The Incident Of Fort Scott, Kansas - 1421 Words

The move to Fort Scott, Kansas was one of the weirds days of my life so I thought. You see, I had never in my whole life been outside of the Kansas City area until I was forced to leave my grandparent’s home. Kansas City was the only place that I knew. The sounds of police cars going up and down the streets all night with sirens. To the waking in the middle of the night with red and blue lights flashing though the curtains and every now and then to the sound of gun shots or even the smell of BBQ coming from my next door neighbor old man Fred, who was a big time competition pit master in the K.C.K area or from the arguing from the young couple on the other side of my grandparents’ house where the parties would always happen on the weekends, to waking up every morning to the smell of coffee and Mexican food for breakfast. To me this was home and was normal not some place called Fort Scott. Ks This time in my life was very hectic, my father just got remarried, my mom was nowhere around and hadn’t been since I was three years old. I was just starting the 6th grade at Argentine middle school and I was fighting the world with a chip on my shoulders. My life took a huge turn for the worst in my eyes after getting into trouble for fighting all the time. The State of Kansas thought it would be best to remove me from my grandparents’ home and place me in a foster home in a strange place called Fort Scott, Ks. So my journey begins headed to Fort Scott, Ks keep in mind that I hadShow MoreRelatedHarriet Breecher Stowe s Uncle Tom s Cabin1075 Words   |  5 Pagesthe southern people existed as far back as 1854. In 1854, the topic of admission of slave/free states arose again with the Kansas-Nebraska Act; however, this debate would lead to greater conflict than the previous two. The South wished to gain Kansas as a slave state but it resided above the previously establish 36-30 line which divided future free/slave states. The Kansas-Nebraska Act, which called for the respective territories status to be decided by popular sovereignty, was passed to get aroundRead MoreA Speech On The Crime Against Kansas1513 Words   |  7 PagesEven on the highest level, the tension and angry spread between Senators from the North and the South. The craziest example was the â€Å"Bully† Brooks incident of 1857. During a session of Congress the senator from Massachusetts, Senator Charles Sumner delivered a very provoking speech. His speech â€Å"The Crime Against Kansas† was an attack against the Missourian Border Ruffians and the two senators Atchison, and Andrew Butler of South Carolina for the â€Å"crimes† that the South had committed to gain anotherRead MoreThe Manipulation of the Public by a Small Group of Southern Fanatics as the Cause of the Civil War1632 Words   |  7 Pagesescapades at Harper’s Ferry and Pottawotomie. In 1855, Kansas elected its first territorial governing body. This body would run a voting poll to decide on the subject of slavery and whether it would be allowed in Kansas or not. Hundreds of pro-slavery believers crossed the border from Missouri into Kansas to cast their vote for slavery to try and balance out the ratio of free and slave states. It is likely that Kansas would have been voted as a slave state even if the Missourians Read MoreThe Civil War And The Antebellum Years From 1845-1861940 Words   |  4 Pagesincrease the number of votes to legalize slavery in the state. In Kansas, the issues between pro-slavery â€Å"Border Ruffians†, and anti-slavery â€Å"Free Staters† became increasingly violent. The Pottawatomie Massacre, in Franklin County, Kansas, was a raid led by John Brown and a group of abolitionist against pro-slavery. This massacre left five settlers dead and was a part of many more violent incidents to come in what will be known as Bleeding Kansas. The new territories be admitted into the Union wereRead MoreThe Civil War And American History1528 Words   |  7 Pagesis considered a hero by the fugitives (Causes of the Civil War). Another notable figure standing up for slave rights was Dred Scott. He was an African American who wanted official citizenship to the US. He argued that any man with African blood has the right to become a citizen. This case became so big that it made to the supreme court to eventually be turned down(Dred Scott). The first violent conflict about slavery was with John Brown and his men attacking Harpers Ferry. Born in Connecticut in 1800Read MoreThe Missouri Compromise And Events Leading Up Of The Civil War Essay1646 Words   |  7 Pageseventual doom was foreseen for the divided, un-united United States. In 1854, the Kansas-Nebraska Act was passed. This act repealed the Missouri Compromise, in essence, giving the new states of Kansas and Nebraska the ability to decide whether slavery would be allowed within its borders (â€Å"Causes Of The Civil War†). Affirmation of the repeal of the Missouri Compromise came when a federal judge ruled, in the Dred Scott v. Sanford court case of 1857, that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional;Read MoreThe Cause Of The Civil War Essay1940 Words   |  8 Pagesbecame known as the Confederate States of America. When Abraham Lincoln was elected president, the South rebelled and sought to attack the Union. The war broke out on April 12, 1861 in South Carolina when the Confederate attacked the Union soldiers at Fort Sumter. The war was fought from 1861-1865 and extended as far north as Maryland and Pennsylvania, west to Mississippi, east to the Atlantic and south to the Gulf of Mexico. There were approximately 620,000 causalities and it end ed with a union victoryRead More Individuals That Contributed To The Civil War Essay1923 Words   |  8 Pagespreserve and some that wanted to eradicate the primary cause of the war, slavery. There were the political giants, such as Abraham Lincoln, and Stephen Douglas. There were seditious abolitionists such as John Brown, escaped slaves such as Dred Scott, and abolitionist writers like Harriet Beecher Stowe. These were the people who, ultimately, brought a beginning to the end of what Lincoln called â€Å"a moral, a social, and a political wrong†(Oates 66). Southern states, including the 11 statesRead MoreHistory 1511894 Words   |  8 Pagesextended well north of this, to the Nueces River (150 miles north of the Rio Grande). President James K. Polk sent the army under the leadership of General (and later President) Zachary Taylor to the Rio Grande to establish a fort. After seeing the Americans construct the fort in what they considered to be their land, the Mexicans sent 2,000 troops to attack a U.S. scout force, consisted of only 70 American troops. When Polk heard of this attack, he plead Congress to declare war on Mexico for invadingRead MoreI Never Had It Made Written By Legendary African American Major League Baseball Player1457 Words   |  6 Pages13, 1814, while the United States was at war with Great Britain after friction concerning trade between the two countries, Francis Scott Key authored a poem that was titled â€Å"The Defence of Fort McHenry†, which was later put to music and re-named â€Å"The Star-Spangled Banner†. Key was motivated to write the poem when, after he saw the American Flag still standing at Fort McHenry after it was bombed by the British during the War of 1812. Once the poem was written, it was printed in newspapers and ultimately

The Cuban Missile Crisis A 13 Day Standoff - 1726 Words

The Cuban Missile Crisis was a 13 day standoff in Cuba during the Cold War that struck fear into many American people. Joseph Roblat said, â€Å"The most terrifying moment in my life was October 1962, during the cuban missile crisis. I did not know all the facts - we have learned only recently how close we were to war - but I knew enough to make me tremble†. Missiles were in Cuba, in range of the U.S.. The world has never come so close to being in a full out Nuclear War. If the Soviets launched one of those missiles, then the U.S. would have retaliated back with the only thing as powerful as a nuclear missile, a nuclear missile. If the world were to have a nuclear war, it could wipe out civilization. The fact that the Soviet Union had the fate†¦show more content†¦and learn how to live with them. This guy would be working for Khrushchev, the leader of the soviets at the time. He would act as a double agent for the USSR and gain information for them on the U.S.. This i s so they could be prepared if anything were to happen. They didn’t realize that President Kennedy was way in front of them with his plan on how to end the crisis (Kennedy 59). At the time, the U.S. had an estimated 3,500 nuclear sites and the Soviet Union had somewhere between 300 and 500. On the island of Cuba on October 14, 1962 the Soviet Union was discovered to have missiles positioned in Cuba that could then reach the U.S. in minutes. This was discovered by a U-2 reconnaissance plane. Later, closer to the end of the crisis, a U-2 was shot down while trying to get more updated pictures of the missile sites (Kennedy 63). This is a plane that can take pictures from 12 miles in the sky. It flew over Cuba when there was a reason to believe that there were nuclear missiles placed in Cuba by the USSR. There were rumors that missiles could be in Cuba, but no one knew for sure until the U.S. got evidence. (Kennedy 19). The crisis technically started when President Kennedy was notified about what the plane found. This was 2 days later. The missiles were believed to be aimed at populated cities all over the U.S.. Any missile is estimated to be able to reach Wash ington D.C. in just 10 minutes. This caused people in the Oval

