Physics Of Microbiology For Scientists - 954 Words

It is common in the field of microbiology for scientist to need to quantify bacteria. A way to do this is via the production of CO2. Carbon dioxide can be produced as a byproduct of cells performing regular respiration and decomposition activities. For microbes to live and grow successfully they need an adequate source of carbon. The microbes can either produce this source themselves making them autotrophic or receive the carbon from and outside source making them heterotrophic. Without a proper carbon source microbes like bacteria would not be able to function properly and produce several vital components for life including lipids, DNA, sugar, and proteins. All carbon sources are not created equally, not all of them can be used in the same chemical pathway. Glycolysis requires the use of glucose whereas the citric acid cycle can use citrate directly. Lactose is an extremely complex sugar and must be broken down a number of times before it is usable in the process of glycolysi s. Succinate and acetate just like citrate can enter directly in to the citric acid cycle or it can also be converted into Acetyl-CoA. Due to the nature of these cycles and how the carbon gets broken down some carbon sources are naturally better than others. Glucose is the best theoretical source with the ability to produce around four CO2 molecules. The second best would be lactose that could produce the same amount of carbon dioxide but at a slower rate. This is followed by citrate whichShow MoreRelatedThe Occupational Characteristics of Microbiology761 Words   |  3 Pagesmath credits and 8 physics credits. The job opportunities that become open to the holder of a B.S. range across many fields, including education, health and medicine, and a plethora of research opportunities. Just some of the many opportunities open to biology grads include laboratory technicians, researchers, pharmacists, teachers, doctors, and microbiologists. The opportunities change as a biology major may decide to master in a more specific science of biology, and microbiology is one popular fieldRead MoreNuclear Physics : A Scientist989 Words   |  4 PagesA scientist suspects that if he or she continues to research nuclear physics, his or her country will use the findings to produce a weapon capable of annihilating thousands or even millions of innocent civilians. The scientist, however, strongly believes that a weapon of this magnitude should remain nonexistent. Should he or she continue with this research even though it could be used to create a weapon of mass destruction? The scientist absolutely should. A scientist has no moral obligations inRead MoreRole As A Part Time Science Skill Tutor864 Words   |  4 Pagesprofessional member of the Association of Science Education as a registered scientist since 2012. Science has a big influence on me in emplyment and in leisure and I have been involved in the science field since finishing my degree in 2006 in industry and been committed to science in education for seven years, as a science technician, currently tutor, a volunteer for the NWT and member of an education discussion group for the microbiology society’s online content for schools. I want to teach science inRead MoreLouis Pasteur in Public Health1574 Words   |  7 Pagesmany talents; his greatest gift was his intelligence and patience without it the medical field and the public health system would not be where it is today. Through his patience and diligence Pasteur was able to make several advances in chemistry, microbiology, immunizations and preservations. In 1857 he developed the Germ Theory of fermentation and putrefaction, these theories assisted in the surgical revolution of antiseptics developed by Joseph Lister. He has laid the foundations for epidemiologyRead MoreLouis Pasteur : The Real Pastor Of Science1520 Words   |  7 Pagespassed and earned a general science degree in 1842. After two tries to enter, Louis was now in École Normale Supà ©rieure which is like graduate school in today’s world (Tames n. pag.). He then received a Bachelor of Science license and began teaching physics at the Collà ¨ge de Tournon. Louis did not stay t here long as he joined Antoine Jà ¨rome Balard at the École Normale Supà ©rieure where he began his research and wrote his theses. In 1848, he was a chemistry professor at the University of Strasbourg (â€Å"LouisRead MoreThe Contributions Of Louis Pasteur1159 Words   |  5 PagesAlthough Louis was an average student when he was a teenager, when he was exposed to science he knew he had found his calling in life. In 1838, Louis went to college where he studied to become a science teacher. He earned degrees in mathematics, physics, and chemistry and became a chemistry professor at the University of Strasbourg. While he was teaching at the university, he met and fell in love with Marie Laurent and they married in the same year on May 29, 1849. Louis went on to have five childrenRead MoreMaster At Cambridge University From 1959-1966, And The President Of The International Union Of Physics970 Words   |  4 Pagesmaster at Cambridge University from 1959-1966, and was the presi dent of the International Union of Physics from 1951 through to 1957. (Sir Nevill F. Mott - Biographical, 2015, para.1-3). In 1977, Mott received the Noble Prize for Physics, an honor which he shared with two other physicists. The prize was awarded for theoretical studies of the structure of the electron, regarding magnetic and disordered systems (Sir Neill F. Mott - Facts, 2015, para. 4). Ernest T. S. Walton was born October 6, 1931Read MoreAnimals And Animals Of Animals Essay911 Words   |  4 Pagesanatomy, physiology, zoology, microbiology, animal science, math, humanities, and social science are typically required and/or suggested for entrance to a veterinary medical college. General biology, organic chemistry, physics, biochemistry, English, math, and humanities/social sciences courses are required for admissions into the VA-MD College of Veterinary Medicine; there are also some suggested courses such as cell biology, comparative anatomy, genetics, microbiology, nutrition, and physiology (VA-MDRead More Louis Pasteur Essay1361 Words   |  6 Pagesexample of a truly gifted person who made many wildly diverse discoveries in many different areas of science. He was a world-renowned French chemist and biologist whose work paved the way for branches of science and medicine such as stereochemistry, microbiology, virology, immunology, and molecular biology. He also p roved the germ theory of disease, invented the process of pasteurization, fermentation, and developed vaccines for many diseases, including rabies. Pasteur was born on December 27, 1822Read MoreRoche Group Application Report1023 Words   |  5 PagesDear Members of the Selection Committee: I am writing to apply for the position of Scientist at The Roche Group. I am currently a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Chemistry Department at Reed College. Before joining Reed College, I was a Senior Research Associate at the CUNY Institute for Macromolecular Assemblies and an Adjunct Assistant Professor at City College of New York. I obtained my Ph.D. in Chemistry (specializing in Molecular Biophysics) at the City University of New York (CUNY) in

Military Policy And Foreign Policy - 706 Words

As nations mature into international relevance, the pressure to consider defense and military strategy in foreign policy grows. These modern tensions have made contemporary countries orient themselves to be more militaristic, embracing international affairs and dedicating themselves to armed preparedness with varying degrees of fervor. While most industrialized nations have acknowledged the necessity of a robust military, all but one restrict their buildup to a reasonable level. America consistently outranks its international rivals in terms of defense budgets, the purest example of exorbitant militarism in existence. China takes second place, but its military spending needs to be added to the next six countries on the list to match Uncle†¦show more content†¦America remains in a state of perpetual war. National policy has holistically embraced a Hobbesian worldview – one where life is solitary and trying, a justification for our excessive individualistic approach to defense. In the end, we can only rely on ourselves. This interpretation of militarism contrasts starkly with the way European countries have evolved since world war two. Devastated by the environmental carnage sustained throughout the international conflict, Europe, acting communally as an entire continent, dedicated itself to perpetual peace. While the amounts European nations set aside for military spending are dwarfed by American, Chinese, and Russian defense budgets, the type s of investments they make drastically stand out. Instead of pursuing technological advancement and developing better ways to kill other people, the European Union has focused on cooperating with the abilities of other nations to implement humanitarian interventions (Rifkin). Beside spending less overall, Europe proportionally allots noticeably fewer funds for defense than other nations. Since Truman, American military spending comprised over half of all proposed federal budgets, matching other heavily militarized nations such as Russia in consistently using around four percent of its gross domesticShow MoreRelatedThe Military Industrial Complex On Foreign Policy Decision Making Essay1429 Words   |  6 Pagesof unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military industrial complex† (Eisenhower 1961). Despite being a warning from so long ago, time has vindicated Eisenhower’s words. From the time of Eisenhower to present day, the United States has seen an unprecedented growth of the power, size, and influence of the military industrial complex. Today, the military industrial complex exerts great pressure on the foreign policy decision making process of the United States government. ThisRead MoreThe War On Terror : An Example Of All Three Foreign Policy Tools Is Afghanistan Essay1303 Words   |  6 PagesThe War on Terror required utilizing pre-emptive war, regime change, and unilateralism. An example of all three foreign policy tools is Afghanistan. Bush took a hard line approach with the Taliban government of Afghanistan, who had a semi-friendly working relationship with Osama bin Laden’s terrorist group, al Qaeda, by declaring that if the Taliban government did not hand over bin Laden, the U.S. would invade Afghanistan. The War on Terror created a renewed moralism that had effectively disappearedRead MoreThe Three Branches of the United States Government913 Words   |  4 Pagesresponsibilities to govern the nation, both domestically and abroad. In terms of foreign policy, Congress and the President have different powers that ensure that each branch works in conjunction in handling foreign affairs. The President, as Commander-in-Chief, commands the armed forces and can negotiate and sign treaties. The President also has the power to recognize foreign countries and nominate U.S. diplomats to foreign countries, a key role in the representation of the U.S. abroad. The PresidentRead MoreLeadership : The Public Policy Process1299 Words   |  6 PagesRunning Head: LEADERSHIP 1 Leadership in the Public Policy Process Sharon Lockhart Foundations of Public Administration/PPA601 Dr. LaQuita Gray-Baker April 3, 2017Read MoreForeign Policy And The Middle East1107 Words   |  5 PagesAmerican foreign policy and what it entails. Foreign policy of the United States determines how we interact with other nations and also the standards or guidelines for these interactions. Foreign policy is designed to protect America and ensure our safety both domestically and globally. There has been an ongoing struggle involving American foreign policy in the Middle East and specifically the war on terrorism. Conflict in the Middle East has been at the top of the American Foreign policy agenda forRead MoreEssay on Somali People and Djibouti640 Words   |  3 PagesRed Sea and Gulf of Aden, is strategically important to the U. S. Foreign policy. All instruments of U.S National Power – diplomacy, information, military and economic – are exercised as part of a deliberate and sustained ‘whole of government’ approach. The U. S. Ambassador to Djibouti, the Honorable Geeta Pasi, leads a State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Team in enabling U. S. Strategic policy vision in HOA, while enabling and collaborating with Djibouti in strengtheningRead MoreTheodore Roosevelt And William Howard Taft1501 Words   |  7 Pagesnarratives of their tenures to truly delineate their comparability. Through a comprehensive analysis of these two leaders on the subjects of foreign policy, we begin to parse out many similarities and differences between these two early 20th century leaders. First, we will look at aspects of Theodore Roosevelt’s presidency as they pertain to issues of foreign policy and diplomacy. Famous for his â€Å"cowboy demeanor† and unwavering bravado, Roosevelt was once quoted talking about his diplomatic philosophyRead MorePresident Obama And President Bush879 Words   |  4 Pagesissues focused on the topic of foreign policy. President Obama and Bush had to deal with continuous threats and problems arising from the tumultuous political climate of the Middle East. The way each president saw it fit to eliminate the problems was quite different as, President Bush often saw it more appropriate to use military force in the intervention of these issues, where as President Obama is more likely to take a diplomatic approach before resorting to military intervention. Regardless of theseRead MoreThe Future Effect Of The Election Of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau1131 Words   |  5 PagesThis political study will define the future effect of the election of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in terms of the Canadian foreign policy in the restructuring of military intervention in foreign affairs and the pro-trade globalization mandates of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Trudeau’s election defines the overriding political agenda of the Liberal Party of Canada to stop ineffective bombing missions in Syria and Iraq, yet to maintain special forces troops to better manage the war againstRead MoreRussia QA Essay1604 Words   |  7 Pagesideology, national power and international relationships as well as foreign policy. The paper will also describe the Russian commitments and its national security relationships with the United States. Question one. National purpose of Russia Russia is keen to increase her economic growth, protect the security of her people and safeguard vital markets for her products. The country has managed to use technology in developing military influence to protect her people and enhance power and influence in

