reflected through the subterfuge which fools the audience into believing they are police, as well as through the type of clothes they wear, the cars they drive, and their working class nature as they move through their scenes. The primary aspect of this structure that is missing is the femme fatale, the woman who represents betrayal and masculine femininity. In the case of Blindside, the female character is purely the victim. She represents the impending release of the masculine build up of crisis, the According to Gates, the next evolution from film noir was to create the serial killer which moved away from the femme fatale and the victim-hero towards the relationship of the m ale-male connectivity of the investigator and the killer. The noir film was replaced with films that denied the masculine crisis through a â€Å"masquerade of masculinity† (123). In Blindside, the two male leads reflect the potential variations of the investigator, whether the victim-hero or the overtly masculine through displays of machismo, until they reveal themselves for the

Alzheimer's Disease Patient and Social Theory Essay

Alzheimer's Disease Patient and Social Theory - Essay Example The key points of this analysis are the medical background and history of the patient, the psychological and sociological factors affecting her and her health, and finally how the patient and those psychological and sociological factors fit into a larger theoretical and policy framework. About the Patient In the interests of maintaining confidentiality and respecting patient privacy, I will be referring to this patient as Mrs. X. Due to her rapidly deteriorating mental and physical condition, Mrs. X's residential care home was no longer capable of providing the nursing services she required, and she was subsequently transferred into the mental health ward. Mrs. X has vascular dementia or Alzheimer's disease and has been declared legally incompetent to make her own medical decisions. In addition, she is prone to mild absence seizures, causing disorientation and occasional falls, though they do not induce unconsciousness. She is receiving phenytoin to treat the seizures. Mrs. X's behavioural issues have progressively worsened to the point that she requires full care and constant monitoring. She will wander the halls of the ward at night screaming. Her husband believes that many of her mental issues are related to her lack of sleep, which does make her agitated and irritable during the day. She has difficulty communicating her needs, as she is completely non-verbal. This factor alone is greatly complicating her nursing care. Other complicating factors in Mrs. X's care are her dislike for the staff to attempt personal hygiene or care needs, and her refusal to comply with treatment regimens. For example, she was found to be refusing her medication by hiding pills in her mouth, and had to be switched to liquid suspensions. Psychological and Sociological Factors It is difficult to assess Mrs. X's psychological condition exactly, due to her dementia and non-verbal state; however, it is safe to say that she is clearly unhappy with the current situation. Th is is a concern, as a patient's psychological state is often directly related to their ability to heal when hurt or to keep themselves healthy in the first place (Gross, 2007). Even on the first layer of the Whitehead-Dahlgren model of psychological influences, her physical state of being, most effects on Mrs. X are strongly negative (Marks & Evans, 2005). She often seems unaware of her surroundings, becoming lost within the building, which is a traumatising event for her. This most often occurs at night when she wanders. Her sleeplessness is due to severe insomnia, a condition that further damages her poor psychological state. She is helpless to do anything for herself, unable even to eat, drink, or use the toilet without help. Even in her mentally compromised state, this level of dependence on others causes her a significant amount of distress. This is evidenced by her dislike mentioned earlier for staff members trying to attend to her personal care. She is in pain due to arthriti s and frequent constipation, which also negatively impacts her psychological well-being. On the second layer and third layers, her lifestyle factors and social networks, the situation is equally as poor (Marks & Evans, 2005). She upsets the other patients by screaming and yelling, with the result that she has very little positive social contact with them. She

