Below 48, Part 2

Below 48, Part 2 You asked for it[citation needed], and so here it is. After the list of classes I gave in my last post, were left with the question: what am I doing with my spare time? Sleeping? No, thats what I shouldbe doing. Different concept. *stares blearily at computer screen, stifles a yawn* What Im actually doing is a wild variety of projects and whatnot. This is a new phenomenon for me: I had a bit of an existentialist crisis at the end of sophomore year, when I realized that I hadnt really done anything aside from schoolwork for the prior two semesters, and felt like I had squandered a block of time I could have spent with friends or with activities I enjoy. In spring of 2013, the questions What do you do for fun? and What are some clubs youre involved with? were met with uncomfortable stares and a long, awkward silence on my end. Not that you are somehow required to be involved with clubs and activities while youre here: I just find it personally disconcerting for me to not be involved with much of anything, so I set out to fix that. At this point, Ive probably gone far too far in the opposite direction. Oops. Danfoolery: A Radio Show Theres a really deep and convoluted story behind the formation of the radio show I do with my friend Dan E. 16. Dan and I went to high school together, and now live in the same dorm. One night in February, sitting in his room, the following conversation occurred: Hey, Danny: what if we had a radio show? Dan thats ridiculous why would we do that Why not? And so we did. (Sorry, it wasnt actually a very good story.)WMBR is the campus radio station: it began in the 40s as a quasi-legal radio station in the basement of Senior House, but has since upgradedto the basement of Walker Memorial. Students and locals alike have radio shows of all varieties, and WMBR has an extensive CD and vinyl collection with which you can fill your time-slot. Dan and I submitted our show idea as Danfoolery: were like Car Talk, except its not about cars, and we dont give advice. That lucid description and some timeslot shuffling managed to secure us a spot for our first season: Thursday early mornings, 2-3AM. Ouch. Our listener base was small (Ive heard that the Suffolk County Jail tunes into WMBR at night, so hopefully we were popular with the inmate crowd) but the slot gave us time to experiment in our first season without too much exposure. Now, were onto Season 2. Danfoolerys in v0.0.2alpha [UNSTABLE] and were in the big leagues: Mondays at 11PM. Were still working out content for the show week-to-week, but I can now tell you more about where to eat in Pine Bluff, AR than I could have before. So theres that. ESP Splash Class ESP stands for the Education Studies Program: each year, their largest annual event is Splash, where high schoolers from all over descend on MIT to take a wild variety of classes taught by pretty much anyone. MIT Students teach, college students from elsewhere fly in for the weekend to teach (Im looking at you, James B. UIUC 16), and a certain local cartoonist has even taught in the past. There have certainly been blog posts about Splash before, but I wanted to mention it here out of excitement for my upcoming class. Ive taught for Splash twice before, both times teaching a subject titled Kicking AssSerious Butt on the TI-83+L A Guide to Lists: turns out your graphing calculator can do a heck of a lot more than you might think, even without getting into the whole programming side of the device. I regularly used those tricks through high school to solve equations in parallel, brute force multiple choice solutions, build things like a molar mass calculator. Twas fun, but having already taught this two times, I decided on a bigger challenge. OK, to be fair, I backed myself into a corner and felt the need to follow through. What happened was that I had this idea for a crazy Splash class, and may have mentioned it in half-jest to several ESP admins at a party. I received an email later asking if I actually wanted to go through with it, and here we are. More on this to come. Sorry to tease, although if you were really curious I suppose you could register for Splash (which you should totally do) and find my class in the listing. East Campus Historian I have a particular interest in learning about places where I live. Its how I found myself researching the Commissioners Plan of 1811 in high school, Sutro Baths this summer, and MIT itself. Last semester, I took STS.050 History of MIT, which gave a decade-by-decade look at the history of the Institvte, and helped explain a lot about how we ended up with MIT being MIT as we know it today. I also happen to live in East Campus, and combining these two things resulting in my becoming East Campus Historian. Its a difficult job (read: I sit around and peruse The Techs