Work Life Balance of Independent Professionals

Question: Discuss about the Work Life Balance of Independent Professionals. Answer: Introduction The business world has been moving faster in this scenario. The individuals face many difficulties in maintaining the work-life balance. Business companies tend to focus on the workforce with greater efficiency level for meeting the business objectives. On the other hand, the employees put their efforts to achieve their personal and professional targets (Wiese, 2015). Every individual goes through different types of occupational stress in the professional life. Maintaining work-life balance is much helpful for the individual in increasing the productivity. The synchronisation between the professional and personal life is important for achieving the pre-determined goals. I have selected my future profession in the Human Resource Management field. The literature study will explore the underlying concept of work-life balance and its importance in the individuals professional lives. The appropriate methodology will be applied to conduct the research in a sequential way. The enriched information extracted from the literature study will be helpful for deriving the ideas about the subject matter. Moreover, the information is useful for identifying the method of overcoming the potential challenges. Project Context I have selected my future profession in human resource management field. It is to be indicated that the HRM process is an integral part of an organisation. People management is the most important function of human resource management. The efficient human resource manager implements the relevant strategy that brings out the skilled performance outcome. The individuals work with potentiality in order to accomplish their personal and professional goals (Hougaard, Carter Coutts, 2016). The HRM notions are concentrating on three basic meanings, which are as follows: 1.Employees should be treated as the valuable parts of an organisation. Hence, it is necessary to invest efforts and times to implement people management initiatives. 2.The organisation should not treat the employees as the materialistic resources since they are the major requirements for achieving the business goals. In fact, it is necessary to pay attention towards the basic needs and requirements of the individuals to increase the organisational productivity (Isaacs, 2016). 3.The organisation needs to consider the stakeholders as the individuals with social realities, business functionalities, and units. The efficient human resource management follows the discipline for participating in the organisational functionalities. The remarkable contribution of the human resource management helps the organisation to grow further. In fact, the HR department guides and directs the individuals in the proper way that can lead towards success (Shanafelt et al., 2015). The most important responsibility of a human resource manager is to provide the proper training and development sessions to the employees for increasing their productivity level. Time management is essential for an organisation since individuals deal with different types of jobs. The human resource management provides the proper guidance to the individuals to manage their work schedule within the allocated time. The HR managers have to face some of the recognisable challenges due to the continuous changes in business demands. If the companies are unable to fulfil the needs of the workers, it will be challenging enough in retaining the employees for the future prospects. The HR managers thus have to pay the attention towards such demands and complete the business functionalities on time. It is important to manage the functionalities within a proper given time. It helps in keeping balance between the personal and professional life. The employees are expected to complete the allocated tasks within the given time. When the employees can keep the balance between their working life and personal life, they can pay more attention towards their responsibilities in their professional lives. In order to be a proper professional, the primary responsibility is to recognise my role within an organisational scenario. Moreover, as a manager, I need to be capable enough to see the big picture and adjust the actions accordingly. The professional person is always willing to help other associates for the job, which is sometimes beyond the schedule (Beddoes Pawley, 2014). While working in an organisation, I should be competent enough to manage the workforce and work together as a team. A competent professional has to be much trustworthy. It is seen that the workers are sometimes dependent on the manager as they structure the functionalities by concentrating on the time limitation. Hence, a professional person needs to adopt such attribute to manage the workforces associated with the organisation. Background of the Issue The work life balance is well maintained when an individual can gain the proper stability between the personal and professional life. Beauregard (2014) pointed out that the current competitive business scenario is continuously changing. Accordingly, the business demands are also changing within an organisation or an industry. The individuals stay more involved to achieve their targets in this challenging scenario. In many of the cases, it is noticed that the individuals fail to organise the different works within the given schedule. As a result, they are unable to maintain the balance between their personal and professional life (Fiksenbaum, 2014). In fact, due to the heavy work load and mismanagement of time, individuals are unable to pay attention towards their personal lives. In western culture, maintaining the work-life balance is mostly spoken out since they are well aware of the individual needs. It is believed that maintaining the stability between work life and personal life helps the individuals to stay more attentive towards organisational functionalities. In order to remain more competitive, the employers in the western countries pay attention towards fulfilling the needs of the individuals (Deery Jago, 2015). The study will thus focus on relevant strategy that helps the individuals to keep the balance between their professional and personal goals. Research Aim The research aims to focus on the concept of work-life balance that is much talked in west. The study also attempts to identify the potential challenges faced by the human resource management to improve the culture of maintaining work life balance. Research Objectives The objectives of the research are: To understand the importance of maintaining the work life balance in an organisational scenario To critically evaluate the reasons for maintaining work life balance more significantly by the organisations in western countries To recognise the potential challenges faced by the human resource management to implement the strategic process of maintaining work life balance Concept and Importance of Work Life Balance Work life balance is one of the most discussed in an organisational context. In current times, the technological advancements are changing the business requirements in a drastic way. In fact, due to such frequent changes in job demands, the competitive scenario is also increasing accordingly. Haar et al., (2014) pointed out that employees provide the best effort to shape their careers and meet the professional goals. In most of the cases, due to repeated work pressure, people fail to manage the quality time that should be invested on their personal lives. In fact, it becomes much difficult for many individuals to separate the professional functionalities from the personal activities. Lyness and Judiesch (2014) pointed out that employees often fail to manage their time as per their work schedule. They often face difficulties to separate their private times for families and friends since they stay involved with professional activities. In such cases, the human resource management is ex pected to take active participation in managing the entire workforce and help them in scheduling their tasks within the allocated time. Comparison between the eastern and western perspectives of Work-Life Balance It is to be indicated that the work-life balance is a much debated concept discussed in the organisational scenario. The employers in different countries take the diverse initiatives to promote the work-life balance. Edson, Henning Sankaran, (2016) argued that the employers in western countries accept the work-life balance as one of the most fruitful techniques of achieving the competitive position. The comparison between the eastern and western perspectives will thus provide the ideas about the necessity of work-life balance in individuals life. Work Life Balance in Eastern Countries It is noticed that employees in eastern counties work for long hours in a week to meet the business goals. Therefore, it becomes quite difficult for them to extract time for their personal interests. Nakamura and Csikszentmihalyi (2014) implied that the employees must provide a large chunk of time in order to participate in a competitive scenario of the business world. In Singapore, employees work extra hours to compensate the expensive lifestyle in current times (Lewis et al., 2016). The young generation think that if they provide the extra effort in working and meeting the professional target, it will be helpful for their bosses to adopt the healthy work-life balance. In Korea, it is noticed that the fathers spend most of their times at their workplace whereas the mothers stay busy raising children and managing the household activities (Nakamura Csikszentmihalyi, 2014). Therefore, the women have to face trouble in establishing their careers in professional lives. The successful business stories in western countries instigate the employers in eastern countries to take more strategic approaches for remaining competitive. The employees are thus expected to provide their extra time and effort to match the competition level and set the high-standard business. On the other hand, in usual cases, it is noted that the employers in western countries take the work-life balance as the fruitful technique to engage the employees with proper job satisfaction. When employees can avail the opportunity to spend sufficient time on their personal lives, it generates the sense of job satisfaction (Lewis et al., 2016). More specifically, the instability between personal and professional life distracts the mind from the ambition. The continuous works in fact create the health issues for the employees. However, it is also noted that some of the organisations in western countries still have the long working hours in a week. Work Life Balance in Western Countries It is notice that the employees in Canada face many struggles in keeping the balance between their personal and professional lives. Sanduleasa and Matei (2014) opined that many employees are forced to take the official works to their home. The lack of flexible working hours leads to employee absenteeism and lower productivity. In America, there are no mandatory paternal leaves for the male workers. They are usually forced to overwork. United States holds the largest ranking work weeks for the single mothers. According to Lirio (2015), in western countries, the organisations contribute much in promoting the work life balance, which is much helpful in gaining the competitive position. As per the western perspectives, reading books is much helpful in increasing focus towards the personal life. It makes the people more attentive and satisfied towards the work life as well. The above analysis specifies that the work-life balance in the western countries become troublesome sometimes. However, the employers take the appropriate initiatives to promote the method of maintaining work-life balance. It is still argued that the human resource management is providing much effort to promote work-life balance in western countries (Hari, 2016). The technique is much useful for making the employees more focused towards work during their official hours. When they complete their works on time, it becomes easier for them to spend sufficient time for their recreational activities. The human resource management even has to face some of the potential challenges to promote the work-life balance within the organisation. Role of HRM in promoting Work-Life Balance among the Employees The human resource managers in the organisation play the vital role in promoting the perfect organisational culture. An efficient human resource department is always concerned about the employee welfare that can increase the overall organisational productivity (Allen et al., 2013). Moreover, the HR manager realises that the stabilised work life balance leads towards organisational success. In current advanced world of business, it is noticed that the job demands and frequently changing. The employees sometimes have to deal with innovative jobs that consume more time to complete. Therefore, in usual cases, they fail to manage the time within the schedule and invest maximum time in achieving the professional target. The lack of flexible work schedule is also another major concern that creates trouble for the HR manager (Annink, 2016). Moreover, during an emergency situation, the employees have to complete the extra works. Consequently, they receive lesser time for their families and fr iends. Increasing work life conflicts are affecting the efficiency level of the employees. The companies need to focus on the regulations imposed by the government to promote work-life balance among the employees. The HR manager needs to allocate the particular timing for each of the activities (Michel, Bosch Rexroth, 2014). If the employees follow such scheduled time, they can maintain the stability between professional and personal life. Gaps in the literature The literature study provides the idea about the conceptual analysis of work life balance by comparing the eastern and western perspectives. However, the literature fails to address the significant regulations that can improvise the work life balance strategies in the organisations. In fact, there is no source of verifying the authenticity of the gathered information. The current business world has been undergoing the drastic and frequent changes. Hence, the lack of the updated information is also one of the significant limitations in the literature. Research Methodology The research methodology helps in conducting a research study in a structured and sequential way. The use of the proper research philosophy, design, and approach is the basic requirement to formulate a proper research paper. The research philosophy is classified into three major divisions, such as positivism, realism, and interpretivism. The research is based on the identification of the hidden truth that describes the subject matter with more details. Positivism philosophy is used for this research study because it deals with the truth and free from human interpretations (Creswell, 2013). On the other hand, the research approaches are divided into two divisions, such as deductive and inductive approach. The study deals with the inductive approach that helps in formulating the theoretical concept by gathering the enriched knowledge about the subject matter. The research design is also classified into three divisions, such as exploratory, explanatory, and descriptive (Bryman Bell, 20 15). The study explores the ideas of the importance of work-life balance in western countries and the role of HR managers in promoting the method among the employees. Hence, the application of the exploratory research design would be justified for this research study. The research study will be conducted by gathering the secondary information. The secondary data collection process concentrates on revealing the enriched data gathered from the secondary sources. The information will be collected from the books, journals, websites, and peer reviewed journals. By the application of the proper methodology, the information can be explored to understand the underlying concept. The further section of the study will provide the thematic analysis of the gathered data and link the findings with the information derived from literature review. Gantt chart Activities Week 1-2 Week 3-5 Week 6 Week 7-9 Week 10 Week 11-12 Week 13-14 Selecting the Topic Layout Development Review of Literature Research Plan Development Research Process Selection Data Collection Technique Selection Data Analysis Technique Selection Data Findings Conclusion Final Submission Table 1: Gantt chart (Source: Created by Author) Findings from the Secondary Research The obtained idea from the secondary research study emerges several themes based on the objectives of the study. These themes are as follows: Theme 1: Importance of Work Life Balance The volatile business market comprises more challenges for the working professionals. The individuals tend to focus more on achieving the professional targets and shift their focus from the personal lives. In most of the cases, people remain frustrated that may lead towards health issues. The physical and mental stresses due to extreme work pressure sometimes distract the employees from their focused goals. As implied in the literature study, spending time with families and friends help the employees to be more energetic to perform the professional tasks. Moreover, the recreation times releases the stress, which is beneficial for the employees to work in an energetic way. Therefore, it is much necessary to maintain the sequence and stability between the personal and professional life. Theme 2: Work Life Balance is much talked about in Western countries In keeping pace with the industrial revolution, it is necessary to pay attention towards separating the professional and personal life. The employers in the western countries usually engage the employees for more working hours. However, the HR practices are focusing on promoting the work life balance culture in the organisations. Wattis, Standing and Yerkes (2013) implied that when the employees can provide sufficient time to their families, it will energise them to become more attentive towards their professional life. The literature study specifies that the efficient HR manager helps in guiding the workers to manage the time properly for performing each of the tasks. Completing those tasks on time helps in keeping balance between professional and personal life. Therefore, the human resource management has to take the responsibility to establish the proper time management practices among the workers. The development of the technologies is also one of the major reasons for inefficien t management of work-life balance. The workplace ethics maintained in the western countries is also resolving the issues related to the inefficient time management. Theme 3: Challenges faced by the HR It is noticed that the issues with the maintenance of employees work life balance is often discussed in the organisational context. However, the HR managers face the significant challenges while developing the sustainable work-life balance culture within an organisational scenario (Butts, Casper Yang, 2013). The organisations usually lean on the knowledge, skills, and customer orientations. The employee engagement ensures the productivity level of the organisation as a whole. The literature study has specified some of the potential challenges faced by the HR manager. It is often seen that during the emergency situations, some workers may take the unscheduled leaves. In order to finish their works, HR often has to give the responsibility to other competent employees. It becomes very difficult to manage these employees since they have to complete other tasks as well. Generally, they provide extra time and efforts to finish. Eventually, they fail to keep the balance between their perso nal and professional life. Hence, the challenges are affecting the business functions as well as the competency level of the associated employees. The efficient performance parameter of the employees is helpful enough in achieving the competitive advantage and accomplishing business goals. One of the major issues faced by the HR manager in developing the work life balance of the associated employees is the changing job demands. Figure 1: Dissatisfaction of Work Life Balance in 2012 (Source: Statcan.gc.ca, 2012) Discussions The obtained information from the literature review explores the conceptual ideas about work-life balance. It is noticed that due to the technological advancements, the overwork has become an integral part of the business professionals. The study depicts the concerns of the western countries related to the work-life balance. The western countries are much fond of retaining the competent employees with proper motivations. The companies believe that if the employees receive the opportunity to maintaining stability between the professional and personal life, it will lead them towards success. Moreover, it will help the organisations to increase the productivity parameter. The human resource manager is thus trying to develop the work life balance culture to make the employees more competitive and attentive towards achieving the organisational goals (Michel, Bosch Rexroth, 2014). The government needs to improve the legislations of managing the time in the organisation. Managing the prope r time schedule would be effective enough in completing the works and spend times in the personal lives (Sanduleasa Matei, 2014). However, the information derived from the literature review and secondary analysis points out that time management is the major weapon to maintain a synchronisation between professional and personal life. The employees need to learn the proper time allocation for each of the activities that will gradually help them to achieve their targets. Accordingly, the employees will provide sufficient time to their personal lives. Conclusion The study reveals that work-life balance is much talked in western countries. It is suggested that the efficient maintenance of the work-life balance makes the employees more focused towards the professional goals. However, the human resource management usually face the challenges to develop the work life balance culture due to the continuously changing demands of the jobs. Moreover, the lack of flexible time schedule is also one of the major reasons for inefficient work-life balance. The secondary data analysis is applied in this research to derive the enriched knowledge about the subject matter. The discussion of the findings is pointing out that the research has met the determined research objectives. References Allen, T. D., Johnson, R. C., Kiburz, K. M., Shockley, K. M. (2013). Workfamily conflict and flexible work arrangements: Deconstructing flexibility.Personnel Psychology,66(2), 345-376. Annink, A. (2016). From social support to capabilities for the worklife balance of independent professionals.Journal of Management Organization, 1-19. Beauregard, T. A. (2014). Fairness perceptions of work life balance initiatives: effects on counterproductive work behaviour.British Journal of Management,25(4), 772-789. Beddoes, K., Pawley, A. L. (2014). Different people have different priorities: workfamily balance, gender, and the discourse of choice.Studies in Higher Education,39(9), 1573-1585. Bryman, A., Bell, E. (2015).Business research methods. Oxford University Press, USA. Butts, M. M., Casper, W. J., Yang, T. S. (2013). How important are workfamily support policies? A meta-analytic investigation of their effects on employee outcomes. Creswell, J. W. (2013).Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. Sage publications. Deery, M., Jago, L. (2015). Revisiting talent management, work-life balance and retention strategies.International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management,27(3), 453-472. Edson, M. C., Henning, P. B., Sankaran, S. (Eds.). (2016).A guide to systems research: Philosophy, processes and practice(Vol. 10). Springer. Fiksenbaum, L. M. (2014). Supportive workfamily environments: implications for workfamily conflict and well-being.The International Journal of Human Resource Management,25(5), 653-672. Haar, J. M., Russo, M., Sue, A., Ollier-Malaterre, A. (2014). Outcomes of worklife balance on job satisfaction, life satisfaction and mental health: A study across seven cultures.Journal of Vocational Behavior,85(3), 361-373. Hari, A. (2016). Who Gets to Work Hard, Play Hard? Gendering the WorkLife Balance Rhetoric in Canadian Tech Companies.Gender, Work Organization. Hougaard, R., Carter, J., Coutts, G. (2016). Work-life balance. InOne second ahead(pp. 117-122). Palgrave Macmillan US. Isaacs, D. (2016). Work?life balance.Journal of paediatrics and child health,52(1), 5-6. Lewis, S., Anderson, D., Lyonette, C., Payne, N., Wood, S. (Eds.). (2016).Work-Life Balance in Times of Recession, Austerity and Beyond: Meeting the Needs of Employees, Organizations and Social Justice. Routledge. Lirio, P. (2015). Global boundary work tactics: managing work and family transitions in a 247 global context.Community, Work Family, 1-20. Lyness, K. S., Judiesch, M. K. (2014). Gender egalitarianism and worklife balance for managers: Multisource perspectives in 36 countries.Applied Psychology,63(1), 96-129. Michel, A., Bosch, C., Rexroth, M. (2014). Mindfulness as a cognitiveemotional segmentation strategy: An intervention promoting worklife balance.Journal of occupational and organizational psychology,87(4), 733-754. Nakamura, J., Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2014). The concept of flow. InFlow and the foundations of positive psychology(pp. 239-263). Springer Netherlands. Sanduleasa, B., Matei, A. (2014). Gender equality on labor market and work-life balance policies. A sociological approach.Journal of Research in Gender Studies,4(1), 1199-1217. Shanafelt, T. D., Hasan, O., Dyrbye, L. N., Sinsky, C., Satele, D., Sloan, J., West, C. P. (2015, December). Changes in burnout and satisfaction with work-life balance in physicians and the general US working population between 2011 and 2014. InMayo Clinic Proceedings(Vol. 90, No. 12, pp. 1600-1613). Elsevier. Statcan.gc.ca, (2012). Satisfaction with work-life balance: Fact sheet. [online] Statcan.gc.ca. Available at: https://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/89-652-x/89-652-x2016003-eng.htm [Accessed 29 Jan. 2017]. Wattis, L., Standing, K., Yerkes, M. A. (2013). Mothers and worklife balance: exploring the contradictions and complexities involved in workfamily negotiation.Community, Work Family,16(1), 1-19. Wiese, B. S. (2015). Work-life-balance. InWirtschaftspsychologie(pp. 227-244). Springer Berlin Heidelberg.

