America as a Christian Nation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

America as a Christian Nation - Essay Example And that they do it only by necessity. According to him "injustice is more profitable to an individual than justice." (360 B.C.) However, it has been a popular teaching in Christianity that God gave men free will. And according to C.S Lewis, it is that same free will that made evil possible. (1943) Men are then free to do good as well as evil. Therefore, because of this free will, in my opinion, it doesn't matter whether or not men are born just or not. Nor is the reason why men are unjust, whether by whim or necessity. All that matters is that men have the capacity to be unjust. And it is that capability for injustice that should be constrained, but how It has been argued that the best of all things is "to do injustice and not be punished," the worst is "to suffer injustice without power of retaliation," (Devine 2004) hence the middle ground is what we call justice as imposed by government. And I agree. I believe that it is the existence of the government that constrains this capability of evil. It provides for laws, renders judgment and imposes punishment. I agree with Rousseau when he stated that even if God did not have a hand on the legitimacy of the government, it is God that gave the individuals inalienable rights. (Devine, 2004) And this includes the right to form a unified body to govern them. You need not be Christian. You can be Muslim or Jewish. You may even call your God different names. But I think, if one believes that all men has inalienable rights, he or she must believe that there is a higher power bestowing that right. Because if the contrary was true, that there is no higher power, then men would be the highest power. We are all gods. I don't think that's right. If we are all gods, that would lead to chaos. As such, since the power of the American government emanates from the people, America as a nation must believe in a higher power, a religion. Why Christianity One main reason why America leans towards Christianity more than the other religions is because of history. We have learned in the readings that through conquests, Christianity was spread from Europe, to the American continent. However, there are also other religions brought by immigrants inside America. There is also the fact that there are many who prefers not to believe in any religion at all. But despite that, I still believe that America is still a Christian nation. Why Because of its teachings. No matter if you call yourself an atheist or declare that you believe in some other god, if you practice what Christianity preach, I call you a Christian. So what are these teachings Firstly, Christianity teaches us to be just, to respect and to do no harm to another. These are the basic virtues that lead to the very goal of our Constitution: the protection of life, liberty and property. Secondly, Christianity t

PaY For Play Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

PaY For Play - Essay Example Sports players are a huge asset for the colleges because they enhance the college reputation and prestige. One of the realities of the current university and college system is that they derive a residual level of profitability from whatever sports programs that the school offers. This residual level of revenue has come to be an important funding stream that colleges and universities rely on to ameliorate the economic pressures of hard times. However, regardless of the degree of revenue that these institutions are able to garner as a result of their sports programs, the student athletes are not paid for their work outside the scholarships that they are oftentimes offered as an incentive to play the game. However, it is normally seen that the athletes or sportsmen have not given much consideration when it comes to upholding their rights. When it came to my college, I saw that our college athletes were not given due respect with regard to the reward structure. In our society college ath letes undergo much sacrifice and bring money but not be paid in return. I myself have been a football player in college and I understand what it means to be able to have spending money to survive during the university experience; a luxury that those not playing sports can readily achieve merely by picking up a part time job while in school. Thus, following inductive reasoning I can say that those college athletes who participate in major money making sports, such as football in the SEC, should be paid and not just in kind. The approach of ethos, pathos and logos is used in this paper to prove the point. For logical approach inductive reasoning is used based on facts, ethical appeal is used after considering views of different authors regarding payment of college athletes and an emotional appeal also lies underneath the arguments presented in the paper. Background of Sports Play at College and Problems in Pay for Play: Regulation regarding paying college athletes should be changed in order to compensate athletes and payment should be made mandatory. This is because these players bring in a lot of money and put in too much work for that without earning a paycheck. The idea of sports played in college came into existence during 1850. Soon after, sports achieved its place in the curriculum of the college activities. Gradually colleges started to prepare for the intercollegiate competition as a mean of boosting the self confidence and as a method of learning to overcome the obstacles in life. The first intercollegiate athletic competition held in America was secondary to the promotional wishes and was launched as a commercial venture. It has been regarded as the perfect physical activity and the desire of the young men. The competitive spirit and vigor which are parts of college sports enhanced the mental and physical pleasure of the students. The college authorities elaborately planned sports activities which motivated the students immensely and sports events at c ollege and national levels became a prestigious venture and money making phenomena for college authorities. The media kept the young athletes in the lime light and the scholarship provided by colleges to them stood as a bonus (Smith, 2011, pp. 1-8). However one should consider their importance to the colleges and their role as revenue earners in order to compensate them in cash and kind. Here lies the ethical appeal. Playing college sports has evolved to be an honor

Economic Development in Kenya Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Economic Development in Kenya - Assignment Example It will also lead to the digitization of the Kenyan education system, where every pupil in Kenya will receive the same quality of education be it in private or public schools and finally Kenyans technological knowledge will increase immensely, and in the future Kenyans might produce one of the best IT innovative gurus, such as Bill Gates or Steve Jobs. Therefore, with this project in mind, the hypothesis that would be tested by the RCT is whether the laptop project will improve the education quality in pupils from rural Kenya and make it at par with that of students learning in urban private schools. The randomized control trials, in this case, will be identifying two schools one from rural Kenya, where there are minimal facilities and learning is a very cumbersome task for its pupils (treatment group). The other school will be from urban Kenya, where facilities are in plenty, and the learning institution has everything it needs to make learning a sweet and enjoyable experience for its students, (control group). The target population will be all pupils joining class one in both schools, where the students in the rural school, will be provided with laptops that have been loaded with adequate learning material and a well-defined syllabus. The same syllabus will be the one student from the urban school will be studying as well, the rural school will also have teachers that will help the students understand how to use and retrieve the information they want from the laptops. After the RCT is implemented, a series of tests will be administered to both the treatment group and the contro l group, where our intended outcome is that the treatment group will perform equally as the control group if not better. Our hypothesis is whether the laptop project will improve the education quality in pupils from rural Kenya and make it at par with that  of students learning in urban private schools.  

