Saturday, August 31, 2019

Pit-Bull Case

Legislation over the long-standing debate regarding the safety of housing Pit Bulls continues between pro Pit-Bull advocates and those fearing for their safety throughout Canada. Today, the issue of housing large, potentially dangerous dogs in the city has reached pivotal concern. A course of action is necessary. The level of concern surrounding Pit Bulls is greater than the concern over other dangerous domesticated dogs. There are, however, people who enjoy having Pit Bulls as pets. Pit Bull owners constitute a smaller percentage of people in comparison to those with concern over a Pit Bull’s safety. It comes down to pure fear over these life-threatening dogs. Yes, the anti-Pit Bull contingency has a voice, and with justifiable concern. Evaluation is in order regarding the pros and cons surrounding this issue. This position paper will clearly show that all breeds of Pit Bulls should not be housed in cities throughout Canada. There are many breeds of Pit Bulls—all of which can be threatening. The various breeds of other dangerous domesticated dogs are even larger. Lawyer Clayton Ruby argues the legislation. He sites the following: since 1983 there were 23 dog attacks in Canada that led to fatality. Of these 23 attacks, only one involved a Pit Bull. Thus, according to Mr. Ruby, legislation needs to be written governing all dangerous dogs, and not just Pit Bulls. The slant here, however, will be focused on developing legislation that will make it illegal to own a Pit Bull if you reside in a major city in Canada’s surrounding Provinces. First, we must consider the levels of all dog aggression in comparison to Pit Bulls’ aggression. The least dangerous level is called the submissive level. It includes dogs that display very little signs of aggression. Dogs of this nature tend to roll over when challenged and they will not respond with aggression. No Pit-Bull, regardless of breed, meets these criteria. The next level of dog aggression is known as the generic level. This level of dog aggression only demonstrates hostility if another angered dog approaches it. At this level, if attacked, a generic dog will respond with just enough tenacity to repel the instigating dog from its assault. Again, there isn’t a single Pit Bull that is calm enough to match this non-threatening level. The next level of aggression meets the characteristics of a Pit Bull Terrier. This Pit Bull, labeled a happy-normal-Pit-Bull-Terrier, is a dog that only displays aggression when challenged. This dog will respond aggressively. The only way to separate an aggressive Pit Bull Terrier is by using a ‘break-stick’ level of restraint. These restraining traits must be learned from trained specialists. Here in lies our first red flag. If even the most receptive breed of Pit Bull has a tendency for hostility, it is not feasible to consider Pit Bulls as an environmentally-safe pet, especially in the confines of a city. Pit Bulls at their most obedient level will always attempt to make friends with new dogs. This unreserved level of sociability in a Pit Bull can be the catalyst that leads to aggressiveness and fighting, or even death. When we add a Pit Bull that lives in a crowded city, the situation becomes grave and the opportunity for an unfortunate incident increases. It’s important to point out that even the friendliest Pit Bull will not tolerate aggressive behavior. If, for example, a Pit Bull is led through a small city park where people take dogs and children to play, there is a greater chance for altercation. Even if leash-restrained Pit Bulls are led through a city, the opportunity for an unfortunate encounter, on any given sidewalk might occur. Dogs, by nature, tend to gravitate toward one another. This curious sniffing can lead to danger if a Pit Bull is involved. The next level of Pit Bill is known as the average Pit Bull. These dogs will exhibit aggression toward strange dogs of the same sex while acting cautious around dogs of the opposite sex. If an average Pit Bull is challenged, they will counter with aggression. Physical intervention is necessary to separate a fight. Lastly, we come to the dog-aggressive-Pit-Bull. Pits at this level can live with other dogs but will attack any strange dogs (strange refers to any dog unfamiliar to a Pit Bull). Again, the only means of alleviating aggressive encounters between dogs at this level of aggression is by physical intervention. The fights can be very serious. There are a large number of variables that can occur to a Pit Bull in a city that would lead to aggression. Sometimes it only takes curiosity from neighboring dogs or young children to initiate a Pit Bull’s innate sense for violent tendencies. Legislation that does not allow city-dwellers to own a Pit Bull needs to pass. So many people live together in tight quarters in Canadian cities. This makes it an unsafe region for Pit Bulls. This legislation must come to action before another person or animal is maimed or killed by these instinctively dangerous dogs.

Friday, August 30, 2019

Internet Risk Essay

Internet Risks and Our Response 1)Introduction As our society becomes more urban, and life becomes hectic and busy for both parents and youth, the youths face more issues of modernity than before. Alienation, loneliness, depression become more prevalent. Many youths also have access to the internet. With the ready availability of broadband, and generally an improvement in the telecommunications industry, especially in the urban areas (partly due to the government’s push to attract investments and business for MSC), internet risks which were once more prevalent in the West or the more technologically advanced nations are upon our youths in Malaysia. 1 2)Current Trends a)Information Explosion The advent of the World Wide Web has created a huge bank of information. However since it is uncensored and un-moderated, anyone can post any kind of information and resources on the internet. Pornography has become the curse of this information age. )Communication Revolution Other than e-mails, internet chats, instant messaging, the youths are now into participating in social networks like â€Å"Friendster† and into on-line journaling on â€Å"Web-logs†, more popularly known as â€Å"Blogs†. It is also not unusual for them to use â€Å"on-line dating† servi ces. Spaming, web-bullying, web-scandals, hacking and cyber myths have become very real threats as a result of unchecked use of internet communication tools. c)Information Exchange There are also many new kinds of newsgroups, clubs, bulletin boards which are started on the web where people exchange information. In addition, there are many peer-to-peer platforms for exchange of files and information that can by-pass the internet but are still very much part of the lifestyle of info-savvy youths (e. g. in hostels, colleges and universities). These peer-to-peer networks can become breeding grounds for insidious information as well as pornography d)Gamming culture Computer games have evolved greatly from DOS based games to animated games to what is now known as Role Playing Games. With the availability of broadbands, Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPG) are the latest craze. With such games, you can play with all kinds of people, all over the world, irrespective of national or geographical boundaries and time-zones. e)Telecommunications Industry Convergence With miniaturization and the advent of integrated telecommunications device (mini-computer and telephone), both the benefits of the internet as well as the risks have become even more mobile and more immediate. 3)Risks a)Surfing Time Waster Pornography exposure and addiction b)Chats, Instant Messaging Safety Issues, risks of kidnapping and rape. c)Chats, Instant Messaging, Games Isolation and alienation, ack of self confidence, have low self esteem, lack social skills, inability to relate healthily social and psychological handicap results d)Games Most common popular games are dark, cultic, satanic, selfish, sensual and violent. Addiction to lust, violence, occult and game culture, confusion results lack of healthy real-world development, distorted outlook of the real world.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Is there microbial life in Mars Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Is there microbial life in Mars - Research Paper Example Most recently, scientists have come up with new and improved evidence to support their claims of life on Mars. The experiments, discoveries and propositions put forward by the scientists over the period of time regarding life on Mars are discussed further in the paper. The signs of microbial life first came into picture when the experiments of the Labeled Release (LR) apparatus turned out to be positive. This experiment tested on a sample of Martian soil by mixing it with a drop of water constituting of nutrients and radioactive carbon atoms. If the soil was positive for microbial life, the nutrients in the soil would be metabolized and radioactive gases such as methane or carbon dioxide would be produced. Control samples were also prepared by heating or isolating the samples that would kill any form of life if it existed. Control samples were also mixed with nutrient solutions; hence the control experiments provided a comparison. To the amusement and the excitement of the scientists , the LR experiment turned out positive for life. â€Å"The minute the nutrients were mixed with the soil sample, you got something like 10,000 counts of radioactive molecules- a huge spike from the 50 or 60 counts that constituted the natural background radiation on Mars† (Than). These were the earliest experiments performed by the NASA scientists in pursuit of their discovery for life on Mars. Although the LR experiments turned out positive but other space probes’ experiments were negative, making the existence of microbial life on Mars skeptical. Recently, the gas emissions on Mars have been linked to biological source. The experts believe that the chances for organisms to be a source of the gasses are quite explanatory and supportive of microbial life on Mars. The methane gas produced on the Red Planet is suspected to be produced by certain microbiological organisms. On the other hand, some scientists believe that methane can be a result of geological reasons i.e. volcanic processes. However, no active volcanoes have been discovered up till now on Mars. This evidence and explanation strengthens the probability of microbial life on Earth. Scientists have explained that methanogens, certain organisms, release methane as a waste product which dwells in the water beneath the underground ice. According to Prof Pillinger, â€Å"The most obvious source of methane is organisms. So if you find methane in an atmosphere, you can suspect there is life† (Staff Reporters). Miller and mathematician Giorgio Bianciardi, employed a cluster analysis technique on the Viking’s data. This technique groups together similar looking data. This analysis was performed to evaluate the realism of the experiments and investigate the outcome of the experiments. The technique turned out with two clusters; one with two active experiments and the other with five control experiments. The biological experiments from Earth sorted with the active experiments from Vi king exhibiting the validity of claims of microbial life on Mars. Another finding which supports the previous LR experiments is the Martian Rhythms. Circadian rhythms are internal clocks which can be found in every living thing, including microbes. On Earth the clock is set to 24 hour while on Mars it should be 24.7 hours, which is the duration of a Martian day. Miller noticed that the radioactive gas measurement sin the LR experiments exhibited a rhythmic rise during the day and decline during the night. The oscillations were in accordance with the Martian

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Business Environment and Strategic Management Essay

