War on Terrorism is too Soft to Insure Victory :: essays research papers

America seems to have learned nothing from Vietnam. A few troops here and there, appeasement of protesters and an overall mediocre effort by the "forces of freedom" led to the debacle known as the Vietnam War. Our war veterans, who are truly heroes, fought for freedom, while a lack of impetus and an overflow of politics and propaganda in Washington fought the same war on the wrong side. Once again, America seems to have found a way to make a mess of foreign policy, and similarly, a way to disregard the ideals of freedom, truth and morality that provide the basis for the United States of America. My generation's Vietnam is called "The War on Terrorism." I have not heard such a blatant misnomer since California called its command-market power schemes "deregulation." It seems to me, only mere months after the climax of Sept. 11, that the United States had no real intention of waging war on terrorism. This fact is no bother to President Bush, who, as long as he keeps up appearances, garners better approval ratings than even Clinton (when he was impeached, no less). The fact that everyone loves to ignore is, quite simply, that governments that harbor, aid, abet or even condone terrorism must be eliminated swiftly and unequivocally. When gone, the Taliban and its sister regimes must be replaced with governments that allow the freedoms we take for granted in the West. Make no mistake; this is as close to imperialism as it gets. Anti-Western, liberal hatemongers who protest war and clamor for a peace that amounts to murder will absolutely hate this idea a fact I find ironic given the relative condition of the Western world. Putting it simply, the Islamic fundamentalist countries that harbor and condone terrorists are putrid hellholes by comparison to the United States. Those who call for peace only seek to deny the blessings of freedom, self-interest and individuality to those who now suffer under these bloodthirsty regimes. There is no question that those who call for peace when the United States' very moral fabric has been attacked are lacking proper priorities. There must be a moral code in the life of every human being, which takes absolute precedence over every action. Without a moral code, human life is aimless and wasted. Those who would trade morality for a shaky peace must question their rationale. Unfortunately, the worst of the anti-war protesters are those who claim to be for a compassionate sort of war.

Banjo Paterson’s Clancy of the Overflow and Henry Lawson’s Up the Country Essay

Australian Bush Ballads have captured the essence of early Australian life. Bush Ballads do more than this they often deal with the hardships encountered living on the land as well as the people of the bush. The poetry of â€Å"Henry Lawson† and â€Å"Banjo Paterson† deal with these concepts. While Banjo Paterson defends and romanticises the bush in his many ballads for example â€Å"Clancy of the Overflow†, Henry Lawson provides a more balanced view of the bush in his poems, in particular â€Å"Up the Country.† Poem – Clancy of the overflow by Banjo Paterson Topic sentence – â€Å"Clancy of the Overflow† is typical of an Australian Bush Ballad. In this poem, Clancy serves as the representation of what Australians should be like, which is wild, adventurous, pioneering, friendly and free. Body – Paterson’s poem â€Å"Clancy of the overflow† criticises the dynamics of town life because it objects to the values the bush is based upon. For Paterson, these values included order, stagnation, narrowness of vision and unfriendliness. Paterson feels as though these values will not create a better Australia. Banjo Paterson romanticises about the Australian bush and in this poem he describes how wonderful and extravagant life in the bush is by using flowing and expressive language for example vision splendid, sunlit plains, wondrous glory and everlasting stars. An extract from his poem sums up the landscape of the bush, â€Å"In the murmur of the breezes and the river on its bars, and he sees the vision splendid of the sunlit plains extended, and at night the wondrous glory of the everlasting stars.† Banjo Paterson has created a flowing stanza of rhyme which depicts and portrays the awe of the Australian bush using imagery making the reader more involved in the story. Clancy personifies Paterson’s vision of what the Australian should be. He is an individual who is a part of the historical evolution of Australia in touch with the traditions of life on the land. Paterson is celebrating this aspect of Australia and idealising the experience of the shearer and drover,  in general. Quote – â€Å"In the murmur of the breezes and the river on its bars, and he sees the vision splendid of the sunlit plains extended, and at night the wondrous glory of the everlasting stars.† Poem – Up the Country by Henry Lawson Topic sentence – â€Å"Up the Country† by â€Å"Henry Lawson† contrasts city and bush life but still conveys a balanced and descriptive perspective on what the bush and city are like. Body – Henry Lawson’s ability to portray and capture a true image of the bush and city in his poems is exemplary particularly in his poem â€Å"Up the Country.† Although Henry Lawson dislikes the Australian Bush and degrades the scenery, he also describes the isolation of the outback and the devastation brought by the fires, floods and droughts. Therefore Australian Bush Ballads do show us the challenges of living in the Australian Landscape. Henry Lawson believed that an Australian identity must emanate from its own soil, not from the safe green fields of the mother country, Britain. This is why he took such a strong stance on the bush. The landscape in the poem â€Å"Up the Country† is described as being filled with â€Å"miles and miles of thirsty gutters† which is reflecting on the Australian landscape being affected by drought, and Isolation, for the thirsty gutters stretch for miles and miles. In this extract the reader is brought to the understanding that the bush is an isolated and harsh place. Henry Lawson has written this poem in first person, so as to give his personal opinion of the bush. This can clearly be seen by the title, Up the Country. In this poem he has depicted and conveyed different alley ways into the world of the Australian bush, by using descriptive language he has shaped and given the reader an understanding of what life in the bush would really be like. Quote – â€Å"Miles and miles of thirsty gutters†