Killing God in Code Geass Free Essays

Observing Code Seas from a straightforward viewpoint will reveal what it Is generally perceived as. This show is highly rated In Japan, Just as It Is to anima viewers In other countries. Due to Its nature, a Japanese enamel, Code Seas contains plenty of fictional elements and comical scenarios. We will write a custom essay sample on Killing God in Code Geass or any similar topic only for you Order Now These can consist of Nightmare frames (palatable fighting robots for combat), superpowers, flying super-fortresses, or high school students who simplemindedly raise a personal rebellion force in Just a few weeks, or build an antimatter bomb in a lab located underneath a school. Despite the far-fetched fiction, each of these examples helps make Code Seas the masterpiece that it Is. It tells a great story which cannot be easily forgotten. If one were to dig deeper into the story Code Seas tells, they may find many more hidden in between the lines. Code Seas subtly makes remarks about modern worldviews throughout the entire series, using simple dialog, names of characters, or certain events as a foothold. These include racial discrimination, forms of government, and religion. While each of these worldviews is referenced, religion is undoubtedly the cost prominent. Religious allusions in Code Seas are not derived from one belief, but many. Situations In the show can at times reflect mythology, such as Norse and Irish, as well was present-day religions like Hinduism and Catholicism. All of these religious beliefs being tied-in to certain characters and events in Code Seas may suggest that â€Å"overcoming God†, or surpassing religion, may lead to a world peace. What is the power of seas? A â€Å"seas† (realistically known as a gees in Irish mythology) is a supernatural curse, or perhaps a gift depending on how it is used. In Irish looker, a gels Is typically given to a man by a woman who usually ends up being a goddess or noble figure. Essentially, a gels Is a supernatural contract. If left unbroken, it can lead to good fortune, but if that pact is broken, the person with the gees could undergo tragic events or even death. In Code Seas, the main character, Lech, receives his seas from a mysterious woman who calls herself CO or C. C, making a fake name out of her initials. When she encounters Lech, [SSL :II] he is in a desperate situation and doesn’t really care about what the contract Is, so he agrees o It solely to get out of his current uncovers situation. The terms of the contract are not revealed until much later [SEE 1 5], but unlike a literal gels, the contract Is not life- threatening. Instead, CO wants Lech to end her life because she is practically immortal due to the fact that she has the Code*. When given his seas, Lech is informed that if he makes eye contact with someone, he can make them do anything he wants them to do. The catch Is, he can only use It once per person. Lech uses his seas later In the show to command gods. If a human can control the will of god, then surely the said â€Å"god† Isn’t one. Lech takes control of the gods while at the Sword of Shaky. In Hinduism, Shaky means tether, the place where gods dwell, much like a version of Mount Olympus. In the show, the Sword of Shaky is an ancient place which is meant to be used as a means to destroy the gods. The title of the event of â€Å"destroying all gods† is known in Code Seas as the â€Å"Raglan ¶k Connection. *The Code is the other supernatural power in the series (hence Code Seas) and It grants the owner Immortality and Immunity to any form of seas. By **The gods in the show are made out to be the collective unconsciousness of every unman, living or dead. If they are destroyed, every human that has existed would be mentally merged together as one mind. As a result, the world would become stagnant and without a future. In Norse Mythology, Raglan ¶k is a war between gods that results in the deaths of the gods themselves. After this war, the earth is then flooded with water and then repopulated. This does not only mirror the name of the event, but it also mirrors the genocidal goals of the Holy Britannica Empire*. They want to create a new, purely Britannica world, where Britannic is the highest and only power. This would require getting rid of any different intelligent being, which would include the gods as mentioned before. Charles Uzi Britannic, the current Emperor and Locust’s father (making Lech also of royalty**), travels to the Sword of Shaky to activate the Raglan ¶k Connection and fulfill that goal of surpassing god. There, he runs into Lech who is there to rescue CO from him***. Charles explains that this way Britannic can finally be superior, while at the same time, world peace would be achieved due to everyone being forced to think alike one another. Lech ejects this and here commands the gods to destroy his father and the Sword of Shaky itself. Even with multiple events that draw dies to mythology and religion, Code Seas doesn’t stop there. Characters also play a part in upholding the implied worldview of surpassing god. Naturally, all of these characters are of Britannica origin. In the Code Seas setting, Britannic is a dominating world power and the only territory left resisting is parts of Japan (named Area 11 by the Holy Britannica Empire). **Even though Lech is a Britannica Prince, he despises Britannic and is the leader of a Orca to bring it down. He wants the world to be peaceful for his younger sister, Annually. This is because his mother was killed due to a power struggle when he was of a young age. ***Charles Uzi Britannic has taken CO because she possesses a Code. Two Codes are required to activate the Sword of Shaky and he already has one of them. Charles killed V, another mysterious person who gave him his seas, and thus inherited the Code from him. (The seas that Charles has allows him to alter memories of anyone he makes eye contact with. ) Euphemism lie Britannic is one of Emperor Charles daughters. Unlike him, she is kind-hearted and open-minded to everyone around her. Most importantly, she treats everyone with respect, even if they are not Britannica*. Euphemism firmly believes that a â€Å"problem must be changed from within† and considers Britain’s elitist monarchy a problem. She tries to change this by creating a Specially Administrated Zone, in which all people are treated equally, whether they are Britannica or Japanese [SSL :EYE]. Because of this, she is praised by the remaining Japanese. She and Lech (they are half-brother and half-sister) are discussing Japan’s future, which Lech entirely supports, and decides to reveal his seas to her. When explaining his power to make anyone obey any request, he Jokingly tells her that he could make her kill all the Japanese if he wanted to. His seas activates on accident, and she sets out to do just that**. The end result of this mess is Lech gloomily killing her in order to save the remaining Japanese. Euphemism was described as a martyr by the Japanese for the rest of the show. This relates to SST. Euphemism the Martyr, originating from She was tortured and mocked many times for this belief, and was eventually killed cause of it. *Those living in Area 11 who are not Britannica are Japanese. Because they are minority in Code Seas, Britannic discriminates against them and racially refers to them as Elevens. *elf a seas is heavily used, it evolves into an uncontrollable seas that stays continually activated. That is one of the risks of using this power and it is proven when he mistakenly commands Euphemism to kill all the Japanese. Emperor Charles upholds the idea of killing god because throughout the series, he is presented as such. As mentioned before, he too has a seas. He can alter memories f anybody he makes eye con tact with. Because of this, Charles has superior power naturally and supernaturally, making him practically untouchable by anyone. He demonstrates this godlike power when giving speeches and receiving unrelenting admiration and obedience from all of the lords, barons, and dukes that serves him. When at the Sword of Shaky, Lech commands the gods to destroy him and the Sword of Shaky, as mentioned before. Somebody managing to defeat Emperor Charles demonstrates the recurring theme of killing god. Another character that has godlike status is Schnitzel el Britannic. He is the son of Emperor Charles and is given the role of Commander of the Royal Army. He appears largely in the second season and heavily impedes Locust’s goals. Prince Schnitzel commands the Damocles (a flying castle/warship) that is armed with FLEA antimatter warheads. He can completely erase any area on the surface of the Earth by merely saying he wants it gone. During an aerial battle Lech manages to break through the Damocles defenses and board it. There, he corners Schnitzel and commands him with his seas to serve the Black Knights*. This action is yet another instance of â€Å"dethroning god† that appears in Code Seas. After defeating/killing off the highest members of the throne, Lech makes himself the Emperor of Britannic [SO:EYE]. This also makes Lech himself a kind of god. As emperor, Lech manipulates Britannic as well as the Black Knights (the rebellion force that Lech created with the alter ego of Zero) to despise him. He orders the execution of the members of the Black Knights and the Britannica leaders for their â€Å"crimes,† causing an outrage. A public execution ceremony is held, and all citizens are forced to attend. Lech comes riding in on a military vehicle in all of his loyal â€Å"splendor† Just to make everyone there (Britannic and Japanese) have even more of the same mindset: anger solely directed at him. When Lech is about to give the final order of execution, Zero* sprints up Locust’s vehicle and stabs him in the chest, killing him. The prisoners are released, and the show ends with everyone living in united peace, which was Locust’s ultimate goal from the start. As of now, all the â€Å"gods† that have appeared throughout the entire show have been killed, and the world is at peace. Due to the fact that the religious ties mentioned are not mentioned even once in the show, only implied, leads me to believe that Code Seas suggests overcoming religion can lead to a greater world peace. When Lech created the Black Knights, he rallied people together as a masked man in a cloak who called himself Zero. Obviously because he had a supernatural ability and was planning a that he was. As the Black Knights became increasingly active, their leader, Zero, was regarded as a terrorist among Britannic, but a hero for the Japanese. When Lech was emperor as mentioned above, none of the Britannic or Japanese knew that he was also Zero. Lech knew his death would now bring a world peace, so he had his best friend and Britannica honorary guard, Suzuki Surging, pose as Zero and kill him. How to cite Killing God in Code Geass, Papers