Business Environment and Strategic Management - Essay Example After 1960, the company focused on production of cars and it hit the market with the Civic which was an eco-friendly and economic vehicle once again winning the hearts of American drivers, it went on to make the accord which became the most popular vehicle in the United States. Honda has since then diversified its products and today it is also involved in the manufacture of solar cells, Aircraft through its subsidiary company Honda Aircraft, power generators among other products. However its main business is the production of vehicles, it is the largest manufacturer of motorcycles in Japan and it ranked 3rd car company in the world after Toyota and ford motors. Today, Hondas leading market is in North America where their revenues were highest compered to its other global markets (Parker, 2001). It is the second most popular Asian car brand in the United States after Toyota and is set to grow even bigger being the only vehicle with a fuel cell engine certified for US where the standar ds are highest in the world (Trade.govermnets.com, 2010). Its main competitors both in America and globally are Toyota and ford which have larger supply and distributor networks. In the last fiscal year, the companies’ profits Quadrupled showing a strong recovery after the earthquakes in Japan; it is predicting an even bigger profit in the next fiscal years with projections of up to 7.7 billion USD. Analysis of the current business environment affecting the industry In the cause of the last few years, recession and the subsequent by economic uncertainty has resulted in a serious decline in the motor vehicle industry, the sales of motor vehicles fell to the lowest point since the 70s. While Japanese firms like Toyota and Honda are still major players in the market, in the last few years they have suffered severe setbacks, which American and Korean firms exploited to increase their competitive advantage in the industry. Toyota for instance lost much of its competitive advantage by yielding too much ground base on its bottom line and lost the confidence of many of its customers. Japan, which is the mother country of Toyota and Honda, was also hit by a double calamity in the Japan earth quake and the tsunami, the two firms suffered major losses and setbacks in production and distribution as a result (Newman, 2013). The shortage that ensued drove American customers away from the Japanese manufactures to other suppliers in America Europe and other parts of Asia such as Korea and India. Toyota’s earnings went down by 2.3 percent and Honda lost 1.6 percent in earnings for the year 2011. Unfortunately for European auto makers, they were not able to benefit much from Japans misfortune since Europe was also embroiled in a crisis of its own albeit it an economic one, European Union countries were in the worst recession ever and the financial crisis almost crippled the manufacturing industry.

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Nike Sweatshops Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Nike Sweatshops - Case Study Example According to the paper the suffering was based on working long hours some up to 13 hours in a day, the overtime was forced upon the employees and not compensated, and there were higher case of child labor encompassing children of even 8 years working for around 9 hours in a day. This was in addition to the extra low wages they were being given which was way lower than the recommended minimum wages in the country as well as being physically punished by the supervisors. From this paper it is clear   that the ethical framework approach ensures a reduction of the suffering mentioned above and increases the benefits that the workers can accrue by working in Nike Inc. especially in the Asian nations of Vietnam, Taiwan where the suffering was in excess. This means starting with the issue of how workers are being treated where they are physically abused by the supervisors. This should be followed by the issue of eliminating completely child labor as this is morally wrong. The issue of working hours and overtime should be addressed according to the international labor laws. This should be followed by the wages being paid to be raised to at least the minimum wage required. In the end, the workers will be happy working for the organization which will in turn increase their productivity as well as save the company from having to use large sums of money paying off the politicians and other health officials to avoid being exposed or inspection of the factorie s. Nike should have first paid the employees for the pain they have caused them all this long. This should have been followed by a public apology from the top management of Nike Inc. who would express their unethical behavior and the changes that would follow.

Monday, August 26, 2019

BUSINESS LAW Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

BUSINESS LAW - Case Study Example Estoppel becomes applicable, only if the representation relied upon by the person claiming the benefit is unambiguous. In addition, the person claiming estoppel should undergo a detriment if there is a departure from the terms of the promise. As opined in Legione v Hateley, the party claiming estoppel should be placed in a situation wherein there would be a detriment to it, if the promise was to be broken (Gillies, 2004, p. 178). In order to deem the promise of the promisor to be consideration, it has to be proved that the promise was given or the act performed on the basis of the promisor’s request. Moreover, there should have been reliance upon the promise made by the promisor. The doctrine of promissory estoppel emerged with the decision in Central London Property Trust Ltd v High Trees House Ltd. Such existence has been subsequently confirmed in rulings made in England and Australia. This all important principle was defined in the following manner, during the ruling in Combe v Combe. Whenever, one of the parties makes to the other party a promise that has the intention of influencing the legal relations between them, and if the other party relies on this promise and acts on it, then the first party cannot revert to the prior legal relationship between them (Gillies, 2004, p. 178). Thus, promissory estoppel has an effect that is similar to a breach of promise. In instances, wherein a party convinces another party that a contract would emerge from their negotiations and subsequently fails to keep its word, the court can prevent such a party from resorting to the defense of absence of contract (Miller & Cross, 2012, p. 321).In such cases, it is deemed that a contract between these parties is in place. In order to establish promissory estoppel, the following conditions have to be proved. The presumption of a specific legal relationship between the first and second parties. The second

Sunday, August 25, 2019

The Battle of Little Bighorn Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Battle of Little Bighorn - Research Paper Example This historic paper primarily explores the background of the Battle of Little Bighorn. This battle is the only significant battle where the Native Americans managed to achieve a decisive victory over the White Americans, or more precisely, the US Army. Parties involved in the battle: The battle was fought between the alliance of some major Native American tribes and the US Army. At one side, there were the warriors from Lakota, Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes. They numbered around 2000. The other side consisted of US troops, numbering around 650. They were in alliance with the Arikara and Crow tribes. The Native American side was led by Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse, etc. The US side was led by G.A. Custer, Marcus Reno, Bloody Knife, etc. 1 Short description: The battle took place on 25th to 26th June, 1876 near the Little Bighorn River in Montana. Custer, who led the army from the forefront, made certain mistakes, which ultimately caused the US defeat. He divided his troops into 3 battalio ns by the time the battle began. This disunited the column, while the Native Americans surrounded them very swiftly. Custer’s move was actually a tactical error.2 In the battle that followed, over 250 US troops died while less than 150 Native Americans were killed.3 This paper will examine the background of this battle with reference to the Great Sioux War. Next, the supporting evidence will be put forward almost in the form of a literature review. In the conclusion part, the aftermath and consequences of the battle will be discussed. A summary of the paper will also be provided. Background The Great Sioux War: This war was waged by USA against the Native Americans who spoke languages mainly from the Sioux linguistic group. It was not strictly European style warfare. It consisted of a series of skirmishes, battles, and massacres. In the High Plains, warfare in various ways continued almost from 1865 to 1879.4 5 US defeat in the Battle of Little Bighorn heightened the tensions of this war and lingered it. About these developments, the New York Times reported, â€Å"The news of the fatal charge of Gen. Custer and his command against the Sioux Indians has caused great excitement in Washington, particularly among Army people and about the Capitol. The first impulse was to doubt the report, or set it down as some heartless hoax or at least a greatly exaggerated story by some frightened fugitive.†6 Situation before the battle: Prior to this battle, USA had demarcated the Great Sioux Reservation for the Native Americans and Indians around the Missouri area, Montana Territory, Dakota Territory, etc. The Cheyenne tribe had moved west side to the Powder River Country and Black Hills and they had adopted horse culture near about 1730. The Cheyenne remained a major force in the region and developed a centralized tribal authority, which later embarked on unifying the other tribes as well. The Lakota tribe had migrated to this region after Cheyenne. They began expanding their territory westward from the Missouri River as their number continued to increase. They used the Great Plains region to gather plant resources, lodge poles, animal rearing, buffalo hunting, etc. The Arapaho tribe was also a significant power in the area, which adopted common customs like Sun Dance along with Cheyenne and Lakota. Their social system was also centered on buffalo hunting and that was the main tribal occupation in the region.7 The alliance between Cheyenne, Lakota, and Arapaho became a significant power in the Great Plains that was opposing the US socio-political expansion during the mid 1870s. Arikara and Crow tribes were allied with USA. Arikara speak the distinct Arikara language. They were a people of semi-nomadic creed who were afraid of the increasing power of the Cheyenne. However, it is interesting to note that USA had fought their first battle with the Western Indians (i.e. Native Americans of the Great Plains) against this Arikara

Internship Hedge Fund in Sandell Asset Management Essay

Internship Hedge Fund in Sandell Asset Management - Essay Example Under this environment, many are the times that the day was fully packed with responsibilities but it is a phenomenon that I came to adjust to after my first month when all the tasks became familiar. The firm’s members of staff were quite helpful especially in the first months when I needed them most for guidance to work effectively and efficiently and this made me feel to be part of the firm just as they were (Sweitzer and  King 29-122). It is important to note that the aforementioned duties kept on being added to my in-tray as time went by and as I gained more and more experience of the various fund operations. The job was actually paid and I was earning $17 an hour which I considered fair enough being an intern. When enrolling for the internship I had clear goals and objectives that I aimed at achieving by the end of the period as an intern. The first was to take a test of myself in relation to the field and see whether it is the career line I am willing to take. I was al so aiming at applying the theory learned into practical experience and this was well fulfilled in the work environment. I wanted to learn and acquire work habits in relation to keeping time, enhance my interpersonal skills in a work environment and gain some sense of responsibility. I also endeavored to gain the much-needed experience in my field of study to support my awards and certificates. After an evaluation of the above goals, I realize that I achieved them well as expected. The main challenge that I faced was on handling all the aforementioned tasks within one day as it demanded a great deal of commitment and uprightness on my part. At one point I had just a few responsibilities when the manager in my department offered me the chance to explore more and added me four of the above-mentioned ones especially those that dealt with research and analysis of data and information. This is a line that facilitated a wide scope of knowledge acquisition (Sweitzer and  King 29-122).