archives in my spare time) but its led to a lot of interesting finds. One of my two papers for STS.050 was about East Campus and the beginning of MITs hacking culture in the 1920s (then just the 93 Dormitory or the New Dormitories), and this Lydia person ended up putting it on the internet. That was neat. (Thanks Lydia! :D) In other news, 2014 is an important year for East Campus: its the dorms ninetieth birthday! Four score and ten years ago this fall was when the first students moved in for the first time. Over that time, weve had our share of adventures, to the point where Im pretty sure the FBI has a file on our dorm. Did you know that that last point is a thing you can check? Enter the Freedom of Information Act, which allowed me to send the following to the Federal Bureau of Investigations: Date: August 19, 2014 FBI Record/Information Dissemination Section Attn: FOIPA Request 170 Marcel Drive Winchester, VA 22602-4843 Dear FOIA Officer, I hope you are well today. I am writing this email in my role as historian of my undergraduate dormitory East Campus, here at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In the interest of learning more about the dormitory for historical purposes, this is a request under the Freedom of Information Act. Date range of request: January 1, 1923 to August 19, 2014 Description of Request: Records pertaining to East Campus, an undergraduate dormitory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The dorm also goes by the names of EC, East Campus Alumni Housing, Class of 1893 Dormitory, 93 Dorm, the new dormitories, Fred Dorm, and Fred the Dorm. The houses of the dormitory go by the names Goodale, Bemis, Walcott, Wood, Hayden, and Munroe; the floors of the dormitory go by assorted names including: 1W, First West, Stickman, 2W, Second West, Putz, 3W, Third West, Floor Pi, 4W, Fourth West, 41W, 5W, Fifth West, Vdub, 1E, First East, Dancef***, 2E, Second East, Beast, 3E, Third East, Tetazoo, 4E, Fourth East, Slugfest, 5E, Fifth East, and Florey. Please search the FBIs indices to the Central Records System for the information responsive to this request related to: Any and all references to the dormitory or its houses or floors, and any and all references to activities within or connected to the dormitory or its houses or floors. I am willing to pay up to $50 for the processing of this request. Please inform me if the estimated fees will exceed this limit before processing my request. I am seeking information for personal use and not for commercial use. Thank you for your consideration, Name: Danny B.D. Title (optional): President, East Campus Historical Society A lot of waiting took place, and then finally, finally, I received a reply: We were unable to identify main file records responsive to the FOIA. Drat. Oh well. Its still lots of fun to dig up old records. Admissions Blogs Its the thing youre reading right now! CourseRoad CourseRoads a thing I built freshman year which has ended up being pretty popular among undergrads. Basically, it gives you a vertical timeline to plan out your classes and a checklist for your majors requirements: you can play with it here, even if youre not a student (although the course and class numbers will seem pretty alien to you). There are some important plans afoot for CourseRoad coming up, because I want it to keep running even after Ive graduated. Also, if youre one of the people whos sent me an email about it and I havent replied to, Im really sorry about being so delinquent, and Ill try to catch up soon. D: Facebook I got to work on a cool thing at Facebook this summer, which had a launch date after my internship ended. This was frustrating, but I was lucky enough to get a position as a contractor at Facebook which allowed me to watch the ramp-up to the launch. And launch it did: I spent my summer working on Facebook Safety Check, which is a disaster relief tool Facebook can activate in the event of a major disaster. If it launches, then those affected and their friends will be notified and people can mark themselves or others as safe to help mitigate fear, uncertainty and doubt in the aftermath of a natural disaster. It was an absolute dream to get to help with this this summer, and Im so glad its finally announced (so I can stop excitedly bouncing in my chair while dodging friends questions about what I did at Facebook). We might be able to help people! With a social network! There are a lot of other side things, but I might as well expand those out into their own posts. Also, when did it become October 27th? Its my parents anniversary and my sisters birthday today, so I should probably call home. And Halloweens coming up really soon, so I need to finish my costume. And I wanted to work on overhauling or tweaking or building one to three websites. And and Oh right: sleep. Almost forgot.