Key Auditing Concepts for Professional Scepticism-myassignmenthelp

Question: Write about theKey Auditing Concepts for Professional Scepticism. Answer: Auditors while performing an audit engagement, are required to exercise certain approaches such as professional judgement and professional scepticism in their work since audit is conducted to enable the auditor to express an opinion about the true and fair view of the financial statements of an entity. Professional scepticism requires the auditors to remain alert to anything unusual indicating the possibility of material misstatements in the financial statements of the company, which they come across during the audit process. The approach to keep a questioning mind throughout the audit process is necessary to critically assess the audit evidences which assists them in drawing a conclusion based on which audit opinion is formed. Although it is not the statutory duty of auditor to detect the frauds and errors in the financial statements but still they are supposed to follow the concept of professional scepticism if they find any information that casts doubt about the reliability of nec essary documents and the inquiry responses of the relevant parties. Even if there are contradictory evidences on a particular audit matter the auditor must apply professional scepticism to determine the genuineness of the audit evidences. There are 3 main elements of professional scepticism which interact whenever auditor encounters the unusual situations (Hurtt et al., 2013). These are attributes mind-set and the action. First one is the Attributes includes the auditors knowledge and skills. Second element is Mind-set includes the auditors behavioural approach towards the audit i.e. the auditor cannot start his work of audit with suspicious framework of mind about the entitys management. Therefore, the auditors should not be influenced by the evidences that are less persuasive by nature. Actions is the third element which involves gathering and critically examining the audit evidences to assess the genuineness of the entitys books of accounts. For the purpose of critical assessment auditors must the sufficient and appropriate audit evidences. While pursuing the approach of professional scepticism auditors must extend the audit procedures whenever they find anything unreasonable. Moreover, auditor is also required to assess the appropriateness of going concern assumption adopted by the company and if during the audit engagement he identifies certain indicators which affects the reasonability of going concern assumption he must extent his audit procedures.(Quadackers, Groot Wright, 2014). Auditors are the external parties appointed by an entity for the purpose of conducting audit so as to raise the level of confidence of the investors and other stakeholders of the company. Therefore, to ensure their independence auditors are required to apply professional scepticism in the audit planning and while performing the audit procedures. Earnings Management It is the practice where the business managers manipulates the financial reports of the entity in order to deceive the stakeholders about the companys financial position so as to ultimately attain the economic benefits. As the value of firm is influenced by the level of earnings reported by it, the managers tends to manipulate the earnings with the motive of attaining the economic incentives (Cohen Zarowin, 2010). It is therefore difficult to determine whether these practices of earnings management are acceptable or they form part of fraud done by the management to mislead the investors. Financial reports are considered as the most effective way of communication of information between the company and the stakeholders about the financial performance of the company. The critical nature and usefulness of financial reports necessitates the need of audit of financial statements by an independent party (auditors) so as to increase the creditability of financial statements in the eyes of t he shareholders. Therefore, the auditors are required to maintain the highest degree of independence while conducting an audit and at the same time auditors are also required to apply professional scepticism and professional judgement during the entire audit process. The exercises of earnings management can either be for the purpose of showing higher income or for showing the lower income in the financial statements of the company (Badertscher, 2011). For example, the managerial remuneration system of a company requires the managers to generate a certain level of earnings so as to earn incentives and bonuses and in order to gain the incentives the managers engage themselves in the earnings management exercises. The company may be suffering losses which is affecting the reasonability of its going concern assumption then to raise funds from financial institutions the management may increase the earnings in the reports as going concern assumption is based on companys viability to conti nue business in the future. Also, to gain the governmental subsidies and assistances management adopts the practice of earnings manipulation (Gunny, 2010). Discretionary Accruals: Accruals are one of the two components of total earnings of the company. The other component is the direct cash flows from the operations of an entity. The total accruals are the estimates and judgements made by the management to reflect better economic performance through improved earnings accounting. Accruals can be either discretionary accruals or non-discretionary accruals (Linck, Netter Shu, 2013). Discretionary accruals is the component that the managers can select on their own, within the accounting regulations flexibility, to adjust the cash flows of the company (Badertscher, Collins Lys, 2012). Discretionary accruals offers the business managers with the flexibility to manipulate the companys earnings so as to influence the stakeholders. Due to the involvement of extensive managerial judgement this component is more subjective than the other components of earnings. The audit of the entities with more discretionary accruals is difficult than the audit of entities with lesse r amount of discretionary accruals (Kent, Routledge Stewart, 2010). This type of accruals at times holds two elements that are, the disturbance caused by the unethical and aggressive reporting done by the managers for their personal benefits and the information element which enables the managers to share their inside information. Since the highly skilled auditors have greater experience and knowledge to separate the information element from noise, they are capable of enhancing the informative quality of discretionary accrual by restricting the unethical and unreasonable reporting practice. List of References: Badertscher, B.A., 2011. Overvaluation and the choice of alternative earnings management mechanisms.The Accounting Review,86(5), pp.1491-1518. Badertscher, B.A., Collins, D.W. and Lys, T.Z., 2012. Discretionary accounting choices and the predictive ability of accruals with respect to future cash flows.Journal of Accounting and Economics,53(1), pp.330-352. Cohen, D.A. and Zarowin, P., 2010. Accrual-based and real earnings management activities around seasoned equity offerings.Journal of accounting and Economics,50(1), pp.2-19. Gunny, K.A., 2010. The relation between earnings management using real activities manipulation and future performance: Evidence from meeting earnings benchmarks.Contemporary Accounting Research,27(3), pp.855-888. Hurtt, R.K., Brown-Liburd, H., Earley, C.E. and Krishnamoorthy, G., 2013. Research on auditor professional skepticism: Literature synthesis and opportunities for future research.Auditing: A Journal of Practice Theory,32(sp1), pp.45-97. Kent, P., Routledge, J. and Stewart, J., 2010. Innate and discretionary accruals quality and corporate governance.Accounting Finance,50(1), pp.171-195. Linck, J.S., Netter, J. and Shu, T., 2013. Can managers use discretionary accruals to ease financial constraints? Evidence from discretionary accruals prior to investment.The Accounting Review,88(6), pp.2117-2143. Quadackers, L., Groot, T. and Wright, A., 2014. Auditors professional skepticism: Neutrality versus presumptive doubt.Contemporary Accounting Research,31(3), pp.639-657. Kindly use the references in case any follow up is required on any of the above explained topics. Yours Sincerely, Students Name