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Statistics Executive Summary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Statistics Executive Summary - Essay Example Consequently, the small and medium entrepreneurs have to make hard struggle to increase the popularity of their products. The same is applied with the management of the restaurant under study, which aims to launch a comprehensive market research, in the light of which it could devise its strategic plan and implement it in urban and suburban areas. Though the research conducted for the market plan of the restaurant is limited one and discusses only few aspects, yet the given data draws out few aspects of the business plan of the restaurant, which have been analyzed as under: Data Analysis: The given sheet reveals the very fact that the data has been gathered from urban and suburban areas, where the administration aims to improve its already launched food services for the customers. Column A of the given data shows that one hundred and one locations have been selected for marketing purposes, out of which fifty one locations have been taken from urban areas, while the remaining fifty locations have been preserved for suburban areas for the restaurant under study. Column B shows mixed response from both the given locations regarding the food being offered by the restaurant. According to the given data the food is preferred by the visitors with the mean 19.33 in urban category, while the mean for the suburban category is 20.54. It proves the very reality that food of the restaurant is comparatively more popular among suburban population than the urban population. Since the main purpose of the people for visiting the restaurants is to get some food in order to satisfy their hunger, they want to go to such a place where there is peace, calm and tranquility as well as the services offered to them are satisfactory ones. The companies, organizations and entrepreneurs have to introduce new and novel services in a situation of perfect competition

Friday, August 23, 2019

Amoco Cadiz Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Amoco Cadiz - Essay Example It persisted in the form of asphalt crust and continued rescinding marine life. The spill affected vacationer’s shores at Plougasnou and rock beaches of Perros-Guirec and Tregastel. The rough sea contributed to the rapid emulsification of water and oil, which further convoluted the cleanup scuffles making the sea wary forever. Devastatingly, fishermen continued fishing despite the sheer fact that fish had developed skin tumors and ulcerations (Patrick, 1982). Despite destroying marine ecosystem, the tragedy transpired through the food chain into human beings and affected several generations. Two weeks after Amoco Cadiz grounded, its effects were felt far-flung and evident. Simmering with indignation, inhabitants of injured communities initiated a frantic battle against the mischance (Patrick,1982). Despite the French media’s attempt to verbose the apocalyptic images of the enormous oil slick, the entire nation was traumatized with the tragedy. Astilleros, the manufacturer, was indicted under the tort of negligence where the affected local communities and the government received 190 million euros after 14 years of multifaceted proceedings. The significant effects of the tragedy gave the French government an inordinate opportunity to review its Polmar Plan (oil response strategy), to create Cedre, and acquired Polmar stocks. This was in an effort to curb future marine accidents and augment environmental fortification and

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Harmony in Color Essay Example for Free

Harmony in Color Essay Colors seen together to produce a pleasing affective response are said to be in harmony (Burchett 28). Burchett spearheaded an analysis of color theory in order to clarify and define the mystery of color and what draws man to colorful paintings, like a butterfly to a multicolored flower.   The systems of color that need to be rediscovered are found through several color systems, formulas, and principles forwarded by expert scientists who have probed into man’s tendency to be touched by color and his appreciation for it. Harmony is crucial in every sphere in this case art and color interpretation. Color harmony is important to industry, art, fashion, natural science, animation, psychology etc. where man and animals project certain reactions toward color. Researchers have come with many propositions to find out what exactly appeals to the mind, making it receptive to colors that are in sync. Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. Color interpretation is often individualistic and also conforms according to culture. First of all the eyes construct color in light. The spectral balance explains this peculiarity. The lens refracts rays and focuses them on the retina which predicts and enhances the optic image. Electromagnetic waves help to relay different shades, hues, and patterns of color. It is the unfortunate lot of a few to be color blind. The determination of culture bears a heavy weight in the color harmony since each culture has a different set of values that govern beauty, synchronization, sentiment, and symbolism. â€Å"Different colors differ in the quality and intensity of their affective tone †¦ the differences become even more pronounced when people from different cultures are considered† (Shachtel 168). Therefore colors project various feelings often standing in association with an already familiar element of nature. The modern guide to shades is the color wheel which generates a kaleidoscope of color which gives the color range of color where the tints move from black, dark color, lighter color, to white; hence the segments of color provide primary, secondary, and tertiary levels of color. Nonetheless â€Å"the major shortcoming has been the failure to deal with the three basic perceptual dimensions to color: hue, brightness, and saturation† (Wright 232). These three subdivisions of color make chromatic harmony what it is. Like the refracted rays of light through a prism, looking at light and color unearths several dimensions. Color harmony is not isolated since it can only be appreciated as far as it evokes and transmits certain feelings (called the affective response). For example, warmth and passion are represented by red, coldness equates to blue-grey and bliss is chromatically evinced as a rosy pink etc. Other instances abound from which the artist can draw such as the earthy brown, the green vegetable, the sky-blue, the grey clouds, black night, yellow sun and the list continues. The darkness of the night or the dullness of an overcast sky transfer morbid, melancholy sentiments while the light of day conveys buoyancy, cheerfulness, and optimism. These affective connections define the chroma in which â€Å"color may be considered to be the most universal notion, permitting to assume the unity of both a man and an environment† (Serov). Consequently man’s relation with his environment is conditioned by color which provokes an emotive response from him when observing color or nature. According to Burchett, the eight attributes of color are order, configuration, area, association, similarity, attitude, and tone (Burchett 20). The order of color is crucial to the uniformity, synthesis, juxtaposition, and harmony of color. Also in the naming of colors, blue-green as opposed to green-blue makes a marked difference with respect to color codification. The Munsell Color Order system dictates that the hue, value, and chroma have to be diagrammed in tandem with specific shapes (e.g. circle, square) which ushers in a mathematical aspect of color. This rigidified structure places colors on an equal distance from one another, using primary colors such as yellow, purple, blue, red, and green. A colored tone signifies the depth of the color (which determines whether it is a lighter or darker variation of the same color). There are an infinite range of tone values. One expert on color, Henri Matisse says of tone: â€Å"The relationship of all the tones the result must be a living harmony of all the tones, a harmony not unlike that of a musical composition† (Chipp 134). The attitude of a color has to do with personality and what message the color gives or invokes, namely the character distinctions in a loud color versus a faded color. The Coloroid and the Munsell Color systems attempt at harmonizing color by chromatic spectrum, through a carefully structured, graduated color conversions. The Coloroid Color system, masterminded by Professor Antal Nemcsics, provides a structure whereby people can easily identify harmonious color, setting up a chromatic balance and the color ranks. In the Coloroid system, the most important features are the color hue, brightness, and saturation. One of the main principles of the Coloroid system which promotes melodious color is its â€Å"aesthetically uniform color-space† (Neuman). Here, the observer sees the progressive change from one color into another on the spectrum. â€Å"The fluctuations range from minute gradients fragile enough to be quenched by artificial illumination to abrupt, linear, and sometimes almost crystalline transitions both of hue, and up to a point of value† (Fried). The synchronized transitioning from one hue and another, one tone to another, is the main objective. Just as scales are represented in music in movement from one octave to the next, color must stick to this gradual succession. The Munsell color system seeks to strikes equilibrium among colors through a lightness-contrast mathematical equation. In this harmony formula, the variables are the Euclidean distances or the color intervals where â€Å"the degree of harmony is a cubic function of the color interval† (Chuang). Another element of color harmony is the hue effect. The color harmonies respond in accordance with the lightness/ brightness, saturation contrasts. As a result, we have a chromatic concord through these color and light values. The hue effect or the Abney effect essentially explains the color’s alteration under white light. The harmonic formula to the hue effect is as follows: H’=-0.23 – 0.35 sin (h s (ab) + 0.83) – 0.18sin (2h s(ab + 1.55) Chromatic Difference is a product of the equal-chroma and equal-hue effects principles. Through this equation, the color harmony score is calculated by computing the differences between hue and chroma where the smaller the difference between the two reveals the level of chromatic harmony.The Chromatic Difference Equation is as follows: H  Ã‚  Ã‚   =1.3 0.07 C 0.0005(C) Meta†harmony value is acquired by the defined hue effect function at the meta-harmony value. The Meta-harmony equation is as follows: ΔM = (ΔLM 2 + ΔTM2)1/2 Through this equation, one finds ΔM the meta†harmony value is defined by the Euclidean distance on the transformed hue planes. The final harmony value is defined by an H(Δ) function at the ΔM meta†harmony value. Results have been proven by experimental  observations, too. In conclusion, the harmony of color is a concept which embraces the hue, saturation, and brightness of color. In addition, the unity of color is promoted by the smooth transition to the next just like the scales in a musical manuscript. The coloroid and the munsell systems help incorporate harmonious chromatic values into the kaleidoscopic spectrum of color. All of these characteristics contribute in making the life experience more enjoyable where the senses are very much attuned to engage with the world. The colorful, colored world lies open for scrutiny where we as humans of every hue are touched not only through vision, but also through the very innate color coded system wiring which connects color to feelings and heart.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Social Reactions To Interracial Relationships