The Economic Impacts Of The Great Depression - 1263 Words

Rodena Woods History 102 Exam 2- Essay Answers Big Essay Question The economic downturn is considered the great depression from 1929-1941 because of the uncontrolled exertion on unlimited goods produced. Other contributions were the risky and irresponsible speculations in the stock market. Banks had invested and lost, and they were buying on margin. There was also increasingly unequal distribution of wealth. Furthermore, the U.S had weak banking systems and banks eventually failed. Finally, there was a protectionism in tariff policy. Tariffs are taxed on goods that other countries paid to trade. This is also viewed as the great depression because it was not just only U.S crisis it was a global crisis. Farmers were hit hard, lost land and could not pay their mortgages. This was the longest depression ever in U.S history that had affect tens of millions of people including businesses, farmers, the wealthy and the middle class. It was estimated that 13-15 million Americans lost their jobs, unemployment hit 25%, and 5,000 banks closed. World War 2 was significantly costly, which also had an effect on the great depression. The manufacture of materials for war such as rifles, ships, tanks and other items cost the federal government millions of the dollars which worried Americans again. Lastly, governments were destabilized everywhere. The response of the federal government was very crucial for Americans during these years of crisis because they had not seen much of they thoughtShow MoreRelatedThe Consequences Of The Great Depression875 Words   |  4 Pagesthe consequences of the great depression in France. For this paper, to identify the consequences of the great depression in France I will have to obtain a variety of sources that explain how they got involved. Using these sources I will be able to figure out who was mainly damaged and how they try to resolve issues. I will also be able to identify who else was involved that may have caused things get worse. Information of France before and after the great depression will also be helpful to analyzeRead MoreThe Great Depression Of The 1930s Essay1689 Words   |  7 PagesGlobal Crisis of 2008 in Comparison to the Great Depression of the 1930s Introduction The economic crisis’ of the 1930s and 2000s greatly impacted the United Sates (U.S) and the world. The Great Depression and Global Crisis were both major economic crisis’s the originated in the United States and spread to foreign markets around the world. The Great Depression is regarded as the biggest economic downturn, due to many factors like the stock market crash. The Global Crisis on the other hand, was aRead MoreLasting Effects Of The Great Depression Essay1627 Words   |  7 PagesOctober 25, 2016 The Lasting Impact of the Great Depression in Canada 1929-1939 The Great Depression was a period in time where millions of Canadians had suffered from hunger, unemployment, homelessness and an economic downfall. The horror of the Great Depression took place in 1929-1939 and had lasted for a decade affecting millions of people worldwide. However, Canada had been impacted the most. The lasting horror of the Great Depression resulted in disastrous impacts on the economy. This was dueRead MoreKeynesian Theory During The Great Depression949 Words   |  4 PagesSince the establishment of the Keynesian theory during the Great Depression, there was a continuous rivalry between Keynesians and monetarists. The ongoing debate was about which model can most accurately and correctly explain economic instability and which theory provides the best suggestions on how to achieve constant and steady economic growth. There are fundamental differences in these two approaches, for example over the usefulness of government intervention through fiscal policies, mone taryRead More A Response to the Great Depression Essay631 Words   |  3 PagesA Response to the Great Depression The Great Depression of the 1930s was the economic event of the 20th century. The Great Depression began in 1929 when the entire world suffered an enormous drop in output and an unprecedented rise in unemployment. World economic output continued to decline until 1932 when it clinked bottom at 50% of its 1929 level. Unemployment soared, in the United States it peaked at 24.9% in 1933. Real economic output (real GDP) fell by 29% from 1929 to 1933 and the USRead MoreThe Great Depression Of The 1930 S1476 Words   |  6 Pagesthe great depression of the 1930’s and the great recession in the United State of America. First, I’ll make a general overview of each of these two different periods and then focus on certain specific aspects during these different times. This will include the causes to the economic recessions witnessed, impacts of the economic recessions and the solutions that were introduced. When talking about any topic regarding American history, it would be hard not to mention the 1930’s great depression. AuthorsRead MoreWorld War One s Impact On American Economics1589 Words   |  7 PagesWorld War 1’s Impact on American Economics By Chris Danielson History 104, Fall 2015 University of North Dakota As a student studying business, I like to look at significant events in US history and the impact they had on business in America. In addition to business, I have always been interested in wars and America’s involvement in those wars. When we started discussing World War 1 in class, it peaked my interest. Not only did we discuss the war, but we also looked at the impact it had on AmericanRead MoreThe Collapse Of The Weimar Republic1492 Words   |  6 PagesThe collapse of the Weimar Republic did not transpire from one sole reason, but from numerous short and long term factors. The immediate impact of the Great Depression definitely catalyzed the demise of the Weimar constitution, however the social, political, and economic instabilities built up the tension that triggered the initial collapse. These underlying issues fuelled governmental weaknesses, encouraging the psychological discontent with the Republic. This atmosphere of disarray enabled theRead MoreThe United States An d The Great Depression Essay1167 Words   |  5 Pagesmarket, and banking-business practices had not changed since the