Alfred Hitchcock The Birds Analysis

Alfred Hitchcock The Birds Analysis The Birds was one of the most successful suspense films of its time and possibly all time. It is a superbly directed film by the master of suspense Alfred Hitchcock in 1963. The Birds was based on a novella by Daphne Du Maurier of the same name. I think this is an astounding, unbelievably, remarkable film because it does everything a suspense film should have, and more. In this article I am going to explore the suspense used in the film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. I will examine how through lighting, colour and camera angles this was one of Hitchcocks most renowned motion picture. Hitchcock was very impressive in his dramatic techniques because the tension is built in various scenes which also makes this film accomplish the horror genre in addition to suspense. Initially the audience believe the film is a comedy because it is incredibly ordinary in addition to the use of bright lights and warm colours. Hitchcock makes us as the viewer get an understanding of the characters back story before unleashing the terror in the rest of the film. The movie was very modern for its era, as a result of the use of new technology to the 60s hence the scenes are realistic which adds to its unrevealing storyline. The use of Technicolor added to the horror during the film because it was very new. Through pathetic fallacy the atmosphere is set in most scenes, for example when Melanie Daniels and Mitch Brenner are in the bird shop it is very bright and colourful which is reflected in the characters behavior in the scene. Also towards the end the lighting and colour create a dark and eerie atmosphere. The killers in The Birds and Psycho were believable however the characters remained odd and innocent characters. The introduction of the film with the character is familiar shows her sense of security however when she moves to a rural area we see a vulnerable character with unfamiliar surroundings. Hitchcock may have chosen a small town because it is seen to be more dangerous but in this setting it is more dangerous as it is isolated. The film features a mass use of the colour green for example in the scenery whilst Melanie is driving the boat the landscape is green and blue to Hitchcocks liking and also Melanie wears the same green coat throughout the film. This makes the colour green significant to Hitchcocks films. Green is not usually associated with terror and fear but Hitchcock used this to make the audience feel uncertainty in the film. When Melanie is taking the birdcage to Mitch she is viewed from the waist down showing her in a green dress. This is a reference to birds being women because Melanie is blonde haired and is wearing green, the love birds are yellow headed with green bodies. This suggestion is also made in the beginning when Melanie is walking down a busy street and hears a wolf whistle towards her. This sound is similar to a birds sound. Hitchcock also used the colour green in Vertigo the Female lead wears green. Hitchcock also uses sharp objects in many ways for example the beaks in The Bird s and the weapon in Psycho. Most of the film is set during the day which makes the viewer unsuspecting of the birds. Hitchcock does this to show the calm and peaceful atmosphere which is maintained throughout the film until the ending. Vibrant colours take over the screen predominantly, during the relaxed scenes whereas before and for the duration of the bird attacks dim, shady colours are used. For instance in the Tides Restaurant when the birds attack the atmosphere is dark which is reflected on the clothes worn, the weather and the colour of the birds (see image 1). The colour plays a key part in why The Birds is a successful suspense film. Through its use of high key lighting contrasted with low key lighting which creates a mysterious impression to the audience. An example of lighting is offered proficiently in the dead famer scene. In this scene we see the lighting symbolising the mood in the scene. It begins with Lydia walking down with very bright sunlight, as she walks towards the door the lighting begins to dim down. Entering the house we see a window with natural light but no false light in the house. This absence of light begins to suggest something bad has happened. The director has used this superbly in many of his films to create unease with the observer. Hitchcock was superior when it came to using mise-en-scene to alter the appearance of things. The room where the famer is found is bright but as the camera begins to reveal his body the lighting is darker. The shadows cover the body only exposing his face with his pitch-black eye sockets. As Lydia runs out the weather has changed to a dark stormy sky. The audience feels that this symbolises the man has died and the birds will attack again. Hitchcock creates a parallel to the book because the main character finds his neighbours killed because of the birds. The director does this because he is trying to use visual techniques such as camera angles and lighting to create a horror film atmosphere which also creates a more effective suspense film. This scene is effective because of the drama portrayed by Lydia it is also good because we begin to see different aspects to Lydias character. During the scene where the old woman talks about the scientific facts concerning the birds we see bright colours and vivid lighting but as the birds begin to attack it seems to get darker. When the man is set alight the fire signifies death and evil, as well as a warning that more birds are coming to attack. This is another scene where lighting causes suspense. The use of Chiaroscuro is very effective in scaring the audience. Also the use of long dialogue to create suspense is extremely effective because the audience is eager to find out the cause of the attacks and when they will attack again but this explanation creates the anticipating effect on the audience. The MacGuffin changes throughout the film. At the beginning the audience feels the film is a cheerful film about love but when the storyline develops the viewer thinks: Why are the birds attacking? When are they going to attack next? These questions cannot be answered because they were even analysed by the characters in the Tides Restaurant scene after the birds attacked the school but there was no rational reason. Hitchcock used the MacGuffin in many of his films for example in Psycho the characters wonder Where Is Marion Crane with the money? MacGuffin is one of Hitchcocks strong points because he uses it to make the audience have a different attitude to every scene wondering what is going to happen and why is it happening. This works well because the audience does feel the urge to find out what will happen and a number of other questions. The performance portrayed by the actors in this film is very effective as the actors and actresses are very realistic and can relate to the audience through this. Also the use of something