BRIEF OF CASE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

BRIEF OF CASE - Essay Example The petitioner appeals but the Court of Special Appeals concludes that the Circuit court’s decision in favor of the Bank is legally correct. FACTS: The plaintiff Jeff E. Messing sued the Bank of America in court for refusal of a cash withdrawal over the counter through a check drawn on the bank because of the bank’s Thumbprint Signature Program for non-customers. Under the Thumbprint Signature Program, a bank requests non-customer presenters of checks over the counter to place an ‘‘inkless’’ thumbprint or fingerprint on the face of the check as part of the identification process. HOLDING:  § 3-501b (2) and (3). (2)Upon demand of the person to whom presentment is made, the person making presentment must (1) exhibit the instrument, (2) give reasonable identification and, if presentment is made on behalf of another person reasonable evidence of authority to do so, and (3) sign a receipt on the instrument for any payment made or surrender the instrument if full payment is made. (3)Without dishonoring the instrument, the party to whom presentment is made may (1) return the instrument for lack of a necessary indorsement, or (2) refuse payment or acceptance for failure of the presentment to comply with the terms of the instrument, an agreement of the parties or other applicable law or rule. RATIONALE: The reduction of risk promotes the expansion of commercial practices, bringing to the conclusion the direction of  § 1-102 (2) (b) that a bank’s requirement of a thumbprint placed upon a check presented over the counter by a non-customer is

Compare and Contrast Essay Example for Free

Compare and Contrast Essay Love is an emotion that deeply alters a person’s thought-process. This emotion can bring out the best of people or even make them question who they are and what they’re willing to give up for the person they love. In Judith Ortiz Cofer’s short story â€Å"Catch the Moon†, she suggests that love can change a person for the better by making them want to improve themselves. However, in W. D. Wetherell’s short story â€Å"The Bass, The River, and Sheila Mant†, he suggests that love can make a person try to be someone they are not, ultimately leading in disappointment and regret. Although both authors center their stories on the topic of love, they differ greatly from their character conflicts, character changes, conflict resolutions, and their themes. In â€Å"Catching the Moon†, Luis Cintron and his father constantly argue and never get along very well. However, when Luis meets this girl named Naomi, he experiences an emotion that reconnects him with his dad. Meeting Naomi causes Luis to experience love—an emotion he hasn’t felt since the death of his mother—and causes him to want to develop better character because he knows that his mother would want him to be happy. In order to prove his improved character to both Naomi and his dad, Luis searches all night for a hubcap that will match the one that Naomi is looking for. After hours of searching, Luis finally finds the hub cap and rushes to bring it to Naomi. Cofer states that Luis, â€Å"†¦waited to give her [Naomi] the first good thing he had given any one in a long time† (Cofer, pg. 240). This quote demonstrates that because of his new love, Luis was ready to change his personality for the better and that love can truly reconnect old flames from within oneself. â€Å"The Bass, The River, and Sheila Mant† portrays a different message than that of â€Å"Catching the Moon†. In this short story, the narrator faces an internal conflict between choosing over his two passions—Sheila Mant and fishing. The narrator has always dreamed about impressing Sheila Mant, but he wavers when Sheila criticizes fishing for being dumb and boring. Regardless of her opinion, the narrator continues his mission of impressing Sheila by taking her on a boat ride and going to a popular party. On the way to the party, a fish gets caught on the fishing line the narrator left out  on the boat, and by the struggle the fish puts up, he knows that it’s the bass he’s been waiting all summer to catch. Emotions rush through his head, and even though the narrator has waited all summer for this fish, he chooses Sheila instead. The narrator cuts the line, goes to the party with Sheila, and has his heart broken when she chooses to ditch him for another guy. From this experience, the narrator learns that there are plenty of fish in the sea and that he shouldn’t have changed himself just to get a girl to like him. He even goes on to say that, â€Å"There would be other Sheila Mants in my life, other fish, and though I came close once or twice, it was those secret, hidden tugging in the night that claimed me, and I never made the same mistake again† (Wetherell, pg. 150). This quote demonstrates the story’s theme of not changing who you are for love because it will only result in regret and disappointment. Love is a very complex emotion. There are a lot of rules and regulations to love, as well as a lot of exceptions to these rules. All in all, in order to have a happy relationship, one must do want makes oneself happy. If someone’s happiness is put in jeopardy just because of a relationship, then the relationship was definitely not meant to be. In other words, when entering a relationship, don’t choose the better boy or girl; choose the boy or girl that will make you a better person. Works Cited Cofer, Judith Ortiz. Catch the Moon. 2003. Holt Literature and Language Arts. 4th ed. Austin, Texas: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2003. 234-40. Print. W. D. Wetherell. The Bass, The River, and Sheila Mant. 2003. Holt Literature and Language Arts. 4th ed. Austin, Texas: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2003. 245-50. Print.

Education Over Censorship Essay -- School Technology Essays

Education Over Censorship Remember when you were a kid and you discovered something taboo or something that was considered adult? Didn’t it seem wrong, but exciting at the same time? It was something that was kept from your eyes or ears, but you were able to find it again when you wanted to. This is why there’s censorship in the world. There are things out there that children shouldn’t see. But determining what kids shouldn’t see has been plaguing our society forever. If we censor certain mediums just so kids can’t see them, then adults are also restricted. It’s like burning the house down to roast the pig. But, what if children were educated better? Even if they were educated about the taboo subjects such as pornography or obscenity, it could result in a society where these subjects weren’t taboo. Just blocking anything that has to do with sex, for example, could harm a child’s ability to learn important lessons about sex. If children are educated better, both at home and in school, censorship doesn’t have to be used and the idea of free speech could be respected much better than it is now. Unfortunately, when all those old dead presidents wrote the constitution over 200 years ago, they didn’t have TV, radio, or the internet. The fact that all the first amendment says is that congress can’t stop the freedom of speech or the press leaves this amendment open to endless debate over how it should be translated to modern day terms. If only Thomas Jefferson had in mind the KKK, Neo-Nazis, and the porn industry on the internet when he helped write the constitution. The Communications Decency Act was a huge block of nearly anything remotely obscene on the internet in order to protect the interests of minors. Among other... ...ble <http://researcher.sirs.com>. (8 December 1999). Kristol, Irving. "Liberal Censoship and the Common Culture."l Society Sep/Oct 1999: 5-11. EBSCOhost MasterFILE Premier. Available <http://www.epnet.com/ehost/>. (8 December 1999). Meecks, Brock N. "The Obscenity of Decency." HotWired and Wired Privacy Archive. <http://hotwired.lycos.com/Lib/Privacy/exon.privacy.html>. (8 December 1999).] Melillo, Wendy. "Block Shot." Brandweek 6 September 1999: pIQ12. EBSCOhost MasterFILE Premier. Available <http://www.epnet.com/ehost/>. (8 December 1999). Storck, Thomas. "Censorship Can Be Beneficial." Censorship: Opposing Viewpoints Eds. David Bender, et al. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1997. Wallace, Jonathan D. "Pervasive Problem." Reason October 1998: 52-58. EBSCOhost MasterFILE Premier. Available <http://www.epnet.com/ehost/>. (8 December 1999).