Industrial Era. Many of these factors contributed to the Great Depression. Americans felt as if they were immune to any economic downturn; however by 1932, one in four American â€Å"breadwinners† were out of work. On October 24th, 1929, the United States stock market crashed, setting the stage for the worst economic decline the US has ever seen, changing us as a society. A photographic essay was compiled by Cary Nelson, from the UniversityRead MoreThe Role of Government in Economy1216 Words   |  5 PagesNowadays, there are debates on how far government should interfere with the economy. Government has played an impact on the economy with the purpose to maximize the well-being of society. What governments generally do is to assure the economy grows at a steady pace, increase level of employment and stabilize the price level. However, whether government should take active policies to interfere with economy or just let it grow naturally has raised widely discussion. This essay discusses the role of

Learn How to Conjugate Reposer (to Rest) in French

Meaning to rest, the French  reposer  will be a useful addition to your vocabulary. The verb will need to be conjugated, however, if you want to say things such as rested or resting. This lesson will introduce you to the essential conjugations youll need for  reposer. The Basic Conjugations of  Reposer Reposer is a regular -er verb, which means it follows the conjugation pattern of the majority of French verbs. If you have studied words like tomber (to fall), poser  (to put), or any other regular verb that ends in -er, this lesson should be relatively easy. The indicative mood is the best place to begin. This includes the basic present, future, and imperfect past tenses which are used most often in French. The catch is that you need to memorize a new word for every subject pronoun within each tense.   Step one in any conjugation is identifying the verb stem (or radical). For  reposer, that is  repos-. To this, a variety of endings are added that correspond to the subject and the tense. Using the chart, you can find which endings are required. For example,  I am resting is  je repose  while we will rest is  nous reposerons. Present Future Imperfect je repose reposerai reposais tu reposes reposeras reposais il repose reposera reposait nous reposons reposerons reposions vous reposez reposerez reposiez ils reposent reposeront reposaient The Present Participle of  Reposer The  present participle  of regular -er  verbs is very easy to form. All you have to do is add -ant  to the radical. For  reposer,  that produces the word  reposant. Reposer  in the Compound Past Tense Passà © composà © is the French compound past tense and its used frequently, so its very good to know. Forming it is rather easy as well. Begin by conjugating the auxiliary verb  avoir  into the present tense to match the subject. Youll then follow that with the  past participle  reposà ©, which does not change with the subject but does indicate that someone has already rested. For example, I rested is  jai reposà ©Ã‚  and we rested is  nous avons reposà ©. More Simple Conjugations of  Reposer When youre uncertain if the act of resting will take place, you can turn to either  the subjunctive  or  the conditional. The main difference here is that the conditional says the resting will only happen if something else occurs as well. The passà © simple  and  the imperfect subjunctive  are literary tenses. Youll find these almost exclusively in formal writing. Subjunctive Conditional Pass Simple Imperfect Subjunctive je repose reposerais reposai reposasse tu reposes reposerais reposas reposasses il repose reposerait reposa repost nous reposions reposerions reposmes reposassions vous reposiez reposeriez repostes reposassiez ils reposent reposeraient reposrent reposassent If you want to tell someone to Rest! or use  reposer  in a similarly assertive statement,  the French imperative  can be used. This is one of those rare times when you dont need the subject pronoun, so simplify it from  tu repose  to  repose. Imperative (tu) repose (nous) reposons (vous) reposez

The Flaws Of Paul Dutton - 1359 Words

I. QUESTION PRESENTED What, if any, significant flaws are present in the existing Will of Paul Dutton that were not altered by the changes he has requested? II. SHORT ANSWER The significant flaws that are present in the existing Will of Paul Dutton are a lack of self-proving affidavit, failure to provide for the payment of GST tax and allocation of exemption, and ambiguity of section C in Article I. III. STATEMENT OF FACTS Paul Dutton has asked us to alter his estate plan, which previous included an inter vivos trust created in 2013 and a previously executed Will leaving all of his property to his spouse, Erika Dutton. He has asked that we update his current Will to create a two trust plan, consisting of a marital trust and family trust. I have conformed the terms of his new will to this request but now would like to direct your attention to some significant flaws in the language of the original will, which have not been changed, and suggest some solutions to these flaws. IV. DISCUSSION The three significant flaws that I have been able to identify in the original Will include: no self-proving affidavit, failure to require that any GST tax payable on account of his death be paid as an expense of the estate, and ambiguity in the clause located at Article 1 section C. I will discuss each problem below and the proper action or changes that must be taken to remedy this flaw. a. Lack of Self-Proving Affidavit Forty-six states recognize the self-proving affidavit, and allowShow MoreRelated Jane Eyre as Feminist Role Model for all Women Essay2450 Words   |  10 Pageswhat determines equality.   She does this by pointing out that the superficial marriage supposed to take place between Miss Ingram and Mr. Rochester is a thing to be scorned.   Because a loveless marriage is the sign of a serious character flaw, Jane feels that if Mr. Rochester does marry Miss Ingram, she will be better than him.   (Bronte 255)      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   When Rochester proposes, he declares, I offer you my hand, my heart, and a share of all my possessions, (Bronte 256).   