as ordinary and everyday as birds instead of monsters and aliens used in modern films makes the film relate to the audiences life. This is a film that can affect a wide range of audiences because it would have frightened people in the 60s because of the fear of bombs attacking. Nowadays it could be a relation to global warming attacking us. Due to the death of the farmer Lydia was in more need of Mitchs protection but felt she had to compete with Melanie because both were women in Mitchs life and they felt helpless. The very moving portrayal of a needy mother by Jessica Tandy is amazing and still makes an impact to people today because this emphasises Oedipus complex. Mitch is the central character and the women seem to revolve around him which could be another cause for the bird attacks. The protagonist in the novella by Du Maurier is a farmer and Mitch lives in a barn. This is one of many similarities between the film and the book. Hitchcock developed the characters relationships in different ways to create an unsuspecting atmosphere. Melanie is the centre of this as she is a problem to Lydia Brenner and Annie Hayworth (the school teacher) as they are both women who are dependent of Mitchs love. Kathy Brenner (Mitchs sister) likes Melanie because of the love birds she received from her for her birthday and is not one of the main focuses of the film. The handing of the love birds guides to a very misleading storyline making us think it is about the love birds only because Hitchcock spent a lot of time building the characters feelings and behaviours to create an intense atmosphere for the audience thus creating suspense. In the opening credits the title The Birds was slowly pecked away by the passing crows. This use of bright light and medium shots for an introduction creates a mysterious tone for the audience. For modern audiences this could be seen as a very emotive film but long however this makes the audience even more eager to watch the film because it does not give away much information in many scenes. The power of the movie is through the use of camera angles due to the absence of a music soundtrack. Hitchcock uses a variety of methods which are incredibly effective to produce the vast suspense in the film. In many scenes tension is built to create fear and uncertainty in when the birds attack. The film is not extremely graphical in the scenes where the birds attack yet the terror is shown through his use of camera angles. For example Melanies phone booth scene, the camera moves around in the point of view of the birds then switches to Melanies view however when she is getting more and more vulnerable low angle shots are used to make her look defenceless (see image 2). As Melanie enters the phone booth a medium long shot is used. Birds-eye view is used to show her alone with the birds attacking the booth. Extreme close ups show her emotion as scared. The attack from the birds is shown with fast paced point of view shots from Melanie and the birds. Extreme close ups are used to show the characters emotions during bird attacks. At the start of the film this is used showing the characters behaviour. Predominantly when we see Melanie she looks like an upper class woman with no worries in the world through extreme close ups. She is very sophisticated which makes her weak and in danger of attack. Hitchcock uses a female protagonists in many of his films such as Psycho, Marion is alone and vulnerable and Vertigo, the female is calm and alone. Through camera angles we can see the similarities in the characters feelings. Point of view shots are used a great number of times during the film to give you an idea about what they can see and how they see things. For instance when Lydia sees the farmer we walk with her because a point of view shot is used. The body of the farmer zooms in three times to show his eyes. This triple close up shot works well with point of view shot to create a tense atmosphere. Lydia is a frightened old woman who walks in a certain way through Camera angles we find out about her need to be a woman in authority. In the playground scene of The Birds the camera shots are used to develop the still surrounding before the assembly of the birds. The long shot of Melanie Daniels walking to the bench illustrates she is alone and the empty climbing frame in the playground. She is unaware of what is going on and has her back to the birds in the climbing frame (see image 3). By doing this suggests she is exposed and vulnerable and open to attack as she is unaware of the further gathering of the birds but the audience can see this through the medium long shot. She is lower down under the birds showing she is in danger of attack by the birds. Hitchcock is trying to explore the audiences reaction to this calm place being the home of the villains of the film because the playground seems like a place of purity so the audience believes it is a cheerful place. Usually in suspense films something begins calm but changes unsuspectingly. Hitchcock used suspense to its extent because the wait in many of his scene s for the birds to come are long. This change is when the first bird lands on the climbing frame creates a sinister atmosphere. The camera cuts from mid shots of Melanie smoking and the birds building up number on the climbing frame. Mise-en-scene is used because Hitchcock makes the landscape reflect onto Melanies loneliness. The school playground and the hills in the background make the atmosphere normal and make her appear defenceless and alone. Hitchcock is trying to explore how colours and bright scenery creates a cold scary atmosphere without the use of non-diagetic sounds or speech of Melanie. The argument that the bird attacks are drawn by Mitch could be proved wrong as it has three female characters: Kathy, Melanie, Annie. The sounds are very loud and show tension such as in psycho the only sound in the shower scene is the water touching the basin. Melanie is a very vulnerable character because she is an outsider to the community and Hitchcock emphasises this in many scenes. Annie seems to be dominant and have power over Melanie because she is accepted by the community. Also Annie feels threatened by Melanie because we see her ordering Melanie to sit outside instead of staying with her in the classroom. Tilted angle shots are used in the end scene when we hear the birds approaching. The characters look up towards the ceiling where the bird sounds are coming from. The squawks could be a diegetic or non diegetic sound because they set the mood and as the volume increases the characters are more frightened and the mood is intense. Afterwards a low angle shot is used to show the defencelessness of the characters. Wide shots (Extreme long shots) are used to show the landscape and the characters surroundings and usually it is not visibly detailed. This is incredibly thrilling and terrifying and is shown in many scenes to show the birds plotting and attacking. A birds eye view camera angle is a