Role of Congress and American Presidency in Voters Representation

Introduction This essay analyses role of congress and role of American presidency with the aim of establishing which institution represents voters most. For an individual to answer the question of whom between the president of the United States and the country’s congress best represents the American voters, one needs to understand US politics and how the system of governance in the US is structured. Moreover, one has to understand the milestones, if any, which are attributable to the US presidency and the US congress as independent institutions.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Role of Congress and American Presidency in Voters Representation specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More A president, who is the head of state and government, governs the US. The president of the US is the commander in chief of the Armed forces and thus is chief security officer of the nation. Congress is the bicameral legislature that com prises of the senate and the House of Representatives (Fein, 26). Fein (28) further observes that elections for the members of the house of representative are conducted after every two years. On the other hand, Senators are elected for a six-year term. Congress The issue of voter representation is a relatively tricky question, because level of representation is dependent on individual elected official. To the extend an elected officer listens to his or her people or is in touch with the people’s interests, to that extent he or she represents them. Representative politics assumes that the person who has been elected by the voters actively fights for their rights, interests and needs. Congress as an institution is supposed to be the most representative of Americans’ interests. Given there are many members from diverse backgrounds and representing different interests in congress, one can argue that it is more representative of Americans than the president. Comparing the t wo houses, one can validly argue that the members of the House of Representatives are more pressed to actively fight for the rights of voters than the senate given their term is shorter compared to that of the Senators. The fact that they have to go back to the electorate and seek a new mandate after every two years coerces them to focus more on the interests of their people. Consequently, one would expect them to work like bees in order to proof to the electorates that they are still pushing for or are keen on helping them realize their rights thus being given another chance in congress. Senators have a relatively more stable term in office. However, the length of the term does not translate into complacency. The senators just like the members of the House of Representatives are always on toes to represent the electorate. President Unlike members of the House of Representatives and the Senators, who often tend to represent particular interest groups, the president is a symbol of na tional unity. Although different parties with different philosophies and ideologies sponsor presidential candidates, once sworn in, the president is expected to be representative of all well meaning Americans’ interests. Being the head of state and government, the American president is a very powerful individual.Advertising Looking for essay on government? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Unlike the members of House of Representatives and the Senate, the president is elected by a much bigger number of voters and has to appeal to cross cutting interests of the Americans. This implies that the president represents a bigger number of voters compared to senators and members of the House of Representatives. However, in terms of determining national interests, both congress and the presidency have to work together to attain favorable results. Public Good/ National Interests To understand how Congress and the presidency work to gether for the good of American, it is important to consider the legislation process in America. When it comes to passing bills, collaboration and collective action is of necessity. Recently, the president managed get a bill passed on medical policy. Healthcare is an issue at the heart of many Americans concerns. The bill did not pass without any opposition from Congress. Due to differing interests among Americans, there were those members of Congress who were against the bill and others who supported the bill. Consequently, the president had to persuade and use incentives to have the bill passed by congress. The politics around the medical bill raises the question of who actually has the passion and interest of the American people at heart; is it the president or the congress? Even when a bill like the health care one may be expected to help the entire American citizenry regardless of race, sex, religion, and creed, it is interesting that some senators or members of the house of re presentative, due to ideological or merely political reasons, actually oppose such bills. Although the president may not be seen time and again interacting with voters, it does not mean that, he or she does not have their interests at heart. Over time in the history of America, it is presidents who often come out urging members of the Congress to stop looking at individual needs and focus on national interest. Therefore, as discussed by Kernell et al (356) presidents in a nation are more concerned about the common good and proper use of public resources. Managing public resources is not a very easy affair. In actual sense, politics is about who gets what share of the public resources. Public resources are open resources i.e. none is excluded from them. However, due to competing interests one has to go beyond selfish interests and seek the common good or interests that bind all together. There are also those interests in which all Americans share e.g. need to secure America from its enemies. The president, being the commander in chief of the armed forces of the US, has the sole authority of assuring the public of their security through commanding the armed forces when necessary.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Role of Congress and American Presidency in Voters Representation specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More However, how to go about assuring public security is a very debatable issue. Therefore, congress comes in to check the measures of the executive aimed at ensuring security for all Americans. Through its debates, anchored on the interests of different interest groups that they represent, congress digests measures by the government and provides valuable suggestions for the good of the nation. From the foregoing discussion, it is clear that representation of voters’ interests is largely dependent on the interests and disposition of respective president and members of congress. In som e instances, there have been presidents who have been more pro-people than Congressmen have. In other cases, there have been presidents held hostages by certain interests and thus not championing the interests of all Americans. Considering numbers, the congress is more likely to represent diverse voter interests than the president. However, the role of the president’s office makes him more of an national figure (Margulies, 162). In the president, the different competing interests that congressional representatives represent find harmonization or reconciliation. The presidency should thus represent more of compromised interests i.e. interests that every American can identify with. Margulies (166) argues that the status of US as the world super power and economic giant equally prevents the president from having that adequate time to interact with the public as closely as the Senators and members of the House of Representatives are able to. The attention of the president is requ ired both nationally and internationally, a factor that further distances the president from the American people in their day-to-day lives. However, it has to be noted that even while engaging international issues, he or she performs these roles in order to represent the American people with the aim of safeguarding American interests internationally. Therefore, unlike congress representatives, the president’s representation of Americans goes beyond just national issues to espouse international interests. By doing so, he or she is still representing the voters that elected him or her but at a broader international level. Conclusion In conclusion, both the president and congress represent the American people. However, as a national figure, the president has to be representative of the interests of Americans as a whole. Congress is more representative when one considers the number of elected people in congress. However, congressional representatives tend towards partisan interes ts and in often cases, the president has had to come in to rally them towards common interests that are in national interest. The American people believe in democracy and related values. However, the kind of democracy currently exercised in America is representative democracy. At the heart of democracy is the idea that the government is of the people by the people for the people. This, ideally, means that all elected members of the executive and the legislature executed their services on behalf of the people and for the people.Advertising Looking for essay on government? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Works Cited Fein, Eric. The US Congress. Washington DC: Capstone press 2008 print. Kernell, Samuel, Jacobson, Gary Kousser, Thad. The Logic of American Politic. New York: CQ press, 2008 print. Margulies, Phillip. America Role in the World. Washington DC :InfoBase publishing, 2009 print This essay on Role of Congress and American Presidency in Voters Representation was written and submitted by user Theodore M. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