The eNotes Blog Writers Spaces, Places, and Advice AboutWriting

Writers Spaces, Places, and Advice AboutWriting It starts with this: put your desk in the corner, and every time you sit down there to write, remind yourself why it isn’t in the middle of the room. Life isn’t a support system for art. It’s the other way around.   ~  Stephen King,  On Writing Pictured above is Stephen Kings own attic writing space at his home in Bangor, Maine.   In contrast to his statement above, his desk does appear to be in the middle of his room, but surely he means corner to be taken metaphorically; that is, any place that is quiet, that is yours; the place where  you  sit  to write  your  work.   While there are some writers who purportedly can write in the midst of chaos, most of us require a place of retreat. I believe it was J.K. Rowling who said that she cleared out a walk-in closet, put a desk and a lamp in there, and sealed herself off from the rest of the family while she was composing her first  Harry Potter  novel. Here are ten intriguing places where writers write, along with some advice for all who write: 1.   Neil Gaimans Gazebo/Cabin 8  Good Writing Practices Write. Put one word after another. Find the right word, put it down. Finish what youre writing. Whatever you have to do to finish it, finish it. Put it aside. Read it pretending youve never read it before. Show it to friends whose opinion you respect and who like the kind of thing that this is. Remember: when people tell you somethings wrong or doesnt work for them, they are almost always right. When they tell you exactly what they think is wrong and how to fix it, they are almost always wrong. Fix it. Remember that, sooner or later, before it ever reaches perfection, you will have to let it go and move on and start to write the next thing. Perfection is like chasing the horizon. Keep moving. Laugh at your own jokes. The main rule of writing is that if you do it with enough assurance and confidence, youre allowed to do whatever you like. (That may be a rule for life as well as for writing. But its definitely true for writing.) So write your story as it needs to be written. Write it honestly, and tell it as best you can. Im not sure that there are any other rules. Not ones that matter. 2.   Edith Whartons view from The Mount in Lennox, Massachusetts Habit is necessary; it is the habit of having habits, of turning a trail into a rut, that must be incessantly fought against if one is to remain alive. 3. Dylan Thomass Boathouse at Laugharne, Wales Go on thinking that you dont need to be read and youll find that it may become quite true: no one will feel the need to read it because it is written for yourself alone; and the public wont feel any impulse to gate crash such a private party. 4.   Ernest Hemingways Home in Key West, Florida â€Å"Writing is something that you can never do as well as it can be done. It is a perpetual challenge and it is more difficult than anything else that I have ever done.† â€Å"There’s no rule on how it is to write. Sometimes it comes easily and perfectly. Sometimes it is like drilling rock and then blasting it out with charges.† â€Å"Ordinarily I never read anything before I write in the morning to try and bite on the old nail with no help, no influence and no one giving you a wonderful example or sitting looking over your shoulder.† 5. Rudyard Kipling:  Dummerston, Vermont â€Å"I am, by calling, a dealer in words; and words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind.† â€Å"I never made a mistake in my life; at least, never one that I couldnt explain away afterwards.† â€Å"If history were taught in the form of stories, it would never be forgotten.† 6. Ian Flemings home, GoldenEye, in Jamaica â€Å"All the greatest men are maniacs. They are possessed by a mania which drives them forward towards  their  goal. The great scientists, the philosophers, the religious leaders all maniacs. What else but a blind  singleness  of purpose could have given focus to  their  genius, would have kept them in the groove of purpose. Mania is as priceless as genius.† 7.   Norman Mailers Fourth Floor Apartment, Brooklyn Heights, New York Ive written at times about the spooky element in writing. You go in each morning, and theres a blank page. Maybe it takes five minutes, maybe it takes an hour. Sooner or later you start writing, and then the words begin to flow. Where does that come from? You cant pinpoint it. You always wonder, Will it all stop tomorrow? In that sense its spooky. In other words, youre relying on a phenomenon thats not necessarily dependable.   (Norman Mailer Interview, The Academy of Achievement, June 12, 2004) Over the years, I’ve found one rule. It is the only one I give on those occasions when I talk about writing. A simple rule. If you tell yourself you are going to be at your desk tomorrow, you are by that declaration asking your unconscious to prepare the material. You are, in effect, contracting to pick up such valuables at a given time. Count on me, you are saying to a few forces below: I will be there to write. 8.   Virginia  Woolfs Writing Desk at Monks House, Sussex, England Mental fight means thinking against the current, not with it. It is our business to puncture gas bags and discover the seeds of truth. To write weekly, to write daily, to write shortly, to write for busy people catching trains in the morning or for tired people coming home in the evening, is a heartbreaking task for men who know good writing from bad. They do it, but instinctively draw out of harms way anything precious that might be damaged by contact with the public, or anything sharp that might irritate its skin. Arrange whatever pieces come your way. 9. John Steinbecks Summer Home in Sag Harbor, Maine The writer must believe that what he is doing is the most important thing in the world. And he must hold to this illusion even when he knows it is not true.   Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen.   The discipline of the written word punishes both stupidity and dishonesty. In utter loneliness a writer tries to explain the inexplicable. 10.   Roald Dahls The Gipsy House,  Buckinghamshire, England Dahls Advice on Writing 1.   You should have a lively imagination 2. You should be able to write well.   By that I mean you should be able to make a scene come alive in the reader’s mind.   Not everybody has this ability.   It is a gift, and you either have it or you don’t. 3.   You must have stamina.   In other words, you must be able to stick to what you are doing and never give up, for hour after hour, day after day, week after week, and month after month. 4.   You must be a perfectionist.   That means you must never be satisfied with what you have written until you have rewritten it again and again, making it as good as you possibly can. 5.   You must have strong self-discipline.   You are working alone.   No one is employing you.   No one is around to fire you if you don’t turn up for work, or to tick you off is you start slacking. 6.   It helps a lot if you have a keen sense of humor.   This is not essential when writing for grown-ups, but for children, it’s vital. 7.   You must have a degree of humility.   The writer who thinks that his work is marvelous is heading for trouble.