very strange and unnatural shot but is used frequently in the film, not only in the phone booth scene (see image 4). Hitchcock could have used this as a literal birds-eye view however the shot puts the audience in a god like position because we see it from above. This could be a direct link to the judgement day explanation of the film as this shot is used when the birds begin attacking at the gas station. The first attack is referenced in the Tides Restaurant scene when the woman accuses Melanie of the bird attacks because she is the first person to be attacked in the boat. Long shots are used to show the landscape. The warm, calm atmosphere in the scene is shown by the landscape and Melanies clothing. The long shot doubles as a point of view shot for Mitch. We see what Mitch sees as she is attacked by a seagull. The bird attack could be interpreted as Melanies need be noticed by Mitch because Melanie would have gone home straight afterwards if it wasnt for the bird attacking her. Hitchcock uses a range of dramatic techniques to introduce the characters and their relation with each other. He does this to create a sense of unease and make the film have a deeper meaning than just bird attacks. This film could be about a number of other things because this scene shows the emotions between the two characters which seems to cause the first bird attack. If Hitchcock really wanted to make th e film only about birds he would have based it more around the book because the novella has a conclusion and an explanation. Also it focuses more on the bird attacks and the science than the relationship between the characters. The mother and son relationship is shown in many of Hitchcocks film for example the dominant mother in Psycho. Throughout the film Mitch refers to his mother as darling and kisses her frequently. This is a suggestion of Oedipus Complex. Mitch is in love with his mother and the absence of his father makes the mother needy. In addition to that Lydia and Melanie look extremely alike which tells us that Mitch wants his wife to be his jus like his mother. One of the most successful scenes in the film is Kathys birthday scene. It has a sense of being a very unsuspecting scene because it uses very vivid colours and has an absence of birds altogether in the landscape. This use of bright lights and bright colours make the scene seem innocent which makes the audience anticipating a bird attack or wondering why they arent attacking. This gives an idea of innocence because we see Mitch and Melanies relationship develop before the bird attack and we see their characters revealed which also adds to a build up to the climax of the birds attacking. We see Lydia is helpless by the uses of camera angles such as point-of-view shots and extreme close ups. She is scared when the birds begin to attack and is needy of Mitchs attention but he is focused on the other two women in his life Melanie and Annie. When the birds pop the balloons we hear sounds like bombs which could be a link to the Daphne Du Maurier novella because her book was based in Englan d to show the fear of bomb attacks in post war Britain. Hitchcock was trying to explore what humans are afraid of which is nature attacking the human race. Hitchcock played on the idea of being afraid of the sky and used birds instead of bombs. This scene shows how the director makes a calm peaceful scene make us think about the world and nature. Modern movies have followed this example by the master of suspense such as 2012 which shows nature attacking humans and ending the world. Towards the end when the birds attack the house the feeling of being paranoid is conveyed through the actor which implies the feeling of things coming out of the sky. This is a reference to the cold war. This also makes us as humans feel that anything can happen to us and nature can make us vulnerable. The book comes to a conclusion that the birds are influenced by the tide levels. In the beginning the humans are in control of the birds as they are caged. The tables turn when the humans are locked in their homes with the birds intimidating them. The Birds is arguably a film about the tension between families because the birds attack when different things happen to each character. The bird attacks when Melanie starts to get feelings for Mitch and when there is tension between Lydia and Melanie. Lydia is the overprotective mother and Melanie is a woman without a mother. Melanie is wealthy and has everything she wants apart from a mother. At the end we see Melanie powerless she can barely look up to Lydia but still does in a way saying that she has found her mother figure and is need of help. Also another interpretation of the bird attacks is that because the birds will never stop until humans change. The birds almost fight back after the humans treat them with cruelty trapped in zoos and cages. The phone booth scene also emphasises that because Melanie is surrounding by birds mocking her in a phone booth which looks like a bird helpless in a cage. This tells us there could be a biblical message to the film, Judgement day as discussed in the Tides restaurant. In Psycho, there is a psychologist who concludes the film by explaining why Norman Bates chose those actions, similarly The Birds an ornithologist explains the facts about birds and possible answers to their behaviour in the Tides Restaurant. The birds could be a warning from something greater than humans due to the fact that birds are traditionally a symbol of peace but in the film they connote death and evil. Hitchcock reinforces the idea that humans are in constant fear that nature will turn against them. Humans a re usually the predators of birds but in the book they are shown as eating the humans because of the weather. However in the book they kill the humans but no mention of eating. The humans are left helpless to die. Hitchcock could have also based this on the bird attacks in San Francisco because the birds attacked without an explanation. Also Psycho, Normans hobby is stuffing dead birds which could be a reference to the cruelty of humans to birds. In the beginning the lack of any non-diegetic sounds in the film makes us believe there is no music score. However Hitchcock uses the sounds of the school children and birds during the film. The squawking of the birds is very intense. When it is calm the sounds are quiet and high pitched. Before and during attacks the bird sounds range in pitch and volume terrifying the viewer. Hitchcock refers to Bernard Herrmann, a composer as a music consultant. Herrmann has worked with Hitchcock on many films such as Vertigo. Hitchcock seemed to not use non-diegetic sounds to create a nervous atmosphere which is preserved throughout the film but the bird noises seems to be internal but is a non-diagetic sound with different pitched squawks. When we are introduced to Mitchs family home Melanie on the piano is another sound which creates and atmosphere. Whist Kathy is pleading for Melanie to stay. The piano sets