Social Reactions To Interracial Relationships The United States Supreme Court In 1967 ruled that Virginias anti-miscegenation laws were not in accord with the principles set forth in the constitution of the state and put a stop to all of the legal restrictions that were in place against marriages amongst mixed race (Erin, 2005). Since that time there has been a remarkable increase in the number of marriages amongst mix race in the United States (Lewis and Yancey, 1997), and the figures of interracial couples has also become twice as much every decade since 1960 (Killian, 2002). Statistics show that currently there are about 3 million interracial marriages, which make up 5% of all marriages in the United States, and another 2.5 million mix race couples that are dating (Hibbler and Shinew, 2002). Interracial marriages can include the combination of White, Blacks, Asians, Hispanics, and any other group. However, when people talk about interracial relationships, the first things that mostly come to their mind is relationships amongst black and white (Vernellia, 1998). The rate of growth of interracial marriages is increasing by the day. In particular, the kind of interracial intermingling involving Blacks and Whites has been constantly changing. Immediately after Emancipation, the figures of black and white interracial relationships increased, got to its peak in 1900, and subsequently decrease till 1940. However, this form of union is still the least common type of mix race union (Davidson, 1992), even though the Black and White intermarriages has been on the increase since the 90s (Tucker and Mitchell-Kernan, 1990). There are a lot of reasons for the sharp increase in the figures of the different form of interracial marriages. One of the reasons is the Supreme Court decision in 1967 that made anti- miscegenation laws unconstitutional (Kalmijn, 1993). The close in the gap narrowed down between Blacks and Whites education, occupation and income (Kalmijn, 1993). Also, data from National Center for Health Statistics indicates the decrease in Whites prejudice against Blacks (Kalmijn, 1993). Further more, the increase in interracial marriage can be linked to the progress made by the Civil Rights movement, the increase in opportunities afforded Black people, and the increase in social contact between the races (Davidson, 1992). This research aim at reviewing the historical background of interracial relationship both interracial dating and marriage, and also factors attributed to relationships amongst mix race. This research also focuses on the opinions of the youth to interracial relationship in the 21th century. In general, the main aim of this piece is to examine interracial relationships, whether marriage or casual dating and the attitude of the youths towards it, taking foreign pre- masters students at ICRGU from different regions as samples. The reason for the study of different forms of relationships is because some individual rather prefer to go into a causal date, than going into a serious relationships that might lead to marriage. But this research will not only look at attitude towards interracial relationships from perspective of preference. It will look at possible points of meeting a person from another region or origin, and what might probably propel someone into such relationship base on pers onalities and compatibility. The research questions are as follows: What are the attitudes of the youths towards relationship amongst mix race in the 21th century? How popular is relationships amongst mix race. Factors affecting relationships amongst mix race. LITERATURE REVIEW This section of review on the interracial relationships will basically focus on three major tittles, which are The characters of those going into interracial relationships Theories why people marry outside of their race taking blacks and whites form of union as study sample. Social reactions to interracial relationship. To start with, characteristics of those in interracial relationships, in terms of marriage, research shows that people who interracially marry tend to be younger, likelihood of being married before, live in developed environment like cities or town, or are older in age from their spouse compared to people who married within their own race (Erin, 2005). Research founds that male and female within a particular racial group to an extent have different tendency to get married to someone outside their racial group (Erin, 2005). For instance, Black male have high records of interracial compared to black females. Also, Japanese and Native American woman have much higher numbers of interracial marriages compared to their male counterparts (Erin, 2005). In the U.S interracial marriages currently are highest in the west and lowest in the southern region. However, Hawaii breaks the normal trends of interracial marriages. Hawaii has a unique racial makeup in that no single racial group makes up more than 25% of the population and nearly 40% of all marriages interracial (Solberry, 1994). Therefore, it is significant to note that interracial couples tend to often move to more hospitable areas of the country (Tucker and Mitchellkernan, 1990). Further more, many theories have been established to explain the reasons behind people getting married to race other than their race, and success of such marriage to stand test of time. Structural theory states that marriages among mix race is more frequent in areas where community structure have been kept in place to support and authorize interracial marriages, and also community were there is increase in awareness of peoples personal decision to go into such a union. Recent attention given to interracial marriage in the media and in popular literature along with more people living and working in more integrated environments has lead to an increased acceptance of heterogeneous relationships (Hibbler and Shinew, 2002). Another predominant theory on reason people chose to marry outside of their race is the social exchange theory. Using Black-White interracial marriage for instance, social exchange theory states that when White women marry Black men, who usually are of higher economic status, they exchange the prestige of their skin color for the Black husbands higher economic status (Davidson, 1992; Kalmijn, 1993; Lewis and Yancey, 1997). However, Black women have been found to marry down in both interracial and same race unions, which seem to prove that Black-White interracial marriage is more complex than just an exchange of status (Foeman and Nance, 1999). An additional theory, which attempts to account for the union of interracial relationships, is the racial motivation theory (Kouri and Lasswell, 1993). The racial motivation theory states that many interracial marriages take place because of racial differences, not in spite of them (Kouri and Lasswell, 1993). From this view, it can be said that curiosity about differences in race, increases sexual interest or attraction to someone not of same race. This theory also says that those who intermarry may be acting in rebellion against social norms of racial endogamy and using the marriage as a way to state their independence (Kouri and Lasswell, 1993). Finally, there has been a change in the societal view of interracial marriages. Many studies have shown that there is less pressure in society today to have racially homogeneous relationships than in the past (Lewis Yancey, 1997). Never the less there are still some discriminations in some form of interracial union. Using the union of Black and White for instance, recent studies still suggest that the Black-White interracial union, especially the Black male-White female union, is still the most negatively viewed relationship type (Norment, 1994). There have been many researches on the history of discrimination against Black-White Interracial union. Today, the relationship between Blacks and Whites is seen as different from that of other minorities. When one speaks of race relations in America, the majority of people immediately think of the struggles between Black and White people (Killian, 2002; Wright et. al, 2003). Despite the dramatic increase in Black-White marriages, they are still the least favorable form of interracial marriage in America (Wade, 1991), and they are still considered to be a taboo subject by some (Harris and Kalbfleisch, 2000). According to survey carried out among Blacks and White marriage, in the study of 270 interracial couples, it was found that nearly half reported that marrying someone not from their race makes marriage difficult, while about two thirds reported that at least one of the parent objected to their marriage (Fears and Deane, 2001). Although there is increase in the tolerance of interracial couples, there are still powerful forces in society that make Black-White interracial marriage hard and unappealing (Dainton, 1999). Many Black-White interracial couples report that they face discrimination from members of their own particular race; European Americans view them as being too Black and African Americans view them as being not Black enough (Orbe, 1999). Another source of discrimination for those in interracial marriages is often the family. The majority of people in interracial marriages have said that they have had to face one or both parents express serious concern to outright disapproval of their choice to marry interracially. Most of the time , this disapproval are always expressed verbally, and in the case where couple goes on with the marriage, some certain members of the family not in support of the union might refuse to attend any important event organized by the couples, such as wedding, holiday celebrations, family reunion or even family visitation. In some extreme cases, members of interracial marriages have reported having lost all contact for years at a time with once close members of their families (Luke and Carrington, 2000). But, one part of the twos couples tend to be more acceptant than the other. Studies have also found that acceptance of interracial marriages is increasing at a rapid rate and an increasing number of interracial couples are reporting that their families have openly accepted their interracial relationship, and they feel comfortable speaking about their relationship in public (Fears Deane, 2001, Rosenblatt et. al., 1995). However, attitudes towards interracial relationships have been found to vary based on race, age, and gender. In a study of Black and White people between the ages of 21 and 40, it was reported that men have more positive attitudes towards interracial relationships compared to women, and also those that are younger have more favorable views on interracial relationships (Datzman and Gardner 2000). It was also found that the families of the Black partner in interracial relationships tend to be more accepting and supportive than the families of the White partner (Hibbler and Shinew, 2002). In another study eighty-six percent of Black respondents said that their families would welcome a White person into their family compared to only 55% of White respondents who said their families would welcome a Black person into their family (Fears Deane, 2001). This research however is not just about interracial relationships among blacks and white, the review is to build up facts associated with interracial relationship considering researches already done on different topics on interracial relationships which can help answer some of the research questions. This research aims at cutting across all forms of interracial relationships, and types of relationships, whether causal dating or marriages and associated factors that influences the opinion of people towards going into it. Also, it aims at finding the opinion of the youth towards interracial relationships in the 21th century. METHOLOGY The research targeted at getting the opinions and attitudes of the youths towards interracial relationships, whether just casual dating or marriages. Considering the limitation both time and resources, the research were conducted among international students of ICRGU who are from different parts of the world, namely, China, Nigeria and Kazakhstan. The final sample of students consist of 4 Chinese (1 males, 3 females), 3 Nigerians (2 males, 1 female), and 3 Kazakhstanis (1 male, 2 females), all between the age of 20-35. None of the participant is married. Interviews were conducted on each of the participants to explore their attitudes toward interracial relationships. Qualitative data were collected by the means of follow-up interviews with the respondents who participated in the survey. The interviews with the respondents were semi- structured interview, including general questions as well as sets of questions for individuals who either have family members or friends, or know someone who was is into interracially relationship. Generally, all the questions aimed at getting disposition towards interracial relationships, and also general opinion towards interracial relationships. DISCUSSION Over the decades now, many studies have been made on interracial relationships and so far shown many controversies. The study on interracial relationships is a wide study, but very interesting study. This research however focused on the opinion of the youths towards interracial relationships, and has been proven that there is increase in the awareness of youth towards interracial relationships, unlike in the past. The table 1 shows the numbers of participants both male and female who took part in the survey, and their opinion on whether they can go into a relationship with someone not of their race. About 60% agreed they can go into interracial relationships, while about 20% disagree not to going into interracial relationships. 20% percent others would want to, but are restricted because of some factors like family acceptance or their culture. Table 2, shows the participants general opinion towards interracial marriages, and from the table, there is a trend of acceptance in some region compared to other regions. Fig 2.1 and 2.2 shows the percentages of both male and females opinions towards interracial marriages. Figure2.1 shows individual dispositions towards interracial marriage and about 60% sounded positive of getting married to someone outside their race, and about 40% wouldnt want to get married to someone not from their race. Figure 2.2 shows the general opinion on interracial marriages, and about 90% feels nothing is wrong in going into interracial marriages, while about 10% feels interracial marriages isnt ideal. Even with challenges faced in interracial relationship, its still something one can rule out from happening. According to Mr. John, he feels with high speed travel and communication technology in this age of globalization interracial marriages will always happen irrespective of the family, cultural believes, or societal opinion. But he feels to preserve culture, interracial marriage is not ideal. Miss Ama also feels marriage has nothing to do with culture or believes. She feels as long as there is love and the both parties understand themselves, marrying each other shouldnt be a problem. She also didnt rule out difficulties that might come with the marriage such as language barriers but she said if the 2 parties are strong enough to overcome the challenges that will make them strong. Generally, from the research, it was observed most believe interracial relationships have to do with the personal decisions and feeling. According to Miss Beauty, she feels going into interracial relationship is a personal thing. She also said as long as there is respect and happiness, there is nothing wrong about interracial relationships. To add to this, Miss Ama said feeling is a thing of the mind irrespective of color, culture or religion , you dont expect it, it just happens. When happens and you feel the person is the right choice for you, you just go for it. One of the limitations in this research is the time frame. The time frame to complete this research isnt long enough to get more samples for analyzing the topic in context. The research was restricted to little numbers of participants and limited questions to elaborate more on the factors affecting opinions so as to have enough time to execute the aim of the research. However, with previous review on related research, the aim of the research was accomplished. Another limitation was the numbers of different regions availably. In the pre masters class of ICRGU where the survey was carried out, presently have students mainly from 3 countries namely, Nigeria, China, and Kazakhstan. The effect of this is that, there were limitations to cultural behaviors and believes considering the topic was generally on opinion of the youths in the 21th century, and just 3 countries were available for the survey. CONCLUSION An interracial relationship is where there is marriage, sexual or romantic relations between individuals of different races. In the past, interracial marriages were in fact taboo in some parts of the world, but with globalization there has been a change in ideology about interracial relationship. From the result of the survey, it suggests that there is increase in the awareness of interracial relationships. It also suggests there is an increase in the acceptance of going into a relationship with someone of different race. However, there are still some believes that interracial relationships, especially marriage if encourage, could lead to cultures being eradicated, in this light very few persons wont support such union so as to preserve culture. The finding in the studies also shows that about 90% of the participants feel there is nothing wrong in going into interracial relationships, as long as both parties love each other and have reasons to want to go into such relations, and also can solve their differences. There are some attitudes common to the participants of this survey which are, All participants are in their 20s and are all international students of ICRGU who are from different countries, and might want to try something new. They have been opportune to meet with other students from other countries. Considering might be the first time most of them have the opportunity to meet different people with different culture, color, background and country. They believe as long as the 2 parties are willing to pass the huddles, there is nothing wrong in interracial relationships Lastly, they feel relationship is the thing of the heart. It has nothing to do with color, culture or country. As long as the two parties can cope with their differences. There are a lot of controversies on interracial relationships because believes of every individuals varies. But according to this research, it can be said to some extent that interracial relationships is somehow accepted and there is increase in awareness. In light of the increasing rates of interracial relationship and the opinion of people towards it, there is still a great deal of research that needs to be done on this topic. One of the researches needs to discuss more on the success of interracial marriages.