Duke Energy Corporation Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Duke Energy Corporation - Research Paper Example Wylie who was keen on extending his investment to include the general construction of some additional hydroelectric power plants approached and convinced James Buchanan Duke to buy a stake in the newly founded Southern Power Company that had been founded in 1905. Duke formed the Wateree Power in 1917 that helped serve as a holding company for a number of different utilities that were owned or had been founded by Duke, his associates and his family. The name of this company was eventually changed to Duke Power in 1924 and later on in the year 1927, most of the subsidiaries that were previously under the holding company were eventually merged into Duke Power (Scoggins and York County Regional Chamber of Commerce 78). The Growth of Duke Energy Currently, Duke Energy is seen to be operating in various regions across the United States principally through a number of some of its indirect and direct wholly owned subsidiaries. These are seen to include, Duke Energy Carolinas, Duke Energy Ind iana, Inc., Florida Power corporation d/b/a Progress Energy Florida, Inc., Duke Energy Ohio, Inc. (Duke Energy Ohio). The company is also seen to have operations in Latin America via its Duke Energy International, LLC (DEI). Over the years, the company’s segments have grown to include Commercial Power and international Energy and Franchised Electric and Gas (USFE&G). Duke energy has been able to make a number of recent acquisitions such as the July 2012 merger with the Progressive Energy Inc. and as well as its acquisition of the Chilean Campanario Power plant. One of the company’s subsidiaries was able to acquire Iberoamericana de Energia Ibener S.A. (Ibener) which was essentially operating as a subsidiary of the CGE Group. A more recent acquisition of Duke Energy is its June 2013 undisclosed minority stake acquisition of Clean Power Finance Inc. Duke Energy is seen to have a relatively large number of various investments that are generally seen to be categorized as o ther investments. These investments include; its wholly owned, Captive Insurance subsidiary, its Bison insurance Company Limited (Bison), a 50% Interest in DukeNet Communications, contributions to the Duke Energy Foundation, a 60% interest in the Duke Energy Trading and marketing, LLC (DukeNet) and a variety of other related telecommunications businesses (Reuters. Nd). Duke Energy’s U.S Franchised Electric and Gas Segment (U.S.FE&G) This segment of Duke Energy is found to be responsible for the generation, distribution, transmission and eventual sale of electricity in the regions covering northern South Carolina, North Carolina, west central Florida, northern Kentucky and southern, central and north Indiana. USFE&G is also seen to be involved in the transportation and sale of natural gas in the areas around northern Kentucky and southwestern Ohio. In order to effectively conduct its operations USFE&G is seen to primarily operate through Progress Energy Carolinas, Duke Energy Ohio, duke Energy Carolinas, Progress Energy Florida and Duke Energy Indiana. Of note however is that Duke Energy Indiana and Duke Energy Ohio that engage in distribution and transmission operations are collectively referred to as Duke Energy Midwest. The service area covered by USFE&G is found to cover an approximated area of about 10, 000 square miles. USFE&G is seen to be