Change management reflective review Essay

The main agenda to write this critique is to give the reflection review of the change management. This report explains the self evaluation of my experience by attending the sessions of change management. I found out that change management is a very important subject that helps us to understand the need of change in an organisation and how it can be successfully achieved. It helps us in getting new experiences of our lives and provides us with the complete knowledge to experience the good or bad changes in our personal lives as well. It also provides the techniques, skills and principal in order to manage the change in a positive way. SELF-EVALUATION: The study of this subject is very helpful for me in every aspect. As it helps me to understand the principles of change, methods to be used while implementing change, challenges faced in order to implement the change and how the main organisational change could be implementing in an organisation effectively and efficiently. Even the study of change management is useful in my personal life as well. The self-awareness and self-management are those tools that help me to adopt any change in my personal life easily. Hence, it helps in developing my self-analysis abilities in order to establish and implement plans in my personal as well as professional life, in the period of change. As I got the chance to work with multicultural members in the group, it helps me in enhancing my abilities and even with the distribution of work among the group members, everyone enjoyed the work and even the workload also get reduced. KEY COMPETENCIES OF THE CHANGE PRACTITIONER/AGENT AND COMPARISON WITH MY COMPETENCIES: A change agent or practitioner is that person who helps the organisation internally as well as externally in order to implement change while focusing on effectiveness, development and improvement of the organisation. The main focus of the change agent is on the change in the technology and organisational structure and in order to implement the change effectively, they focus on the human resource of the organisation and their reactions as well. (Kanter, 1999) A change practitioner needs to have these competencies in order to be the best in his field: Trustworthiness: Being a change agent, the first and foremost thing that is important for an agent is to earn the trust and respect from the organisation’s members. It is a fact that when the agent  will achieve the respect and trust of the members then only they will be seriously looking for his advice and may implement in their decision as well. Advanced communication skills: After the planning of the change, the most important task is to implement the change. For implementing a change, the change and need for the change has to be communicated with the employees. Hence, a change agent has to be a person with good and advanced communication skills, as lack of communication may cause rumour in the company and may lead to the failure of the change process. Emotional Intelligence: A person can only manage others if he is having the ability to manage himself. If a person is self-aware and self-regulated, then only he can be a good change leader. Emotional intelligence is very important while helping others in implementing change. (Goleman, 2011). Knowledge of theories, concepts and methods: In order to be a good change agent, one must have the complete knowledge of the change theories, its concepts and the various methods that could be used in implementing the change in the best possible manner. If a change agent is not well aware with the theories of the change or methods of implementing change, than he is not be able to provide the organisation with the best output and may result in the wastage of time as well as money of the organisation. (Linda Miller, 2011) When I compare all these key competencies of the change agent with my competencies, I found out that I am a person who is trustworthy as my fellow friends and group members trust on me in our all the group tasks and even in personal life as well. I do have good communication skills as well, as I am able to communicate well with others and always ready to hear them also. I am a person who is emotionally balanced and intelligence as well. I never used to mix my emotions while implementing any change in my life. The only area where I lack is the complete knowledge of concepts, theories and methods of change. PERSONAL RESPONSE TO CHANGE: According to my perception I am a person who will accept the change easily and will not resist to it. As we all are aware with the fact that change is always for our good and if I will be getting something good for me and my workplace I will never resist to that change. Even being a management student I like to do something new and innovative to enhance my skills and abilities also. With the continuous change in the technology and working criteria one has to easily adoptable to change also, as it will ease the workload for him and his organisation as well. With this competitive world I think it is best to adapt the change with an ease to remove all the hassles and to work with more effectiveness and efficiency. I love to learn something new and that’s why I welcome the change easily and try to achieve my goals according to that as well. LEADING CHANGE EFFORTS: A person who is leading the change has to be the one who is good at planning, organising and who is having good leadership qualities as well. He has to be a person who is having that much influence on the management that they will easily accept the change. While leading a change effort according to my perception, I would like to choose the pathfinder as a practitioner’s work style. The pathfinder style of practitioner is that one which pursues high degree of employee satisfaction and effectiveness of plan as well. It is believed higher satisfaction can only be achieved when all the members are involved in the process and with the help of teamwork problem solving is being done. The main focus of this style is to maximise the employees’ participation and because of this, this is the ideal style for leading change efforts. (Waddell, 2000). ETHICS AND THE CHANGE PROCESS: Ethical issues in the change is basically related to how the change practitioners are able to perform their best while keeping in mind the value and beliefs of the organisation’s members and work according to that in order to maintain a healthy relationship with them. Being a change agent I will always try to avoid ethical dilemmas, but sometime it occurs. (Rhodeback, 1992). Some of the ethical dilemmas are: Misrepresentation: It only occurs when one or both parties are working under wrong pretence. It only occurs while entering and contracting periods of the change process. To avoid this change agent has to clearly communicate the change process and interventions to the members at the earliest. (Waddell, 2000) Misuse of data: The only reason due to which this ethical dilemma occurs is the punitive use of the collected data. The change agent has to be aware with the amount of data that should be given to the members while working on the change process at the larger scale and need to respect the privacy of others as well. The data should be used in only effective manner for the betterment  of the organisation not for the harm for the organisation or its employees. (Waddell, 2000) CONCLUSION: In a nutshell, I would like to say that change management is that subject which helps us to get to know the various aspects, theories and methods of change and the need of change as well. It helps us to adapt the change easily and to minimise the resistance for the change. We all are living in a world, where thing are used to change on a daily basis and to survive in this type of world one need to be the person who could easily accept the change and could work on that as well. With the self evaluation, I come to know about my inner abilities also, with which I was unaware till now. References Goleman, D. (2011, september 15). Daniel Goleman on leadership and the power of emotional intelligence. Retrieved from www. forbes.com: http://www.forbes.com Kanter, R. M. (1999). The Enduring Skills of Chnage Leaders. Linda Miller, C. c. (2011). Professionalization, Leadership and Management in the Early Years. London: Sage Publications. Rhodeback, W. a. (1992). Ethical dilemmas in organisational development: a cross-cultural analysis. Journal of business ethics,11 , 663-70. Waddell, D. M. (2000). Organisation Development & Change. Melbourne: Thomson Learning Australia.