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Ethics In Nigeria Oil And Gas Industry Politics Essay Nigeria is Africas most populous nation and also its largest producer of oil. The country is ranked fifth in terms of oil exportation to the United States. The country has the potential to reach the third spot replacing Norway in a few years though it is plagued with social unrest as well as corruption in the Niger Delta posing significant challenges to the production of oil. The intermittent economic crisis and the political turmoil the country faces dates back to independence in 1960. At the centre of this is the oil industry. This is highlighted by its human development indicators which are among the lowest in the world even though the revenue from gas and oil has gone up to 40 billion per year. This means that the countrys majority lives in extreme poverty. 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The oil and gas Transnational Corporation operating in Nigeria are active in addition to playing leadership roles in developing good codes of conduct and corporate practices in the work place as well as in engaging with different facets of the community. The involvement of Shell, BP-Amoco, Chevron Texaco, ExxonMobil, TotalFinaElf, Occidental, ENI among others in the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), the United Nations Global Impact, the Sullivan Principle, the Millennium Development Goals, the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights, Dow Jones Sustainability Index are some instances (Carrol Bulcholtz, 2003). The footprints of these companies are seen in the transfer of foreign direct investment (FDI), technology and skills: accounting for the majority of the state revenue; and a major employer of labor. They have also undeniably have contributed to the development of communities via programs in health, education, commerce, transport, agriculture, construction among others. Tuodolo (2009) argues that despite the contributions to the community and achievements, the oil transnational Corporations have been the targeted by negative and anti-corporate and negative campaigns in the last two decades. Many civil society actors have been responsible for damaging campaigns against these companies and the institutions that collaborate with them. The strategies they employ in this campaigns include publicity, networking, walk-outs, sit-ins, litigation, lobbying, peoples development plans, socially responsible investment, public hearings, blockades, exposures, seizures and closures. These campaigns cover ethical issues such as human rights abuses, environmental, safety, health, corruption and climate change. In Nigeria, one of the main protests by the civil society against an oil company was against Shell in the Gas flaring taking place in the region and on the Ogoni environmental issues, Niger Delta area (Amnesty International, 1995). The world has experiences massive campaigns carried out by the civil society actors against oil giants such as Shell, ChevronTexaco, ExxonMobil, Occidental, ENI. These campaigns often disrupt business activities, damages and embarrass the reputation of the business; the major civil society actors include Greenpeace, Friends of Earth, and the Sierra club, Amnesty, Global Witness, Christian Aid, Oil-Watch, Human Rights Watch and Corp-Watch. Yazji (2006) noted that many civil society actors view the Transnational Corporations more as strange bedfellows or enemies finding it difficult o associate with them. This is often based purely on grounds of ethics. However, recent years have seen a new trend in the relationship that exists between the Transnational Corporations and the civil society actors. Most notably is the development of collaborative relationships that are aimed at directing funding of programs for the civil society. Many of the civil society actors now maintain very cordial relationships with the oil companies with partners collaborating and doing business with the enemies, the oil and gas industry. According to Warren (2005), this is seen to benefits the image and public relation of the business more than the communitys welfare. This has created an image of rapprochement or collaboration between the civil society actors, the publics watch dog, and the oil transnational corporations. An example of this collaboration in Nigeria is witnesses in community development projects that are run by International Foundation for Education and Self-Help (IFESH) in collaboration with Chevron Texaco (Bendell Lake, 2000). These actions raise many questions that are still to be settled: have the ethical issues that the civil society had campaigned for in the past been resolved or changed? Have the oil industry players changed or repented for the better on the contentious issues that the civil groups raised in the past? Have the actors in civil societies lost track or are they comprised? Have the civil society actors been won over of placated by the big businesses? Or had the public relations machinery and campaigns by the corporations become more effective and can now shield their bad deeds. LITERATURE REVIEW Oil and gas industry in Nigeria Nigeria is Africas largest oil producer and is ranked eighth in the world. Commercial quantities of oil in the country were discovered in 1956. It can on average pump 2.5 million barrels of oil every day. This accounts to approximately 3 percent of the worlds total consumption. The Wall Street Journal stated in an article that the country exports the majority of this output. Oil provides around 90 percent of the countries total foreign exchange and around 80 percent if the federal revenues. This makes the country the fifth-largest foreign crude oil supplier to the United States behind Mexico, Canada, Venezuela and Saudi Arabia. Despite this richness in natural oil and gas resources, the country is ranked a lowly 20th poorest country in the world. Much of this poverty as well as underdevelopment can be attributed to the bad governance, mismanagement of the countys resources (oil and gas), political instability and the lack of infrastructure as well as policies to govern industries. Mo st of the many oil companies in the country are American. They utilize the countrys crude oil and gas resources to gain astronomical profits. These companies also utilize the environment to operate and produce within the oil industry. The Niger delta is the oil-rich region in Nigeria and is currently involved in conflicts that surround the oil companies. These companies are usually viewed as parasitic by the local communities as they take the regions resources while giving nothing or very little in return (Bird, 2004). Karl (1997) argues that as in many of the other petro states, the windfall revenues from oil and gas have proved to be more of a curse than a blessing. The country is plagued with conflict that stems out of inequitable distribution of oil revenue and the exploitation of the resources by the oil companies operating in the country. According to the constitution of Nigeria, all natural minerals including the gas and also belong to the Nigerian federal government. The government is then responsible for negotiating the terms for oil production with the international oil companies. Most of the production and the exploration of oil in the region is done by United States and European companies. These companies operate joint ventures in collaboration with Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPCC). The state oil company owns up to 60 to 55 percent of these ventures (Ukeje, 2004). Public relations and ethical issues facing the oil and gas industry in Nigeria Most of the ethical issues in the oil and gas industry in the country arise from the poor monitoring and enforcement of laws governing the oil producing companies. This is despite the fact that the laws in Nigeria are comparable to other international equivalents. This has seen the region experiencing significant damage to both the environment and to the livelihood of the people that live within the oil producing companies. The companies have failed in their ethical responsibility to relate well with the communities in which they operate. Compensation for the resultant damages is virtually nonexistent (Frey, 1997). The transnational corporations (TNC s) operating within the Nigerian oil and gas industry as well as institutions that collaborate with them have over the years come under negative/anti corporate campaigns by the community they operate in as well as by civil society actors. These actors include anti-capitalists, anti-corporate campaigners, anti-globalist, academics and greens. Although this is despite the contribution they seemingly bring to the development of a community, this actors have managed to shed light on unethical practices of corporate ensuring they practice positive public relations. In recent decades however this relationship has developed into a more collaborative one the purpose of which appears to favor the image of the business rather than the society (Newell, 2005). The other side of Corporate Social Responsibility There is no dispute that the community development programs initiated by the major players in the oil and gas industry have benefits most of the local communities. It is however important to not that these efforts in public relations have positive as well as negative impacts. Most of the local communities pay a great cost for enjoying the benefits of these Corporate Social Responsibility programs. Either by commission or omission, the activities or of shell and the program delivery processes have a negative impact on the local community that often outweigh the positive benefits of this corporate Social Responsibility endeavors. The role that the oil companies play in social and environment impacts illustrates this point. According to Human Rights Watch (1999), the Niger Delta in general and Nembe in particular, the oil activities have resulted in serious environment damages. This has been as a result of oil spills from flow stations, pipelines, well-heads; discharge of production and drilling waste; and gas flared from several oil fields. All this has occurred in/on creeks, air, sea and land of Nembe. In the process, fish ponds and farm lands are destroyed, sea and forest animals and plants are forced to migrate or are destroyed; as well as the air being polluted. This environmental degradation has negative impacts ranging from loss of livelihood (farming and fishing), low farm produce, limitation of economic activities, diseases, polluted water, food shortage among others. In certain cases, death of unsuspecting fishermen has occurred after oil spills occurred in the Nembe creek. The negative impact this has on the local communities livelihood and health is enormous. The community at one time indica ted that they are all fishermen who rely on fish for their survival. They also claimed that the oil spillage by Shell wells were destroying the marine life and in extension the peoples occupation. The farmlands as well were not fertile anymore from the pollution and the fish in the river had died. The people are only left with the option of fishing in the high seas which is very dangerous undertaking (Tuodolo, 2009, p.532) Shell on its part has not denied that its operations have been responsible for the degradation of the environment but has adamantly disagreed on the extent the damage to the environment resulting from its activities. Shell alone recorder 3,214 incidents of oil spillage from 1995 to 2004, an average of 300 incidents annually. This has resulted in a spillage of more than 450,000 barrels of oil onto the environment in the Niger Delta and the flaring of large volumes of gas, approximately 604 millions scf daily (SPDC, 2006). Considering that this are figures from only one company, the consequences experienced by the local community in terms of environment, livelihood, climate change or global warming are unimaginable. According to Agagu (2008), negative impacts of the corporate social responsibilities are further illustrated by the social effects they have on the local community. The Nembe case becomes significant once again. The relationship that shell has with the local community via the development programs and its operations have resulted in conflicts being commercialized where groups and individuals constantly fight over the patronage or benefits from shell; funds for community development are misappropriated, mismanaged and embezzled by the leaders or shares amongst cliques and community leaders to the exclusion of the other members of the community. Further negative effects include destroying of community governance by emerging youth groups that usurp the authority and powers of the chieftaincy institutions as well as the exacerbation of several forms of social disorder such as an increase in illiteracy, proliferation of arms, lawlessness, criminality and the disintegration of culture and t radition. These youth groups were apparently armed by the Corporation. Shell sponsor some youth in the community, purchased arms and ammunition for them to fight whoever that is fighting them or protesting for their right from Shell (Tuodolo, 2009, p.538). From 2000 to 2006, the number of intra-communal conflicts numbered 21 with six of these inter-community conflicts being linked to the activities that shell was involved in The oil companies, particularly Shell, Agip and their servicing companies, are central to the crises in the community (Tuodolo, 2009, p.538). The Nembe Indigenes summarizes the social impacts resulting from Shells activities as, These oil or multinationals have thrust a knife in our midst and we have fallen apart. The love for money and our political selfishness have set us against each other and we no longer see ourselves as brothers, fathers, chiefs, sisters, we disregard ourselves for temporary and temporal things, which have led to the formation of nocturnal and clandestine groups which have transformed Nembe to Sicily (Italy). Groups that are sponsored by chiefs, elders, politicians, government agents and the multinationals have succeeded in causing our aged parents and children, while our young men die prematurely in arms struggle, our parents die of heart attack and the children are denied knowledge by preventing them from going to school (Tuodolo, 2009, p.538). And, What wrong has the Nembe man done to Shell and the Federal Government that all these wrongs are visited on him within a decade? (Tuodolo,2009, 538) This continues to raise ethical questions related to the true intentions and the practices of these transnational corporations, the efficacy of their machinery of public relations or the position and campaigns of the civil society actors. This paper attempts to answer the question of dilemmas that the oil and gas industry face in public relations management and ethic by examining the activities of the oil companies in Nigeria. Particular attention is given to the impact of these companies on the communities residing in the oil rich Niger delta region. The paper is based on review of articles that have been written on the matter ranging from academic articles to newspaper articles. METHODOLOGY This study utilizes qualitative content analysis so as to explore the conditions that the oil and gas industry in Nigeria operate in that create the dilemmas in public relations and ethics of practice. This is according to recommendation by Jensen (2002) on qualitative research. The study is iterative/repeat process as this topic has been covered numerous times before. As such, this method allows for an application of analytical