The notion of speech personality Essay Example

The notion of speech personality Paper The first reference to speech personality was made by L.Weisgerber. In Russian linguistics the term was introduced in the early 30s by V.V.Vinogradov. In the same period such question was discussed by Humboldtians (L. Weisgerber). Later the notion of speech personality was investigated by a range of prominent scholars, such as Yu.N. Karaulov, V.I. Karasik, O.B. Sirotinina and others. Besides, this problem is interdisciplinary, since it covers the areas traditionally studied not only by linguists, but also by psychologists and psycholinguists. Yu. Karaulov in his monograph Russian Language and Language Personality elaborated his own original methodology of reconstructing speech personality, which he defines as a personality expressed in the language and through the language; it is a combination of abilities and characteristics of a person that stipulates production of speech texts that differ in: a) degree of linguo-structural complexity; b) depth and accuracy of reproducing reality; c) certain purposeful direction. (Tr. V.T.) [1; p.3] He worked out the structure of speech personality which consists of three levels: 1) Zero level verbally semantic level or lexicon. This level represents : We will write a custom essay sample on The notion of speech personality specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The notion of speech personality specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The notion of speech personality specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer units: readiness to nomination, word choice, using another languages lexis, having working knowledge of special terminology; verbal grid: ability to perceive grammar structures, oral and written speech, right spelling; stereotypes: everyday speech, readiness to monolog, patterns and cliches. 2) First level linguo-cognitive level, represented by a thesaurus of speech personality: units: ideas and concepts which are combined in a well organized and systematized world picture of a certain speech personality which reflects his or her values and outlook; thesaurus includes readiness to make modal statement, argue, combine conversational terms and improvise; stereotypes: ability to use inner speech in accordance to transfer the context of others people speech. 3) Second level motivational, pragmatic level reflects pragmaticon of personality, the system of interests and motives etc. of a certain person in the process of communicative activity (communicative roles and spheres) [2; p. 20]. Combination of these three levels of speech personality gives us an opportunity to describe formal means of expression, to investigate the communicative activity and to study speech personality as a whole. However, we should take into consideration that these levels are distinguished hypothetically. In everyday life we observe their diffusion and interdependence. This Karaulovs three-tier structure of speech personality reflects general type of personality which includes such components: 1) moral component system of values and beliefs; 2) culturological component level of cultural awareness; 3) personal component level of individuality [2; p. 123]. Besides the notion of speech personality we also consider the notion of idiolect. A persons idiolect is his or her own personal language, the words they choose and any other features that characterise their speech. The term idiolect is intended to mark the notion of a language which is not the language of a community (sociolect) but rather of an individual, taking into consideration that some people have distinctive features in their language; these would be part of their idiolect, their individual linguistic choices and idiosyncrasies. Every idiolect includes the vocabulary appropriate to a persons various interests and activities, pronunciation which reflects the region in which we live or have lived, and variable styles of speaking that depend on whom we are addressing. It is the way each person groups his/her words or phrases in a sentence to convey a thought. Every speaker has a very rich active vocabulary built up over many years, which differs from the vocabularies of other people not only in terms of actual items but also in preferences for selecting certain items. Consequently, an idiolect is unique to each person, because each of us belongs to different social classes, we all speak a language variety. Thus we can say that the systemic research of verbal communicative behaviour of a person gives an opportunity to reveal speech personality, which in its turn is a clue to revealing personality or individuality as a whole.