Succubus on Top CHAPTER 7

We stood rooted in the bedroom, frozen, both of us too terrified to blink. Downstairs, the door shut and footsteps could be clearly heard on the hardwood floor. A low murmur of voices drifted up, the words inaudible. â€Å"What are we going to do?† I whispered. Invisible we might be, but I still didn't want to slink through the house with others around. It would also make leaving inconspicuously a problem. Bastien frowned, apparently trying to discern the words below. â€Å"Those are all male voices. Not Dana. Come on.† He grabbed my arm, and we crept out into the hallway where we could hear more clearly. â€Å"You sure they aren't coming home?† asked an anxious voice. â€Å"Yup. They'll be out 'til, like, midnight.† â€Å"Cool.† Bastien grinned at me. â€Å"Reese,† he breathed. Reese. The son. The son who was supposed to be down the street at a friend's house. That was better than Dana, but still disconcerting. I shot Bastien a questioning look. What's he doing here? I mouthed. Bastien shrugged by way of answer and gestured for me to follow him the rest of the way downstairs. Reese and his friend obliviously made enough noise to cover any of our movements. I hadn't really seen Reese yet and was curious. I'd expected a clean-cut, dutiful altar-boy type, but he seemed perfectly average – in that sullen, T-shirt wearing sort of way. He had Dana's black hair and blue eyes, paired with some of Bill's unfortunate facial features. His friend had long hair and wore a beat-up army coat with jeans. â€Å"Where should we do it?† asked the friend. Reese glanced around. â€Å"Outside. Otherwise they'll smell it later.† â€Å"Okay. But roll it in here.† They huddled around the kitchen table. Reese produced a tin of rolling papers and a plastic Baggie with enough marijuana in it to keep a family of five stoned for a week. The friend skillfully rolled an enormous joint, and the boys took it outside, going out the same door we'd come in. Bastien and I exchanged glances, both of us barely holding back hysterical laughter. We walked into the still-dark living room and stood at the window, watching the boys outside. They left all the outdoor lights off, not wanting to attract neighborly attention. The joint made a pinpoint of orange light in the blackness as they passed it back and forth. â€Å"Oh my God,† I gasped. â€Å"This just justified the whole break-in.† Bastien's expression was speculative. â€Å"Maybe we can use this against her.† I turned on him. â€Å"What? Come on. He's just a kid. No need to drag him down with her. Besides, if I had his parents, I'd want to be high too. â€Å" Bastien looked momentarily uncertain, finally yielding with a small nod. â€Å"Okay. You're right. So. You want to finish the bedroom and then head out? I doubt they're going to notice much going on around them. â€Å" We went back upstairs, still hoping for some incriminating photo or piece of paper. No such luck. We left Reese and his friend alone, using the front door to make our getaway. Once we were safely back at Bastien's, we settled into the immaculate living room, defeated. â€Å"Well. That was pointless,† I said. â€Å"Not entirely.† Bastien reached into his pocket and tossed over Reese's plastic bag. I caught it and straightened up in my chair. â€Å"Jesus H. Christ! You swiped that poor kid's pot?† â€Å"He shouldn't have left it out like that.† I held it up. It was half-full. â€Å"There's a special hell for people like you.† â€Å"Yeah, I own a condo there. Besides, it's for his own good. Pot's a gateway drug, you know. â€Å" â€Å"I can't believe this. You don't think they're going to notice this is missing?† â€Å"Nah. By the time they come back in, they'll be so far gone they won't remember where they left it. They'll spend the next few days accusing each other of losing it.† I shook my head. â€Å"I know I've said it before, but this really is a new low. I†¦I'm so shocked now, I don't even know what to do.† â€Å"7 do.† An hour later, we were both on the floor, giggling endlessly, though I wasn't entirely sure what about. Bastien passed the joint to me, and I took a hit off it, sighing happily. I handed it back. â€Å"I'm not saying Monique wasn't a bitch,† he was explaining, â€Å"but you have to admit, she knew how to get things done.† I leaned against the back of the couch, letting my head roll around on the cushions. â€Å"Yeah, but†¦she was†¦you know, sloppy. Like, no creativity whatsoever. Being in the business isn't just about sex. It's about†¦pride†¦pride in your work.† He inhaled and passed the joint back. â€Å"Oh, she had pride in her work, believe me. Used to ride me like a horse.† He paused a moment, then started laughing. â€Å"She totally did me proud.† I sat back up. â€Å"What, you slept with her?† â€Å"Sure, why not?† I poked him with my foot. â€Å"You fucking slut.† â€Å"Look who's calling the cauldron black.† â€Å"Kettle. It's a kettle. Get your metaphors right. â€Å" â€Å"That wasn't a metaphor. It was a, you know†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He stared off into space, blinking. â€Å"One of those things that's symbolic of another thing. But isn't the same thing. Just like it.† â€Å"You mean a metaphor?† â€Å"No! It's like a story†¦like†¦a proverb! That's it.† â€Å"I'm pretty sure that wasn't a proverb. Maybe it was an analogy. â€Å" â€Å"I don't think so.† â€Å"Look, I know these things. I work in a – oh!† â€Å"Oh what?† â€Å"How am I going to get home?† â€Å"You're leaving? Or is that an analogy?† â€Å"I'm not leaving yet†¦but you drove me†¦you can't drive me back.† â€Å"Sure I can. I feel fine.† â€Å"You wish. I haven't smoked that much.† I rummaged through my purse, found my cell phone, and dialed the first number in it. Beside me, Bastien muttered about analogies while staring entranced at the smoke swirling off the joint. â€Å"Hello?† answered Seth. We hadn't really spoken since our awkward morning. â€Å"Hey, it's me.† â€Å"Hey.† â€Å"So†¦I, uh†¦need a favor.† â€Å"What is it?† When I didn't say anything right away, he asked, â€Å"You still there? You okay?† â€Å"Yeah†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I started laughing uncontrollably. â€Å"I am 50 okay.† â€Å"Urn, all right. What do you need?† It took me a moment to remember. â€Å"A ride.† â€Å"A ride?† â€Å"Yeah. A ride.† Bastien made a rude gesture at the mention of â€Å"a ride,† and I kicked him again. I gave the address to a clearly confused Seth and then disconnected. â€Å"Idiot!† I yelled at Bastien, even though I thought the whole situation was hilarious, as did he. I went in for a tackle. â€Å"What were you – â€Å" The doorbell rang. Our eyes went wide as we froze mid-grapple, panic flooding us like two kids who had just been busted hardcore. â€Å"Shit,† I said. â€Å"Damn. That author drives fast.† â€Å"It's not him, you dork. Don't move. They'll go away.† He lumbered to his feet. â€Å"No†¦I gotta see who it is†¦maybe it's Jack Daniels†¦could use a drink†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Don't do it!† I begged, suddenly terrified for no reason I could identify. He turned invisible and strolled over to the door. Half a second later, he came tearing back. â€Å"It's Dana! She's back early.† He ran his hand frantically over Mitch's neat, blonde hair. â€Å"What's she want? What's she doing here?† â€Å"Maybe she wants Reese's pot back.† â€Å"This is my chance! She's here alone. She wants me. Quick.† He yanked my arm and dragged me to the stairs. I cried out in surprise. â€Å"Get out of sight. Throw that away.† â€Å"I'm not throwing this away! Besides, you don't think she'll notice that your whole fucking house smells like this? Jesus. Your pupils are the size of her granny panties. Virtuous or not, she isn't stupid.† â€Å"Just go! Hurry! Don't come down.† Grumbling, I went upstairs while Bastien scurried to the door. Turning invisible, I sat cross-legged at the top of the stairs and kept smoking. Below, I heard him greet Dana. â€Å"Well, hello,† he bellowed. â€Å"Sorry if I kept you waiting†¦I was†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He trailed off stupidly, and I shook my head. Sloppy, sloppy. He would have never been at a loss for words sober, but then, his sober self would have immediately noticed the foolishness afoot. â€Å"I was†¦um, busy. Upstairs.† â€Å"I see,† replied Dana. Her tone was once again set to cool and formal. I decided Bastien had imagined the warm and friendly rapport he kept claiming they had when alone. â€Å"Well, I apologize for disturbing you, but when I dropped off the cookies earlier, I think I may have lost an earring.† I straightened up. Cookies? He hadn't mentioned that. Maybe he was making progress after all. Cookies. I wondered what kind she'd brought. Peanut butter? Chocolate chip? Oh. Maybe even white chocolate macadamia. He and Dana commenced a search for the earring, coming up empty. The whole time, Bastien tried to act like he wasn't stoned, but Dana couldn't have been fooled. Not with those cyborg eyes of hers. Hell, I didn't even need to see it. The audio track alone was entertaining enough. Meanwhile, I couldn't stop thinking about those goddamned cookies. They sounded good. Really good. Suddenly, I wanted them more than I'd ever wanted anything in my life. â€Å"Well,† I heard Dana say, â€Å"I must have lost it somewhere else. Thanks for looking.† â€Å"Sorry I couldn't help you.† â€Å"It's all right.† She allowed an elegantly crafted pause. â€Å"Isn't that Tabitha's purse over there? Is she here?† Oh, shit. I had a feeling Bastien was thinking the same thing. â€Å"Uh, well, yeah†¦but†¦um, she's upstairs lying down,† he faltered. â€Å"Has a headache.† â€Å"Oh, that's too bad. Did she take anything for it?† â€Å"Um, yeah, she did.† I looked at the joint. Had I ever. Bastien and Dana started talking about something else, and I decided then that I had to get those cookies. I was starving. The lovebirds sounded like they had moved to the living room, so I could sneak invisibly down the stairs and raid the kitchen without them knowing. Standing up, I put the joint out in the upstairs bathroom and moved on to my covert descent. Pot doesn't usually mess with motor control the way alcohol can, but it can certainly distract you from ordinary things. Like watching where you're going. About three steps down, my foot slipped out from under me. I uttered a sailor-worthy expletive and slid painfully down the rest of the way, landing hard on my butt at the bottom, my legs twisting into unnatural positions underneath me. I had barely enough sense to snap back to a visible Tabitha, lest Bastien and Dana think a clumsy ghost had just fallen down. A moment later, they came running. â€Å"What happened?† exclaimed Bastien. He sounded more upset about the interruption than my immediate health. â€Å"I†¦I tripped†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Looking down, I tried moving my left ankle to a more comfortable position. I winced. It hurt like hell, but at least it moved. â€Å"Well,† he said crisply, â€Å"so long as you're okay. I'm sure you'll want to go and – â€Å" â€Å"Okay?† Dana gave him an incredulous look. â€Å"We need to get her to the couch so she can straighten that out.† â€Å"Oh no,† I protested, seeing Bastien's murderous expression. â€Å"I†¦I'm fine†¦really†¦Ã¢â‚¬  But there was no arguing with Dana. She supported me under one arm, and he took the other. I hobbled over to the couch, putting my weight only on the right foot. Once I was stretched out, she pushed my jeans up over my calf and felt the ankle with cautious, expert precision, carefully examining each inch. I appreciated her solicitous concern and apparent first-aid know-how, but the thought of this wretched woman touching my leg repulsed me. Besides, what I really wanted were those cookies. Fuck my ankle. â€Å"It doesn't feel broken,† she finally decided. â€Å"Probably just a sprain, lucky for you. We should ice it.† When Bastien neither did nor offered anything useful, she went into the kitchen. I could hear her opening drawers and the freezer. â€Å"Do you hate me or something?† he hissed once we were alone. â€Å"This wasn't my fault,† I countered. â€Å"I think you've got a defective stair.† â€Å"Defective my ass. The only thing that's defective is your sense of timing. Do you know how close I was to scoring?† â€Å"Close? Close? Not to use a cliche, but hell was closer to freezing over than you were to scoring. I don't think she really goes for the babbling, high kind of guy.† â€Å"I wasn't babbling. And there's no way she knows I'm high.† â€Å"Oh, come on. If you were any higher, you'd – â€Å" I shut my mouth as Dana returned with the ice pack. She knelt by my feet and carefully set the pack on the injured ankle. I grimaced at the sudden change of temperature, but the shocking cold did numb the throbbing. Still concerned, she surveyed the rest of my lower leg with those sharp eyes. Again, she felt around the ankle area, her hands gently touching here and there. She frowned. â€Å"I could be wrong about how serious it is. You should keep icing it and take ibuprofen. If it doesn't get better in a couple days, go see your doctor.† â€Å"Thanks,† I said, looking away. Honestly, what I found most disconcerting now was how sincerely concerned she seemed. Maybe we'd misjudged her all along. Nah. â€Å"Well,† breezed Bastien, â€Å"if Tabby Cat's okay, maybe we should go to the kitchen and have some coffee – â€Å" â€Å"Do you know how it happened?† Dana asked me, ignoring him. â€Å"Oh†¦just a misstep I think†¦or maybe the stair is defective.† â€Å"I doubt there's anything wrong with the stairs,† said Bastien. â€Å"Tabitha's always been clumsy, that's all. It's legendary in our family.† Dana, oblivious to me glaring at the incubus over the slam to my gracefulness, glanced over at my shoes sitting near the door. They were strappy and black, with three-inch heels. â€Å"Are those what you've been wearing?† She fixed me with a stern, motherly look. â€Å"I know how strong societal pressure can be in making you think you need to fit a certain mold. But walking around in shoes like that all day will do serious damage to your feet. Not only that, they send a message that you have no shame when it comes to – â€Å" The doorbell rang then. None of us moved at first, and then Bastien rose, looking amazed that this night could get any worse. Dana dropped her wardrobe lecture and switched to a medical one. â€Å"You really need to be careful with this. Too much stress will agitate it. â€Å" Bastien returned a moment later with an utterly puzzled Seth, whom I suspected had no idea who had just let him in. Indeed, his bewilderment grew as he scanned Dana and me, no doubt wondering if he had the right house. â€Å"Hi Seth,† I said pointedly, in too loud of a voice, â€Å"thanks for coming to pick me up.† He continued to stare, and then the faintest gleam of understanding showed in his eyes. He'd seen me shape-shift clothes often, but this was the first time he'd ever seen me in another body. Dana looked around expectantly. â€Å"Oh,† I said, my mind still running a little slow from the pot. â€Å"This is, um, Seth. Seth, Dana.† â€Å"Hello,† she said, rising smoothly and shaking his hand. â€Å"Nice to meet you.† â€Å"Um, yeah. You too.† I had a feeling he would bolt if given half a chance. â€Å"Seth is Tabitha's boyfriend,† explained Bastien. â€Å"I imagine they'll want to be on their way now.† â€Å"I'd heard you were single. How long have you two been dating?† she asked, steering us toward casual conversation. Neither of us answered. â€Å"A couple months,† I said at last, wondering if my virtue was once again being assessed. She smiled. â€Å"How nice.† I started feeling those creepy vibes again, and suddenly I did want to leave. I tried to sit up, and she rushed to my side. â€Å"Someone grab her other arm.† When Bastien didn't move, Seth was finally spurred into action. He supported my other side and helped me stand. It was clear, however, that touching me in this body unnerved him, and he tried to manage it while staying as far away from me as possible. Consequently, all of his movements seemed awkward and unnatural, and no doubt Dana thought we were even weirder than before. She and Seth helped me to the car, Bastien following with a pout. When I was situated in the passenger seat, Dana offered a few parting words of instruction to both Seth and me on how to care for the ankle. â€Å"Thanks for the help,† I told her. â€Å"Happy to. Just try to be more careful from now on.† She glanced at her watch. â€Å"Well. I should probably go home myself.† â€Å"Do you have to?† asked Bastien stupidly. â€Å"Er, I mean, no need to feel rushed†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Thank you, but no. Bill will wonder what happened to me.† I saw her walk back to her house as Seth pulled out. I also saw the look on Bastien's face. The morning after was not going to be pretty. We were almost in the city when Seth finally spoke. â€Å"Can you†¦uh†¦you know†¦change? This is really weird.† â€Å"Huh?† I had been staring bleary-eyed out the window, intrigued by the blur of city lights. â€Å"Oh. Yeah.† A moment later, I was the Georgina Kincaid he knew. â€Å"Thanks. So, uh†¦I don't suppose I really want to know what was going on back there†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Nope.† I craned my head to look in the backseat. â€Å"You really don't.† â€Å"What are you doing?† â€Å"You don't have any cookies back there do you?† â€Å"Uh†¦no. I'm all out.† I sighed and sank into my seat. â€Å"I am starving. I don't think I can hold on much longer. You sure you don't have any other food?† The ghost of a smile curled his lips. â€Å"Nope. Sorry. You want to stop somewhere?† â€Å"Yes!† He pulled into a Taco Bell drive-thru, looking surprised when I gave him my order. When it came up, he wordlessly handed me my bag of four tacos, two bean burritos, and a tostada. I dove into them before he'd even accelerated away. When we got back to my place, he didn't give me the chance to limp in. He scooped me up effortlessly, almost like O'Neill might have in one of his novels. If not for me being stoned and clinging to a taco, it would have been terribly romantic. â€Å"You think I'm a freak, don't you?† I asked, once I was situated in bed and he sat on its edge. Seth had tended me once before, after a night of heavy drinking. I felt so irresponsible compared to him. â€Å"Well, the tostada was kind of excessive, but I've seen freakier.† â€Å"No†¦you know. I mean†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I hesitated. â€Å"Well, you may not realize this, but I've sort of been smoking†¦some stuff.† â€Å"Yeah. I kind of picked up on that.† â€Å"Oh. Well. Sorry.† I bit into one of the burritos savagely. â€Å"Why are you apologizing?† â€Å"Because†¦well, you don't do this.† â€Å"Do what?† â€Å"Smoke pot. Or drink. Geez, you even avoid caffeine. Don't you think I'm like, I don't know†¦corrupt?† â€Å"Corrupt?† He laughed. â€Å"Hardly. Anyway, you don't think I've ever done any of that?† The idea was just shocking enough to give me pause. I put my gluttony on hold. â€Å"Well†¦I don't know. I just figured, well, no. Either that, or you had some tragic history†¦like you got drunk and hit a mailbox or took off all your clothes in public and now avoid all such vices.† â€Å"That would be tragic. But rest easy, I indulged in plenty of ‘vices' in college. That's why it took me six years to graduate. Well, that and changing my major a few times. In the end, I just decided to abstain altogether. Didn't like myself otherwise. Sobriety's better for writing, and I say too many stupid things when I'm drunk or high.† â€Å"Yeah,† I said uneasily, trying to remember what I'd said tonight. It was kind of a haze. â€Å"So you don't think I'm like†¦I don't know, a shameless lush?† â€Å"Nope. So long as you don't do yourself harm.† He eyed the ankle suspiciously. â€Å"It doesn't matter to me. Honestly, half the reason I like you is because you're so†¦I don't know. You like life.† He looked away from my eyes, amused as his thoughts spun, considering. â€Å"You're fearless. Bold. Not afraid to enjoy yourself. You just go out there and do what you want. I like the whirlwind you exist in. I envy it. It's funny, really.† He smiled. â€Å"I used to think I wanted someone exactly like me, but now I think I'd be bored to death with another version of myself. I'm surprised I don't bore you sometimes.† I gaped. â€Å"Are you kidding? You're the most interesting person I know. Aside from Hugh maybe. But then, he installs breast implants and buys souls. That's a hard combination to beat. But he's not nearly as cute.† Seth's smile increased, and he squeezed my hand. Silence fell between us again, but this time it was kind of cozy. â€Å"Thanks for rescuing me,† I said slowly, â€Å"and for†¦well†¦I mean, I'm sorry about last night. Sorry I shut down.† His face sobered. â€Å"No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have – â€Å" â€Å"No,† I said firmly. â€Å"Don't blame yourself. It was me too. My fault too. And really, I was the one who started it. I should have just talked to you about it then. Especially after you made me pancakes this morning. You know, those suddenly sound really good again.† I looked at him meaningfully. â€Å"We shouldn't have done what we did†¦in bed†¦but, at least we did manage to stop. That's worth something.† I nodded, crumpling up the Taco Bell bag and tossing it across the room into my wastebasket. Score. He studied me, eyes warm and affectionate. He sighed and turned pensive again. There apparently was more seriousness to come. â€Å"I'd like to try sleeping together again, but I suppose†¦we should take a break from that. â€Å" I mirrored his sigh. â€Å"Yeah. I suppose.† Remembering something, I cocked my head and gave him a sharp look. â€Å"Hey, hypothetically – and I'm not offering this, so don't get any ideas – would you, like, give up part of your life to sleep with me? Er, but I mean†¦not actually sleep†¦ â€Å" He laughed out loud, the laughter underscored with a wry edge. â€Å"Thetis, I'd give up part of my life to do any number of things with you.† My interest flared. â€Å"Like what?† â€Å"Well†¦isn't it obvious?† I leaned toward him. Maybe I was still high and suffering from weed-induced horniness – and hey, in another reality, shouldn't we have been entitled to make-up sex? – but I suddenly and desperately wanted to hear him articulate what he wanted to do to me. â€Å"Tell me.† He shook his head. â€Å"I can't. You know how I am.† His eyes narrowed intently. â€Å"I could maybe†¦I could maybe write it for you, though.† â€Å"Really? Not in published story form this time?† â€Å"Yes, not in published story form.† â€Å"I'd like that.† I must have looked expectant because he laughed. â€Å"Not tonight, Thetis. Not tonight. I think we both need some sleep.† I was disappointed but could see the wisdom here. Having more time would ensure some good writing, I guessed. Furthermore, it was hard to be too sad when the tension from last night's mishap appeared to be gone. Our rapport and affection had returned, and watching him, I felt my feelings for him practically increase by the second. We chatted a bit more, and then he kissed me lightly on the mouth and rose. I wistfully watched him go, wishing he were staying. Drifting off to sleep, I finally contented myself by thinking about all the things I wanted to do to him. It was a long list, and I was out before even getting through a fraction of it.