HeRead More Needs Assessment and Analysis Essay3182 Words   |  13 Pagesbuilding blocks that complete the full picture. One such block is comprised of the levels of analysis. And within the levels of analysis there are three main points. These points as reported by Goldstien (1993); McGehee and Thayer (1961); Moore and Dutton (1978); and Sleezer (1991) are (1) organization, (2) job or task, and (3) individual or person (as cited by Holton). The following paragraphs will discuss each of these three points by defining and demonstrating their context within analysis. Read MoreThe Rise of Social Media and Its Impact on Mainstream Journalism21031 Words   |  85 Pagesinformation we get from the internet.6 Although issues such as accuracy and standards are at the heart of the current debate within journalism, scholars and commentators see these issues as part of a much wider change in the media landscape. Futurologist Paul Saffo talks of the shift from mass media to personal media. He believes many traditional publishers will fall by the wayside in the process: The Mass Media revolution 50 years ago delivered the world to our TVs, but it was a one-way trip – all we couldRead MoreDeveloping Management Skills404131 Words   |  1617 Pagesas irrelevant nor wait until they become managers before attempting to practice them. Psychological research has confirmed that when we are forced to perform under stress, we rely on what is called a â€Å"dominant response pattern† (Staw, Sandelands, Dutton, 1981; Weick, 1995). That is, we rely on the behavior patterns that are most deeply ingrained in our response repertoire. For example, if a person who has been accustomed to responding to conflict combatively—but who has recently begun practicingRead MoreStephen P. Robbins Timothy A. Judge (2011) Organizational Behaviour 15th Edition New Jersey: Prentice Hall393164 Words   |  1573 PagesCalifornia State University Fullerton Abigail Hubbard, University of Houston Paul Hudec, Milwaukee School of Engineering Stephen Humphrey, Florida State University Charlice Hurst, University of Florida Warren Imada, Leeward Community College Gazi Islam, Tulane University Alan Jackson, Peru State College Christine Jackson, Purdue University Marsha Jackson, Bowie State University Kathryn Jacobson, Arizona State University Paul Jacques, Western Carolina University David Jalajas, Long Island University

Letting Go free essay sample

In each and every one of us, there lies a fear. There are lots of fears in this life but what were talking about is a fear that dwells inside of us, where mostly we do not tend to reveal it outside. That fear has the potential to eat us up slowly from the inside till it consumes our whole being. This fear is there in each and every single human being no matter how he strong he may be both on the core and the outside. These fears are but many and differ from person to person but I choose to be specific here and that is the fear of letting go.People come and people go in our lives but what hurts the most than letting go of the one you love the most in your life, the one whom you once chose to never leave through thick and thin. We will write a custom essay sample on Letting Go or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page People hurt us from time to time. Of course thats Life, No doubt about it, but HURT sometime can leave wounds in our hearts where scars left never seem to fade away. There are some things that time does not seem to mend. Hard to accept but true. But heres the funny part, No matter how or to what extent these people hurt you, yet you still love them.You still chose to be patient. One of the Laws of Nature is the Limits of Tolerance. There is a certain climax where one can bear a certain kind of pressure. When the limit of tolerance has been reached, the nature provides a feedback mechanism. We rise from dust, nature itself, and back to dust. These laws dwell In all of us. Thats when we choose to stay away and give up every virtue of love. Yes. Maybe weve had our closures with them. Maybe weve given a good ending. But the worst comes into the picture when we still think of changing the past.Still wishing sometimes you were a better person, a stronger person to bear hurtful things that the one you love does. Wishing you had done things differently. Wishing had they only changed and what not. This Is when that fear, the fear of letting go grows In our hearts. It consumes our thoughts Like a fire and rages our mind. It freezes our heart cold and turns It Like a stone. Heres when we really make a real CHOICE. The choice to let go forever. To stop worrying what the consequences of our actions could be.This fear Is, In fact, against the attitude of love (which always bears and stays). Life Is governed by choices and the choice to let go of someone Is the hardest In life. It questions the attitude of love as In Yes I would bear, but even If I did, would It be worth It? This question Is, again hard to accept, but a fear of letting go. But Life never gives us many choices and the beauty of this fear Is that the questions that It puts In our mind are only answered sometimes by Glenn Into the fear Itself and choosing to let go because sometimes that Is the only way we can find out.Kampuchea Deletion By Kampuchea mechanism. We rise from dust, nature itself, and back to dust. These laws dwell in all Maybe weve had our closures with them. Maybe weve given a good ending. But the only changed and what not. This is when that fear, the fear of letting go grows in our hearts. It consumes our thoughts like a fire and rages our mind. It freezes our heart cold and turns it like a stone. Heres when we really make a real CHOICE. The choice This fear is, in fact, against the attitude of love (which always bears and stays).Life is governed by choices and the choice to let go of someone is the hardest in life. It questions the attitude of love as in miss I would bear, but even if I did, would it be worth it? This question is, again hard to accept, but a fear of letting go. But Life never gives us many choices and the beauty of this fear is that the questions that it puts in our mind are only answered sometimes by giving into the fear itself and choosing to let go because sometimes that is the only way we can find out.