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Race And Class Structure Of South Africa Sociology Essay

Race And Class Structure Of South Africa Sociology Essay The issue of race which sometimes could be looked on as ethnicity has habitually been a very debatable issue among scholars, researchers and some scientists. Closely linked with this is the controversy surrounding the issue of identity which has been the cause of war and some other similar problems in the past; the result of which is evident in todays multicultural and multi-ethnic societies. In some parts of the world, it is usually difficult to classify a particular group of people or tie them down under a specific identity. In many cases, identities are usually sometimes related to position or hierarchy which can be linked to classification in terms of high, middle, low; in some other cases however, this classification which may be seen in different perspective, could be broad such as rich and poor categories. Racial and ethnic classifications have led to the concept of `ethclass ´ with the help of which alternatives in group identification can be understood across all classes a nd ethnic groups which is illustrated in the classification rendered above. The discussion on race and class which has been up for many years and is still going on among researchers and students can be seen as the descriptions of history of different people in a particular area and misconception about race are no less prevalent now than they were many years ago. Stephen stated that from an evolutionary standpoint it was evident that the race relation cycle was a universal phenomenon (Steinberg, 2001:2). The issue of race and class is an issue that has brought forward conflict, discrimination and many more that has happened in so many countries. In Burundi, it is the discrimination or classification between the Hutus and the Tutsis; in America, the classification of black Americans and the white Americans and some other classification included in America due to multiculturalism. In Germany, it is the classification between the Jews, Turks and the typical Germans; and in South Africa, it is the classification and discrimination between the blacks and the white South Africans. If we take the case of the Americans, it is seen that many people who are born in the USA and automatically are US citizens are still segregated from those who believe they are the main citizen of the country due to history, progeny and lineage. Race creates a  ´group` only when it is subjectively perceived as a common trait (Weber, 1922:52). These implies that in the US, it is glaring that race is nothing new to majority of the Americans it is normal to them and should be practiced and showed through an attitude or behaviour towards who they do not like by way of segregation. Weber make a claim that, the fact that several million mulattoes (a person with one black parent and one white parent) in the United States speaks clearly opposed to the assumption of happenings between people of different races antipathy, even among quite different races (ibid, 1922: 53). The explanation of the problems caused by race and class above will lead me to my point of departure and the focus of my paper on the issue of race and class structure in South Africa Race and Class Structure in South Africa The subject of the place and role of race, class and ethnicity has been at the focus of discussion and deliberation about the character of the South African problem and the strategies necessary to solve it (Nengwekhulu, p.29). South Africa being an African country is known to be a black country, which the majority of its population should also be black and so it should be for the majority of the workers, non workers and probably the farmers because Africa is generally known to be an agrarian continent. Therefore we can find several people being farmers at the subsistence level. In the aftermath of South Africas 1948 elections, as the Afrikaners who are the white minority in SA, National Party (NP) began enforcing its apartheid policies on the majority who are the blacks in SA. Inspired by religious mythology and legitimized by the Dutch Reformed Churches, Afrikaner nationalism controlled the State or the country of South Africa. These minority non-black rulers made and enforce series of rules that dichotomized the bi-racial South African ethnic landscape. These rules involving political, legal, and economic discrimination against non-whites are collective called apartheid. During the regime of apartheid, there were a lot of discrimination, using race and class structure as tools of oppression and segregation. Part of the discrimination is racial classification, racial domination and profiling between the white and black and not leaving out the rich and poor. The white are classified as the rich and the higher class people while blacks are seen as the lower class people and segregated from the whites. During the apartheid regime, the blacks were segregated from the white in terms of where they live and where they can live, the kind of work they can do. The ethnic blacks and the white rulers cannot intermarry; they can only associate in well defined and highly limited scenarios or circumstances. The whites are eligible to do only the high paying and mostly offici al and profitable duties while the blacks are limited to those works that are naturally difficult and with unprofitable and low incomes such as mining and subsistence farming. In a clear statement, the blacks became aliens in their own country as a result of the apartheid revolution. With respect to racial equality, contrary to initial assumptions, inter-race income disparity remains a greater determinant of inequality than intra-race differences. In other words, the aggregate difference between White and non-White, incomes is the dominant reason for South Africas extraordinarily high Gini coefficient (Zain et al, 2009:7). Couple with the quote above, it is noted that the white (Afrikaners) ruled with apartheid revolution from 1961 to 1989 with the National Party (NP) before the African National Congress took over. In a nutshell, it is worthy to note that before the advent of the apartheid regime in 1948, people of South Africa including the white settlers lived in harmony. There were the normal happenings between members of the same group, country or organization and tribal warfare which is similar to those that happens in many other countries of the world but 1948 proved to be a pivotal point in the history of South Africa whereby the white minorities, mainly the descendants of the anglo-dutch people that have been ruling since the 18th century decided to introduce laws that favours ethnic segregation, discrimination, racial classification, racial domination and profiling and the general introduction of class structure. The foregoing led Nengwekhulu to observe that the white racism and the articulation of racial consciousness by blacks cannot therefore just be ignored on the basis that they are expression of false consciousness and epiphenomena of the economic base (Nengwekhulu, p.29). The sc heme of grand apartheid, which begun at that time and lead to the delineated separate schooling, jobs, pay and places to live, and deprived most black Africans of citizenship in South Africa. Forgetting the fact that Africans has the massive and growing majority in South Africa, while whites are the minority; national liberation there would mean a profound change in who ruled. Nengwekhulu, in his article, explain further in the problems faced by the South African people with the illustration that South African situation and in formulating strategies for the elimination of black domination and exploitation whilst according to both race and ethnicity a place and role in this analysis and formulation of a strategy for black liberation and for social change (ibid, p.30). In other words, we can say the matter of race, class and ethnicity is not only of crucial theoretical but it is also a matter of powerful political significance for it is on the basis of the resolution of this question that the proper ground work can be laid not only for political strategies for the struggle against black exploitation but also for the construction of a future South Africa. Race discrimination, prejudice and ideology in South Africa are therefore not what happens or what people do without trying to change anything or oppose them in fundamentals of whose existence is determined automatically. They are however social matter which is not fully understood with a relative autonomy. For this reason, race discrimination and prejudice has always existed between the blacks and white and the colours in South Africa now they interact with each other while maintaining their identities. The incidence of apartheid in South Africa from 1948 to 1994 could be linked in retrospect to a form of social misnomer that is opposed to the classical form of Marxism. Marxism is based upon a materialist interpretation of history. Taking the idea that social change occurs because of the struggle between differ ent classes and races within society who are under contradiction of one against the other. The Marxist analysis leads to the conclusion that capitalism, the currently dominant form of economic management, leads to the oppression of the proletariat as in the case of the South African apartheid era, who not only make up the majority of the worlds populace but who also spend their lives working for the benefit of the bourgeoisie, or the wealthy ruling class in society. From the foregoing, I will attempt to explore the Marxist ideals and how it could be extended to explain the socio-economic dis-enfranchisation of the black majority as it happened in the apartheid in South Africa. Marxism The Marxist vision of society and history was presented in the 1848 Communist Manifesto in dramatic narrative form, sketching out the rise of capitalism and bourgeois society and its revolutionary overthrow by the industrial proletariat (Harrington, 2005:154). According to Karl Marx, Marxism is as a philosophy of history couple with an economic doctrine. He further explains Marxism also as a theory of revolution and the basic explanation for how societies go through the process of change (Marx, p: 2). He explains his idea by using two basics of ideas that is in demonstrating and explaining his idea of Marxism which they are MATERIALISM and CLASS STRUGGLE. By Materialism of Marxism, Marx aimed that the engine that drives society is the economy. Economic forces are more complex and pervasive than we thinkà Ã‚ ¾ According to Marx, they even determine how we think: Consciousness is from the very beginning a social product (Mazlish, 1984, p. 94). That is, the way at which people incorpo rate there things in when we talk about human material life shapes every part of humans life including the most important aspects that could include general character of the societal, community, public, political, and spiritual or religious practice of life. This could also be that it does not have to be that the well being of human that can prove the fact of their state of being but having in mind that the social life of human can also be a determinant in their consciousness. By Class Struggle which is the idea that is applicable to the problem of class structure in South Africa. Marxist analysis takes historical materialism a step further. All of human history can be explained and predicted by the competition between antagonistic economic classes, or as Marx put it, The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles. In political terms, this means that the social classes are competing in essence for control of the state-or, as Marxists would put it: the class that controls the Mode of Production also controls the State (Marx, 1818-1883,p: 4). The existence of class struggle that brought about the Marxist idea is applicable to the situation of South Africa because South Africa in the time of the apartheid government or ruler was one of the most hideously racist administrations during the time of twentieth century, a very obvious case of the bourgeois ruling class oppressing the majority proletariats (Zain, 2009:8). This struggle lead to the idea that social change occur due to class and race problem of discrimination between white and black South Africans. The existence of class struggle which is one of the basic tenets of Marxism as clearly evident in the case of South Africa sought to overcome the dogma and reductionism of Stalinism and Trotskyism, to engage with history as a living process rather than a mechanical formula, to found a historical consciousness linking local struggles to global processes, and implant itself in a working-class movement which sought to control its own destiny, openly and democratically, rather than submitting to the authority of nationalism