Free Essays on The Battle For Chattanooga

Outline I. Introduction II. Events contributing to the Battle of Chattanooga. A. The Union Army 1. President Lincoln 2. General Ulysses S. Grant B. The Confederate Army 1. The Battle of Chickamauga 2. General Braxton Bragg III. The Battle of Chattanooga A. Brown’s Ferry 1. Strategic Value 2. Longstreet Retreats B. Orchard Knob 1. Reconnaissance 2. Grant Controls Orchard Knob C. Lookout Mountain 1. General Hooker 2. Battle at Lookout Mountain D. Missionary Ridge 1. Confederate Headquarters 2. Battle at Missionary Ridge IV. Aftermath of the battle A. Casualties B. Promotions and Demotions V. Conclusion The Civil War was the bloodiest war in United States history. This war tested the values and courage of all early Americans. The Battle of Chattanooga was one of the most important battles fought in the war. The victor would control Chattanooga and its surrounding territory and would have an upper hand in the war. General Ulysses S. Grant was at the Battle of Vicksburg and did an outstanding job with his troops in the Union victory. President Lincoln was impressed with Grant and promoted him to Commander. Grant was given orders to gather his troops and lead them into Chattanooga at once. â€Å"He gathered a little over 60,000 men† (Chattanooga Campaign, 179). Included in this amount, were troops from Generals Hooker, Sherman, and Thomas. Grant marched the troops to Chattanooga to keep the east-west passageway functioning. This was important in deploying men and supplies being shipped or railed to their battles and headquarters. After the battles of Vicksburg and Chickamauga, Bragg was deployed to gather troops and surround Chattanooga. The Confederates also needed Chattanooga because it was one of the last places able to transport men and supplies railroad. The Union troops were surrounded by the Confederate troops. Grant knew the Confederates had an advant... Free Essays on The Battle For Chattanooga Free Essays on The Battle For Chattanooga Outline I. Introduction II. Events contributing to the Battle of Chattanooga. A. The Union Army 1. President Lincoln 2. General Ulysses S. Grant B. The Confederate Army 1. The Battle of Chickamauga 2. General Braxton Bragg III. The Battle of Chattanooga A. Brown’s Ferry 1. Strategic Value 2. Longstreet Retreats B. Orchard Knob 1. Reconnaissance 2. Grant Controls Orchard Knob C. Lookout Mountain 1. General Hooker 2. Battle at Lookout Mountain D. Missionary Ridge 1. Confederate Headquarters 2. Battle at Missionary Ridge IV. Aftermath of the battle A. Casualties B. Promotions and Demotions V. Conclusion The Civil War was the bloodiest war in United States history. This war tested the values and courage of all early Americans. The Battle of Chattanooga was one of the most important battles fought in the war. The victor would control Chattanooga and its surrounding territory and would have an upper hand in the war. General Ulysses S. Grant was at the Battle of Vicksburg and did an outstanding job with his troops in the Union victory. President Lincoln was impressed with Grant and promoted him to Commander. Grant was given orders to gather his troops and lead them into Chattanooga at once. â€Å"He gathered a little over 60,000 men† (Chattanooga Campaign, 179). Included in this amount, were troops from Generals Hooker, Sherman, and Thomas. Grant marched the troops to Chattanooga to keep the east-west passageway functioning. This was important in deploying men and supplies being shipped or railed to their battles and headquarters. After the battles of Vicksburg and Chickamauga, Bragg was deployed to gather troops and surround Chattanooga. The Confederates also needed Chattanooga because it was one of the last places able to transport men and supplies railroad. The Union troops were surrounded by the Confederate troops. Grant knew the Confederates had an advant...