Dawn By Elie Wiesel Essays (845 words) - The Holocaust, Literature

Dawn By Elie Wiesel The book I read for my book review was Dawn, bye Elie Wiesel. This story represents the post WWII struggle of the Israeli freedom fighters ? one young man in particular, who has found himself on the other side of the gun. Wiesel himself severed his time in the death camps at Auschwitz and Buchenwald during the War, and had previously written Night, the memoirs of his experiences. The purpose of this book, in my mind, was to express the inner most thoughts and the anguish of Elisha. Elisha is 18 years old. He was recruited by a gentleman named Gad, who turned him into a fighter. He has killed before for their cause, but only in groups ? never alone. Our bullets were a flaming wall on which their lives were shattered? My five comrades and I set out to either kill or to be killed.? Pg28. But now, Elisha wasn't in a group. He had been ordered to execute an English officer, John Dawson, as to compensate for the British capturing David ben Moshe, one of their own. In tradition, executions always took place at dawn in their culture; usually around 5AM. Elisha has less than twelve hours before he will be labeled as a murderer for the rest of his life. He's having a difficult time coming to the reality that he is going to have to kill a man on his own. ?I should forget this night. But the dead never forget? In their eyes I should be forever branded a killer.? Pg69. Of course, then again, if anyone were put into that position ? having to kill a man, who has done nothing wrong except be born of English blood ? I think they would be having some serious issues with themselves as well. In the Jewish tradition, there is a lot of focus on and towards nighttime. Night is a very important in that ?Night is purer than day; it is better for thinking and loving and dreaming. At night everything is more intense, more true. The echo of words that have been spoken during the day take on a new and deeper meaning. The tragedy of man is that he doesn't know how to distinguish between night and day. He says things at night that should only be said by day.? Pg4. Also, according to their realigion, at midnight, the dead rise and go to the synagogue to pray. At one point, during the night before Dawson's death, Elisha sees the ghosts of his parents, and old Master, of his fiend Yerachmiel, and of a little beggar boy. These ghosts help Elisha cope with what he is about to go through. Throughout the book, there is a lot of mention of the ?war? between the Israelis and the British. At one point it's said that, ?War is like night? it covers everything.? I very much agree with this statement. War does cover everything, mentally, physically, and ecologically; war has no care as to who it hurts, why, or how. As Night is drawing closer to an end, Elisha realizes that he doesn't want to go down to the basement, where John Dawson is being held, and kill a man he has never known. That's a cowardice thing to do in their culture. ?I said that I wanted to go down before the time was up, to see the fellow, and talk, and get to know him. It was cowardly, I said, to kill a complete stranger. It was like war, where you don't shoot at men, but into the night? you never know whether any of the enemy was killed, or which one. To execute a stranger would be the same thing. If I were to see him as only he died, I would feel as if I shot at a dead man.? This, I feel is another powerful quote that makes good food for thought. I, and I'm sure others as well, can't even fathom what Elisha is going through. Elisha does go down to meet John Dawson, about an hour before the dawn. He gets to know him, about his life, and family. He even promises to mail a letter to

Humanitarian Diplomacy

Humanitarian Diplomacy Free Online Research Papers â€Å"The world must be made safe for democracy. Its peace must be planted upon the tested foundations of political liberty. We have no selfish ends to serve. We desire no conquest, no dominion. We seek no indemnities for ourselves, no material compensation for the sacrifices we shall freely make. We are but one of the champions of the rights of mankind. We shall be satisfied when those rights have been made as secure as the faith and the freedom of nations can make them.† In his address to a joint session of Congress on April 2, 1917, Woodrow Wilson asked for a Declaration of War against Germany, justifying leading â€Å"this great peaceful people into war, into the most terrible and disastrous of all wars† by emphasizing the importance of maintaining international peace and diplomacy through American intervention. In the years since World War I, American foreign policy has abandoned its isolationist immersion in domestic issues and has come to accept its newfound responsibility and leadership as a world power, making international relations and diplomacy a priority in its foreign policy. However, the United States has been criticized for letting its history of colonialism and exp ansion, as well as concern for its own national interest and economy, interfere with its humanitarian mission and for being selective and often contradictory on which conflicts and international crises in which it intervenes. In the wake of 9/11, lack of domestic support for the Iraq War and an increasing global resentment towards the United States, it is important to determine how the United States’ humanitarian agenda can be balanced with its national interest in terms of the economy, national security and collective ideology. Additionally, one must examine whether public opinion calls for a more isolationist foreign policy that uses deterrence and preemption to maintain peace and freedom or a more humanitarian mission that will use aid and military assistance