Definition and Examples of Attributive Adjective

Definition and Examples of Attributive Adjective In English grammar, an attributive adjective is an adjective that usually comes before the noun it modifies without a linking verb. Contrast with a predicative adjective. Attributive adjectives are direct modifiers of nominals. Examples Hush-a-by, Dont you cryGo to sleep, little baby.When you wake you shall findAll the pretty little horses.(Traditional American lullaby, perhaps of African-American origin)In those tender mornings, the Store was full of laughing, joking, boasting, and bragging.In a rush of pity- sympathy, affection, hope- I said the most stupid thing ever.A beautiful form is better than a beautiful face; it gives a higher pleasure than statues or pictures; it is the finest of the fine arts.†(Ralph Waldo Emerson, Manners)I know he was a bad man who did vicious, horrible things, some of them to me, but he had a good side, too. Just like all of us.He was a gorgeous, heart-stopping, too-yummy-to-be-believed, genuine hunk, and she was crazy to even consider kissing him.It had been a nasty little affair, a grim and unpleasant war, fought in a dark, never-ending nightmare of ambush and merciless killingan eye-to-eye, face-to-face war where prisoner was a doubtful word. Observations on Attributive and Predicative Functions There are two main kinds of adjectives: attributive ones normally come right before the noun they qualify, while predicative adjectives come after to be or similar verbs such as become and seem. Most adjectives can serve either purpose: we can speak of a happy family and say the family appeared happy. But some work only one way. Take the sentence Clergymen are answerable to a higher authority. Answerable is exclusively a predicative; you could not refer to an answerable clergyman. And higher is strictly attributive; you wouldnt normally say, The authority is higher.Attributive adjectives sometimes follow the model of French and come after the noun, as when we refer to accounts payable, something important, proof positive, matters philosophical, paradise lost, a battle royal, the heir apparent, stage left, time immemorial, or a Miller Lite.(Ben Yagoda, When You Catch an Adjective, Kill It. Broadway Books, 2007)There are a significant number of adjectives which, either absolutely or wi th a certain meaning, are restricted to attributive function (e.g. mere, former, main) or excluded from it (e.g., alone, asleep, glad happy/please).(Rodney Huddleston and Geoffrey K. Pullum, The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language. Cambridge University Press, 2002) Sources Maya Angelou,  I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Random House, 1969Leonard Michaels, Viva La Tropicana.  The Collected Stories. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2007Nick Santora,  Slip Fall. State Street, 2007Julianna Morris,  Meeting Megan Again. Silhouette, 2001George Brown,  The Double Tenth. Arrow, 2012

Turn-Taking Definition in Conversation Analysis

Turn-Taking Definition in Conversation Analysis In conversation analysis, turn-taking is a term for the manner in which orderly conversation normally takes place. A basic understanding can come right from the term itself: Its the notion that people in a conversation take turns in speaking. When studied by sociologists, however, the analysis goes deeper, into topics such as how people know when its their turn to speak, how much overlap there is between speakers, when its OK to have overlap, and how to consider regional or gender differences. The underlying principles of turn-taking were first described by sociologists Harvey Sacks, Emanuel A. Schegloff, and Gail Jefferson in A Simplest Systematics for the Organization of Turn-Taking for Conversation in the journal  Language, in the December 1974 issue. Competitive vs. Cooperative Overlap Much of the research in turn-taking has looked into competitive versus cooperative overlap in conversations, such as how that affects the balance of power of those in the conversation and how much rapport the speakers have. For example, in competitive overlap, researchers might look at how one person dominates a conversation or how a listener might take some power back with different ways of interrupting.  Ã‚   In cooperative overlap, a listener might ask for clarification on a point or add to the conversation with further examples that support the speakers point. These kinds of overlaps help move the conversation forward and aid in communicating the full meaning to all who are listening. Or overlaps might be more benign and just show that the listener understands, such as by saying Uh-huh. Overlap like this also moves the speaker forward. Cultural differences and formal or informal settings can change whats acceptable in a particular group dynamic.  Ã‚   Examples and Observations Television programs, books, and films present some fine examples of turn-taking. Christine Cagney: Im being quiet now. That means its your turn to talk.Mary Beth Lacey:  Im trying to think of what to say.(Cagney Lacey, 1982) Once a topic is chosen and a conversation initiated, then matters of conversational turn-taking arise. Knowing when it is acceptable or obligatory to take a turn in conversation is essential to the cooperative development of discourse. This knowledge involves such factors as knowing how to recognize appropriate turn-exchange points and knowing how long the pauses between turns should be. It is also important to know how (and if) one may talk while someone else is talking- that is if the conversational overlap is allowed. Since not all conversations follow all the rules for turn-taking, it is also necessary to know how to repair a conversation that has been thrown off course by undesired overlap or a misunderstood comment. Cultural differences in matters of turn-taking can lead to conversational breakdown, misinterpretation of intentions, and interpersonal intergroup conflict. (Walt Wolfram and Natalie Schilling-Estes, American English: Dialects and Variation. Wiley-Blackwell, 2006) The Wolf: Youre Jimmie, right? This is your house?Jimmie: Sure is.The Wolf: Im Winston Wolfe. I solve problems.Jimmie: Good, we got one.The Wolf: So I heard. May I come in?Jimmie: Uh, yeah, please do.(Pulp Fiction, 1994) Turn-Taking and Parliamentary Procedure The rules regarding turn-taking in formal situations can differ markedly than between people who are speaking casually together. Absolutely fundamental to following parliamentary procedure is knowing when and how to speak in your correct turn. Business in deliberative societies cannot be conducted when the members are interrupting each other and when they are speaking out of turn on unrelated subjects. Etiquette calls interrupting someone else rude behavior and unfitting for people in refined society. [Emily] Posts book of etiquette goes beyond this to describe the importance of listening and responding to the correct topic as being part of good manners when participating in any form of conversation. By waiting your turn to speak and avoiding interrupting another person, you not only show your desire to work together with the other members of your society, you also show respect for your fellow members. (Rita Cook, The Complete Guide to Roberts Rules of Order Made Easy. Atlantic Publishing, 2008) Interrupting vs. Interjecting Sometimes butting in while someone is talking may not be considered as interrupting, but only interjecting. To be sure, a debate is as much about performance and rhetoric (and snappy one-liners) as it is about meaningful dialogue. But our ideas about conversation inevitably shape how we perceive the debates. This means, for example, that what seems an interruption to one viewer might be merely an interjection to another. Conversation is an exchange of turns, and having a turn means having a right to hold the floor until you have finished what you want to say. So interrupting is not a violation if it doesn’t steal the floor. If your uncle is telling a long story at dinner, you may cut in to ask him to pass the salt. Most (but not all) people would say you aren’t really interrupting; you just asked for a temporary pause. (Deborah Tannen, Would You Please Let Me Finish ... The New York Times, Oct. 17, 2012)

Unit Contribution Margin Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Unit Contribution Margin - Essay Example At break-even point, the Cost-Volume-Profit analysis equation is reduced to: PX = xv + FC Where p is the price per unit, x is the number of units, v is the variable cost per unit, and total fixed cost is FC. Solving the equation for Break-even sales units Break-even Sales Units = x = FC à · ( p − v ) Since unit contribution margin (Unit CM) is equal to unit sale price (p) less unit variable cost (v) thus, Unit CM = p − v Hence, Break-even Sales Units = x = FC à · Unit CM Break-even Sales Dollars = Price per Unit Ãâ€" Break-even Sales Units ; or What is contribution margin ratio and when is it most useful? The contribution margin ratio is the measure of sales, facility returns or selling price that residues after all variable costs and variable costs have been enclosed. Contribution margin ratio= (Sales-variables) / sales Contribution margin ratio plays a key role in; †¢ Determining the profits that will rise from several sales levels †¢ Assessing the influenc e on earnings of changes in sales. In particular, it can be used to estimation the decline in profits if sales drop, and so is an standard tool in the making of budgets. How is the breakeven equation modified to take into account the sales required to earn a target profit?

3107 Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

3107 - Term Paper Example Good infrastructure is between nations have also encouraged international trade. The infrastructures such as those that enhance transport and communication have been regarded as the core determinants of a country development and therefore different nations have invested in them to encourage investors. The forces of demand and supply are the main drive for the international trade. Countries do have special products and services that they do produce in bulkiness and at low cost (Lecture notes chapter 1). These qualities gives the country the power to have a market share in the world market where the sell their commodities. The benefit accrued from the global trade is that the country can get access of the surplus produce and can fill in the deficit of commodities that is unable to produce at a cheaper cost. Development of the information and communication technology across the globe is also a boost to the international trade as people from different regions of the world can do business regardless of the geographical distances. The increase in trade between two or more countries has also been affected by the international production. Countries have been moving their units of production to countries other countries as seen by the U.S.A firms shifting to China. The reasons for international production are mainly for cost reduction. Firms may move their industries to other countries where the main raw materials are readily available. Setting an industries in the base where raw materials are readily available helps the industry to cut the cost of production by cutting out the cost related to the transportation of the raw materials to the production site. Industries are also shifting to countries where the labor cost is cheap. Most of the international firms from the west are setting up industries in the third world countries where the labor cost is cheap. Cheap labor leads to low production cost and therefore the investors finds advantage of setting up firms in