The Benin Empire

The Benin Empire The pre-colonial Benin Kingdom or Empire was located in what is today southern Nigeria. (It is entirely separate from the Republic of Benin, which was then known as Dahomey.) Benin arose as a city-state in the late 1100s or 1200s and expanded into a larger kingdom or empire in the mid-1400s.  Most of the people within the Benin Empire were Edo, and they were ruled over by a monarch, who held the title of Oba (roughly equivalent to king).   By the late 1400s, the capital of Benin, Benin City, was already a large and highly regulated city. Europeans who visited were always impressed by its splendor and compared it to the major European cities at the time. The city was laid out on a clear plan, the buildings were reportedly all well-kept, and the city included a massive palace compound decorated with thousands of intricate metal, ivory, and wood plaques (known as the Benin Bronzes), most of which were made between the 1400s and 1600s, after which the craft declined. In the mid-1600s, the power of the Obas also waned, as administrators and officials took more control over the government. The Transatlantic Slave Trade Benin was one of many African countries to sell slaves to European slave traders, but like all strong states, the Benin people did so on their own terms. In fact, Benin refused to sell slaves for many years. Benin representatives sold some prisoners of war to the Portuguese in the late 1400s, during the time when Benin was expanding into an empire and fighting several battles. By the 1500s, however, they had stopped expanding and refused to sell more slaves until the 1700s. Instead, they traded other goods, including pepper, ivory, and palm oil for the brass and firearms they wanted from Europeans. The slave trade only began to pick up after 1750, when Benin was in a period of decline. The Conquest of 1897 During the European Scramble for Africa in the late 1800s, Britain wanted to extend its control northwards over what became Nigeria, but Benin repeatedly rejected their diplomatic advances. In 1892, however, a British representative named H. L. Gallwey visited Benin and reportedly convinced the Oba to sign a treaty that essentially granted Britain sovereignty over Benin. Benin officials challenged the treaty and refused to follow its provisions in regard to trade. When a British party of officers and porters set out in 1897 to visit Benin City to enforce the treaty, Benin attacked the convoy killing almost everyone. Britain immediately prepared a punitive military expedition to punish Benin for the attack and to send a message to other kingdoms that might resist. The British forces quickly defeated the Benin army and then razed Benin City, looting the magnificent artwork in the process. Tales of Savagery In the build-up and aftermath of conquest, popular and scholarly accounts of Benin stressed the savagery of the kingdom, as that was one of the justifications for conquest. In referring to the Benin Bronzes, museums today still tend to describe the metal as being purchased with slaves, but most of the bronzes were created prior to the 1700s when Benin began to participate in the trade. Benin Today Benin continues to exist today as a Kingdom within Nigeria. It might best be understood as a social organization within Nigeria. All subjects of Benin are citizens of Nigeria and live under Nigerian law and administration. The current Oba, Erediauwa, is considered an African monarch, however, and he serves as an advocate of the Edo or Benin people. Oba Erediauwa is a graduate of Cambridge University in Britain, and prior to his coronation worked in the Nigeria civil service for many years and spent a few years working for a private firm. As the Oba, he is a figure of respect and authority and has served as a mediator in several political disputes.   Sources: Coombes, Annie, Reinventing Africa: Museums, Material Culture, and Popular Imagination. (Yale University Press, 1994). Girshick, Paula Ben-Amos  and John Thornton, Civil War in the Kingdom of Benin, 1689-1721: Continuity or Political Change? The Journal of African History 42.3 (2001), 353-376. Oba of Benin, Kingdoms of Nigeria web page.

How to Teach Latitude and Longitude

How to Teach Latitude and Longitude Heres an easy way to teach latitude and longitude. The teacher should model each of the following steps which only takes about 10 minutes. Steps Use a large wall map or overhead map.Create a latitude/longitude chart on the board. See Related Features below for an example.Hand out blank charts like the one on the board for students to complete with you.Select three cities to demonstrate.For Latitude: Find the equator. Determine if the city is north or south of the equator. Mark N or S in the chart on the board.Determine which two lines of latitude the city is in between.Show how to determine the midpoint by splitting the difference between the two lines from step seven.Determine if the city is closer to the midpoint or one of the lines.Estimate the latitude degrees and write the answer in the chart on the board.For longitude: Find the prime meridian. Determine if the city is east or west of the prime meridian. Mark E or W in the chart on the board.Determine which two lines of longitude the city is in between.Determine the midpoint by splitting the difference between the two lines.Determine if the city is closer to the midpoint or one of the lines. Estimate the longitude degrees and write the answer in the chart on the board. Tips Emphasize that latitude always measures north and south, and longitude always measures east and west.Stress that when doing the measuring, students should be hopping from line to line, not dragging their fingers along one line. Otherwise, they will be measuring in the wrong direction. Materials Wall or overhead mapChalkboardChalk

Software Recommendation for PPQ Parts Manufacturing Essay

Software Recommendation for PPQ Parts Manufacturing - Essay Example The following ERP system software will cover materials requirements planning, capacity requirement planning and enterprise resource planning needs. The 6 were selected from the list of top hosted ERP, client/server ERP and Open Source ERP, giving the company options: 1. NetSuite NetSuite is an on-demand software system which provides Customer Relationship Management, Enterprise resource planning and partner relationship management. One of its advantages over the other systems is that it has ecommerce or webstore which provides the company to receive orders through shopping carts of their website. It is mostly applicable for small to medium businesses. The modules of the system do not have a comprehensive Supply chain management feature although it meets most businesses. The standard customization feature allows non-technical users to make some customizations specific to business needs although Java scripting capabilities is still required to create some advance customizations. End us er phone support is paid, if a company wants a dedicated support, they may opt to avail platinum support. Overall, the system is high priced and has add-on charges. UserGroup is available to interact with other NetSuite users. 2. Aplicor Aplicor is also an on-demand software system. ... Therefore, providing flexibility for the business needs. The downside of this is that upgrades might be missed or any additional feature since user is in a separate instance. Aplicor is moderately priced, the end support is provided together with the monthly rate, and provided 90-day unconditional exit if customer is dissatisfied. 3. Epicor Epicor is an on-premise software system which has been known for its accounting applications. It is the first to receive the coveted Designed for Microsoft Backoffice Logo. The software is targeted to midmarket companies and divisions of the Global. Its Financial Suites has an enhanced flexibility with its .NET enterprise servers, implementation is fast and easy, with scalability to grow with the company's business workflow. They provide good after-sales support which is moderately priced. Toll free phone support is provided to all express customers. It is available from 7am-7pm Central time, weekdays excluding holidays. Online customer support ce nter called EPICweb also provide 24x7 access to information and other resources such as the online user community. 4. Microsoft Dynamics Microsoft Dynamics is another ERP software system having a strong mid-market solution. The deployment is flexible because it may be on-premise, online or in the Cloud, depending on the company's choice. It offers multiple ERP products, one of it is Microsoft Dynamicx AX 2012 which provides a large scope of ERP features and combined it with specific capabilities that government organizations need to operate and to quickly respond to constituents and other subsectors involved. It customization features allow the system with simple customizations to adapt to the customer's business workflow and processes. The system is low to moderately

Gender equality in islamic Iran Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 11500 words

Gender equality in islamic Iran - Coursework Example The methodology adopted is based on history of Islamic laws and policies on gender to compare the status of men and women in the society. This is further elaborated by a classical view, with particular emphasis on the status of women in the Islamic society of Iran and their present day situation outlining the developments that happened through various forms of reformist movements post the Islamic Republic of Iran movement of 1979. Discussion based on our findings from the methodology and approach revolves around the present status of Iranian Women under Islam with a comparison of modern and traditional women. Supporting the voice of modern women, the Convention of human rights laid post Revolution has been discussed. The paper concludes with a summary of the entire research and findings, extending to mention the current happenings in the name of reformist movements in Iran. Limitations of the study have been briefed along with a proposal for another method of studying the presence of gender differences in Iran. Gender, being a social and human concept, ideally does not enter the territory of God. Traditional views of gender roles and relations have persisted in tandem with changes in the status of women both within and outside the family. The realities of women's lives remain unclear and hidden to men and women, and this invisibility persists at all levels from family to the nation. Although men and women seem to coexist on earth, yet, they live in different worlds. They both enjoy different sets of rights, freedom, duties, culture, and even socio-economic status, and these differences cannot be traced to any particular period in history. Though, in front of God, men and women are equal as stated in Qu'ran, and status of women and men also defined with respect to their roles. Shari'a, the Muslim law, defines many differences between the two genders' roles, rights, and obligations. Most of the Islamic women do not enjoy uniform rights with regards to marriage, divorce, civil rights, legal s tatus, dress code, education, though the rules are said to be based on the Islamic holy teachings of Qu'ran. Majority of the social benefits given to women are based on teachings from Qu'ran. Nevertheless, scholars and other

Effect of Culture on Expatriates Work Performance Research Paper

Effect of Culture on Expatriates Work Performance - Research Paper Example Another reason why Fairmont failed to sustain its luster is due to its lack of emphasis towards the replacement of its traditional equipment, fixture, and fittings in order to keep abreast with the changing trends. Singapore city had remained economically vibrant over the past few years and thus had attracted both business travelers and tourists alike from across the borders at an increased pace. Demand had remained stable throughout the hospitality sector and hotel segment, but the hotel’s management had felt an alarming situation whilst its occupancy rate dropped immediately in times when the pressure from either group faded. In instances like the business holiday season, the occupancy rate dropped more abruptly compared to other industry players or far more than the industry rate. Likewise, as soon as the peak season for tourists diminished the rate drop for Fairmont surpassed that of its peers. Management is concerned regarding hotel’s obnoxious performance and fear s that if no prompt action is taken to bring in higher efficiency that would match the performance of its peers, it might have to face consequences like complete closure. Management is concerned regarding the prevalent obnoxious performance and fears that if no prompt action to bring in higher efficiency that would match that of its peers, it might have to face consequences like complete closure. So in order to implement and transform a strategy shift through change management, the solution is to be devised based on the current factors that relate to the business.

Ancient History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Ancient History - Essay Example Although, it might appear counter-intuitive at first, the fact that Ancient Greece was an established empire had what facilitated the flourishing of democracy during the period. For example, one of the major developments during the Hellenistic Age was the phenomenon of empire formation. Ancient Athens was truly one of the early models of capital imperialist cities, whose place would later be taken by Rome. Looking retrospectively, historians regard the empires of Romans and Greeks as pinnacles of human achievement. (Nikolaos, 2005, p.45) Critics point out to the entrenched practices of slavery, brutality and exploitation that were part of the process of empire formation. But the emperors of Ancient Greece saw it in a benign light – equating it to â€Å"teaching civilized ways to primitive people†, â€Å"helping universal salvation through the spread of moral codes†, etc. More importantly, the political stability afforded by the sizeable empire made it easy for th e nurturing of democratic processes within the domain, especially in its capital city. The internal organization within Athens also contributed towards its successful practice of democracy. In other words, the state of harmony and wilful co-operation that existed among the subjects of the kingdom helped it set about on their imperialist adventure. A common identity, feelings of brotherhood, voluntary co-operation and a uniting heritage; they all helped lay the foundation for implementing democracy while also building the empire. Such qualifiers as culture, language and economic life too helped build unity. (Austin, 1981, p.78) But, this is not to say that political dissent was always welcome by the rulers. The tragic execution of Socrates illustrates this point. Socrates was brought to trial by the democratic Athenian jury, which had scores to settle with prominent members of the previous regime. Socrates’ association with the previous regime made him a target of persecution, irrespective of the validity of the alleged charges. He was accused of undermining religious and state authority and for also corrupting the minds of Athenians. But in reality, Socrates made no deliberate attempts to bring down the religious, state authorities. Instead, he encouraged his students to adopt a critical approach to moral actions, also suggesting that the Athenian rulers themselves are not exempt from such scrutiny. This shows that hypocrisy and double standards were evident in Ancient Greece. And ostracism and political exile (if not public execution) were employed to keep the population and courtiers under control. (Austin, 1981, p.223) 3. Name three major developments, ideas, inventions, events, etc. of the ancient world, and explain how they affected the development of the Mediterranean world. Despite major achievements in the political front, Ancient Greece would come to be defined by its vibrant and path-breaking intellectual culture. Such luminary figures as Aris totle, Socrates and Plato would found what is now referred to as Western Philosophic thought, which has continued to grow and develop over the course of two thousand centuries. Let us now consider the contributions of Aristotle. Born in 384 BC and believed to have died on 322 BC, Aristotle remains the figure head of Ancient Greek philosophy. He also founded the Peripatetic school of philosophy, which remains in currency even today. Aristotle was widely regard during his time and continues to be revered