or pseudo-science (Nash, 1999:66). In other words, it can also be noted that the regime of the apartheid in South Africa in the 1970s can be seen as Western Marxism as portrayed in Douglas Kellner article. In terms of the Western Marxism, South Africa started with the recognition in the midst of white students that are not among the social force that could bring about innovative change into the country South Africa. In a global context, this generation of South Africa n Marxists played a vital role in interpreting for the Western left, in the terms of their own thought, a struggle which had come to be crucial to the whole history of our time (ibid: 1999:66, quoted in Sweezy and Magdoff, 1986). In the analysis of Marx and Engels who are the author of Marxism, cultural ideas of a period serve is always to the comfort of the ruling class, providing ideologies that justifiable the domination of class. They make analysis of Ideology clarifying it as a critical term for Marxian that describes how dominant ideas of a ruling class promote the interests of that class and help mask oppression, injustices, and negative aspects of the specific culture, society or country. The introduction of the apartheid in South Africa includes the above mentioned in the case whereby most of the blacks were separated from the white. The blacks South Africans were leaving in a place where they can be classified as the lower class group and the white due to the kind of job a nd the place they live are seen as the high class and that is what the system of the apartheid illustrate segregation. At every situation in South Africa, white students or the white ethnic group were in a lot of ways allowed to their opinions and decisions on their own different individualities, with limitation that could do as ethical individuals that has no living history of struggle to be identified with, which includes the relationship to their history. Marxism as the political and economic theories of Karl Marx during the 1818 1883 that should give details of the changes, alterations, modifications and developments in a particular society or country that is implanted by implementing socialism. The implementation of socialism was supposed to be based on the belief that everyone has the same equal right in a countrys at which the government would have to own and control the main industries and not by private settings. But in the case of South Africa, the ruling system by the apartheid regime was not for equal right or for the development of the changes that were altered, but it brought differences between the black and the white which could be seen as racial dominant in South Africa. In other words, instead of the implementation of socialism, the case of South Africa led to capitalism. That is, instead of equal right as socialism represent; it was a system at which South Africa countrys businesses and industry are controlled and run for profit by private owners (the Afrikaners (whites)) which means I am not free to be open to the other as a person. I have to manipulate the other in such a way as to obtain things. And to manipulate the other I have to manipulate myself (Wolpe, 1980:21). In other words, capitalism did not basically take advantage of human beings whose underlying identity or personality was left otherwise indifferent by their experience of class mismanagement. The regime of apartheid which is that practices of Capitalism in South African can be viewed as the focused and attention to the relationship between the countrys economy and its polity, specifically on the relationship between class and race to build differences, racial capitalism and segregation between the working class people and the lower class people and South Africa being an Africa and a black country at large which was ruled by the white government who came up with the system of apartheid which was viewed as racial domination. Thus, the Marxism ideology is used to analyze the situation that occurred in the 1970s to 1980s till the end of apartheid in 1994 in South Africa. This is because when the white (the Germans, French, Irish and the British) who are known at the long run as the Afrikaners because of their way of life, and due to believes and culture and also that the Afrikaners view themselves as Africans and not as white people. They brought churches and believe into South Africa and because of the culture and believe they brought, these made the main South Africa people to believe in them and be rest assured of their words and whatever they promised of doing. Even though they are seen as the minority, they still have principal contributions to what is happening in the country and to the dos and donts in South Africa. With these minds of the Afrikaners, they created a political party that promised the people and the ethnic South Africans as a result of their trusts and basic cultural beliefs and ideol ogies allowed the white Afrikaans to have their ways. Part of the campaign during the election was the introduction of Apartheid which was introduced in 1948 to be practiced. Thereafter they implemented series of laws that promises a lot as the ideology portrays which is supposed to be for socialism but instead lead to segregation of the white and the blacks in South Africa. The idea of Marxism is to create equal right for everyone in the country while the government alone rule the country at which the Marxist theory is implemented. On the contrary in an unfortunate manner, most of the countries at which the Marxist theory was implemented did not survive with the Marxist theory due to the wrong implementation of the theory. The question of the place, role and relationship of race, class and ethnicity is not only of crucial theoretical significance but it is also a matter of powerful political significance (Nengwekhulu, p: 30). The white South Africas used the apartheid and the imple mentation of Marxism which they promised during the campaigns to acquire economic advantages and these economic advantages they never want to lose for any reason because it is of a great impact to their racist regime. A similar occurrence in some other countries has led to serious outcomes. If we take the case in France during the 18th century, the practices of oppression lead to war between the bourgeois and the proletariats. In their case, the bourgeois are the upper class people, the ruling class, and wealthy people while the proletariats are the working class people. Therefore because the bourgeois are the ruling class, they believe in power and used their power in differentiation and segregation between the working and the ruling class which later lead to war. As a result of these in South Africa, equal right as the theory portrays, the white goes to different schools, live in a separate environment, work in separate place and they have no say in what is going on within the cou ntry. The apartheid government isolate and keep apart the education, health care, and other community services, thereby make available black people with lower services compare to those of white people. Apartheid and the non-implementation of the true tenets of Marxism, led to deep class division between races and classes in South Africa failed because theirs was an oppressive form of government that put class wedges between different races and classes in the country. The race, class and separation of the white from the black in South Africa eventually lead to the struggle of class and race structure. In the manner, the black South Africans struggle for their race and class. The black South Africans during the racist regime in the 1970s to the 1980s which was the apartheid regime, after being promised a lot but instead was initiated with differences, maltreatment and segregation lost trust in the National Party (NP) people and had to struggle for their right which is equal right for everyone. In other words, non implementation of the true ideals of Marxism led to deep divide between the races and classes of people in South Africa. Nowadays, since 1994 onwards, we have a succession of governments that tries to practice equality among the disparate genders and classes of South Africa. The issue of racial discrimination and ethno-centric profiling has been reduced to the barest minimum. People are no longer hounded or massacred when they demand for their rights under the ethics citizenship as opposed to what happened in the Sharpeville massacre of the 1950s. Although we still have to a quite subliminal level the issue of class relating to the economic situa tions of the different classes of South Africans but the same is what is happening in many other countries that practices loose form of Marxism laced with high doses of Socialism such as the case of South Africa. It still remains a highly agrarian country but in the general case, it is no longer at the subsistence level. The proletariats that are majorly involved in the mining business now have a satisfying sense of belonging. Racial desegregation of South Africa has brought about mutual economic emancipation to the hitherto different classes of people as people that use to initially feel disenfranchised in their homeland now seems to have enhanced sense of belonging. The country still have its normal problem of crime, intrinsic economic instabilities, manipulation of governmental policies and general increased in awareness among the populace of the lassitude of their economic drive, but the same trend is being witnessed in several other developing countries that are middle ranked in the committee of nations such as South Africa. No longer do we have issues that relate to economic listlessness provoked by racial disparities and ethnic discrimination. South Africa in subsequent years as a country is still trying to dissociate from the lethargy and scariness harbingered by the Apartheid era but we now have in the country peace occasioned by sense of belonging. The general feelings in South Africa now are revealed through one of the speeches of Nelson Mandela after voting in the first South African democratic election and took the office in 1994, which initiates a new regime. Now we moved from a regime of doubt, separation, limited opportunities, disorder and conflict. In other word, a new era is starting to give hope, resolution and to build the nation. Thus a genuinely cast of voter results will give prospect to all the South Africans and make them realize the country is theirs and they are one nation. The speech thus goes that the fundamental requirements of majority of the citizens will be talked, such as the provision for employment, accommodation, and the initiation of power supply. Including the constructions of schools and hospitals, providing free, compulsory quality education, running water, paved roads (Natal, 1994) stating that these are their main concern which includes the minorities the white (Afrikaners). He made clear citizens should have confidence also that there would be security to those who are bothered that by these transformations and revolutions, which might not be of benefit or improvement to them. I again repeat that I have throughout my life as I pointed out in the Rivonia Trial: I have fought very firmly against white domination. I have fought very firmly against black domination. I cherish the idea of a new South Africa where all South Africans are equal and work together to bring about security, peace and democracy in our country. I sincerely hope that the mass media will use its powerful position to ensure that democracy is installed in this country (ibid: 1994). Since this historic speech at Inanda, Kwazulu Natal in April 1994, South Africa has continued to grow in leaps and bounds albeit with the normal problems that a budding and truly developing country might experience. From the foregoing, it could be inferred that any country that intermarry the basic tenets of the proletariat Marxism with democratic ideals may very well reap the benefits. However, the practices of these ideals must be in sync with true respect for the basic and fundamental rights of the citizenry. No nation may be able to move forwards if these ideals are violated. In many other countries of the world such as Iran in 1979, Russia in 1917 and France in 1789-1799, ruler ships by potentates and maximum rulers were done away with due to their well documented lack of care for the needs of the proletariats and the masses in their charge. In these countries, the initial deep chasm between the rulers and the proletariats were very well abridged due to introduction of class and ethnic declassification. So also in South Africa, the gain of racial declassification since 1994 and the introduction of almost a classless society is still unfolding and times will be able to show if truly the new trend could be maintained well into the future and if it will truly continue to benefit the entire people of South Africa.