the mood and slows down in pace as Kathy is turned down. In the Playground Scene the childrens nursery rhyme is the only sound which gives the same effect as a non-diegetic sound. This sound is well used to create tension in the atmosphere. The children sing repeatedly to make the scene feel innocent and to show Melanie is still naive to the birds gathering behind her. Although the sound is internal it still builds up tension and fear in the film. To conclude the film was incredibly triumphant in creating suspense for the audience. The whole film has a mixture of horror and suspense. This made me feel Hitchcock deserved to be called the master of suspense. Although others may feel this is not one of Hitchcocks best films because of bad visual effects I think it is worthy of being in the top five of Hitchcocks films. Through camera angles, colour and lighting and the drama portrayed by the actors and actresses the birds continues to be a success due to it being able to frighten audiences from different time periods. The absence of a musical soundtrack is very efficient in creating suspense. The film also produces an amazingly compelling storyline and for those reasons Hitchcock will never be forgotten for his amazing works.

Confederation vs. Federation The need for change :: essays research papers

The US government transformed itself from a very weak government to a strong central government from 1776 to 1876. The maitenance and creation of order was deeply needed in america at this time. Due to the US Constitution, The Articles of Confederation, and the Bill of Rights America went through so much needed changes. Around 1776 America wanted a weak government because they had such a fear of monoarchy. When the trasformation of the new strong central government began many more problems occured and even contributed to the Civil War. The first attempt for a new government was in 1781 when the Articles of Confederation was formed. The Articles of Confederation was like a contract that bounded the 13 colonies together which gave each individual state power over its own decisions. Some conflicts arose from this. So, the next step was the creation of the US Constitution. The Constituion was a set of laws that defined the powers of the government. This fell through when there was nothing mentioned about slavery. Many, many conflicts arose from the states slavery issue. After much thought it was deceided to come up with a comprimise. "For every free state there will be a slave state". This seemed to work until Lincoln was elected in 1860 and then slavery was abolished. This played a key role in the beginning of the civel war where 600,000 people lost there lives. This is a great example of why the Constitution had failed. So the 13 amendment was formed and slavery was officially abolished. Now around 1865 America was in great need for some reconstruction. With the states having their local powers revoked they did not want to lose their right to life, liberty and the persuit of happiness. With the new central government in control new federal supremacy was formed and initiated new checks and balances to ensure the government was running properly.

Innocence in Catcher in the Rye Essay

In JD Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield is a boy aimlessly traveling New York City after being expelled from a classy boarding school. Holden poses a great deal of trepidation when it comes to sexual relationships, especially those of Jane and Sunny. Furthermore, Holden tends to misjudge the maturity of his fellow characters. The combination of this misconception, the tension between sexual trepidation, and an adult life with adult relationships, results in confusion for him. In Holden’s life, there have only been a few people he’s cherished more than his childhood neighbor, Jane Gallagher. They were close childhood friends, and when his roommate Stradlater brings her up years later in high school, all he can talk about is the innocent fun they used to have: playing checkers, watching her dance ballet in the summer heat, and how her Doberman always came into his yard. However, he also reminisces on how her â€Å"boozehound† stepfather would always â€Å"run around the goddam house naked† (42). He suspects that her stepfather had harassed Jane, who â€Å"had [a] terrific figure, and [he] wouldn’t’ve put it past that bastard† (103). This really bothers Holden, as does when Stradlater insinuates that he made sexual advances onto Jane on their date. To Holden, sexual encounters mean an adulteration of innocence, and he hates that Stradlater or Jane’s stepfather may have corrupted Jane. Many times, Holden promises himself that he â€Å"outa go down and say hello to her† (40), or that he should â€Å"give old Jane a buzz† (195), but he never does. Subconsciously, he fears that Jane will have grown up, and calling her or seeing her will surely alter the young, innocent, checkers-playing version of Jane that he has in his mind. This is confusing for Holden because Jane has grown up, yet he still thinks of her as a little girl, not the grown woman that she is. Holden â€Å"knew that she wouldn’t let [Stradlater] get to first base with her, but it drove [him] crazy anyway† (104). This shows Holden’s potential misconception of Jane’s innocence. It is unlikely for a post-teenage young woman to be as sheltered and have as much innocence as she did when she was a little girl. However, this is something Holden cannot grasp. This dilemma is a direct result of Holden’s irrational respect for innocence, influenced by sexual confrontations in Holden’s past. When Holden agrees to have a prostitute come to his room in the hotel, he is soon greeted by Sunny at his door. Holden is immediately unimpressed with Sunny’s maturity; how she was â€Å"jiggling this one foot up and down†, she â€Å"never said thank you†, and she â€Å"had this tiny little wheeny-whiny voice† (123). He also notices that she appears very young, and said things that were really childish. This ends up making him feel â€Å"more depressed than sexy† (123), and he decides not to have sex with her after all. The depiction of this young girl making money as a prostitute seems to upset Holden, and he ultimately concludes that having sex with her would spoil her innocence. This is where Holden is again misguided. Just as it is unlikely for Jane to retain the same degree of innocence through the years, it is improbable that Sunny, being a prostitute, will have not had sex with many people in the past, therefore preserving her innocence. But all Holden can see in Sunny is the childish and immature, which results in a conflicted view of the world. The importance of innocence to Holden is something that results in nervousness towards others’ sexual identity and activity. His perspective of Jane and Sunny’s innocence is also misguided to the point where he sees innocence in them when there is none. Overall, the importance of innocence to Holden results in contention that is less than innocent.