Spa Design History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Spa Design History - Essay Example Spa is considered to be the place of relaxation, treatment of various diseases, through different water therapies and of course the mean to be pampered. It can be broadly defined as the treatment or therapies (with water) through the regulated usage of time, place and the method of bathing, washing, showering etc. The origin dates back to the roman era, where the soldiers after long wars used to relax, treated as well by natural medication, which is water. History of Spa culture The concept of spa is derived from the practice used by the ancient warriors, where they used the techniques of practicing water therapy for different medication purpose, for the treatment of the wounds and for rejuvenating after a long war. These were considered to be the best treatment for wounded and tired muscles or body part. SPA- The full form is Sanus Per Aquam or Sanitus Per Aquam, both emphasized the importance and the usefulness of water for health and more importantly treatment. There are different beliefs and understanding relating to the spa culture. The most popular directs to the time of the Roman Empire, where they invented the way to use thermal water to get rid of their ailments. They made the springs and took hot water treatment in it. SPA is derived form that practice, which means by or through water. In this period a town named SPA was founded in Belgium also, which gave the common man a chance to avail the services and the utility of spa. The concept of spa and its popularity reached its peak during this time. Some history dates back to 3100—300 BCE where the Egyptians used water therapy and herbal treatments , in the era 700-200 BCE, the Greeks used cold water for the Spartans, in 200 BCE, Hebrews used the purification practice by immersing in the sea.

Ancient History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Ancient History - Essay Example Although, it might appear counter-intuitive at first, the fact that Ancient Greece was an established empire had what facilitated the flourishing of democracy during the period. For example, one of the major developments during the Hellenistic Age was the phenomenon of empire formation. Ancient Athens was truly one of the early models of capital imperialist cities, whose place would later be taken by Rome. Looking retrospectively, historians regard the empires of Romans and Greeks as pinnacles of human achievement. (Nikolaos, 2005, p.45) Critics point out to the entrenched practices of slavery, brutality and exploitation that were part of the process of empire formation. But the emperors of Ancient Greece saw it in a benign light – equating it to â€Å"teaching civilized ways to primitive people†, â€Å"helping universal salvation through the spread of moral codes†, etc. More importantly, the political stability afforded by the sizeable empire made it easy for th e nurturing of democratic processes within the domain, especially in its capital city. The internal organization within Athens also contributed towards its successful practice of democracy. In other words, the state of harmony and wilful co-operation that existed among the subjects of the kingdom helped it set about on their imperialist adventure. A common identity, feelings of brotherhood, voluntary co-operation and a uniting heritage; they all helped lay the foundation for implementing democracy while also building the empire. Such qualifiers as culture, language and economic life too helped build unity. (Austin, 1981, p.78) But, this is not to say that political dissent was always welcome by the rulers. The tragic execution of Socrates illustrates this point. Socrates was brought to trial by the democratic Athenian jury, which had scores to settle with prominent members of the previous regime. Socrates’ association with the previous regime made him a target of persecution, irrespective of the validity of the alleged charges. He was accused of undermining religious and state authority and for also corrupting the minds of Athenians. But in reality, Socrates made no deliberate attempts to bring down the religious, state authorities. Instead, he encouraged his students to adopt a critical approach to moral actions, also suggesting that the Athenian rulers themselves are not exempt from such scrutiny. This shows that hypocrisy and double standards were evident in Ancient Greece. And ostracism and political exile (if not public execution) were employed to keep the population and courtiers under control. (Austin, 1981, p.223) 3. Name three major developments, ideas, inventions, events, etc. of the ancient world, and explain how they affected the development of the Mediterranean world. Despite major achievements in the political front, Ancient Greece would come to be defined by its vibrant and path-breaking intellectual culture. Such luminary figures as Aris totle, Socrates and Plato would found what is now referred to as Western Philosophic thought, which has continued to grow and develop over the course of two thousand centuries. Let us now consider the contributions of Aristotle. Born in 384 BC and believed to have died on 322 BC, Aristotle remains the figure head of Ancient Greek philosophy. He also founded the Peripatetic school of philosophy, which remains in currency even today. Aristotle was widely regard during his time and continues to be revered

Environmental causes of violence Research Paper

Environmental causes of violence - Research Paper Example The American psychological association defined violence as an extreme act of aggression committed by an individual to another such as rape, murder or assault.1 Furthermore, the American psychological association implied that violence is the intentional application of power or force, actual or threatened against another person, community, and group or against oneself.2 This application of violence mostly leads to physical harm, physiological harm, deprivation or mal development. On the other hand, environment is primarily defined as the circumstances and conditions which surround an individual or community. Furthermore, the Medical Dictionary went a step further and defined the term environment as the combination of cultural and social conditions that have an influence on an individual’s life.3 Violence and the different types of abuse are mostly viewed as a behavioral pattern which is intended to maintain and establish control over household members, family, individuals, groups, intimate partners or colleagues. Although most violent offenders tend to be known by their victims (i.e. estranged spouses and partners, relatives, family members, colleagues and peers), strangers may also commit various acts of violence. The occurrence of violence might be once or it may happen on a frequent basis. Over time, the single incidences of violence tend to escalate into frequent bouts of violence.4 Abuse and violence in any form negatively affects the well-being and health of individuals. The primary roots of violence can be attributed to the many environmental factors which even today continue to grow and increase in society. The Newfoundland Labrador states that violence is often a choice and is thus preventable.5 Self-directed violence is behavior that deliberately leads to injury or has a potential to result in harm to oneself. As such, it is