Monday, August 19, 2019

If I Could Give Freedom Away :: essays research papers

I see on the news, a five-year-old girl is injured in a car accident. As a result, she becomes paralyzed from the waist down. The doctors say she will never walk again. This girl must spend the rest of her life confined to a wheel chair. The freedom to walk has been taken away from an innocent child.When I stop to think about this I realize how much I take for granted the use of my legs. I remember how much I enjoy walking along a beach with warm, wet sand squishing through my toes. I realize how much it means to me playing sports for my school and being part of a team. How different my life would be if I would not be able to go hiking through the woods or go swimming and jumping off diving boards. I look back at the times when I was a child and hopped on my bike to ride into town or just ran around the neighborhood playing with my friends. Many people who are paraplegic or have physical disabilities will never have these opportunities. Every day of their lives they must face struggles. Simple things I do routinely every day, like getting out of bed in the morning and getting dressed, would be a challenge for the physically impaired. What would it be like if I had to wheel myself from class to class, instead of walking freely through the halls. I think the worst part of being physically disabled must be, sad but true, the staring, the teasing, and being made fun of. Not everyone would be so cruel, but cruelty does happen. If I could give away freedom, I would give the freedom of movement to all people who are paralyzed in some way. I would give it to people in this condition so they could enjoy all the things other humans can enjoy. Some people are born with disabilities, and others dreadfully obtain them during their lives. Some of these disabilities can be cured, but many can’t be. I think this is unfair and everyone should be given the same opportunities in life.Why should someone be denied the freedom to run?

Sunday, August 18, 2019

The Whiteness Of The Whale Essay -- essays research papers

The Great White Whale and its Many Meanings   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Herman Melville, in his epic novel Moby-Dick, utilizes the symbolism of the color of the Great White Whale to demonstrate his theme of duality. However, Captain Ahab tragically had a single mind set towards Moby Dick, as he believed that the whale was the symbol of the world’s evil and had to be destroyed. On the other hand, Ishmael sees that the color white can mean many various and opposing things. It would be dangerous to settle upon any one single meaning. In the chapter, The Whiteness of the Whale, Melville explains the importance of duality of meaning in the world, as opposed to man’s (and Ahab’s) desire to see only one meaning in any one thing. Melville utilizes the symbol of the color white to show us that, no one thing means only one thing. Instead, the color white and the meaning of all things depends upon the experiences and perception of the person viewing that object.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ahab viewed the White Whale only as the symbol of all evil in the universe, which eventually leads him to his downfall. On the day that Ahab threw his harpoon into the White Whale and Moby Dick ate his leg, Ahab decided that the Great White Whale meant only one thing, evil. From then on Ahab decided that there was something unusual about this whale, as if it had hidden inside him all the evil in the world. Since Moby Dick attacked Ahab, he then had cherished a wild vindictiveness against t...

Materialism vs Idealism :: essays papers

Materialism vs Idealism History tells us very little of Titus Lucretius Carus, but one can see from reading his work that he has a strong dislike towards religious superstition, which he claims is the root of human fear and in turn the cause of impious acts. Although he does not deny the existence of a god, his work is aimed at proving that the world is not guided or controlled by a divinity. Lucretius asserts that matter exists in the form of atoms, which move around the universe in an empty space. This empty space, or vacuity, allows for the movement of the atoms and without it everything would be one mass. He explains that matter and vacuity can not occupy the same space, "...where there is empty space, there matter is not...", and these two things make up the entire universe. These invisible particles come together to form material objects, you and I are made of the same atoms as a chair or a tree. When the tree dies or the chair is thrown into a fire the atoms do not burn up or die, but are dispersed back into the vacuity. The atoms alone are without mind or secondary qualities, but they can combine to form living and thinking objects, along with sound, color, taste, etc... Atoms form life, consciousness, and the soul, and when our body dies there is nothing left of the latter except for its parts, which randomly become parts of other forms. Matter is never ending reality, only changing in its form. In the philosophical system developed by Irish philosopher George Berkeley, Idealism, Berkeley states that physical objects, matter, do not exist independent of the mind. The pencil that I am writing this essay with would not exist if I were not perceiving it with my senses, but in the dialogue between Hylus and Philonous Berkeley attempts to show things can and do exist apart from the human mind and our perception, but only because there is a mind in which all ideas are perceived or a deity that creates perception in the human mind, either way its God. He says that the external world can not be understood by thought, but "sensible things", objects that we perceive, can be reduced to ideas in the mind. These ideas, or "objects before the mind", possess primary qualities, the main structure, and secondary qualities, what we derive from our senses, which are inseparable. I'm confused about this, if I'm thinking about a star in a different galaxy, which makes the star an "object" before my mind, then where are the secondary qualities?

Saturday, August 17, 2019

The Hard Part of Breaking Up

Its hard to break up with someone. You never know how that person is going to act or say once you tell them why you are breaking up with him or her. There’s never a good way to break up with someone. But if there’s problems in the relationship you have to point them out if not things will never get better. There are three reasons for break ups: falling out of love with that person, cheating, or they were never happy together. One of the reasons why people choose to end their relationship is because they fell out of love with their partner.Some people say that love never dies but it fades once a person realizes what is missing in their relationship. Nobody ever wants to leave their true love but when your tired of trying to fix things or spark up the relationship and nothing seems to work then that’s when you have to let him or her go. Other people just aren’t in love with that person anymore . I hear this all the time â€Å"I love him or her but I’ m not in love with him or her†. I never really get that its either you are in love with that person or you aren’t.Another reason for break ups is cheating. Some people say the reason for cheating is that he or she isn’t taking care of my wants and needs. But when you actually realize it people cheat just to cheat they never have a reason to why they do it they love doing it. I don’t think cheating is right at all. That’s just showing people what type of person you are and should want people to see that side of you. People should always be faithful in their relationships. You shouldn’t want to cheat on your girlfriend or boyfriend.The last reason why break ups happen is because the couple was never happy together. Maybe at a point in their relationship they were happy but everything little thing is an argument. Even when they still try to go out and have a good time it always ends in an argument about stupid things. So they decide to go their separate ways and see other people but when I hear what some people go through in a relationship, I say to talk things out before actually breaking up but when they say they’re tired of it and their done there’s nothing you can really do at that point.But when your not happy together think of what made you happy at the beginning of your relationship to see if you can bring that happiness back. You never want to end a relationship especially if you have been together for years. That’s something you never want to let go but when its time you have to let him or her go. You always want to at least let that person know you still care about them.