to improve the United States’ image in the international community and alleviate poverty and suffering worldwide. The United States has a long history of intervention in foreign affairs, beginning as far back as the establishment of the Monroe Doctrine and the nation’s emergence as a world power (Tucker, 14). Through expansionism, isolationism, the â€Å"Good Neighbor† policy and more, U.S. foreign policy has always had a strong base in intervention and humanitarianism, whether out of a desire to control world affairs or a feeling of responsibility as a world power. In his 1904 annual message to Congress, Franklin Delano Roosevelt declared, â€Å"All that this country desires is to see the neighboring countries stable, orderly and prosperous. Any country whose people conduct themselves well can count upon our hearty friendship. If a nation shows that it knows how to act with reasonable efficiency and decency in social and political matters, if it keeps order and pays its obligations, it need fear no interference from the United States. Chronic wrongdoing, or an impotence whic h results in a general loosening of the ties of civilized society, may in America, as elsewhere, ultimately require intervention by some civilized nation, and in the Western Hemisphere the adherence of the United States to the Monroe Doctrine may force the United States, however reluctantly, in flagrant cases of such impotence or wrongdoing, to the exercise of an international police power.† (â€Å"Roosevelt Corollary†) This willingness to act as a global â€Å"police power† and intervene on humanitarian grounds has been a dominant theme in 20th century foreign policy; however, in light of the recent war against terror and growing American backlash, these aims must be reexamined. Additionally, the domestic political considerations that lie beneath humanitarian efforts must be considered as well. In The Tragedy of American Diplomacy, William Appleman Williams outlines three major conceptions that guide the ideology of American foreign policy: the humanitarian impulse to help other people solve their problems, the principle of self-determination applied at the national level and the idea that other nations cannot truly solve their problems unless they use the same approach as the United States (Williams 13). However, the motivation behind foreign policy decisions is not always as selflessly benevolent as Williams describes it. A variety of American national interests, from international political influence to economic gain to national security, influence the decision to become involved in a humanitarian crisis (Ferer 49). Since the Monroe Doctrine, U.S. foreign policy has sought to gain political or economic influence through its intervention in foreign affairs, whether by setting up puppet governments in weak Latin American states or occupying territories in the Pacific (Ferer 51). For any capitalist society, the desire to reach into underdeveloped countries for new markets, raw materials, cheap labor and profitable investment of capital is understandable, but within American foreign policy, humanitarian efforts can have economically self-serving ulterior motives and place more emphasis on economic and political ends and means than on human rights. Prime examples of U.S. humanitarian intervention for political control are seen in our nation’s involvement in Latin America in the 20th century. After years of oppression by violent dictators and a desperate need for social change, U.S.-supported dictator Jorge Ubico was overthrown by revolution in 1944 and Juan Jose Arevalo was legally elected (Parenti 122). While he established free speech and press and education reform among other successes, he appeared to be a communist threat to the United States and the government arranged for him to be overthrown and set up another oppressive dictator in his place (Parenti 124). Another example is found in the United States’ support of the Contras in Nicauragua during the 1980s, as well as support for the oppressive governments of El Salvador, Guatamala and Honduras (Chatterjee 86). While the United States may claim to intervene to right a wrong or protect human rights, the action policy makers and administrators take may no t always be in the best interest of the nation, but in the best interest of the so-called liberator. By setting up pro-U.S., anti-socialist dictators, the United States allowed for influence in the nation’s politics and economy and increased access to the nation’s trade and resources. Another motivation for humanitarian intervention is the protection of national security and the prevention of war or terrorist attack. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States entered World War II and joined the Allied forces out of a concern for its national security and a desire to eliminate the fascist threat and maintain peace and democracy (Ambrose 15). Besides having the staunch support of American citizens, the war not only neutralized the Axis powers, but established America as a world power and Germany and Japan as newly democratic capitalist nations and allies to the West (Ambrose 33-34). As the war was fought in direct retaliation to an attack on American soil and in response to a significant threat to freedom and human rights, political and economic interests did not affect American motivation to engage in the war. However, not all humanitarian interventions on behalf of national security and international peace are as pure-intentioned or as well s upported as World War II. The current Iraq War, fought in response to Saddam Hussein’s human rights abuses and a suspicion of weapons of mass destruction, has had considerable amounts of both setbacks and scandals. From a lack of popular support for the war and problems