Roman Civilization Essay Example for Free

Roman Civilization Essay Abstract The Roman civilization was one of the greatest civilizations in world history. It spanned almost a thousand years and stretched from Europe to Africa. Although the Roman civilization is already long extinct, its legacy is still an important part of todays social institutions such as government and religion. The Roman Civilization   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Roman civilization is one of the most powerful and influential civilizations in history. It was well-known for its political, economic, cultural and technological advancements that allowed it to expand from Europe to Africa (MSN Encarta, 2007). So consequential is the Roman civilization that most of its practices are still in use today. Ancient Rome   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Roman civilization was believed to have started almost 3,000 years ago on the hills beside the Tiber River in central Italy (MSN Encarta, 2007). What began as an encampment of shepherds huts later evolved into the city of Rome (MSN Encarta, 2007). It is sometimes claimed that the land and environment of Italy proved to be condusive for the growth of Roman civilization (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Being a peninsula, Italy is separated from the rest of Europe by sea on the east, west and south and the Alps mountain range on the north (MSN Encarta, 2007). The country in general enjoys a temperate climate, with hot summers in the south (MSN Encarta, 2007). Italys western coast and offshore islands have several volcanoes such as Mount Etna and Mount Vesuvius, resulting in fertile land in some parts of Latium, Campania and Sicily (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Italys timber-rich mountains had vast meadows where sheep and goats grazed during the summer (MSN Encarta, 2007). The Tiber River was abundant in salt and Etruria had large iron deposits (MSN Encarta, 2007). North-south land routes boosted the Roman economy by improving commerce, agriculture, pasturage and metalwork (MSN Encarta, 2007). Romulus and Remus – The Founders of Rome   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   According to Roman myth, twin brothers Romulus and Remus founded Rome in 753 BC (MSN Encarta, 2007). They were the grandsons of King Numitor, the ruler of the ancient city of Alba Longa in Latium (MSN Encarta, 2007). But Numitors brother seized the throne and also tried to kill the twins by having them thrown into the Tiber (MSN Encarta, 2007). The twins miraculously survived – they were washed ashore and were nursed by a she-wolf (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Upon reaching adulthood, Romulus and Remus brought Numitor back to his throne and formed a new city located on top of Palatine Hill (MSN Encarta, 2007). Romulus had this new city surrounded with a wall, which Remus scornfully jumped over in an attempt to assert his leadership (MSN Encarta, 2007). Romulus killed him as a result, later becoming the citys first king and naming it after him (MSN Encarta, 2007). Life in Ancient Rome   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Ancient Roman society was religious and family-oriented (MSN Encarta, 2007). Family and religion not only influenced personal and social relations, but also public and political activities (MSN Encarta, 2007). These two social institutions were said to be the â€Å"twin pillars of Roman society for the five centuries of the Roman Republic† (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Ancient Roman Family.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Family relationships in ancient Rome reflected the patriarchal nature of the Roman state (MSN Encarta, 2007). The father (paterfamilias) wielded absolute and lifelong power (patria potestas) over his wife, children and slaves (MSN Encarta, 2007). He was also the â€Å"the priest of the cult of his ancestors and of the hearth gods of the family† (the ancient Romans practiced ancestral worship) (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Roman marriage existed primarily to continue bloodlines (MSN Encarta, 2007). The fathers family had sole custody of all legitimate children (MSN Encarta, 2007). Should a divorce occur, the mother was required to leave the children with her husband (MSN Encarta, 2007). In addition, Roman law allowed a father to abandon an infant at birth – unwanted children during this period were either deformed boys or daughters of families who cannot afford a dowry (MSN Encarta, 2007). It was also considered legal under Roman law for a father to kill an adult son as â€Å"punishment† for â€Å"treasonous† behavior (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Despite the all-encompassing authority of the father, the ancient Roman family remained tightly-knit (MSN Encarta, 2007). It was the parents themselves who educated their children (MSN Encarta, 2007). To prepare their sons for citizenship, fathers would bring them along to forums, where they can observe public meetings (MSN Encarta, 2007). During funerals, ancient Roman sons were also obliged to deliver speeches that praised the deceased and their forefathers in order to sustain family pride and myths (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Ancient Roman women usually married between 14 and 17 years old, with their husbands often at their mid-20s (MSN Encarta, 2007). Although children during this era were not forced into wedlock, only few were able to refuse arranged marriages (MSN Encarta, 2007). A divorce can only take place if it was the husband who wanted it (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, women still enjoyed relative freedom in ancient Rome (MSN Encarta, 2007). They could attend public and private banquets, where they freely interacted with men (MSN Encarta, 2007). When a father died without a will, his estate was divided equally between his sons and daughters (MSN Encarta, 2007). But daughters were commonly included in the bequests of their fathers (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Religion.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Ancient Rome was a predominantly agricultural civilization (MSN Encarta, 2007). Hence, Romans believed that deities governed every aspect of the natural world (MSN Encarta, 2007). They even tried to â€Å"construe† the â€Å"will† of the gods by analyzing animal activities and body parts (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Romans, however, adopted from the Etruscans a religion that was based from the Greek pantheon or family of gods (MSN Encarta, 2007). As a result, most Greek gods have Roman counterparts (MSN Encarta, 2007). Zeus (Greek god of the skies) was Jupiter for the Romans (MSN Encarta, 2007). Hera (Zeus wife), Aphrodite (Greek goddess of love) and Ares (Greek god of war) became Juno, Venus and Mars, respectively (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Romans also believed that devotion through prayers, festivals and sacrifices were necessary for the community to have a harmonious relationship with the gods (MSN Encarta, 2007). Kings and civil magistrates first officiated the aforementioned activities, but priests and priestesses later facilitated the worship of particular gods and goddesses (MSN Encarta, 2007). An example of the latter would be the vestal virgins who served hearth goddess Vesta (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Some of the months in the Roman calendar, as well as the days of the week, were also named after the gods (MSN Encarta, 2007). January was named after Janus, the god of beginnings (MSN Encarta, 2007). March was taken from Mars (MSN Encarta, 2007). September was derived from the Latin term septem (â€Å"seven†) – March originally was the first month of the Roman calender (MSN Encarta, 2007). October, November and December were based on the Latin words for eight, ninth and tenth, respectively (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, the English names of the days of the week was patterned after Germanic gods and goddesses (MSN Encarta, 2007). Friday, for instance, was a day that was dedicated to Venus (MSN Encarta, 2007). It was taken from Freia, the German goddess of love (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Politics.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The leaders of Ancient Rome were kings who â€Å"had wide military and judicial powers and represented the people to their gods† (MSN Encarta, 2007). The kings who succeeded Romulus were appointed and advised by the Senate, a governmental institution whose members were from noble clans (MSN Encarta, 2007). These tasks of the Senate enabled the Roman elites to dominate Romes religious, political and economic life (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Meanwhile, the Assembly of the People was a Roman political body that was composed of all male Roman citizens (MSN Encarta, 2007). Divided into 30 curiae or clans, members of the assembly initially met to â€Å"witness the announcement of a new king or a declaration of war† (MSN Encarta, 2007). Later, each of the clans gathered to cast their votes regarding the approval of a certain will or adoption (MSN Encarta, 2007). The Roman Republic   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   During the Roman Republic (510 BC-27 BC), Rome â€Å"grew from a small city of 10,000 into a great cosmopolitan metropolis of 1 million whose empire of 15 million subjects encompassed the entire Mediterranean basin† (MSN Encarta, 2007). Therefore, the Roman Republic was sometimes known as the period of expansion of Roman civilization (Hooker, 1996). However, they encountered social and economic problems that resulted from imposing conventional laws and institutions on subjects whose cultures were very much different from theirs (MSN Encarta, 2007). Governance   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Roman monarchy was abolished after Junius Brutus toppled the Tarquin dynasty in 509 BC (Hooker, 1996). The Romans then assumed a republican form of government but retained their constitution, a series of unwritten laws and traditions that were still based from the monarchy (Hooker, 1996). As a result, the republics new leaders, the consuls, were no different from the kings (Hooker, 1996). Although the consuls were elected and held one-year terms, they were also the heads of the Roman military and judiciary, as well as the nations chief priests (Hooker, 1996).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, the consuls had severely limited powers (Hooker, 1996). After finishing their one-year term, they had to be reelected for another term if they wish to become a consul again (Hooker, 1996). In addition, the republic was supposed to be ruled by two consuls (Hooker, 1996). No consul can act or decide without the other consuls approval (Hooker, 1996). Lastly, consuls were mandated to serve on the Senate as soon as their term expires (Hooker, 1996). The Law of the Twelve Tables   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It would be fair to say that the Roman Republic promoted the rights of the ordinary citizen (Hooker, 1996). In 450 BC, Romes constitution and laws were standardized and put into order through the Law of the Twelve Tables (Hooker, 1996). As a result, the Roman masses became aware of the rights that the law has granted upon them (Hooker, 1996). Intermarriage between plebians and patricians were allowed in 445 BC and the position of consul was opened to plebians in 367 BC (Hooker, 1996). By 287 BC, the vote of the plebian  Ã‚   assembly â€Å"were not only binding on the plebeians, but on the entire Roman citizenry† (Hooker, 1996). Crisis   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In order to widen itslef, the Roman Republic waged many wars, including the Second Punic War (218-201 BC) (Hooker, 1996). But these hostilities had serious social and economic consequences for Rome (Hooker, 1996). The Second Punic war, for instance, further widened the gap between the rich and the poor in Rome (Hooker, 2006).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Prior to the Second Punic War, ordinary Roman citizens worked as farmers, craftsmen or laborers (Hooker, 1996). They were able to live well because they tilled their own land or received decent wages (Hooker, 1996). But while Hannibal destroyed the Roman countryside, the elites remained quietly within the walls of Rome (Hooker, 1996).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Their farmlands gone, the Romans living in the countryside had no choice but to migrate to the cities (Hooker, 1996). The rich Romans, meanwhile, bought the ravaged lands and developed them into large plantations (Hooker, 1996). These establishments dominated Roman agriculture by the middle of the second century (Hooker, 1996).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Furthermore, wars led to the proliferation of slaves in Rome and Roman territories (Hooker, 1996). As slaves provided labor at wages that were almost below subsistence level, the Roman economy shifted from a laborer economy to a slave economy (Hooker, 2006). Poor Romans who were not slaves suddenly found themselves unemployed or taking jobs that paid very little (Hooker, 1996). This resulted in the beginning of the Roman Republics unpopularity with the people (Hooker, 1996). The Roman Empire   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The social instability during the later part of the Roman Republic produced dictators such as the Gracchi brothers (UNRV, 2008). Increasing public frustration over the republic made the people turn to citizen assemblies for the discussion of popular agendas instead of to the Senate (UNRV, 2008). However, overeliance on citizen assemblies bred unscrupulous and opportunistic leaders such as Maruis and Sulla (UNRV, 2008). Roman politics was divided between the conservative Optimate Senators who tried to preserve the political dominance of the elite and the Populares who was supported by the lower classes (UNRV, 2008). As a result, the last 100 years of the Roman Republic was characterized with political instability and violence (UNRV, 2008). Caesar Augustus   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   After many years of civil war, the Senate proclaimed Gaius Octavius emperor in 27 BC, giving him the name Augustus (â€Å"exalted† or â€Å"holy one†) (MSN Encarta, 2007). Historians often said that the proclamation of Gaius Octavius as emperor marked the beginning of the Roman Empire (27 BC-476 AD) (MSN Encarta, 2007). The Roman Republic was never revived since (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Regime of Augustus.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Augustus rule (27 BC-14 AD) was marked with absolute power (MSN Encarta, 2007). However, it transformed Rome into â€Å"the greatest and most influential political institution in European history† (MSN Encarta, 2007). Thus, Augustus was said to have started the Pax Romana (â€Å"Roman Peace†), a period of peace and prosperity in Rome that lasted for about 200 years (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Under Augustus, the empire acquired new territories, such as ancient Britain, Arabia and Dacia (now Romania) (MSN Encarta, 2007). Rome became the center of politics, trade and culture in the Mediterranean region (MSN Encarta, 2007). Rome was seen as a place of opportunity – people from the Roman provinces who went there usually became soldiers, bureaucrats and senators (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Roman Empire also tolerated cultural differences among its subjects (MSN Encarta, 2007). The empire promoted Greek art, literature and philosophy, the Jewish religious and ethical system, the then-new religion of Christianity, the astronomy and astrology of the Babylonians and Persian and Egyptian culture (MSN Encarta, 2007). With the exceptions of leaders like Caligula and Nero, most Roman emperors were competent and just (MSN Encarta, 2007). Fall of the Roman Empire   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The murder of Emperor Commodus in 192 was the precedent for the collapse of the Roman Empire (MSN Encarta, 2007). After his demise, rivalry over the imperial throne resulted in a civil war that proved to be detrimental to the whole empire (MSN Encarta, 2007). Political institutions collapsed, the army was weakened and the economy crashed (MSN Encarta, 2007). The civil war lasted for about a century until the Roman Empire quietly ended in 476 (MSN Encarta, 2007). Reasons for the Fall   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The selection process for a Roman emperor was facilitated by the incumbent emperor, the Senate, the army and the Praetorian Guard (the emperors personal security forces) (Harker, n.d.). But the Praetorian Guard later had the sole authority in choosing the emperor (Harker, n.d.). In exchange for the Praetorian Guards support, the emperor rewarded them with political and military favors (Harker, n.d.). By 186 AD, the practice of selling the throne to the highest bidder was already a â€Å"tradition† in Roman politics (Harker, n.d.).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In addition, the Roman Empire spent too much on its military (Harker, n.d.). Since the empire was very vast, protecting it from invaders was very expensive (Harker, n.d.). A huge portion of taxes were spent on soldiers and weapons, instead of on housing, roads and aqueducts (Harker, n.d.). When the empire did not have enough money, it raised taxes, leading to strong public discontent among ordinary Roman citizens (Harker, n.d.). Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Even if the Roman civilization no longer exists, its legacy is still an important part of modern society. Roman laws and Latin remain to be integral in the legal profession, governance and religion (MSN Encarta, 2007). Christianity is still one of the worlds major religions (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Latin gradually evolved into languages and dialects such as Provenà §al, French, Spanish and Catalan (MSN Encarta, 2007). The Roman civilization also served as an important influence in Renaissance art, literature and politics (MSN Encarta, 2007). Renaissance sculptors revived the Greco-Roman trend of realism (after centuries of theocentrism), while Renaissance architects used Greek and Roman designs for their creations (MSN Encarta, 2007). William Shakespeares works were based on Roman comedies (MSN Encarta, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Philosophers and political theorists in the succeeding centuries used Roman laws and Roman concepts of freedom and tyranny as a reference for their own writings and discourses (MSN Encarta, 2007). These ideas also inspired revolutionaries in America and France to liberate their respective countries (MSN Encarta, 2007). References Harker, K. Killeen Harker Heights Connections. (n.d.). Reasons for the Fall of the Roman   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Empire. Retrieved May 8, 2008, from http://killeenroos.com/1/Romefall.htm Hooker, R. World Civilizations. (1996). Rome: The Roman Republic. Retrieved May 7, 2008,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   from http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/ROME/REPUBLIC.HTM MSN Encarta. (2007). Ancient Rome. Retrieved May 6, 2008, from   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761552589/Ancient_Rome.html MSN Encarta. (2007). Roman Empire. Retrieved May 6, 2008, from   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_1741502785/Roman_Empire.html UNRV. (2008). Fall of the Roman Republic. Retrieved May 8, 2007, from   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://www.unrv.com/roman-republic/fall-of-roman-republic.php