procedures and theoretical concepts employed to a variety of empirical domains that is flexible. This discourse will contain information source from academic articles from online journals, press releases and webpage pieces from the oil corporations operating in Nigeria and news paper articles that span the last two decades that have seen the ethical issues and public relations deteriorate as well as receive world wide attention. In addition to these article, particular case study on dilemmas faced by in Particular Shell are employed to give a clearer picture of the situation in Nigeria as well a to provide for a fuller analysis. Sample The method of data collection used in this discourse studies information content in article spanning two decades, from the 1990s to current date. The documentation is comprised of academic articles, magazine and newspaper articles, government reports and civil society articles and reports produced in the contest of normal publicity business to address the crisis facing the oil industry in Nigeria. According to Lindolf Taylor (2002), this ensures that the sources are free of bias from the researcher. A limitation of this method is that it may prove to have a limited or indirect exploratory value for the research questions to be addressed. However, it will be able to fully address the question of ethical and public relations dilemmas faced by the industry. This is because of the intense media civil society and international attention this case has received over the years with particular emphasis being placed on the misdeeds of the oil multinationals operating in the Niger Delta. ANALYSIS The analysis section will focus on a debate that addresses the various issue faced by the oil corporation and in particular Shell in their operations. This will lead up to the various public relations steps and strategies employed by the companies to address their alleged ethical misconduct in the wake of political and economical turmoil allegedly exacerbated by their operations in the country. In their attempt to maintain a public faces, the companies spawned public relations strategies that aimed to portray them as saviors to a people long subjected to poverty as a result of bad governance. This is through the numerous development projects that are operated under the patronage of these companies in the country. On the background of this is the numerous environmental and human right violations that have continued unhindered as a direct or indirect result of these companies continued exploitation of Nigeria natural resources, oil and gas, to meet their bottom line, astronomical profi ts. The case of Ken Saro-Wiwa and the Ogoni People initiated the international concern in the region and offers a backdrop to the origin of the conflict between the oil corporation and government of Nigeria on one hand and the people of the Niger Delta in general on the other. DISCUSSION The debate on dilemmas in public relation and ethics in the oil and gas industry in Nigeria Milton Friedman (1970), a free-market economist, ascertained that a businesss one and only social responsibilities involves the making of profit. This view is less popular in present day business. However, many economists and business leaders still believe that the best way for a company to promote the local communitys social development is comprised simply of increasing the overall level of activities in economy through investment and trade. In taking this view, the administration of revenue generated, environmental standards tolerated of the respect for the human rights in the community residing in the area of operation are simply not relevant. These factors are in fact viewed as hindrances to the corporations main business and in the long run to the countrys social development itself. If standards employed for developed countries are duplicated in the developing countries, then they will simply never catch up, this is because dangerous working conditions, below-market wages that w orkers in third worlds are subjected to are justified as being better than there being no jobs at all. The corporations shareholders make the situation worse by justifiably complaining if the directors pay attention to issues that may negatively impact the companys financial bottom line (Soremekun, 1995). However, this attitude is increasingly changing as the companies come under more pressure from activists and consumers who are worried about the impact globalizations of the economy is having on the worlds poor. In addition, directors of these corporations have come to see that wider issues of social development have a direct or indirect impact on their operations. This trend has brought with it the buzz phrase triple bottom line encompassing social, economic and environmental outcomes. A good reputation for the corporation is seen as a valuable asset as it attracts customers and helps in recruiting competent employees. Good public relations with the local communities promoted by development programs that are properly administered as well as good labor relations minimize the shut-downs that cause protests directed towards the operations of the company. Even though low environmental standards and low wages can in the short-term be useful to the company, in the long run the company mak es more money if it is accountable for its operations. Studies carried out, have not revealed any correlation between the foreign direct investment that oil transnational corporations inject into the developing countries itself and the respect for human rights in these countries. In Nigeria, the presence of the oil multinationals is viewed to have seemingly contributed to promoting the successive military regimes that ruled the country for a long haul. These regimes were responsible fro multi human rights violations in addition to misappropriation of funds meant to promote development. The companies interest should therefore focus on the promotion f steps geared at the positive development of the communities social welfare. They should also minimize their environmental effects while also aiming for their core business, maximizing profits (Uduaghan, 2008). Oil multinational corporations have increasingly become more powerful within the global economies. The companies operating in Nigeria have substantially large global resources than the country itself. This has resulted in the country being almost paralyzed in enforcing international and/or domestic law against these companies. This is especially true when these companies have diplomatic support from the first-world country where the corporate headquarters are located. May of the laws that have been developed to govern the conduct of multinational across the world have been largely opposed to by the developed countries. This is especially because of their provisions/recommendations of treatment of the multinationals by the host countries. An example is the U.N Code of Conduct on Transnational Corporations. As such, no laws are currently legally binding in terms of the public relations responsibilities of the multinationals. Some companies have recognized that it is in their best inter est and have started initiatives to address questions raised regarding their operations. However, human rights and environmental activists have notes that the companies statements of intent are not worth it without the strategies meant to ensure they are implemented. They also call for independent auditing of the human rights and environmental performance. Up to date, no oil corporation, Shell include, has agreed to be subjected to such an audit (Nigerian Tribune, 2008). The experience of Shell in Nigeria offers a glimpse on how an oil transitional corporation ought to learn from a significant sustainability dilemma. In response to these significant challenges, shell setout to develop practices and policies that were designed to address the problems. They included the company engaging the local community the international forum and the civil society in dialog. In addition it began to actively participate in the developments of norms for corporate citizenship (Eyinla Ukpo, 2006). Having operated in the Niger Delta since the 1950s, Shells operations and the influence it had politically in the region only came under scrutiny after the execution of Ken Saro-Wiwa author-activist and a member of MSOP, Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People, in 1995. The author and activist castigated the companys operations in Nigeria, gaining international attention. He highlighted the role that the oil industry had played in the stagnation of the economy of the Delta. The Nigerian economic growth pace has not kept abreast with the growth that the countys oil industry has been able to achieve. The industry is currently able to produce in excess of 2 million barrels of oil daily (Eyinla Ukpo, 2006). Shell has reportedly admitted that the approach it has taken in public relations causes the disorder in the community. The cash payments made, for instance standby labor, access fees to community youths, have seemingly been at the center of inter-community disputed as well as for the distortion of genuine needs of the community. Despite all this, Shell has yet to change its practices although it still claims it is practicing corporate social responsibility (Tuodolo, 2009). According to Birnbaum (1995), the inequitable distribution of the oil revenue, the high rates of poverty coupled with the episodically harsh rule is responsible mainly for spurring the conflict in the Niger Delta. The Human Right Watch (1999) cited that while the people of the Niger Delta have faced the adverse effects of the oil extraction, they have in general also failed to gain from the oil revenue. By galvanizing the up to 500,000 people of the Ogoni-land in MSOP, Saro-Wiwa was able to draw the worlds attention to the grievances of his people. He constantly cites Shells complicity as the symbol of the status quo. Eventually, the federal police forces acted to shutdown MSOP. This saw numerous people being detained, injured or even killed. Nine activists, among them Saro-Wiwa were arrested in 1994. This was allegedly because of murdering four local leaders. All the accused would go on to be executed in November 1995 after court proceedings that the then United Kingdom Prime Minist er John Major termed as judicial murder. (BBC News, 1995). The role that Shell played in the Ogoni incident is a complex one. The company is reported to have sought clemency for the nine accused. In several statements, it lamented about the heavy handedness and the violence that both sides of the conflict in Ogoni-Land had over time displayed (Human Rights Watch, 1995). Contrary to these statements, the company later disclosed it had on several occasions in 1993 made direct payments to the states security forces under duress. Appearing before the U.S House of Representatives International Subcommittee on Africa in 1996, Stephen Mills, the environment and human rights campaign director for the Sierra Club stated that The Sierra Club is of the opinion that Shell should feel considerable responsibility for the death of Ken Saro-Wiwa and the other Ogoni activists. Shells massive pollution, repeated denial of responsibility for it, its refusal to clean up the Ogoni territory, and its appeal to the Nigerian military to silence the protestors is what incited the civil unrest (Sierra Club, 1995). In a recent statement, Mills released a follow-up piece that stated, A peaceful solution to the crisis in the delta seems remote as anger grows over record oil profits amid the striking poverty. The Riyal Dutch Shell earned a whooping 18.5 billion dollars in 2004 yet some villages within sight of the gleaming shell facilities have no electricity or running water. However, the campaign Ken Saro-Wiwa led to hold Shell accountable for their pollution and complicity in human rights violation has not been in vain. After the death of Saro-Wiwa, the company did adopt stronger social and environmental responsibility guidelines. It is up to communities in the delta and groups like mine to make sure that Shell and other oil companies live up to their promises (Sierra Club, 2008). Shell as under severe criticism for the perceived role it played in the events that lead up to Saro-Wiwas death. Amnesty international however recognized the companys willingness to discuss the groups concerns regarding its human rights record. In a report released in 1996, Amnesty International noted that only Shell has responded to its appeal to Shell and other oil transnational companies operating in Nigeria to acknowledge that they have a responsibility to at all costs uphold the human rights under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Despite this, many questions still lingered on the companys operations in the region. The UN Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights issued a report in 1997 calling for attention to be renewed on the persistency of oil spills in the delta region. Some of these spills were as a result of sabotage. The report raised deep concerns about the severe and widespread environmental damage to the River Delete region as a result of the oil o perations and exploration by Shell. The company took account of the issues that were raised and undertook a major review of its internal operations (Newell, 2005). Meanwhile, by the turn of the century, the relationship between Shell and the communities in the oil producing region had worsened since Ken Saro-Wiwa had been executed. This was despite the efforts of the company to improve on Public relations, in particular by increasing its spending on developments and the professionalization of the developmental projects management. It is fair to note that most of the deterioration experienced was as a result of the government failing to respond to the demands that had been presented by the Delta communities rather than by the activities of the company. The continuing dilemmas and problems illustrate just how difficult it is to put the fine words contained in the Statement of General Business Principles into actual practice (Tuodolo, 1999). Shell and public relations in Nigeria Shell has undoubtedly contributed immensely to Nigerias economic growth as well as to the development of the local communities residing in the companys area of operation. Shells activities employ around 12,000 persons as skilled and unskilled labor making it a major employer of labor. The greatest evidence of shells effort to maintain positive public relations are in its development programs in the communities it operates in. Through community development programs, the company contributes to development of education in the local communities. The company achieves this through the provision of scholarships from primary up to university level, to local level, construction of classrooms, provides appliances and equipments and at times pays allowances for teachers in post primary. For some of the communities, shell provides or sponsors training in basic skills such as joinery, mechanics, craftsmanship, tailoring among others, for the indigenous (SPDC, 1999). Shell also plays an active role in several other sectors aimed at community development, for instance, transportation: building jetties, construction of roads, donation of cars and speed-boats; agriculture: donation of equipment for farming, microcredit schemes for the farmers, training of farmers; water: construction of water pipelines, sinking boreholes; electricity: supply of diesel, donations of power plants; and the provision of infrastructures such as land reclamation, shore protection comm