Oil production essays

Oil production essays THE ROLE OF THE INDEPENDENT OIL PRODUCER IN TODAYS MARKET Should a poll be taken of the populace of our nation regarding the role of the independent oil producer in todays economy, the likelihood of negative feedback is highly probable. For, most Americans are disgruntled with the high price of gasoline and generally feel anyone remotely connected with the oil industry is quite wealth, to the point of being a fat cat. In the few minutes I have today, please allow me to present an alternative view. Hopefully, you will agree with me that, not only is it is a much more accurate view but is also one in which you now can espouse. Granted, the price of gasoline has risen sharply in recent months to record levels. However, it has been less than five years that the price of a barrel of crude oil was approximately $10, a far cry from the current market. And, although I will deal with the pricing issue later in the presentation today, it should be a sensitive consideration due to the expense side of the ledger. For, the oil production related expenses have continued to escalate over the past several decades with no consideration for the available revenue. Within the last three decades alone, the intangible drilling costs of one prospective well has risen almost 300% to approximately $275,000. Thankfully, there is a tax incentive available whereby an explorer can write off those costs, but he is still out the money should the venture be a dry hole. The lifting costs of a stripper well in South Arkansas, the outlay to produce one barrel of crude oil into the stock tank, is approximately $20 per barrel. Furt her, continued environmental safeguards and preventive systems, continue to spiral. Although completely justified, those expenditures add nothing to the value of the crude produced, but are only ancillary expenses which must be absorbed. In regard to pricing, oil is an interna ...