Support for the Current Placement of the Confederate Flag in South Caro

Support for the Current Placement of the Confederate Flag in South Carolina There is an old saying that says you can please all of the people some of the time, or you can please some of the people all of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time. Never is this truer than in the state of South Carolina as it pertains to the flying of the Confederate Battle Flag. It is obvious at this point that no solution will make everyone in the state happy, but a compromise does need to be made that can satisfy a majority of the people. I think that a satisfactory compromise, or at least as satisfactory as can be realistically attained, was made when the flag was relocated to the statehouse grounds last year. This may have brought on a lot of griping from different political action groups and other outspoken pundits, but for the common citizens that make up the majority of the state I think that this will prove to be sufficient if outside organizations can quit aggravating the situation. In preparing a compromise on the flag issue, one must consider the different sides of this debate. One group, the opponents of the flag, would wish it to be banished completely. First of all, not only is this simply not possible because of the sheer number of supporters who would wield the flag anyway, but it simply does not do justice to the men who fought and died under that flag. If we were to call for the complete prohibition of all Vietnam War remembrance ceremonies because it offends some of the Vietnamese-American citizens of the country, or the ban of all nationally recognized Christian holidays because it offends the Muslims of the country, it would never happen. It must be recognized that we live in a diverse nat... ...ys tribute to the people it was meant to venerate. This seems to be the best solution to this very passionate and historic dispute. There will always be trouble and unrest surrounding the Confederate Battle Flag; it is a symbol charged with great emotion on both sides. There is no â€Å"right answer† to this quandary, and I’m sure that this debate will rage for generations to come just as it has for generations past. As far as a solution is concerned though, I think that the decision makers in South Carolina have solved the problem as well as it can be solved. It is impossible to make everyone happy with any decision, but for the time being, I think that this solution makes the most people happy. Works Cited: Darby, Joseph A. â€Å"Darby Responds to Most Recent Allegations Against Sanctions.† Editorial. The Post and Courier [Charleston, SC] 16 May 2001: A7. Support for the Current Placement of the Confederate Flag in South Caro Support for the Current Placement of the Confederate Flag in South Carolina There is an old saying that says you can please all of the people some of the time, or you can please some of the people all of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time. Never is this truer than in the state of South Carolina as it pertains to the flying of the Confederate Battle Flag. It is obvious at this point that no solution will make everyone in the state happy, but a compromise does need to be made that can satisfy a majority of the people. I think that a satisfactory compromise, or at least as satisfactory as can be realistically attained, was made when the flag was relocated to the statehouse grounds last year. This may have brought on a lot of griping from different political action groups and other outspoken pundits, but for the common citizens that make up the majority of the state I think that this will prove to be sufficient if outside organizations can quit aggravating the situation. In preparing a compromise on the flag issue, one must consider the different sides of this debate. One group, the opponents of the flag, would wish it to be banished completely. First of all, not only is this simply not possible because of the sheer number of supporters who would wield the flag anyway, but it simply does not do justice to the men who fought and died under that flag. If we were to call for the complete prohibition of all Vietnam War remembrance ceremonies because it offends some of the Vietnamese-American citizens of the country, or the ban of all nationally recognized Christian holidays because it offends the Muslims of the country, it would never happen. It must be recognized that we live in a diverse nat... ...ys tribute to the people it was meant to venerate. This seems to be the best solution to this very passionate and historic dispute. There will always be trouble and unrest surrounding the Confederate Battle Flag; it is a symbol charged with great emotion on both sides. There is no â€Å"right answer† to this quandary, and I’m sure that this debate will rage for generations to come just as it has for generations past. As far as a solution is concerned though, I think that the decision makers in South Carolina have solved the problem as well as it can be solved. It is impossible to make everyone happy with any decision, but for the time being, I think that this solution makes the most people happy. Works Cited: Darby, Joseph A. â€Å"Darby Responds to Most Recent Allegations Against Sanctions.† Editorial. The Post and Courier [Charleston, SC] 16 May 2001: A7.

limitations of first amendment

The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America speaks of certain guaranteed freedoms of the citizens. Said freedoms, are of paramount importance, and having been guaranteed by the supreme law of the land, it means that intrusions into said rights can not be countenanced. The First Amendment states that Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. It appears that the First Amendment speaks mainly of three fundamental rights of the citizens namely, the right to freely exercise one’s religion; freedom of speech and of the press; and the right to peaceably assemble. By virtue of the Constitution, intrusions respecting said rights cannot be allowed. It bears to stress that the First Amendment serves as a reminder that the branches of the government, in exercising their powers, must not step or intrude into said guaranteed rights. However, it must be borne in mind that the freedom granted to the citizens under the First Amendment is not absolute in character. There are certain limitations to the exercise of First Amendment rights wherein reasonable intrusion by the State is permitted in order to prevent dissension among the citizens and to avoid causing undue injury. In formulating laws, the primordial concern of the lawmakers is the furtherance and protection of the interests of the public in general. Hence, the laws, most especially the Constitution, cannot be used as a shield in justifying one’s act of injuring another. As will be discussed, law and jurisprudence have laid down the guidelines in exercising the freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment. So also, the limitations as to the exercise of First Amendment rights have been affirmed as necessary in order to regulate the conduct of citizens within the State. The first right mentioned under the First Amendment is the freedom of religion. The free exercise clause proscribes the State from sponsoring a certain form of religion. The State must be impartial as regards the different forms of religion within the State.   But more importantly, this clause grants to the citizens the freedom to be respected in their choice of belief. A citizen cannot be compelled by the State to choose and to practice a certain type of religion. A citizen is free to choose his own religion and is free to do acts in accordance with his or her belief. The limitation imposed upon the free exercise clause is aptly stated by the Court in the case of Cantwell vs. Connecticut thus, Freedom of conscience and freedom to adhere to such religious organization or form of worship as the individual may choose cannot be restricted by law. On the other hand, it safeguards the free exercise of the chosen form of religion. Thus, the amendment embraces two concepts—freedom to believe and freedom to act. The first is absolute, but in the nature of things, the second cannot be (310 US 296 (1940)). Hence, it appears that while an individual is granted by the Constitution the freedom to believe and to act in accordance to one’s belief, the exercise of said right cannot be limitless. The acts of an individual must be regulated by the State, even if the same be done as a way of professing his belief, if the same is already detrimental or prejudicial the interests of the public in general. If an individual does an act which is in contravention with a prohibitive law, he cannot use his religion as a defense. Infringement of said freedom is permitted when the unreasonable exercise of said right can cause danger and harm to the public interest. Although his freedom to believe is guaranteed by the Constitution, the same law cannot permit prejudice and injustice to prevail to spring from said freedom. An individual shall not be excused from complying with a law by reason of his religious belief, especially if the object of the law is a legitimate purpose, and if the same is not an attack against religion. It must always be borne in mind that the paramount concern of our laws is to promote and serve public interest. Hence, if a certain action on the part of a citizen can be characterized as a frustration of the interest of the public in general, it cannot be considered as protected by the First Amendment. The second part of the First Amendment speaks of the freedom of speech. Under this clause, one is free to express his own views and opinions. This clause indeed strengthens the State’s belief in the concept of democracy as the opinion of citizens is given weight and importance. Under the Constitution, an individual cannot be restrained when it comes to airing out his opinions and views either orally, in print, or through other mediums of communication. It is noteworthy, however, that this right is also limited in operation in the sense that not every form or speech or communication is protected by the law. It is settled that â€Å"there are certain well-defined and narrowly limited classes of speech, the prevention and punishment of which has never been thought to raise any Constitutional problems† (Chaplinsky vs. New Hapshire, 315 US 568 (1942)). It thus appears that not every utterance enjoys the freedom granted by the First Amendment. Examples of said unprotected speeches are libel and obscenity. Libelous words and statements cannot be countenanced under the law. The First Amendment cannot be used, for instance, as a justification for violating the right of another to privacy and to be free from undue vexations. It must not be forgotten that the freedom of speech is granted in order to recognize the value of the voice and views of the citizens. There can be no value as regards speech that are damaging to other parties. As the same already inflicts injury to another person, the perpetrator is not permitted to seek shelter under the First Amendment. The same can be said about obscene publications, being in contravention and offensive to the concept of chastity and decency. It is because of the grave injury caused by said utterances to the public in general that made them fall outside the ambit of the First Amendment protection. Lastly, the First Amendment speaks of the right of the people to peaceably assemble and to petition the government for the redress of their grievances. This is a fundamental right as the citizens are not restricted from gathering themselves in order for them to air out their opinions and bring their concerns to the government. In a number of cases, it has been settled that this right is connected to the freedom of expression since assembling and petitioning the government for redress is a form of expression. Hence, it can be said that the same limits imposed on the freedom of expression clause in the First Amendment can be applied to the freedom to peaceably assemble and petition the government. In the exercise of this right, the assembly must not be tainted with any form of violence which could bring undue injury to the public. So also, in petitioning the government for redress of their grievances, the same must be for valid grounds and must not amount to seditious acts. Otherwise, the same shall fall outside the scope of the First Amendment and will not merit any protection under the law. In the last analysis, it appears that the fundamental rights of religion, speech and peaceful assembly, although guaranteed by the First Amendment, cannot be exercised without limits. Said rights, while promoting the democratic character of our nation, must necessarily be regulated in order to avoid dissension among the citizens and in order to prevent undue injury. A certain level of restriction is necessary for the purpose of making sure that the exercise of said rights is done in furtherance of the objectives of the Constitution—promote peace, order and unity in the society, and not to create conflict and injustice within the State. If said freedoms are accorded without any form of regulation, abuse cannot be avoided, and hence, the very instruments formulated to further public interest can even cause the frustration of said interests.