with insurgency and anti-American sentiment worldwide to the war profiteering of private corporations in Iraq, high number of casualties and misbehavior of U.S. troops, the Iraq War has been plagued with problems despite having a goal of maintaining domestic and international security. However, some humanitarian crises receive little to no consideration on a foreign policy agenda due to their lack of correlation to the national interest. While the United States commends itself as a defender of freedom, regional conflicts or human rights violations that do not pose a threat to the United States’ national security or economic and poltical interests – no matter how many casualties – may not be viewed as a priority. In 1994, radical Hutus attempted to eradicate the Tutsi population in Rwanda, leaving one million dead in less than three months while the international community dragged their feet (DiPrizio 61). While the genocide was well publicized, the U.S. hardly responded and only sent troops and a humanitarian relief operation well after the genocide ended (DiPrizio 61). Little over ten years later, the Darfur region of Sudan came under attack from government-sponsored Arab militias that massacred over 200,000 people and left countless more as refugees but the United States continues to avoid involvement (â€Å"Darfur†). Although the United States claims to be a protector of human rights, the lack of intervention in such sizable humanitarian crises were due to a lack of political or economic incentive. Because the violence was contained to the borders of Sudan and Rwanda and did not threaten American resources, such human rights violations are apparently not enough of a priority to act upon. In light of the anti-American backlash worldwide, the threat of terrorism worldwide and the challenge of balancing American national interests with protecting human rights and international peace, would an isolationist foreign policy be more beneficial? While the United States has historically had periods of isolationist foreign policy, it seems almost impossible to remain self-contained and self-sufficient in today’s globalized society and interdependent marketplace. With the rise of trade agreements that open new borders and increased American dependence on foreign products and resources, it would be near impossible not to become involved in international affairs without alienating trade partners or losing influence in global politics. By becoming involved in humanitarian crises strictly in the defense of human rights and not self-interest, the United States would undoubtedly maintain peace without making as many enemies and eventually worsening the quality of life for o thers. Additionally, the United States needs to rebuild alliances with old and new allies and use the power of the United Nations and other international organizations in its endeavors (Lefever 45). While the United States would be wise to use its economic and military power to preempt acts of violence and maintain peace, military force and intervention in foreign government should be a last resort and not a means to police other nations. After an examination of American motives for humanitarian intervention, historical incidents and approaches to policy making and policy ideology, it becomes clear that humanitarianism is inextricably linked with the United States’ foreign policy mission. As a self-described defender of liberty and democracy in a globalized and interdependent world, the United States must continue to intervene to protect its own political and economic interests as well as take precautions and even drastic action to preserve peace and democracy around the world. Rather than use excessive military force and act alone in its intervention efforts, the United States would be more successful in its efforts if it was more effective in using the support of the United Nations and other international organizations and take a more aid-based approach, only using military force as a last resort when sanctions and economic pressure do not cease the violence or violations. America must give more foresight to its policy choices and strike a balance between its national interests and its national ideology while ensuring that its involvement in a humanitarian crisis will be in the best interests of the afflicted nation and that its relationships within the international community remain sound. Ambrose, Stephen E., and Douglas G. Brinkley. Rise to Globalism. 8th ed. New York: Penguin Books, 1997. Appleman Williams, William. The Tragedy of American Diplomacy. 2nd ed. New York: Dell Co., 1972. Chatterjee, Deen K., and Don E. Scheid. Ethics and Foreign Intervention. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2003. â€Å"Darfur.† Wikipedia. 22 Apr 2007. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darfur Diprizio, Robert C. Armed Humanitarians. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins UP, 2002. Farer, Tom J. Toward a Humanitarian Diplomacy. New York: New York UP, 1980. Lefever, Ernest W. Ethics and United States Foreign Policy. Cleveland: The World Company, 1967. Lepard, Brian D. Rethinking Humanitarian Intervention. University Park: Pennsylvania State UP, 2002. Parenti, Michael. Trends and Tragedies in American Foreign Policy. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1971. Roosevelt Corollary. Wikipedia. 22 Apr. 2007. . Ross Fowler, Michael. Contending Approaches to Human Rights in U.S. Foreign Policy. Lanham: University P of America, 1987. Tucker, Robert W. Nation or Empire: the Debate Over American Foreign Policy. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins UP, 1968. Wilson, Woodrow. Address. Congress, Washington D.C. 2 Apr. 1917. 24 Apr. 2007 . 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