Friday, August 16, 2019

My Values, Beliefs, Clinical Gestalt with Individuals and Systems Essay

Becoming a successful clinician is like a work in progress, a clinician should never consider it completed. There is always room to learn, to grow, and develop while working in the Human Services field. The knowledge that a clinician learns comes not only from education but also from experiences and time working in the field. Overtime, a clinician can expect to look at his or her own beliefs, values, and experiences as well as family, cultural dynamics, and background. The main reason a person continues to learn and obtain knowledge, is because of the array of clients a clinician sees. In the textbook, I had to complete exercises that discussed our values and beliefs and how they will affect and interact with our professional lives. The values that are in my life affect and make me whom I am. Several values that bounce between my professional and personal life and some that do not. There are also some values that I need to improve on which will help me in both my professional and personal lives My most important values and beliefs are: -Be respectful -Be open-minded -Be trustworthy -Always do my best -Have a big heart -Work hard -Enjoy life However, the most important thing is to make my values and beliefs flexible so that I can view the clients and better assist them. This is not always an easy task to do, but because of my experiences and my education, I continue to make progress. A clinician takes the ability to adapt and be flexible with your own personal beliefs and values. My experiences in life have always revolved around helping things, whether it was people or animals. My parents use to tell me, and showed by old family videos that I was the biggest tomboy and helper around our family farm. From a very young age, I was often found helping my parents on the farm rather than playing with Barbie Dolls. I would do all types of work on the farm such as feed animal, clean the barn, and milk the cows. These items helped either animals or people. Being raised on a dairy farm, encouraged me to work hard. Once I started high school my hard work did not stop at the farm, I got my first job away from working on the dairy farm. I am still employed at the job and once again because of my hard work I have had several promotional experiences within the company. I have always been a hard worker at everything I do and have learned many of my values and beliefs. Another textbook exercise that I completed discussed how my own family and my culture background will affect my ability to respond and connect with clients. I have learned that how I view others and makes me comfortable when working with clients has to do with how and where I was raised. My cultural background can include my education, social behaviors, ideas, and viewpoints. For example, in one of the exercises I was asked how I would feel working with a client who was African American or a client who was gay. All these items are affected by how I was raised, and my cultural background. Society also influences the lives we live and how we view other individuals. Textbook exercises were also completed concerning this. I have learned that society we live in shape, who we are, just like cultural backgrounds, beliefs, and values. Society can be described as the world, and community we live in. One example of society affecting our beliefs is with same sex marriages. This is a very controversial topic of society. For a very long time, society said same sex marriages are not okay, and recently they are becoming accepted. Because society is saying that it is now acceptable, the people in the communities are affected by this and their viewpoints may be altered. While working with clients a clinician needs to keep their cultural backgrounds and society out of their mind. Clinicians will experience working with clients of all types. It is important to remember that each client seen is different even if diagnoses, traits, characteristics, or anything else is similar. No two cases are alike. Clinicians will work with individuals with physical, mental, psychological, emotional, and verbal, and many other types of individuals. My job as a clinician is important. I need to remember that everything that shapes whom I am is important but private and should not be â€Å"worn on my sleeve. † Everything I do in life affects how I am shaped and how I view others. My values, beliefs, experiences, and the society also affect me. Keeping an open mind, and be understanding toward my clients is an important role and I will continue to devolve this in my experiences.

Thursday, August 15, 2019

Effects of Music on the Unborn Child

Music can be used to influence people’s mood and has been used to attempt to affect the brain of a child in its mother’s womb. Some people think that having an unborn child listen to different types of music will have different effects on how the child will grow. Some people believe that music has no influence while others believe that if they introduce their unborn child to classical music the baby will grow up to be smarter than the kid who either listened to other types of music or no music while in the womb. Studies have been done on how music can affect an unborn, and many different results have come from these studies. Not only can the unborn child actually hear the music, but the child will remember the song even after they are born. ?Music affects attitudes as well as thoughts. According to the book titled What to Listen for in Music by Aaron Copland, there are four elements of music: rhythm, melody, harmony, and tone color. Each of these elements are not heard by themselves but are heard together as one sound. Each part of music has a special and unique way wherewith we interpret and react to it. Rhythm comes first in the musical elements because many historians say that music started with a beating of a rhythm. Whether it was the cavemen with branches or another group rhythm was the first element of music found (Copland, 33). The second element, melody, is second because rhythm is more of a physical motion and so melody is experienced as a mental emotion. The melody is the most crucial part of the music. It is the only subjective portion of music that the audience rejects or accepts by itself (Copland, 49). Harmony, the third element, is the most sophisticated. The harmony was the most recently discovered and has been greatly appreciated (Copland, 61). The last element, tone color, is the quality of sound produced by a particular musical instrument (Copland, 78). Aaron Copland later goes on to explain the difference of how we listen to music now compared to how we listened when we were in the womb. We have little to no say in what we listen to when we were in the womb; we can only enjoy it or kick relentlessly hoping that it will change. ?Some studies have been done by David Tame in his book The Secret Power of Music. In it he says â€Å"music has been found to affect the body in two distinct ways, directly on the cells and organs and indirectly by affecting the emotions, which, in turn, influence numerous bodily processes. Sounds projected into liquid media have coagulated proteins. So teenagers have brought soft eggs to rock concerts, hich became hard-boiled — wonder what happens in our own bodies† (Tame, 173) After reading this, it does make one wonder why we listen to something that can have such a negative effect and be so bad. Most people chose music their parents raised them on or something completely different. Tame later says in his book that people who listen to rock music have led lives that were much more destructive to themselves and to others than people who had listened to classical music. David Tame also did studies on plants and animals and how they respond to the different music. In a study performed classical music had appeared to bring more produce and better looking flowers than rock music (Tame, 196). ?According to BBC, Dr. Lamont did a study where the same song was played for the last three months of the pregnancy and then was played again after the child was born, even after they were a year old they recognized the song (BBC, Womb Music: How Will Music Affect oner Unborn Child? ). Another study done by Dr. Lamont concluded that â€Å"that there was no evidence that playing classical music to babies helps to make their brains develop. Dr. Lamont has done many studies for this topic and could be considered an expert. She has discovered much information for example: babies can hear just twenty weeks after conception and can remember a song for at least twelve months, and that babies cannot only remember the songs but they prefer these songs (BBC, Babies Remember womb music). ?Another study was done at the Education Oasis on how music affects babies in the womb, and they said that music does not make a baby smarter but it does prepare it for particular ways of thinking. The effect the music has does not last long but can be used to do tasks more quickly (Bales). They figured out, through many experiments, that although music did not make the babies smarter it did make their brains ready to learn and grow. The babies who listened to classical music were more ready to learn than the babies, who had listened to country, rock, folk, dance, or nothing at all (Bales). ?Although there is still controversy on whether or not music can make the brain smarter or not, more research has been done to observe the effects of music on newborns. Researchers from Brigham Oneng University studied the effects of music on thirty-three premature infants in the neonatal intensive care unit at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo. Cassette players piped voices of men and women singing lullabies into each baby’s ears for forty minutes a day for four days. When doctors examined the babies on the fourth day, they found that babies who had been exposed to music gained more weight, and had lower blood pressure and a stronger heartbeat than the other (Robledo). Their research shows that music can help strengthen premature babies; however, these researchers still have yet to figure out if music can improve a child’s intellect. It is hard to study the intelligence level of babies when they cannot talk or write. When studying three and four year olds these researchers have found out that if the child plays an instrument that the child is better at math and special thinking (Robledo). â€Å"Oner goal should be to cultivate a love for music in oner child, not to create the next Mozart. It should be about having fun and exposing oner child to new sounds and rhythms† (Robledo). My mother listened to two genres of music when I was in her womb: eighties rock and R&B. I would kick and dance for her when she played the rock music and she used R&B to put me to sleep. It worked as a oneng child too; my mother has videos of me kicking and screaming for joy when she played AC/DC, Bon Jovi, the Beastie Boys, Duran Duran, Journey, Whitesnake, and U2. Whenever either of my parents wanted to put me to sleep, they would play Prince, Stevie Wonder, Al B. Sure, Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross, Soul II Soul, or Earth, Wind, and Fire. These genres have had an impact on my upbringing. Like most children I stuck to what I knew when it came for me to buy my first compact disk. The quote â€Å"The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree† applies very much so to me as it does to most children when they pick what they like and what they do not; I chose a nineties rock and alternative. I liked bands that were like the bands that I listened to in my mother’s womb, but I also liked having my own music to like. The music I chose sounds similar to the music my mother would have me listen to, but it was something my dad would not sing every word to, so I liked it. My dad is not the best singer, so if I can only get a hum then my music is more enjoyable. ?A year or two later, my mother was pregnant again. This time she was told by the doctors that her baby was to be born with many brain defects. She looked for many ways to keep her unborn baby from being born with the brain deficiencies. She had watched on the local news that babies were being born with an unbelievable intelligence from their mothers playing classical music while the unborn baby was still in the womb. There was another mother whom had said that the doctors had told her that her baby was supposed to be born with brain efects but her baby was born with no defects at all and she thanked her lucky stars on classical music. My mother thought it was worth a try since music was not thought of to hurt a baby’s brain. While she had classical music on headphone around her womb, she had rock music on a second pair for her and me to enjoy. My brother was born with some brain deficiencies; he is a slow school learner but is extremely fast at learning musical instruments. If one gives him an instrument in five minutes he will learn how to compose sound, in fifteen he knows notes, and in thirty he can play a song from memory. In everything else my brother is slow at learning and is slightly dyslexic. My mother thought the classical music had helped, so when she was pregnant again she had the new unborn baby listen to classical music as well. This one was born with terrible eye sight, deaf in one ear, dyslexic, and on the verge of being mentally handicapped. Classical music through a personal study has shown to have no intellectual effect on the unborn child. Every now and again a â€Å"musical genius† is born. These children are extremely gifted in music and can play, compose and understand music with an unimaginable capacity. Although, some may imagine that we cannot measure musical greatness or potential in children before they discover it themselves. There is a way. In the book titled Musical Ability in Children by Arnold Bentley, he describes ways that we can test the musical ability and potential in children. After all, he says â€Å"musical ability is primarily a mental ability. † He goes on to tell how to test children, but he says that this can be a difficult task especially if the children are not old enough to handle the challenge of the tests (Bentley). According to these studies, there are too many variables to consider when having a child and exposing them to the different array of music that we have today. For example, the child may be born already a genius and the classical music could impair his way of thinking, there are also some disabilities a child can be born with that music just will not be the fix, the baby may reject the music altogether because the baby still remembers what has happened before in the premortal life and knows that he should be listening to a different type or knows a better type for him to listen to. Music is a stimulant. We listen to it in hard times either to make us feel better or to truly understand what the artists are saying because now we understand what they mean. We try to understand everything that we listen to, but it is sometime hard to pick up the message the artists wanted to get out in the way they present it. Music is a powerful thing that should not be taken lightly it can create emotions and pictures in our mind. Music is not something that goes away either. Once one hears a song it can be stuck in one’s mind for a very long time. Even after many years of not hearing the song it can still come back to the front of one’s mind, much faster than a memory. Music is power, and to play it to unborn children increases the parent’s power over the child by what the parents choose which music to produce for the child.