Flood of Epic of Gilgamesh and Book of Genesis of the Holy Bible :: Epic Gilgamesh essays

The Flood of Gilgamesh and Genesis  Ã‚   The Epic of Gilgamesh records a story of a world-wide flood and pre-dates Genesis. So some claim that this invalidates the Genesis record. But P.J. Wiseman presents an interesting theory in this regard in his book Ancient Records and the Structure of Genesis (New York: Thomas Nelson, 1985). He believes that Moses did not write Genesis but rather translated it from ancient stone tablets written in Cuneiform script. The tablets each would have been originally written by eye-witnesses of the particular events, or those who received their information from eye-witnesses. He breaks Genesis into parts according to the phrase "These are the generations" (KJV; "This is the history" - NKJV; "This the account" - NASB; NIV; Gen 2:4; 5:1; 6:9; 10:1; 11:10; 11:27; 25:12,9; 36:1,9; 37:2). He compares the use of this phrase and the structure of each section to the stone tablets written in cuneiform script. Many of these tablets have been discovered and they date to the third millenium BC. Wiseman's theory is that Genesis is translated from individual tablets which would have contained the material before each occurrence of the above phrase. So the narratives of the creation of the universe (Gen 1) and of the Garden of Eden (Gen 2) would have been written on one tablet by Adam as these events were revealed to him by the only Eye-witness of the events, God Himself. The narratives of the Fall and subsequent events would have been written on another tablet by Adam as an eye-witness of the events. Adam then passed each of these tablets on to his descendant Seth. Seth then recorded the events of Gen 5 and passed the tablets to his descendant Noah. Noah then recorded the events of Gen 6-9 and passed the tablets to his descendant Shem, and so one until Joseph. Joseph then recorded the final chapters of Genesis and placed all of the tablets in the library of the pharaohs. Moses then, while in pharaoh’s court, would have had access to these tablets. He then translated them into his native Hebrew. The above theory "fits" with various evidences in the Scriptures. For instance, it would explain such passages as Exod 6:3: "I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My name, LORD [YHWH], I was not known to them." But the Tetragrammaton appears in Genesis, making for an apparent contradiction.

Learning Theories Essay

Lev Vygotsky, born in the U. S. S. R. in 1896, is responsible for the social development theory of learning. He proposed that social interaction profoundly influences cognitive development. Vygotsky’s key point is his belief that biological and cultural development do not occur in isolation. Vygotsky approached development differently from Piaget. Piaget believed that cognitive development consists of four main periods of cognitive growth: sensory motor, preoperational, concrete operations, and formal operations. Piaget’s theory suggests that development has an endpoint in goal. Vygotsky, in contrast, believed that development is a process that should be analyzed, instead of a product to be obtained. Marcy P. Driscoll stated (as cited in Riddle, 1999) that â€Å"Vygotsky believes the development process that begins at birth and continues until death is too complex to be defined by stages†. The major theme of Vygotsky’s theoretical framework is that social interaction plays a fundamental role in the development of cognition. Vygoysky states: â€Å"Every function in the child’s cultural development appears twice: first, on the social level, and later, on the individual level; first between people (interpsychological) and then inside the child (intrapsychological) (Funderstanding, 2001). This applies equally to voluntary attention, to logical memory, and to formation of concepts. All the higher functions originate as actual relationships between individuals. A second aspect of Vygotsky’s theory is the idea that the potential for cognitive development is limited to a certain time span that he calls the â€Å"zone of proximal development† (ZPD). Vygotsky believed that this life long process of development was dependent on social interaction and that social learning actually leads to cognitive development (Kearsley, 1998). Vygotsky describes it as â€Å"the distance between the actual development level as determined by independent problem solving and the level of potential development as determined through Learning Theories 3 problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration with more capable peers† (Funderstanding, 2001). In other words, a student can perform a task under adult guidance or with peer collaboration that could not be achieved alone. The Zone of Proximal Development bridges the gap between what is known and what can be known. Vygotsky claimed that learning occurred in this zone. Therefore, Vygotsky focused on the connections between people and the cultural context in which they act and interact in shared experiences. According to Vygotsky, humans use tools that develop from a culture, such as speech and writing, to mediate their social environments. Initially, Children develop these tools to serve solely as social functions, ways to communicate needs. Vygotsky believed that the internalization of these tools led to higher thinking skills (Riddle, 1999). When Piaget observed young children participating in egocentric speech in their preoperational stage, he believed it was a phase that disappeared once the child reached the stage of concrete operations. Driscoll states (as cited in Riddle, 1999) â€Å"in contrast, Vygotsky viewed this egocentric speech as a transition from social speech to internalized thought†. Thus, Vygotsky believed that thought and language could not exist without each other. Vygotsky’s theory was an attempt to explain consciousness as the end product of socialization. For example, in the learning of language, our first vocal noises with friends or adults are for the purpose of communication, but once mastered they become internalized and allow â€Å"inner speech†. Traditionally, schools have not promoted environments in which the students play an active role in their education and in the education of their friends. Vygotsky’s theory, however, requires the teacher and students to play untraditional roles as they collaborate with each other. Instead of a teacher dictating the lessons to students and later evaluate them, a teacher should collaborate with her students in order to create meaningful ways that students can make their own evaluation. Learning then becomes a reciprocal experience for the students and the teacher. Learning Theories 4. The physical classroom, based on Vygotsky’s theory, would provide clustered desks or tables and work space for peer instruction, collaboration, and small group instruction. Like the environment, the instructional design of material would be structured to promote and encourage student interaction and collaboration. Thus, the classroom becomes a community of learning. Because Vygotsky asserts that cognitive change occurs within the Zone of Proximal development, instruction would be designed to reach a developmental level that is just above the student’s current developmental level. Vygotsky proclaims, â€Å"learning which is oriented toward developmental levels that have already been reached is ineffective from the view point of the child’s overall development. It does not aim for a new stage of the developmental process, but rather lags behind this process† (Social Development, 1996). Appropriation is necessary for cognitive development within the zone of proximal development. Individuals participating in peer collaboration or guided teacher instruction must share the same focus in order to access the zone. Samuel J. Hausfather states (as cited in Riddle, 1999), â€Å"joint attention and shared problem solving is needed to create a process of cognitive, social, and emotional interchange†. Furthermore, it is essential that the partners be on different developmental levels. In addition, the partner that is on the higher level needs to be aware of his partner’s lower level. If this does not occur, or if one partner continually dominates, the interaction is less successful. Scaffolding and reciprocal teaching are effective strategies to access the zone. Scaffolding requires the teacher to provide students the opportunity to extend the current skills and knowledge. Hausfather reports (as cited in Riddle, 1999) â€Å"the teacher must engage students’ interests, simplify tasks so they are manageable, and motivate students to pursue the instructional goal. In addition, the teacher must look for discrepancies between students’ efforts and the solution, control for frustration and risk, and model an idealized version of the act†. Learning Theories 5 Reciprocal teaching allows for the creation of a dialogue between students and teachers. This two-way communication becomes an instructional strategy by encouraging students to go beyond answering and discussing questions. A study (as cited in Riddle, 1999) demonstrated the Vygotskian approach with reciprocal teaching methods in their successful program to teach reading strategies. The teacher and students alternated turns leading small group discussions on reading. After modeling four reading strategies, students began to assume the teaching role. Results of this study showed significant gains over other instructional strategies. Cognitively Guided Instruction is another strategy to implement Vygotsky’s theory. This strategy involves the teacher and students exploring math problems and then sharing their different problem solving strategies in an open dialogue (Riddle, 1999). Vygotsky’s social development theory challenges traditional teaching methods. Historically, schools have been organized around recitation teaching. According to Hausfather, (as cited in Riddle, 1999) â€Å"the teacher disseminates knowledge to be memorized by the students, who in turn, recite the information back to the teacher†. However, the studies described above offer empirical evidence that learning, based on the social development theory, facilitates cognitive development over other instructional strategies (Riddle, 1999). School structure does not reflect the rapid changes that society is experiencing. Opportunities for social interaction have greatly increased with the introduction and integration of computer technology. Therefore, the social context for learning is transforming as well. Learning relationships can now be formed from distances through cyberspace, whereas collaboration and peer instruction was once only possible in shared physical space (Bacalarski, 1994). Computer technology is a cultural tool that students can use to mediate and internalize their learning. According to Kathryn Crawford (as cited in Riddle, 1999) â€Å"recent research suggest changing the Learning Theories 6 learning contexts with technology is a powerful learning activity†. If schools continue to resist structural change, students will not be as prepared as they should be for the world. Lev Vygotsky lived during the Russian Revolution, a time of great change in his culture. His theory was that biological and cognitive development does not happen apart from each other. These two developments sustain and grow from each other. This is when learning takes place. Because of this theory, his environment of change was a great influence in his own cognitive processes. Learning Theories 7 References Bacalarski, M. C. , (1994). Vygotsky’s Developmental Theories and the Adulthood of Computer Mediated Communication: a Comparison and an Illumination. Retrieved November 7, 2003 from http://psych. hanover. edu/vygotsky/bacalar. html. Funderstanding, (2001). Vygotsky and Social Cognition. Retrieved November 7, 2003 from http://www. funderstanding. com/vygotsky. cfm. Kearsley, G. , (1998). Social Development (Vygotsky). Retrieved November 9, 2003 from http://members. aol. com/daidpeal/vygotsky. html. Riddle, E. M. , (1999). Lev Vygotsky’s Social Development Theory. Retrieved November 7, 2003 from www. kihd. gmu. edu/immersion/knowledgebase/theorists/constructivism/vygotsky.