PEACE Domestic Violence Agency Essay

The PEACE Domestic Violence agency’s mission is to â€Å"reduce victim trauma, empower survivors, and promote recovery through direct services† (University of Phoenix, 2012, para. 9). Also, according to University of Phoenix Appendix B (2012),PEACE also strives to reducing the occurrence of sexual assault and domestic violence by educating the abused and the community and proposing ways to fight against social norms and beliefs. It will reside in the city of Portland, a large metropolitan city, that has been experiencing a rise in reports of not only domestic, spousal, and child abuse, but also youth violence, assault, and road rage over the last five years. PEACE is looking for funding from the National Foundation’s funding program and by doing so strives promote the well-being of people whose lives have been affected by domestic violence, improve the quality of life of families with a member in prison, provide people who are (or have been) involved with the criminal justice system with a rehabilitation program where they can obtain the skills and support networks needed to lead fulfilled lives. â€Å"The Small Grants Program offers one-time grants of up to $5,000 to registered charities with an annual budget under $500,000 and the Investor Program is an innovative funding program designed to support six organizations under each of the objectives of the Supporting Families program, with up to $150,000 a year for up to 3 years† (University of Phoenix, 2012, para. 11). The program needs not only proper funding but the ability to allocate that funding in ways that will benefit the community in the fastest and most effective way possible. Because of this, PEACE will be looking into alternative funding. The Community Innovation Challenge is one of the most important ways PEACE will try and obtain nontraditional funding. The Community Innovation Challenge is a grant program that gives approved organizations money so they can enact faster and more efficient ways of serving and bettering the community. This kind of funding would benefit PEACE because a domestic violence agency like PEACE is helpful to the community on so many levels – children to adults to those looking to be rehabilitated. PEACE would be a prime candidate for this grant because of this reason and the money would be used to assist workers in their education on the matters at hand as well as paying for more workers if the organization gets too large for the current staff amount. PEACE will also be looking into outsourcing and setting up charity booths at frequently visited locations like outside a grocery store or at a shopping center. Sending emails and/or letters to local businesses, companies, and even other organizations looking for financial assistance, ideas, and information is definitely helpful and it also allows smaller businesses to get their name on the map and helping out the organization if they were to become something like a sponsor. Setting up charity booths also allows people from many different walks of life to see my program’s cause and contribute something, anything, if they can. Funding from these two sources can normally be used in many ways but it is also not always a large amount. Access to smaller amounts of funding gives PEACE ways to buy low cost items when they are affordable. Things like more seating, chair cushions, water tanks, even coffee and muffins†¦ All these things can help people feel more welcome and safe which is important with organizations like PEACE. Signing up for a few free subscription/database-type sites will give access to funds as well. These websites allow a program to look for nontraditional sources of funding as well as give them updates for when new opportunities come up that apply to the program. This is especially helpful for busy programs that may not have the man power to go out and hunt for funding sources while also working with the program as much as The mission of the PEACE Domestic Violence Agency is to reduce victim trauma, empower survivors, and promote recovery through direct services. Their curriculum is based largely around the need of the community and they set out to provide the best, most varied care they can. Starting with professionally trained staff who are looked over by a small administration PEACE locates those in need of assistance and brings them to a place where those needs can be met on an individual basis as well as on a group basis. The stakeholders for PEACE start with the administration and staff of the agency who put themselves on the line taking care of their clients and looking for sources of funding to make sure things are taken care of. Staff and administration need to have their physical and mental needs taken care of and provided for so they can then provide for the community. This may mean more staff need to be trained and employed to keep everyone at the top of their game or the spaces available for clients needs to be cut so staff do not find themselves over-taxed. Domestic abuse is a very serious thing and it cannot be taken lightly by anyone. One false step – be it a forgotten case notebook, a less-than-attentive staff member, or what have you – can severely endanger the clients. It is imperative that the clients are put into the hands of fully educated, completely able staff. A majority of funding sources are open only to non-profit, 501(c)3 organizations. These organizations must also be in good standing to receive funds and therefore PEACE is eligible to apply for this type of funding. A private foundation is deemed to be any non-profit that supports the work of public charities through the award of grants (2009). In order to receive funds a foundation is required to file a Form 1023 with the IRS. Form 1023 is a 28 page form gives the IRS the information they need to conduct audits of the foundation’s activities. The duty of staff and the administration is to make sure the program meets the requirements of the funders constantly because they would lose funding if they have anything that presents itself as a conflict of interest of it there is anything going on that the funders do not like (2009). Non-profit organizations and their boards are bound to very strict rules and therefore discrimination against an individual or treating a group better than another individual or group can result in the foundation being shut down. Records of a program must be maintained in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), including the filing of an annual Form 990 with the IRS. All members of the staff and management are responsible to the rules for non-profits. Documentation has to be well understood and applied