A Dirty Job Chapter 20

20 ATTACK OF THE CROCODILE GUY It was a brutally hot night in the City, and everyone had their windows open. From the roof across the alley, the spy could see the little girl happily splashing away in a tub full of suds, the two giant hounds sitting just outside the tub licking shampoo from her hand and belching bubbles as she screeched with glee. â€Å"Sophie, don't feed the puppies soap, okay?† The shopkeeper's voice from another room. â€Å"Okay, Dad. I won't. I'm not a kid, you know,† she said, pouring more strawberry-kiwi shampoo into her palm and holding it out for one of the dogs to lick. A cloud of fragrant bubbles burped out of the beast, through the bars of the window, and out into the still air over the alley. The hounds were the problem, but if the spy had his timing right, he'd be able to take care of them and get to the child without interference. In the past he'd been an assassin, a bodyguard, a kickboxer, and most recently a certified fiberglass-insulation installer – skills that could serve him well in his current mission. He had the face of a crocodile – sixty-eight spiked teeth and eyes that gleamed like black glass beads. His hands were the claws of a raptor, the wicked black nails encrusted with dried blood. He wore a black silk tuxedo, but no shoes – his feet were webbed like those of a waterbird, with claws for digging prey from the mud. He rolled the large Persian rug to the edge of the roof and waited; then, just as he had planned, he heard, â€Å"Sweetie, I'm going to take the trash out, I'll be right back.† â€Å"Okay, Dad.† Funny how the illusion of security can make us careless, the spy thought. No one would leave a young child alone in the bath unattended, but the company of two canine bodyguards wouldn't make her unattended, would it? He waited, and the shopkeeper emerged from the steel door downstairs carrying two trash bags. He seemed momentarily thrown off by the fact that the Dumpster, which was normally right outside the door, had been moved down the alley twenty feet or so, but shrugged, kicked the door wide, and while it hissed slowly shut on its pneumatic cylinder, he dashed for the Dumpster. That's when the spy sent the rug off the roof. The rug unrolled as it fell the four stories. Unfurled, it hit the shopkeeper with a substantial thud and drove him to the ground. In the bathroom, the huge dogs perked up. One let out a woof of caution. The spy already had the first bolt in his crossbow. Now he let it fly – nylon line hissed out and the bolt hit the rug with a thump, penetrating the rug and probably the shopkeeper's calf, effectively pinning him under the rug, perhaps even to the ground. The shopkeeper screamed. The great hounds dashed out of the bathroom. The spy loaded another bolt, attached it to the free end of the nylon line attached to the first bolt, then fired it through another section of the rug below. The shopkeeper continued to shout, but with the heavy rug pinned over him, he couldn't move. As the spy loaded his third bolt the hounds burst through the doorway into the alley. The third bolt wasn't attached to a line, but had a wicked titanium-spiked tip. The spy aimed at the pneumatic cylinder on the door, hit it, and the door slammed shut, locking the hounds in the alley. He'd practiced this a dozen times in his mind, and it was all going exactly as planned. The front doors to the shop and the apartment building had been Super Glued shut before he'd come up on the roof – no easy job getting that done without being seen. His fourth shot put a bolt in the window frame over the hall window. The bars on the bathroom were too narrow, but he knew that the shopkeeper would have left the door to the apartment open. He attached a carabiner to the nylon line and slid silently down the line to the window ledge. He unclipped, then squeezed through the bars and dropped to the floor in the hallway. He kept close to the hall walls, taking careful, exaggerated steps to keep his toenails from catching on the carpet. He could smell onions cooking in a nearby apartment and hear the child's voice coming from the door down the hall, which he could see was open, if only a crack. â€Å"Dad, I'm ready to get out! Dad, I'm ready to get out!† He paused at the doorway, peeked into the apartment. He knew the child would scream when she saw him – his jagged teeth, the claws, his cold black eyes. He would see to it that her screams were short-lived, but nobody could remain calm in the face of his fearsomeness. Of course, the fearsome effect was somewhat reduced by the fact that he was only fourteen inches tall. He pushed the door open, but as he stepped into the apartment something grabbed him from behind, yanking him off his feet, and in spite of his training and stealth skills, he screamed like a flaming wood duck. Someone had Super Glued the key slot in the back door and Charlie had snapped his key off trying to get it open. There was some kind of arrow stuck on a string through the back of his leg and it hurt like hell – blood was filling up his shoe. He didn't know what had happened, but he knew it wasn't good that the hellhounds were bouncing around him whimpering. He pounded the door with both fists. â€Å"Open the goddamn door, Ray!† Ray opened the door. â€Å"What?† The hellhounds knocked them both down going through the door. Charlie jumped to his feet and limped after them, up the steps. Ray followed. â€Å"Charlie, you're bleeding.† â€Å"I know.† â€Å"Wait, you're dragging some kind of line. Let me cut it.† â€Å"Ray, I've got to go – â€Å" Before Charlie could finish his sentence, Ray had pulled a knife from his back pocket, flicked it open, and cut the nylon line. â€Å"Used to carry this on the job to cut seat belts and stuff.† Charlie nodded and headed up the steps. Sophie was standing in the kitchen, wrapped in a mint-green bath towel, shampoo horns still protruding from her head – she looked like a small, soapy version of the Statue of Liberty. â€Å"Dad, where were you? I wanted to get out.† â€Å"Are you okay, honey?† He knelt in front of her and smoothed down her towel. â€Å"I needed help on the rinse. That's your responsibility, Dad.† â€Å"I know, honey. I'm a horrible father.† â€Å"Okay – † Sophie said. â€Å"Hi, Ray.† Ray was topping the steps, holding a bloody arrow on the end of a string. â€Å"Charlie, this went through your leg.† Charlie turned and looked at his calf for the first time, then sat on the floor, sure that he was going to pass out. â€Å"Can I have it?† Sophie said, picking up the arrow. Ray grabbed a dish towel from the counter and pressed it on Charlie's wound. â€Å"Hold this on it. I'll call 911.† â€Å"No, I'm okay,† Charlie said, pretty sure now he was going to throw up. â€Å"What happened out there?† Ray said. â€Å"I don't know, I was – â€Å" Someone in the building started screaming like they were being deep-fried. Ray's eyes went wide. â€Å"Help me up,† Charlie said. They ran through the apartment and out into the hall – the screaming was coming from the stairwell. â€Å"Can you make it?† Ray said. â€Å"Go. Go. I'm with you.† Charlie steadied himself against Ray's shoulder and hopped up the stairs behind him. The harsh screaming coming from Mrs. Ling's apartment had dwindled to pleas for help in English, peppered with swearing in Mandarin. â€Å"No! Shiksas! Help! Back! Help!† Charlie and Ray found the diminutive Chinese matron backed against her stove by Alvin and Mohammed, swinging a cleaver at them to keep them at bay while they barked salvos of strawberry-kiwi-flavored bubbles at her. â€Å"Help! Shiksas try to take supper,† said Mrs. Ling. Charlie saw the stockpot steaming on the stove, a pair of duck feet sticking out of it. â€Å"Mrs. Ling, is that duck wearing trousers?† She looked quickly, then turned and took a swipe at the hellhounds with the cleaver. â€Å"Could be,† she said. â€Å"Down, Alvin. Down, Mohammed,† Charlie commanded, which the hellhounds ignored completely. He turned to Ray. â€Å"Ray, would you go get Sophie?† The ex-cop, who felt himself the master of all situations chaotic, said, â€Å"Huh?† â€Å"They won't back off unless she tells them to. Go get her, okay.† Charlie turned to Mrs. Ling. â€Å"Sophie will call them off, Mrs. Ling. I'm sorry.† Mrs. Ling had been considering her dinner. She tried to shove the duck feet under the broth with her cleaver, but to little effect. â€Å"Is ancient Chinese recipe. We don't tell White Devils about it so you don't ruin it. You hear of paper-wrap chicken? This duck in pants.† The hellhounds growled. â€Å"Well, I'm sure it's delicious,† Charlie said, leaning against her fridge so he didn't fall over. â€Å"You bleeding, Mr. Asher.† â€Å"Yes, I am,† Charlie said. Ray arrived, carrying the towel-wrapped Sophie. He set her down. â€Å"Hi, Mrs. Ling,† Sophie said, then she stepped out of her towel, went to the hellhounds, and grabbed them by their collars. â€Å"You guys didn't rinse,† she said. Then, buck naked, her hair still in shampoo spikes, Sophie led the hellhounds out of Mrs. Ling's apartment. â€Å"Uh, someone shot you, boss,† Ray said. â€Å"Yes, they did,† said Charlie. â€Å"You should get medical attention.† â€Å"Yes, I should,† Charlie said. His eyes rolled back in his head and he slid down the front of Mrs. Ling's refrigerator. Charlie spent the entire night in the emergency room of St. Francis Memorial waiting for treatment. Ray Macy stayed with him the whole time. While Charlie enjoyed the screaming and whimpering from the other patients waiting for treatment, the retching and pervasive barf smell began to wear on him after a while. When he started to turn green, Ray tried to use his ex-cop status to gain favor with the head ER nurse, whom he had known in that old life. â€Å"He's hurt bad. Can't you sneak him in somewhere? He's a good guy, Betsy.† Nurse Betsy grinned (which was the expression she used in lieu of telling people to fuck off) and scanned the waiting room to make sure that no one seemed particularly attentive. â€Å"Can you get him to the window?† â€Å"Sure,† Ray said. He helped Charlie out of his chair and got him to the little bulletproof window. â€Å"This is Charlie Asher,† Ray said. â€Å"My friend.† Charlie looked at Ray. â€Å"I mean my boss,† Ray added quickly. â€Å"Mr. Asher, are you going to die on me?† â€Å"Hope not,† Charlie said. â€Å"But you might want to ask someone with more medical experience than me.† Nurse Betsy grinned. â€Å"He's been shot,† Ray said, ever the advocate. â€Å"I didn't see who shot me,† Charlie said. â€Å"It's a mystery.† Nurse Betsy leaned into the window. â€Å"You know we have to report all gunshot wounds to the authorities. Are you sure you don't want to take a veterinarian hostage and have him sew you up?† â€Å"I don't think my insurance will cover that,† Charlie said. â€Å"Besides, it wasn't a gunshot,† Ray added. â€Å"It was an arrow.† Nurse Betsy nodded. â€Å"Let me see?† Charlie started to roll up his pant leg and lift his leg up on the little counter. Nurse Betsy reached through the little window and knocked his foot off the shelf. â€Å"For Christ's sakes, don't let the others see I'm looking.† â€Å"Ouch, sorry.† â€Å"Is it still bleeding?† â€Å"No, I don't think so.† â€Å"Hurt?† â€Å"Like a bitch.† â€Å"Big bitch or little bitch?