The Whole Language Approach To Learning

The Whole Language Approach To Learning There are a lot of specific methods and approaches to teaching. There is no one particular method affirmed by all the teachers, therefore the vast majority of ideas exists. The differences in perception of the ways for teaching lead to the presence of various methods to learning.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Whole Language Approach To Learning specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The Whole Language ideology is a particular method for teaching which deserves attention due to its peculiarity. The main purpose of this discussion is to consider the problem of the Whole Language in detail, referring to the system of reading as the particular method for helping students understand the nature of language as a whole. Considering the approach under discussion, it may be stated that it is based on the idea that the language is a whole and it should be taught as a whole. Traditional system of teaching presupposes division of the learning procedure into several segments which are given to children separately. The peculiarity of the Whole Language approach is that students are offered knowledge into one specific approach which combines necessary items that help students obtain necessary knowledge (Çekià § 223). The whole language approach is based on a number of particular principles which help many students learn languages as a system of knowledge. Thus, the main principles of the whole language instructions are as follows, (1) the lessons are run from the whole to the pieces, (2) lessons are learner-oriented, (3) the lessons are meaningful and purposeful for students, (4) students are involved into social interaction, (5) simultaneous development of receptive and generative competencies is observed, (6) in case a foreign language is taught, native language should be used for instruction, and (7) â€Å"teachers should help second language learners decrease their affective filters† (Adunyarit tigun n.p.). Much research has been conducted in the sphere of whole language study system and the results are rather impressive. Those who were offered this particular system made remarkable process in their education. Therefore, Ahmed is sure that writing skills are developed better if this complex system is used. Many scholars point at the fact that students express interest in studying foreign languages if this particular approach is implemented. One of the main problems in learning a foreign language is the inability to use this language.Advertising Looking for essay on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Students are to study different aspects of language and after these boring exercises students may be able to talk. The whole language approach states that students will have an opportunity to become interested in language earlier before they will be able to talk (Schwarzer and Luke 87). Theme studies, pr ocess writing and literature-based breading combine the whole language approach. It means that performing a particular task students are involved several processes which help them learn information faster and better (Lamme and Beckett n.p.). Having considered the main idea of the whole language approach to the education, it is possible to point at the advantages and disadvantages of this system. As it has already been mentioned, the difference between the traditional education and teaching children with the help of the whole language may perfectly underline the pros and cons for using the whole languages. First of all, it should be stated that while writing students just see the graphical correspondence of the letters, while reading aloud they do not involve thinking and creativity and while thinking and answering the question students are unable to apply their writing skills. The whole language approach is the only educational instruction which is ready to combine all of these comp etences. This is one of the main values of the system and the reasons why it is better from the traditional one (LeDoux n.p.). One of the main disadvantages of the whole language approach is the absence of the sufficient explicit phonics instruction. Being apparently new system which is not involved largely, many teachers do not want to be bothered with the innovation. However, referring to Schwarzer and Luke’s point of view in the relation to the whole language systems implementation, the following principles should be considered.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Whole Language Approach To Learning specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Language arts should be integrated, â€Å"language is not an end in itself, but a means to an end† (Schwarzer and Luke 95), students should take part in literacy events and be circled with authentic print, students learn new information by doing a complex of activities an d they are personally responsible for the knowledge they will obtain. Assessment is an inevitable part of the whole language system (Schwarzer and Luke 95). Additionally, traditional system of education is based on teaching students literacy and language. The Whole Language approach is much broader in this concept as depending on the books accepted for reading, students are taught social justice and other particular notions. Using the whole language approach, students are taught â€Å"a range of social and cultural practices which assist students to question the truth of texts, to ask different questions about texts, and indeed to seek out conflicting texts† (Taylor and Otinsky 71). Ethical and moral issues should be met while implementing the whole language approach (Taylor 106). Therefore, it may be concluded that the choice of the books for reading should be appropriate. To help teachers understand what kind of books should be used, this list of the books for reading for t he sixth grade should be checked. The selection of the books for reading is based on the principles of the whole language learning approach and the peculiarity of teaching students. It is important to remember that the support of speech, language and communication are the central goals for teaching students at the sixth grade and the use of the whole language approach may be an ideal method (Leyden, Stackhouse and Szczerbinski 207; Jones n.p.).Advertising Looking for essay on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The following list of books is provided with the purpose to inform teachers which books should be covered in the program. The choice of the books is based on their usefulness in the whole language approach. Therefore, the following sources should be considered: The Golden Dream of Carlo Chuchio by Lloyd Alexander, No Castles Here by A. C. E. Bauer, Getting to first base with Danalda Chase by Matt Beam, My name is Henry Bibb: a story of slavery and freedom by Afua Cooper, The Million Dollar Putt by Dan Gutman, A Taste for Red by Lewis Harris, The Genie Scheme by Kimberly K. Jones, Lost Time by Susan Maupin Schmid Its Only Temporary by Sally Warne Closed for the Season by Mary Downing Hahn. These books should be read by the sixth grade students as the part of their whole language approach as there is much to discuss in these novels and stories. Adunyarittigun, Dumrong. Whole language: A whole new world for ESL programs. (1993): ERIC. Web. Ahmed, Abdelhamid Mohamed Abdelhamid. The E ffect of using the whole language approach on developing some composition writing skills in English for experimental secondary students In Egypt. Online Submission (2006): ERIC. Web. Çekià §, Ahmet. The basis and applications of the whole language approach to ELT. Educational Sciences Series 62.1A (2010): 223-229. Print. Jones, Jeffrey M. Learning to read and whole language ideology. Web. Lamme, Linda Leonard and Cecilia Beckett. (1992). â€Å"Whole language in an elementary school library media center.† ERIC Digest. Web. LeDoux, Amanda. Investigating the implementation of whole language: Strengths and weaknesses. Online Submission (2007). ERIC. Web. Leyden, Jenny, Stackhouse, Joy and Marcin Szczerbinski. Implementing a whole school approach to support speech, language and communication: Perceptions of key staff. Child Language Teaching and Therapy 27.2 (2011): 203-222. Schwarzer, David and Chris Luke. Inquiry cycles in a whole language foreign language class: some theor etical and practical insights. Texas Papers In Foreign Language Education 6.1 (2001): 83-99. Taylor, Monica, and Gennifer Otinsky. Becoming whole language teachers and social justice agents: Pre-service teachers inquire with sixth graders. International Journal of Progressive Education 3.2 (2007): 68-82. Taylor, Monica. Whole language teaching, whole-hearted practice: looking back, looking forward. New York: Peter Lang, 2007.