Prevalence of One Party Rule in African States Essay Example for Free

Prevalence of One Party Rule in African States Essay Africa, often known as the ‘Dark Continent’ rightfully occupies its place as the ‘Cradle of Civilization’ as the first humans have been known to originate from this continent of diverse ethnicities, tribes and clans. Since ancient times, the very nature of African society predicated formation of kingdoms and states centered on ethnicities and clans. Later, the advent of colonialism brought to Africa new forms of governance, which included democratization, socialism, communism and dictatorships. One enduring feature of African style of governance has been the prevalence of one party rule in most African countries. This paper examines why there is such a preference for such single party model of governance in Africa. To fully examine the subject, this paper shall first provide a historical overview of the progression of styles of governance in Africa and then examine the trends in major countries that make up the African continent. The paper will argue that the intrinsic nature of the African society and the effects of colonialism predispose them to following a one party rule. Historical Overview Africa is the world’s second largest continent both in terms of size and population and has 54 countries many of which are struggling democracies, a few communist regimes, and a number of authoritarian regimes bordering on dictatorship. Since ancient times, Africa had its indigenous systems of governance based on tribes and ethnic affinities. Africa also had great civilizations like the Egyptian civilization in 3300 B. C (Martin OMeara, 1995, p. 79). The earliest foreign influence came in 814 B. C. with the founding of Carthage in present day Tunisia under the Roman Empire which was followed by Persian domination of Egypt. In 332 B. C. , Alexander the Great replaced the Persian domination of Egypt and Roman rule continued in much of North Africa till the advent of Islam in the early 7th century (Martin OMeara, p. 99). In all these cases, the style of governance was centralized, as exercised by the emperor based in Rome or Persia through an appointed sovereign. The influence was limited mostly to North Africa, while the rest of Africa was considered too difficult to traverse due to thick jungles. Thus even in North Africa, from ancient times, the focus was on one –man rule and that more or less ‘conditioned’ the North African people to accept models of ‘uni-power’ in those times. Since the jungles were impassable and large number of tribes and ethnicities abounded, it was natural that rest of Africa had thousands of small kingdoms, states and at times independent nomadic tribes who dominated a particular territory. Each tribe had its own set of rules, customs, traditions and styles of governance, which again was predicated on the rule of one man or a tribal elder. The concept of Greek ‘city-state’ like democracy complete with a senate and an executive was non-existence. Over time, some of the tribes became more powerful and evolved into larger settled kingdoms that coalesced around similar ethnicities and language such as the Ghanaian empire that existed in 790-1076 A. D. followed by the Mali Empire from 1230 to 1600 A. D. (Martin OMeara, p. 70) The significant changes in style of governance came with the advent of colonialism. From the 18th century and by the late 19th century, most of Africa was divided up between the colonial powers; France, Britain, Portugal, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Italy and Netherlands. Under colonial rule, the African people had to undergo centralized rule of the colonial powers and the brutal suppression of any African revolt reinforced this submissiveness to a one-man rule. During the colonial period, the colonial powers brought with them their systems of governance, jurisprudence and legislation (Martin OMeara, p. 8). Colonialism lost its vigor in the early 20th century and by 1980, most ex-colonies in Africa gained independence. The former colonial powers before exiting from the continent tried to put into place systems of governance in ‘their own image’. Thus across Africa, a variety of ‘democratic’ systems took hold. Most of these ‘democratic systems were basically presidential forms of government, being the closest approximation to what they were used to both as per their pre-colonial experience and their colonial experience. The end of the Second World War gave rise to the Cold War and the Soviet Union tried to expand its influence in Africa also. This gave rise to numerous socialist-communist regimes in Africa that were opposed by the U. S. leading to proxy wars. Having examined the broad trends of the historical period of Africa till the advent of independence, the paper will now examine specific examples of how prevalence of one party rule exists in Africa. It is not intended to cover all 54 countries, but few sample countries that typify the various regions of Africa. For the ease of comprehension and brevity, Africa will be discussed under the heads North Africa, West Africa, East Africa, Central Africa and Southern Africa. North Africa North Africa because of its proximity to Asia had significant influence of Asian and Islamic traditions superimposed on ethnic African traditions and cultures. It is because of the spread of Islam in the 7th century, most of North Africa is Islamic. Islam, an egalitarian religion is considered as a complete body of work wherein all aspects of human life including politics and governance can be practiced through the Quran, the Holy book and the Hadith, the Islamic interpretation of Jurisprudence. Under Islamic law and Islamic political systems, an Islamic state is governed by a Caliph and where a Caliph no longer exists, then by a monarch or a ruler. Ideas such as secularism and democracy have very little congruence with the practice of political Islam. When such a system is overlaid over ancient tribal culture of a village head, it becomes natural that a state be ruled by a monarch or an authoritarian head and if not, the nearest approximation, a single grouping or party. Take for example, Egypt. Egypt, since ancient times was a land ruled by the Pharaohs, then the Persians, Greeks, Romans, Ottomans and the Arabs. In the colonial era, Egypt was ruled by Britain but the largely Islamic populace got independence from Britain in 1922 (Pateman El-Hamamsy, 2003, p. 28). Egypt was initially a constitutional monarchy and had adopted the British parliamentary system of government but constant political interference from Britain led to internal turmoil that finally resulted in a military coup in 1952 (Pateman El-Hamamsy, p. 28) in which the monarchy was overthrown and Egypt declared itself to be a Republic under General Muhammed Naquib. Colonel Gamal Abdel Nasser overthrew Naguib in 1954 to become the Egyptian President. Nasser, on assuming power banned all political parties and created a one party named the Liberation Rally to run the government. This move helped him consolidate his power and rule Egypt till his death in 1970 after which he was succeeded by Anwar El-Sadat, the vice President (Pateman El-Hamamsy, p. 29). Sadat carried out political reforms and reverted to a multi-party system (Pateman El-Hamamsy, p. 31); creating one of the parties called the National Democratic Party and remained the President till he was assassinated in 1981 by a group of Egyptian army officers during an army parade (Pateman El-Hamamsy, p. 29). Sadat’s successor, Hosni Mubarak is still in office since 1981 and is the present leader of the National Democratic Party. Though by the Egyptian constitution, multi-party system is allowed, due to sustained state patronage, the National Democratic Party is the only party which has the necessary financial and political clout to win elections. There are other smaller parties that have virtually no chance of winning a single election and till to date Egypt is essentially ruled by a single party. Libya, a British colony was declared as a monarchy under King Idris in 1951 but was overthrown by a revolution led by Colonel Muammer al-Gaddafi in 1969 (Wright, 1981, p. 130) who has ruled the country ever since. Political parties were banned by Gaddafi in 1972 and the country is ruled by the ‘revolutionary leader’, Gaddafi aided by a Revolutionary Committee also called as the People’s Congress. Tunisia was a French protectorate that became independent in 1956 and adopted a Presidential form of government, copying the French model, except that it rapidly turned into an authoritarian police state where most ‘Presidents’ have been military personnel. The present incumbent, President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali is a former military officer (Perkins, 2004, p. 7). On paper, political parties are allowed but in reality, it is only the President’s party, the Constitutional Democratic Rally that gets almost all the seats. The rest of the political parties are usually browbeaten into submission by the state’s security system and there is virtually no free press. The farcical nature of Tunisian ‘democracy’ can be gauged by the fact that in the 2009 presidential election, Ben Ali received 89. 62% votes to continue as the President (Lowe Amara, 2009, p. 1). The ancient kingdom of Morocco, a French and Spanish Protectorate gained independence in 1956 as a constitutional monarchy, a system that continues till to date. Though the King of Morocco has a prime minister, a parliament and a multi-party system, the style of governance continues to be rule by one man, the King (Forum, 2008, p. 49). West Africa In West Africa, the situation is slightly different. Here more than Islamic influence, it was the effect of local dynamics, ethnic rivalries, Christian missionaries and communist influence that has determined the preference for single party rule. Take for example Liberia, the only other country other than Ethiopia which has an American connection rather than a European past. Liberia was created through a private American enterprise to house freed African American slaves and became independent in 1847. Since, the project was American led; Liberia adopted a presidential form of system. However, the American backed Liberian elite who ruled the country came in conflict with 16 other indigenous ethnicities living in Liberia. Since the regime was thrust ‘top down’ from the Americans, tensions quickly developed and a coup by a group of ethnic military soldiers led by Samuel Doe took place in 1980. Doe replaced the presidential republic with his authoritarian regime. Political parties were allowed to exist but their freedom remained curtailed by the regime which furthered the hold of its own party, the National Democratic Party of Liberia. The 1985 election results in which the opposition Liberal Action Party won were declared invalid by Doe, which led to the Liberian Civil War in 1989. Doe was killed and the power passed into the hands of Charles Taylor (Moran, 2008, p. 106), who continued his dictatorial regime which again led to another civil war in 1999 that continued up to 2003 and only came to halt with Charles Taylor being forced into exile in Nigeria. From 1847 till 2003, Liberia was ruled by the Americo-Liberian elite and their single party. Since 2003, a transitional government was put into place with international intervention, which because of corruption was dissolved and fresh presidential elections were again held in 2005 and was won by Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the head of Unity Party who became the first woman President of an African country (Polgreen, 2005, p. 1). Nigeria got its independence from Britain in 1960 and had numerous political parties. These political parties were sharply defined along ethnic lines comprising of three main ethnicities; the Hausa, the Igbo and the Yoruba (Rotberg, 2007, p. 19). The Yoruba dominated Nigerian National Democratic Party won the elections in 1965, which led to political dissensions and instability resulting in two military coups in 1966. This did not resolve the problem as the Igbo, dominating the Eastern region of the country declared independence from Nigeria leading to the Nigerian civil war 1967-1970 that led to over a million deaths. The civil war ended but not the ethnic strife and the military continued to rule Nigeria with coups and assassination of the presidents being a regular feature. For thirty years, Nigeria continued under military rule till 1999 when it finally elected Lusegun Obasanjo, a former military dictator as its President. Obasanjo was re-elected in 2003 (Rotberg, p. 13) as the President amidst allegations of rigging. Obasanjo was replaced by Umaru YarAdua of the People’s Democratic Party in 2007 and on his demise now been replaced by Goodluck Jonathan (Nossiter, 2010, p. 1). So while the American model was adopted, the actual functioning of a presidential type of government has been a recent development in Nigeria’s history. At present there are two main parties in Nigeria, the ruling People’s Democratic Party and the opposition All Nigeria People’s Party with numerous smaller parties. What must be noted is that a democratic political system in Nigeria is still nascent and fragile and should ethnic differences arise again it will not be long that another military coup will take place in the interests of ‘national security’. Angola became independent in 1975 after having been a Portuguese colony from the 16th century. Angolan independence came right in middle of the Cold War where Soviet influence in Africa was rising. The independent country was immediately plunged into a civil war between the Soviet backed Communist MPLA faction and the American backed anti-communist UNITA rebels (Sheehan, Yong, Lin, 2010, p. 38). The Angolan civil war continued for 27 years (Sheehan, Yong, Lin, p. 43) till declaration of ceasefire in 2002 by which time over 500,000 people were killed. The ideological factions had an ethnic base too wherein the MPLA comprised basically Angolans of the Kimbundu clan and the UNITA, the Ovimbundu tribe. Presently, the Communist MPLA holds power in Angola. As can be deduced, this being a communist regime with no legitimacy, the concept of political parties in a democratic system does not apply. East Africa East Africa including the Horn of Africa portrays a region of extreme instability with a few deceptively stable nations. Sudan, the first country being analyzed, after gaining independence from Egypt and Britain in 1956, was gripped by a civil war till 1973 (Barker, 2008, p. 16). This civil war was basically because of ethnic differences between the people of Northern Sudan (Islamic of Arabic lineage) and Southern Sudan (non-Islamic of non-Arab lineage). While the civil war raged, Khartoum was ruled by the Sudanese military. A ceasefire in 1973 