† â€Å"Extra large,† Charlie said. â€Å"You allergic to any painkillers?† â€Å"Nope.† â€Å"Antibiotics?† â€Å"Nope.† Nurse Betsy reached into her uniform pocket and pulled out a handful of pills, picked out two round ones and one long one, and slid them through the little window. â€Å"By the power invested in me by Saint Francis of Assisi, I now pronounce you painless. The round ones are Percocet, the oval one is Cipro. I'll put it on your chart.† She looked at Ray. â€Å"Fill out his papers for him, he's going to be too fucked up to do it in a few minutes.† â€Å"Thanks, Betsy.† â€Å"You get any Prada or Gucci bags in that store where you work – they're mine.† â€Å"No problem,† Ray said. â€Å"Charlie owns the store.† â€Å"Really?† Charlie nodded. â€Å"Free,† Betsy added. She slid another round pill across the counter. â€Å"For you, Ray.† â€Å"I'm not hurt.† â€Å"It's a long wait. Anything could happen.† She grinned in lieu of telling him to fuck off. An hour later the paperwork was done and Charlie was heaped in a fiberglass chair in a posture that seemed possible only if his bones had turned to marshmallow. â€Å"They killed Rachel here,† Charlie said. â€Å"Yeah, I know,† Ray said. â€Å"I'm sorry.† â€Å"I still miss her.† â€Å"Yeah, I know,† Ray said. â€Å"How's your leg?† â€Å"But they gave me Sophie,† Charlie said, ignoring the question. â€Å"So, you know, that was good.† â€Å"Yeah, I know,† Ray said. â€Å"How are you feeling now?† â€Å"I'm a little concerned that growing up without a mother, Sophie won't be sensitive enough.† â€Å"You're doing a great job with her. I meant how are you feeling physically?† â€Å"Like that thing where she kills people, just by looking at them. That can't be good for a little girl. My fault, all my fault.† â€Å"Charlie, does your leg hurt?† Ray had opted not to take the painkiller Nurse Betsy had given him, and now he was regretting it. â€Å"And the thing with the hellhounds – what kid has to deal with that? That can't be healthy.† â€Å"Charlie, how do you feel?† â€Å"I'm a little sleepy,† Charlie said. â€Å"Well, you lost a lot of blood.† â€Å"I'm relaxed, though. You know, blood loss relaxes you. You suppose that's why they did leeches in the Middle Ages? They could use them instead of tranquilizers. ‘Yes, Bob, I'll be right in to the meeting, but let me stick a leech on, I'm feeling a little anxious.' Like that.† â€Å"Great idea, Charlie. You want some water?† â€Å"You're a good guy, Ray. Did I ever tell you that? Even if you are serial-killing desperate Filipinas on your vacation.† â€Å"What?† Nurse Betsy came to the window. â€Å"Asher!† she called. Ray looked pleadingly at her through the window – a few seconds later she was coming through the door with a wheelchair. â€Å"How's Painless doing?† she said. â€Å"Oh my God, he's incredibly irritating,† Ray said. â€Å"You didn't take your medicine, did you?† â€Å"I don't like drugs.† â€Å"Who's the nurse here, Ray? It's the circle of meds, not just the patient, but everyone around him. Haven't you seen The Lion King?† â€Å"That's not in The Lion King. That's the circle of life.† â€Å"Really? I've been singing that song wrong the whole time? Wow, I guess I don't like that movie after all. Help me get Painless into the chair. We'll have him home by breakfast.† â€Å"We got here at dinnertime,† Ray said. â€Å"See how you are when you're off your meds?† Charlie had a foam walking cast and crutches when he got home from the hospital. The painkillers had worn off to a level where he was no longer painless. His head was throbbing like tiny twin aliens were going to burst out of his temples. Mrs. Korjev came out of his apartment and cornered him in the hallway. â€Å"Charlie Asher, I am having bone to pick with you. Last night am I seeing my little Sophie run by my apartment naked and soapy like bear, pulling giant black dogs around singing ‘not in butt'? In old country we have word for that, Charlie Asher. Word is nasty. I still have number for child service from days when my boys were boys.† â€Å"Soapy like bear?† â€Å"Don't change subject. Is nasty.† â€Å"Yes, it is. I'm sorry. It won't happen again. I was shot and wasn't thinking straight.† â€Å"You are shot?† â€Å"In the leg. It's only a flesh wound.† Charlie had waited his entire life to say those words and he felt very macho at that moment. â€Å"I don't know who shot me. It's a mystery. They dropped a rug on me, too.† The rug diminished the machismo somewhat. He vowed not to mention it henceforth. â€Å"You come in. Have breakfast. Sophie will not eat toast Vladlena make. She say is raw and have toast germs.† â€Å"That's my girl,† Charlie said. Charlie was no sooner in the door and on his way to rescue his daughter from toast-borne pathogens, when Mohammed grabbed the tip of one of his crutches in his mouth and dragged a hopping Charlie into the bedroom. â€Å"Hi, Daddy,† Sophie said as her father went hopping by. â€Å"No skipping in the house,† she added. Mohammed head-butted the hapless Beta Male to his date book. There were two names there under today's date, which wasn't that unusual. What was unusual was that they were the names that had appeared before: Esther Johnson and Irena Posokovanovich – the two soul vessels he'd missed. He sat down on the bed and tried to rub the pain aliens back into his temples. How to even start? Would these names keep coming back until he got the soul vessels? That hadn't happened with the fuck puppet. What was different here? Things were obviously getting worse – now they were shooting at him. Charlie picked up the phone and dialed Ray Macy's number. It took Ray four days to come back to Charlie with the report. He had the information in three, but he'd wanted to be absolutely sure that all the painkillers had worn off and Charlie wasn't going to be crazy anymore – going on all night about being the big death, â€Å"with a capital D.† Ray also felt a little guilty because he'd been holding out on Charlie about breaking some rules in the store. They met in the back room on a Wednesday morning, before the store opened. Charlie had made coffee and taken a seat at the desk so he could prop his foot up. Ray sat on some boxes of books. â€Å"Okay, shoot,† Charlie said. â€Å"Well, first, I found three more crossbow bolts. Two had barbed-steel tips like the one that went through your leg, and one had a titanium spike. That one was stuck in the pneumatic closer on the back door.† â€Å"Don't care, Ray. What about the two women?† â€Å"Charlie, someone shot you with a deadly weapon. You don't care?† â€Å"Correct. Don't care. It's a mystery. Know what I like about mysteries? They're mysterious.† Ray was wearing a Giants cap and he flipped it around backwards for emphasis. If he'd been wearing glasses he would have whipped those off, but he wasn't, so he squinted like he had. â€Å"I'm sorry, Charlie, but someone wanted you and the dogs out of the house at the same time. They threw that rug on you from the rooftop across the alley, then, when you were pinned down and the dogs were outside, they shot the closer on the door so it would slam shut. They sabotaged the back door's lock and glued the front doors shut, probably before they even started with the rug, then they slid down a line to the hall window, slipped between the bars, and – well, then it's unclear.† Charlie sighed. â€Å"You're not going to tell me about the two women until you finish this, are you?† â€Å"It was highly organized. This wasn't a random assault.† â€Å"The hall window upstairs has bars on it, Ray. No one can get in. No one got in.† â€Å"Well, that's where it gets a little crazy. You see, I don't think it was a human intruder.† â€Å"You don't?† Charlie actually seemed to be paying attention now. â€Å"In order to get through those bars, an intruder would have to be under two feet tall, and less than, say, thirty pounds. I'm thinking a monkey.† Charlie put down his coffee so hard that a java geyser jumped out of the cup onto some papers on the desk. â€Å"You think that I was shot by a highly organized monkey?† â€Å"Don't be that way – â€Å" â€Å"Who then slid down a wire, broke into the building, and did what? Made off with fruit?† â€Å"You should have heard some of the stupid shit you were saying the other night at the hospital, and did I make fun of you?† â€Å"I was on drugs, Ray.† â€Å"Well, there's no other explanation.† To Ray's Beta Male imagination, the monkey explanation seemed completely reasonable – except for lack of motive. But you know monkeys, they'll fling poo at you just for the hell of it, so who's to say – â€Å"The explanation is that it's a mystery,† Charlie said. â€Å"I appreciate your trying to bring this†¦this furry bastard to justice, Ray, but I need to know about the two women.† Ray nodded, defeated. He should have just shut up until he'd figured out why someone would want to get a monkey into Charlie's apartment. â€Å"People can train monkeys, you know. Do you have any valuable jewelry in your apartment?† â€Å"You know,† Charlie said, scratching his chin and looking at the ceiling as if remembering. â€Å"There was a small car parked across from the shop all day on Vallejo. And when I looked the next day, there was a pile of banana peels, like someone had been staking the place out. Someone who ate bananas.† â€Å"What kind of car was it?† Ray said, his notepad ready. â€Å"I'm not sure, but it was red, and definitely monkey size.† Ray looked up from his notes. â€Å"Really?† Charlie paused, as if thinking carefully about his answer. â€Å"Yes,† he said, very sincerely. â€Å"Monkey size.† Ray flipped his notebook back to the pages in the front. â€Å"There is no need to be that way, Charlie. I'm just trying to help.† â€Å"It might have been bigger,† Charlie said, remembering. â€Å"Like a monkey SUV – like what you might drive if you were transporting – I don't know – a barrel of monkeys.† Ray cringed, then read from the pages. â€Å"I went to the Johnson woman's house. No one is living there, but the house isn't on the market. I didn't see the niece you talked about. Funny thing is, the neighbors knew she'd been sick, but no one had heard that she'd died. In fact, one guy said he thought he saw her getting into a U-Haul truck with a couple of movers last week.† â€Å"Last week? Her niece said that she died two weeks ago.† â€Å"No niece.† â€Å"What?† â€Å"Esther Johnson doesn't have a niece. She was an only child. Didn't have brothers or sisters, and no nieces on her late husband's side of the family.† â€Å"So she's alive?† â€Å"Apparently.† Ray handed Charlie a photograph. â€Å"That's her latest driver's-license photo. This changes things. Now we're looking for a missing person, someone who will leave a trail. But the other one – Irena – is even better.† He handed Charlie another picture. â€Å"She's not dead either?† â€Å"Oh, there was a death notice in the paper three weeks ago, but here's the giveaway – all of her bills are still being paid, by personal check. Checks she signed.† Ray sat back on his stool, smiling, feeling the sweetness of righteous indignation over the monkey theory, and a little guilt alleviation for not telling Charlie about the special transactions. â€Å"Well?† Charlie finally asked. â€Å"She's at her sister's house in the Sunset. Here's the address.† Ray tore a page out of his notebook and handed it to Charlie.