consistently and correctly. The administrators of PEACE have to find evaluators that can ensure the evaluations show an honest picture of the group effort, effectiveness, and c ontribution to the community so granters can rely on the information provided. The Family Violence Prevention and Services Act is an example of such a funding foundation that can create such a picture. Their mission is to decrease the occurrence of domestic abuse as well as to increase well-being and progress in society as a whole. This foundation is federally funded often pulling in quite a few million dollars that are then allocated to them by the government as well as allocated to sister organizations and other funding opportunities. Being federally funded there is a close eye on the limited resources of the foundation so the funders can be sure the money is spent in the most effective manner to benefit the greatest number of people. The Family Violence Prevention and Services Act serves organizations and people all over the United. The foundation has control over where their money is used and they try to concentrate their focus on organizations that will benefit the community around them the most. They, more specifically, tend to fund essential services that sit at the core of ending domestic violence. Emergency shelters, hotlines, and advocacy as well as primary and secondary prevention are all looked at highly. Another stakeholder in the PEACE Domestic Violence Agency is the community itself. Community evaluation will be an active part of the results that affect ongoing funding by attending the program, first of all, and also by giving feedback on the effectiveness of this program and the staff of said program in their community. The input of the community needs to be taken into consideration when looking at progress evaluations and data that has been collected before making decisions to change, mend, or modify the program. Community member have the biggest input on when, where, and how group sessions are bei ng held and, more importantly, when, where, and how private sessions are being held. Children cannot be expected to want to sit through late meetings, parents may not have time during the day because of work†¦ There are so many factors that need to be looked at in order to please the wants and needs of the community. This will be important also keep constant monitoring of to allow individuals and families to have time for different kinds of activities and help, as well as to allow the help they’ve currently received (or have been receiving) to process and sink in. However, the community cannot affect or change the goals of funding institutions. Therefore, they have to work with the funder’s restrictions and requirements so that no single group is held in a higher spot on the list of things that need funding or the list of people that need assistance. Every one of the stakeholders at PEACE Domestic Violence Agency has an effect on the design and implementation of the program. The community, the clients, the staff and finally the administration all s hare a common goal and they all hold the progress and fate of the program in their hands. They all want to see an improvement in the society, they all want to see higher quality of life, and they all want someone (even themselves) to feel safe when they go to sleep at night. This means strong staff, an introduction of life skills, increased community involvement, increased collaboration with funders and the state, a reduction in high risk behaviors, and a decrease in the amount of reported domestic abuse cases. By taking these things into account PEACE Domestic Violence Agency will be a long lasting, effective program. Program planning and evaluation process can provide opportunities for program improvement because they will catch instances of the program not meeting the expectations of the funders, workers, and the community. It is vital for PEACE to carefully create a program plan because, with an organization that is helping a myriad of kinds of victims of domestic abuse, it is easy to give the wrong message to workers and the community. PEACE also provides assistance to people who are looking to be rehabilitated so it would be bad for them if their organization came off as only being there to help the hurt or, in my opinion, even worse: As being there to make sure the people know they did wrong but not actually help them. The evaluation process can keep track of the kinds of clients they get and also what places might need improvement. As the manager of a program anything that improves efficiency and the method for delivery of the service is helpful and those can be found through the evaluation process. As a funder, you would have every right to speak up if you thought your money was not being well spent. This comes into play first in the program planning because if you are looking for a specific kind of program you can gladly put forth an effort to make that happen whether it be with time, money, or both. It also comes into play with the evaluation process. As a funder it would be part of your responsibility to check where funds are going and when and to check if there are more efficient and helpful ways of delivering the funds and how they are spent. Outcome Measure: Reduce the amount of domestic violence report, to assist people and families in dealing with life after abuse, and to help with rehabilitation and reintroduction. * Baseline Data: Portland has experienced increasing reports of domestic and youth violence, spousal and child abuse, assault, and incidents of road rage over the last 5 years. * Evaluation Design: Trained observers, staff * Source of Information/Instrument(s): Police reports, reports from other domestic abuse locations * Who Will Collect the Data: Collection of data will be done by a small team of staff specifically brought together to gather and process data. * Timing of Data Collection: Overall data collection every three months (to look for progress) with an update to data made every forty-five days. * Population or Sample: Population (Applicable men, women and children of Portland) * How Will the Data be Described/Analyzed: Total new/repeat counts of domestic abuse in the form of percentages (increase or decrease) Process Measure: Number of staff trained to handle the abused * Source of Information/Instrument(s): Training sign-in sheets * Who Will Collect the Data: Administration assistant will help participants sign-in * Timing of Data Collection: Before the training session * Population or Sample: Population (all participants) * How Will the Data be Described/Analyzed: Total number of staff properly trained. Process Measure: Number of