negotiated through granting autonomy to Southern Sudan kept the peace till 1983 when the military general, and the de-facto President, Nimeiry unilaterally decided to incorporate Southern Sudan into a federation. The civil war continued (Barker, p. 18), Nimeiry was ousted in 1983 and replaced by a democratic government under Prime Minister Al Sadig Al Mahdi which was not recognized by the Sudan’s People Liberation Army (SPLA) of Southern Sudan. Civil war continued anew. In 1989, Colonel Omar al-Bashir over threw Prime Minister Al Mahdi, abolished political parties and established an Islamic code on entire Sudan. Al-Bashir formed the Revolutionary Command Council for National Salvation and allied his group with National Islamic Front to consolidate Islamization of firstly, Northern Sudan and then the rest of the country. In the subsequent military action by the Sudanese army, the SPLA were defeated in Southern Sudan by 1994. Having achieved consolidation, Bashir dissolved the revolutionary council in 1993. In the 1996 election Bashir declared himself to be the only candidate eligible to run for President. All other political parties were disbanded and Bashir converted Sudan into an Islamic state with single party at its helm – the newly created National Congress Party (NCP). Meanwhile, Bashir unleashed a brutal war of suppression on the non-Arab ethnic minorities in the Darfur region using proxy militia known as the Janjaweed that has resulted in deaths of over 400,000 Darfuris (Kessler, 2005, p. 1) leading to an indictment of Al-Bashir by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and genocide. At the tip of the Horn of Africa lies the failed state of Somalia where no functional government exists. Somalia was never formally colonized by any power and had come under a variety of influences ranging from Islamic influence during the Ottoman Empire, Fascist influence under Mussolini’s Italy and then British military administration from 1941 that was replaced by the formation of a republic of Somalia in 1961 with a parliamentary form of government (Lewis, 2008, p. 33). This brief democratic interlude was shattered in 1969 when President Shermake was assassinated and replaced by a military government. The military created the Somali Revolutionary Socialist Party in 1976 and ruled the nation till 1990. Meanwhile, various Islamic factions and clans grew in size and potency that overthrew the military government leading to a series of skirmishes through the period, 1990-1991. The long standing military dictator, Siad Barre was ousted in 1991 and President Ali Muhammed was installed, yet the civil war continued. The UN Security Council approved the United Nations Operation in Somalia (UNOSOM) in 1992 that has since been replaced by UNOSOM II with no success. Presently, a Transitional Federal Government (Lewis, p. x)is the internationally recognized government of Somalia whose writ does not even run through the entire city of Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia. In the dismal narrative so far, Kenya appears to be a bright democratic spark in the African continent. After achieving independence from Britain in 1963, Kenya adopted a semi-presidential form of government albeit, with the peculiar African preference for single party rule. The Kenyan constitution mandated formation of only a single party in Kenya. Governments continued to be formed under the single party system until 1992 when electoral reforms were introduced to allow a multiparty system. The elections since then have been held in generally free and fair manner. The 2007 elections were marred by allegations of rigging in which the main opposition party, the Orange Democratic Freedom accused the ruling Party of National Unity for stealing the election. In the ensuing rioting, over 1000 Kenyans lost their lives (Raghavan, 2010, p. 1) and hundreds of thousands were displaced. Peace was restored through international mediation in 2008 and the country is presently being run by a grand coalition of members of both the parties under a new constitution (Raghavan, p. 1). Kenya’s relative stability is attributed to the British colonial era, where unlike the rest of Africa, the colonists set up educational institutions and government infrastructure. Also, unlike the other African countries, 78% of Kenyans are Christians while 10% are Muslims, 10% indigenous and the rest 2% are Asian immigrants (CIA World Factbook, 2010, p. 1). Central Africa In Central Africa, the Republic of Congo has been in the news for decades for all the wrong reasons. Congo received independence from France in 1960 and adopted the French presidential model of governance. However, the first President, Fulbert Youlou was ousted in 1963 by a military coup, which then installed a puppet civilian government (Rorison, 2008, p. 225) and also adopted communist ideology. In 1965, the Congo republic formally joined hands with the Soviet Union, firmly coming into the soviet bloc (Rorison, p. 226). This alignment did not bring about political stability as the original French democratic influence clashed with the ‘uni-power’ Soviet ideology leading to a series of coups and dictatorship under Denis Sassou. During his first spell of rule from 1979 to 1992, Sassou ruled Congo under a single party rule of the Congolese Labor Party (PCT) (Rorison, p. 227). When external pressures grew strong, he introduced multiparty system in 1990 and was defeated in the 1992 Presidential election. Sassou’s ouster led to a civil war between the supporters of Sassou and his competitor Pascal Lissouba. Sassou, a former colonel won the civil war and proclaimed himself as the President in 1997. In 2009, Sassou was sworn in for another seven-year period (Amnesty International, 2010, p. 1). In Congo’s case too, for most of its independent history, the country has been ruled by a single party and now despite a multi-party ‘democracy’ in place, the original political party, the PCT continues to rule the country. Southern Africa In Southern Africa, any discussion regarding Africa would remain incomplete without illustrating the case of Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe, originally Rhodesia became independent after a violent struggle with the British in 1980. Throughout the period, 1965-1979, the country was engulfed in a civil war between British government forces and the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU) led by Robert Mugabe and the Zimbabwe African People’s Union (ZAPU) led by Joshua Nkomo as also a number of smaller splinter groups (Raftopoulos Mlambo, 2009, pp. 141-165). In the 1980 elections, Robert Mugabe won by a wide margin but fighting with opposing parties and groups continued. The two main parties the ZANU and ZAPU fought bitterly until 1988 when ceasefire was declared and the two parties merged into ZANU-PF thus starting Zimbabwe’s slide into single party dominated system (Raftopoulos Mlambo, p. 179). Till to date the ZANU-PF has won every single election by force. Mugabe’s policies of throwing out the white farmers and forcibly occupying lands and giving it to the poor black resulted in economic sanctions by the West and a meltdown of the economy. Owing to his bad economic policies, hyperinflation struck the country and created political space for Morgan Tsvangirai of the Movement for Democratic Change to challenge him in the 2008 elections. The results were rigged but could not conclusively establish Tsvangirai’s claim of having won the elections. In September 2008, Mugabe maintained his power as the President by agreeing to share power with Tsvangirai who became the Prime Minister (Raftopoulos Mlambo, p. xxxii). Yet again, the single party rule dominates Zimbabwe. Finally, a discussion of Africa would be incomplete without examining its most prosperous and advanced state – South Africa. In South Africa, the colonial power, the Dutch did not relinquish their hold over the country and continued in the form of Apartheid, which was once again predicated on the dominance of a single party – the White minority party thereby conditioning the people of South Africa to rule by a single party. However, the violent suppression of the minorities could not continue indefinitely and ever since 1961, when South Africa left the British Commonwealth (Berger, 2009, p. 166) the white minority National Party faced constant protest from the black majority for equality. Till 1993, the National Party had banned other political parties (Berger, p. 166) and it was only in the face of sustained international pressure and internal struggle by the black and colored populations that the ban was lifted in 1993 and the African National Congress (ANC) led by Nelson Mandela was allowed to participate in elections. In Mandela, the South Africans found a charismatic leader who exuded the moral authority and statesmanship, which promised to build a future for the suppressed races. Mandela delivered on his promises but also led to consolidation of the ANC as the only party of choice for the people of Africa. The National Party chose to merge with the ANC and this yet again showed the propensity of Africans to prefer single party rule. Conclusion In conclusion, it can be reiterated that analysis of all the regions of Africa shows a remarkable similarity of circumstances that seemed to have shaped their preference for single party rule. The ethnic make up into tribes and clans were at the most basic level, the building blocks for adhering to the instructions of the clan leader or village headman. This obedience in turn was further conditioned by brutal colonial rule, where the colonial masters used every suppressive means to keep the Africans submissive. Suppression and exploitation itself became the rallying point for the African clans to unite and fight for their independence. Since most of the colonial powers only exploited Africa and did not build institutions, the succeeding indigenous governments had no infrastructural back up to employ their people or give immediate succor; naturally, the people fell back to tribal and clan loyalties as rallying forces. Since these points of opposition had to be formed clandestinely, they became sort of secret societies that formed oligarchic groups to fight for independence. On attaining independence the basic dynamics of the groups did not change and they continued as a closed ‘in-group’, which only heightened social inequalities and strife broke out in most cases. As democratic institutions had not been allowed to mature under the colonial period, people tended to cluster around the ‘village headman’, in other words, any leader with some charisma and since one institution that always has a clearly defined leader is the army, most governments became victims of military takeovers. The populace conditioned by colonial repression now became victims of military repression. Military forces needed a ‘democratic fig leaf’ to govern nations and so they set up political parties which were then headed by serving or former military officers to perpetrate the rule of a single party in the states. Parts of Africa that had predominantly Islamic influence adopted Islamic laws, which ideologically are not compatible with democratic secularism. Therefore, these countries by default became ruled by a king or a dictator or by a single party. Where the Cold War intruded the African political space, communist regimes under laid by African tribalism became the dominant feature. In these cases, the political ideology required the rule of the state by a single party. Later, when communist regimes fell, the old habit of single party rule lingered on. Thus the assertion that there is prevalence of one party rule in African states is emphatically proved. However, as can be seen from the examples of African states discussed, the hold of one party system is slowly changing. Multiple parties are emerging as the African people are becoming more aware of the wider world through the process of globalization. They are also realizing the need for multiple choices for governance as a panacea against corruption and despotism. So while the one-party prevalence in Africa may seem predominant at the present, political evolution of the African polity is taking place that will, in time transform into a more inclusive political process across the continent. References Amnesty International. (2010). Congo (Republic of). Retrieved August 11, 2010, from http://www. unhcr. org/refworld/country,,,,COG,,4c03a835c,0. html Barker, G. (2008). Sudan. NY: Marshall Cavendish. Berger, I. (2009). South Africa in World History. Oxford: Oxford University Press. CIA World Factbook. (2010, August 3). Kenya. Retrieved August 11, 2010, from https://www. cia. gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ke. html Forum, A. P. (2008). An Audit of Police Oversight in Africa. Cape Town: African Minds. Kessler, G. (2005, April 27). State Dept. Defends Estimate Of Deaths in Darfur Conflict. Retrieved August 10, 2010, from Washington Post: http://www. washingtonpost. com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/04/26/AR2005042601397. html Lewis, I. (2008). Understanding Somalia and Somaliland: Culture, History, Society. NY: Columbia University Press. Lowe, C. , Amara, T. (2009, October 26). Tunisian President Wins Fifth Term in Office. Retrieved August 11, 2010, from Reuters: http://www. reuters. com/article/idUSTRE59P03M20091026 Martin, P. M. , OMeara, P. (1995). Africa. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. Moran, M. H. (2008). Liberia: The Violence of Democracy . Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania. Nossiter, A. (2010, February 9). Nigerian Parliament Names Acting President. Retrieved August 11, 2010, from New York Times: http://www. nytimes. com/2010/02/10/world/africa/10nigeria. html Pateman, R. , El-Hamamsy, S. (2003). Egypt. NY: Marshall Cavendish. Perkins, K. J. (2004). A History of Modern Tunisia . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Polgreen, L. (2005, November 12). In First for Africa, Woman Wins Election as President of Liberia. Retrieved August 10, 2010, from New York Times: http://www. nytimes. com/2005/11/12/international/africa/12liberia. html Raftopoulos, B. , Mlambo, A. (2009). Becoming Zimbabwe: A History from the Pre-Colonial Period to 2008. Harare: Weaver Press. Raghavan, S. (2010, August 6). Kenyans Celebrate Approval of New Constitution. Retrieved August 10, 2010, from The Washington Post: http://www. washingtonpost. com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/05/AR2010080500525. html Rorison, S. (2008). Congo. Guilford: The Globe Pequot Press Inc. Rotberg, R. I. (2007). Nigeria: Elections and Continuing Challenges. NY: Council for Foreign Relations. Sheehan, S. , Yong, J. L. , Lin, Y. J. (2010). Angola. NY: Marshall Cavendish. Wright, J. (1981). Libya: A Modern History. Beckenham: Croom Helm Ltd.