Critical Thinking and Clinical Judgment Skills Written Assignment Essay

Critical Thinking and Clinical Judgment Skills Written Assignment - Essay Example Thus, critical thinking surpasses the provision of a way of ascertaining veracity, partial veracity or falsehood of a claim, to embrace and encompass the passing of judgment not just in academic fields, but in practical ventures as well. Nursing is one of these many ventures in which critical thinking is greatly applied. As a matter of fact, critical thinking and nursing are mutually inclusive of each other that any nurse devoid of critical thinking skills seldom succeeds. That critical thinking in nursing is indispensible is a matter which is underscored by the fact that it [critical thinking] helps nurses carry out the assessment process, question, evaluate, analyze and reconstruct the process of delivering nursing care, by logically and systematically challenging the established nursing theories and practices. The magnitude of critical thinking may therefore be seen in light of the discussion which ensues forthwith. Critical Thinking and Decision-Making in Patient Care In the firs t place, when going about the nursing process or duty, it will behoove the nurse to decide [by critically thinking through] the pieces of patient information which is critical, from those that are not. Those that have been determined as important may then be analyzed. After the analysis, the nurse may need to work closely and in consultation with the patient, so as to form a consensus, which is a mutually agreed upon care goals. In this case, the nurse will need to use sound judgment to arrive at key decisions, when and by studying a wide variety of sources and by making personal observations about the patient, in relation to his medical records. In this case, the nurse will need to incorporate and use a reflective component in decision-making. Herein, the reflective component is essentially a review of the judgements and the validation of these judgments’ appropriateness (Alfaro-Lefevre, 2009). Critical Thinking in Reconciling Nursing Practices and Ethical Issues When Admini stering Patient-Based Care Above all the needs of critical thinking in nursing, is the application of critical thinking in the delivery of patient-based care. Since patient-based supports the active participation of patients and their families in decision-making about individual options for a patient’s treatment and designing new care models for the patient’s treatment. This means that in administering patient-based care, the nurse will administer care which is responsive and respectful to an individual patient’s needs, values and preferences, and making sure that patient values are the rallying points to all clinical decisions. Herein, critical thinking will be critically applicable, since the administration of patient-based care sometimes seems constrained by, and to fundamentally clash with the dictates of medical and clinical rules and guidelines (Mann, 2012). Thus, Bowles (2000) observes that when administering patient-based care, the nurse will have to: ap preciate the importance of nursing guidelines and rules of medical care; factor the patient’s preferences, values and needs; and establish the status of the patient spelled out in his medical records; think through the options needed to strike the delicate balance among delivering patient-based care, not breaching nursing and medical guidelines and not subjecting the medical institution to legal liabilities. An instance which expressly exemplifies the situation above took place on

Psychology - Memory, Attention & Performance Essay

Psychology - Memory, Attention & Performance - Essay Example ory serves as a filing cabinet in our brains but one that only holds files for a short period of time, up to a minute or so without having practiced or rehearsed information. After such time, those memories (files) are either discarded completely as they are either not important and not worth remembering or are not properly filed into long term memory, or they are in fact filed into our long term memories from short term memory. The capacity of short term memory is limited as is its ability to hold information for long periods of time. Long Term memory has not only a much larger capacity than sensory and short term memory, but also a much longer retention ability. In some cases, long term memory can retain information for a lifetime. Such can be the case with a phone number that is practiced within the an individual’s memory though repetition, this number may remain in the person’s long term memory for the span of their entire life. The types of long term memory are implicit memory and explicit memory. Most memory that we can actually readily access is considered explicit memories. Explicit memories can be grouped into either declarative or episodic memories. Episodic memories deal with personal events whereas declarative memory deals with general but factual information. Implicit memory is more subconscious memories that we don’t necessarily realize that we remember but that does in fact influence our behaviors. Reasons why the memory of a healthy person may fail can be environmental such as medication induced memory loss. Some analgesics (pain killers) and anti -anxiety medications can cause memory loss in healthy persons. In many cases, memory loss can be due to a normal aging process, â€Å"People with memory loss due to something other than normal aging, such as Alzheimers disease, may feel that somethings not quite right, but theyre unable to pinpoint whats bothering them. Rather than call attention to a memory lapse, they may behave as if

Journal Article Review Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Journal Article Review Assignment - Essay Example Alcohol abuse or dependence emerged in the investigation, which in particular has significant relation to the occurrence of crime such as actual suicide and suicide attempts. Suicide attempts, as crime-related scenarios were remarkable in various geographical contexts, but there is no significant amount of studies trying to investigate the actual contribution of alcohol use disorder on the prevalence of suicide attempt. In the chosen study, the proponents have remarkably investigated this concern by employing older adults who were hospitalized in connection with a suicide attempt. In order to further understand this claim, the proponents investigated further the suicidal behaviors of respondents with suicidal attempting experience even if they have AUD or not. This is to remarkably create a link to a significant gap in the literature concerning this issue. The specific individuals included in the study were 70 years or older, who were having hospital treatment due to suicide attempt during 2003-2006. Out of the 133 eligible participants, 103 of them were enrolled in the study, which comprised the 47 men, 56 women, and both groups with average age of 80 years and a response rate of 77%. Random sampling technique was employed. Statistical analysis involved was correlation, because the proponents were after of finding the actual level association between the variables. In order to implement this, the case comparison was initiated. â€Å"AUD was observed in 26% of the cases and in 4% of the comparison group (odds ratio [OR]: 10.5; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 4.9–22.5). Associations were noted in men (OR: 9.5; 95% CI: 4.0–22.8) and women (OR: 12.0; 95% CI: 2.4–59.5). More than half of the cases with AUD and  a third of those without AUD had made at least one prior suicide attempt. In these, AUD was associated with a longer interval