sessions delivered per group * Source of Information/Instrument(s): Staff session logs * Who Will Collect the Data: Staff * Timing of Data Collection: During and after each session * Population or Sample: Population (all staff will fill out session logs) * How Will the Data be Described/Analyzed: Frequency of sessions per group per staff, as well as an average frequency of sessions across the board. Process Measure: Measures of program fidelity * Source of Information/Instrument(s): Trained observers, staff checklists, client surveys * Who Will Collect the Data: Trained observers, staff, and clients * Timing of Data Collection: Trained observers will attend one session per group each month and staff and clients will fill out biweekly checklists and surveys * Population or Sample: Population (All staff and willing clients as well as observers) * How Will the Data be Described/Analyzed: Qualitative data from observations and data collected from checklists and surveys will be compiled, summarized, and given to administration to show who is being passionate and faithful to the cause as well as what improvements need to be made and where. This evaluation plan will include process evaluation, outcome evaluations, formative evaluations, and summative evaluations. Process evaluations will evaluate all procedures and tasks involved with implementing these programs. Process evaluations will also monitor the program and ensure feedback throughout the length of the program. This is exceptionally beneficial when running a program that is solely need-based and those needs only discovered through dealing with the clients the program is trying to help. Without feedback process cannot be made and goals, no matter how small, cannot be achieved. By performing process evaluations on the effectiveness of the groups as well as the staff themselves and comparing that to data collected by clients the best possible steps can be made towards the goal reducing the effect of domestic violence on Portland. Outcome evaluations will collect quantitative and qualitative data from ongoing programs to document any short-term results that have been achieved as well as open doors to any new short-term goals and changes that have to be made to current ones. Task-focused results such as the number of staff who put their name on the sign-up sheet to be trained, how many clients return, and how many young adults seek help with rehabilitation on their own describe the output of the activity and short-term results, like the percentage of clients that are willing to fill out an end-of-session survey, describe the immediate effects of the program on the community. Information such as an increase in knowledge, changed in attitude, and behavioral shifts are part of a long list of data that can be discovered after an outcome evaluation. Outcome evaluations will come in handy the most when trying to figure out if the community is being reached properly and clients are being treated as best as they can be. It will also be helpful determining what activities are out-of-date or just plain not helpful anymore and what activities can take their place. Formative evaluations, which include pre-testing and competency exams, allow an organization to assess the strengths and weaknesses in their approach to their goals, staff, target audience for their services, and even their advertising campaign! Formative evaluations also help an organization discover if any changes need to be made, if they can be made, or if the program is not going to succeed. By testing messages, products, and services on small groups also helps an organization work out kinks before implementing it on a larger scale. By taking the data gained from a finished formative evaluation an organization can get a better idea of their company, its workers, and its clients and will help them decide if it is better to sink, or hopefully more often, swim. Summative evaluations include any combination of measurements and judgments that allow conclusions about the impact, outcome, and benefits of a program or method. Allowing an organization to stick to such an out of the box, abstract, non-linear form of evaluating it can pick and chose what will get them the most information the fastest. This can be, by far, the most efficient way to help an organization make progress. With an organization that has a lot of different sections, like this one, it can produce the best progress reports because there is not a single mainline format that has to be followed; Just whatever works. I believe I would find pre-post surveys with questions that have people rate things one through five, attendance sheets, and tally sheets to keep record of happenings the most useful. In an organization that has sections that help polar opposite cases (e.g. young adults straight from walking the line of a criminal who wish to find assistance in becoming rehabilitated and young mothers who have been abused and who have children who were abused that are looking for help with learning how to get through their fears and move on with life) there cannot be one set way to document things. Surveys will always be near the top of the data collecting tools list because people can put whatever they want however they want and can truly express themselves if they so chose. An organization cannot necessarily ask two groups, like the two mentioned above, â€Å"How did you feel when the counselor asked you to talk about your personal experiences with being abused,† because the young adult who is looking to be rehabilitated may not have been abused. Attendance sheets are a very important part of an organization as well because it will allow the organization to know how many people they are reaching and if they need to step their game up or not. References Commonwealth of Massachusetts. (2013). http://www.mass.gov/anf/budget-taxes-and- procurement/working-for-you/community-innovation-challenge-grant/. Retrieved from http://www.mass.gov/anf/budget-taxes-and-procurement/working-for-you/community-innovation- challenge-grant/ National Network to End Domestic Violence. (2012). Family Violence Prevention & Services Act. Retrieved from http://www.nnedv.org/policy/issues/fvpsa.html United States Interagency Council on Homelessnes. (2011). Family Violence Prevention and Services Act. Retrieved from http://www.usich.gov/funding_programs/programs/family_violence_prevention_and_services_act/ University of Phoenix. (2012). Appendix B. Retrieved from University of Phoenix, HSM270 – Program Planning and Grant Proposal Writing in Human Services website. Weill Cornell Medical College. (2013). http://weill.cornell.edu/research/grants_and_contracts/research_development/se