Conventional Wisdom Society

Conventional Wisdom Society Introduction The term conventional wisdom is one that has raised a flurry of social indecisions in the past and the present. John Kenneth Galbraith coined it the year 1958. It refers to the belief that is now being propagated amongst the society until it is now believed to be true by the society or around certain domains. This term refers to beliefs, rumors that have for a long time been propagated around the society. This term is referred to as outdated because the issues being raised are not validated by any method be it scientific, mathematical or any other way that may prove that they are true or are of any significance to society as a whole. This is true until now because as we can see it today, reports that are being flouted it the public domain about certain individuals or certain issues that affect the society stay on so long that that people tend to believe more in the rumors than concentrate on the issues that affect the society. Therefore it means that the rumors can change as time goe s by depending on the keepers of the outdated information. However, because of the impact conventional wisdom has had on the society at large, and now that it has found its way in to the academic and professional fields, it is fare that it is pinned in the annals of history as a topic that can be used to accredit things that have taken place in the past (around 1838) and be able to make appropriate studies today. This term might be true or not true, but regardless of the real meaning of the story, one may be mesmerized by the kind of reception that the information is given by the society. The big question that begs is, â€Å"how does conventional wisdom make its way in our society?† The conventional wisdoms are deposed, phased out by new ideas, and the new conventional wisdom is treated in the same breadth in place of the preceding one, there may yet be some remaining connection to the previous system. Impact of conventional theory in the society Conventional theory has instigated high controversies especially in professions and academic circlers. It is a great barrier to formation of new theories and hypotheses. This is because it provides a view that is outdated and yet society seems to have embraced it. However in other circles like the religious and social circles, it acts as a pillar that is leaned on to enhance interactions between persons that share similar beliefs and values. Debate is still high on whether to embrace the concept of conventional wisdom amongst us as a people. Reasons why conventional wisdom still exists People have heard of one issue or another as being told since they were born. Many stories have been told, for example the story on Robinson hood and his excellence as a hero who promotes heroic stunts that are against the law but still manage to survive. The society in which a person lives Because people tend to remain innovative and creative, one may fin an assessment of a certain topic to be almost the same as other issues that are real in the natural world. Because of such kind of an assessment, the individual tends to believe more in this finding and influence other people closer to him to create sense out of the issues that this individual is trying to portray to them. There is also the issue of role models. Nowadays any person that is successful in our society is regard as a role model for the younger generation without regard for the details about the person. This people find easy targets in the people who look up to them because they can easily spread conventional wisdom on the issues that may be of great interest in their opinion Media and public creative arts performances People may also try to stick to some kind of belief because it was presented in the media or some kind of broadcast that has been trusted by society as informative. This is a very strong force to reckon with especially in the 21st century. The modern world relies on the media for almost most information that they need to know. For this reason, the media has been granted the ‘god status, as all information is taken in without criticism. The cinema halls are joining in, because most people now enjoy their leisure time in the cinemas. The cinema has been know as a mode of passing educative information to the public. It means if the cinema has some information that is not true, m some individuals may sanction it as holy and carry it as the truth. Examples of conventional wisdom Conventional Wisdom about Religion and Politics Religion acts as course if inspirational source for the public. People frequent the places of worship to find messages that can uplift their way of life starting from the spiritual life, to politics and other issues in the society. The religious leaders take these opportunities to assert some this that they believe should be the way society has to be shaped towards thus creating the effect that will soon are felt all across the society. The preachers educate the large audiences in the worship centers and mobilize the crowds towards certain premeditated directions. Today in the churches, there are several politically sensitive messages that are delivered in sermons all frequently and in broader terms that could not be thought of by the normal person. It is in view of the majority of religious individuals that these kinds of message are meant to solve social injustices and social values that change humanity. However, this fact has led to the dissemination of certain information to the public domain that is continually affecting the political scene all over the world. The church today is made up of an open loop of people who are bound by very strong beliefs also influenced by the frequent interactions that they have within the church fraternity (Carter, I. J.). These groups of people form a unit of persons with motivation driven by common values and perceptions about different issues that take place in the society today. Churches are the highest centers where conventional wisdom are passed most (White 1968). The conventional wisdoms are deposed, phased out by new ideas, and the new conventional wisdom is treated in the same breadth in place of the preceding one, there may yet be some remaining connection to the previous system. Conventional wisdom on education According to Thomas Jefferson, the process of schooling today was based on the principle of use of force. In this case students are forced to go to school, take assignments, and sit for exams and in worse scenarios, the admittance of students to schools through coercion (Koller, N. B. 2005). In defying this conventional wisdom he provides a seven step plan of action which would guide the education system in the state of Massachusetts. According to Jefferson, a school going child has only three years to fully grasp the general concepts of life that would enable him to make judgments, do arithmetic problems and accumulate enough history to enable the to be able to be better judges of their actions and those of the people that are around them. Conventional wisdom on economics Forecasting is always the norm in the economics. Forecasting in economics is an important concept that may be used in realizing new developments than are likely to occur in the market to prevent against unforeseen complications. In depth research has been made on the kind of research that is being conducted by the scientists be it formal or informal. Scientist who carry out the forecasting of economic trends often insist that they can make consistent and true predictions fore the market as long as the trends in the market continue in a similar manner. Conventional wisdom has always been that the forecasters are the only persons who can deduce the trends of the market. However, contrary to this outdated notion is that the trends in the market depend on a number of factors that are natural and cannot be based on numerical values par se. They have difficulty in identifying the changes in the market trends. The idea is to forecast how trends will change and more important is the time, economy scientists have failed at achieving this forecast (Cocker et al. 81). There is the conventional wisdom that the human population is growing highly and they might just overwhelm the resources that are available on earth. Furthermore these claims were complemented by the fact that the human race may be consuming this resource to their death. This notion tries to send the message that the world is locked with a static amount of resources that might just be used up so nothing remains of it There are several errors in this argument, since it has not been proven. However the human population has continued to believe in this notion.  This argument is erroneous because of the assumption that the population in the world continues growing while the resources remain static. Nevertheless the continued growth of the human population results into more knowledge and more provision of labor in the market. We are also thinkers, creators, and producers.   When there are more people, there are new ideas and overall productivity/efficiency increases.   With more people we can do things more efficiently, using fewer resources in the process. In addition, there is the process of substitution.   When there is shortage of certain resources in the market in creates avenues for price rises, creating an inducement to alternate a cheaper resource in the market. Entrepreneurs find substitutes and use them to cover the shortage. The important factor is that the purpose of the product is not lost at any cost by the scarcity of the other.  In the sixties the industries and experts said that the world was running out of copper wires. There was an increase on the prices of the copper. Research was the initiated into alternative ways of transmitting information. It can also be noted that the plastics replaced the use of metal when there was worries that the metal could run out.  Many examples exist and will continue reoccurring in new forms that cannot be predicted for now (Dixoon Research). Advantage of the existence of conventional wisdom It has created legend acting as a subject identified to them. It is use to gauge normative characteristics in individuals within the context of professionals. It provides an opportunity for bonding and interaction within the society and in professional fields. Disadvantages It propagates a culture which induces lack of growth since in acts as a hindrance to development. Their existence only provides an opportunity for more new conventional theories It reduces the opportunity for innovation and creating since the inventions tend to be pegged on these conventional wisdoms. Conclusions and recommendations The world today is different smaller units which are connected by social interactions and collaborations. There are also many issues that affect the world today ranging from politics, religion, environment and health. It is in the best interest of humanity and the world as a whole to focus on these issues and provide solutions to them. By perpetuating conventional theories in certain sectors hinder the progress for provision of solutions. In some sectors there is observation of high interactions and collaborations. Therefore the human population should be able to distinguish when and where to entertain these conventional theories for the betterment of the world as a whole. Works cited Carter, I. J. Applicant study and professional sociology: Transposition and transformation depictions of daily life. Existing Viewpoints in Social Theory 5:71-100. 1984. Cocker et al. Unconventional perspectives of political conduct: Churches, neighborhoods, and individuals. Journal of Politics 25(3): 81. 1993. Dixoon Research. The Effectiveness of conventional wisdom: objective approach 2000. 28 july.2008. http://www. dixoonresearch.co.uk Koller, N. B. 2005. 28 july.2008. http://www.currentsocietalview.gov.uk/legislation/equal_op_act.htm

letter from john foulcher to editor Essay -- essays research papers

Dear Editor My name is John Foulcher, renowned Australian poet. I have recently been surfing the World Wide Web and by accident I come up with your site, â€Å"Online Anthology of Australian Poets†. The subject matter of poetry attracted me to wonder around your website. I believe my poetry should be included in your collection for I have lived and breathed Australian culture for just over 50 years now, I have recorded my way of life in my poems, and in particular I have a specific poem to refer to you, that is of my own and two others (also of my own work) that I think are you should seriously consider having in your collection. The first poem I think you should consider in adding to your list of poems is â€Å"For the Fire†, this poem was about the time I went in to the forest to get some lumber, and during my time there I noticed some of natures creations around me, like the kookaburra and wind that swerved in and out of the trees etc. The purpose of the poem was to express my interests of nature and how I felt and what I experienced when I was in the woods at that time. There’s also that life and death aspect in this poem, in which the bird has the lizard in his mouth and also by the word â€Å"fire†. The use of alliteration, tone, mood, theme and other elements that construct a well balanced poem are in this piece of literature. In the first stanza the sentence, â€Å"it’s a singular, human thud†, this line creates a picture in the mind that there’s feel of isolation and lonesomene...