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The lords of all things gray and shivery have once more resurfaced with somethingnew for their faithful to feast upon. The Cure has cultivated songs of torturedsouls and broken hearts and made them their classic, signature style. While theirearlier albums often had more of a pop appeal swirled in with their depression,their more recent albums, like Wish, drive directly to your soul and revel inyour shattered dreams. The new record is Show, which was recorded atthe Detroit, Michigan stop of the phenomenal Wish tour. To describe Showsimply, you might say that it is mainly songs from Wish with a few classicshere and there. This, however, is a very shallow description, and is misleadingto your average listener. Show is unbelievable. Since the Cure is arather unconventional band, Show isnt really like most live concertrecordings. There are no drastic remixes or trippy guitar solos, but there isapplause (and rightfully so). We will write a custom essay sample on Show or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page It is also rather pleasant to hear the deep,thickly-accented voice of the brilliant Robert Smith, whose vocal range isincomparable to any other. The album begins with a very mellowinstrumental which suddenly bursts into Open. Among the best of Show are, ofcourse, the classics: Pictures of You, In Between Days, and A Night LikeThis. Other favorites include From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea and thehard-hitting, bass-y album conclusion, End. However, many devoted fans (as I)may feel that there were some empty spots. I recommend this record to allwho are interested in the music of The Cure, but I feel that real devotees mightappreciate this wonderful compilation more. I think that others may feel thatthis is just a Wish rerun. Nevertheless, its a great album, and I remind youto also check out their other live recording, Paris, which was also a Wishtour show and includes THE ABSOLUTE BEST of the Cure.

Gun Violence in USA

Gun Violence in USA Introduction Several debates have been raised on the efficiency of the existing gun control laws in the United States. The Newtown school shooting incident evolved the gun violence debate causing a public uproar to review the gun control laws currently in enforcement in the United States.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Gun Violence in USA specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More While it is a personal responsibility to treat human life with dignity, a legal challenge is invariantly faced by the state whether to impose stringent measures on gun control or establish the social root on the emergence of these deviant conducts like the Connecticut shooting. One fact however is that there’s need to establish proper legal mechanisms to provide a perfect framework in controlling the handling of guns by the citizens. It is the interest of this paper to analyze some of the options the nation could explore with a view to improv ing the efficacy of the already existing gun laws. (Roleff 401)This would in turn, reduce the civilian deaths arising from gun violence in the US.  Societies with reckless gun laws bear the brunt of humongous and intense socio – economic pressures. Civilian mortality leads to loss of craftsmanship and pressure on the existing health facilities. Inability to keep the weapons in the right hands has led to immense civilian deaths; the uncontrolled gun use has also led to sharp increase in criminal activities thus posing challenges for various federal governments. It is thus important to underscore the significance of enforcing gun control measures.(Haerens 244) Banning the sale of firearms to citizens Firearms in the wrong hands are indeed very disastrous. A good percentage of the shooting incidences in the US are as a result of wrong people handling firearms. Most states in the United States have strict laws regulating the carrying and or ownership of firearms. However, the r esults of such controls have not been fruitful enough in curbing the mortality arising from gun vehemence. Most federal states allow guns to be sold to the general public. However, the state performs the regulatory function. In states like Arkansas, citizens are allowed to purchase and carry firearms but under maximum supervision from the state. Other states allow gun purchase to the citizens thus exposing other non holders to abuse by those who own guns. In my view, I strongly oppose the sale of guns to the citizens irrespective of their place in the social ladder; the sale of guns should be completely eliminated or abolished.  Various states have adopted their own modes of enforcing gun control laws, most of these states, however, allow the sale and ownership of firearms if important documentation is pursued, however, in my opinion, there should be total abolition of the provisions that allow citizens to carry or purchase firearms.Advertising Looking for essay on politic al sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Some researchers have argued against the complete banning of gun sales and proposed a system that makes it easy for citizens of good conduct to acquire firearms. In the states where the gun laws are relaxed, the crime rates are lower. However, the data has been refuted by anti gun activists who argue otherwise. (DeConde 227) Banning of carrying guns in designated areas Social institutions or gatherings should be sealed from the gunmen. In my view, the social gatherings are some of the targets for the murderers who are on the loose. These places provide a â€Å"fertile ground† for attack since most of the victims are caught unawares and unsuspecting. This is a key point in alienating the school gun tragedies that has since bedevilled the nation. The act, school zone gun free, has been in enforcement since 1990. (Roleff 377) The act was adopted to prohibit the use and carryin g of guns within a specified range around school zones, however, the laxity in enforcing this law has cost several lives. This ban should as well be extended to other social gatherings and institutions other than schools. Events such as the unfortunate shooting of school children in Newtown Connecticut would have been easily avoided if there was a strict manner in enforcing this rule. In my opinion, the federal government must tighten its grip on enforcing this law- no gun of whatever type should be carried to any of the social places. Tighten border controls strategy The drug menace in the neighbouring Mexico has compounded matters for the law enforcers at the border points; several research findings have so far established that gun violence is perpetuated by drug abuse. Several fingers have accused various gangs of sneaking drugs into the United States- Mexico border thus fuelling gun violence. (DeConde 201) Several pundits have argued that gun violence is predominant in the pover ty struck neighbourhoods where drug abuse is predominant, the shootings and killings invariantly occur in the neighbourhoods where the hard drugs are found. Moreover, the perpetrators of gun violence have been identified as hard core criminals who abuse drugs or victims of immense drug abuse. It is thus in the interest of the American government to seal the border points to curb the drug trafficking from Mexico into the United States since it greatly contributes to gun violenceAdvertising We will write a custom essay sample on Gun Violence in USA specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Harsh penalties on gun violence perpetrators It is the responsibility of the federal government to enact their own laws to regulate the handling of guns within their borders. (Haerens 311)The current gun laws have immense weak points that need to be tightened if credible results are to be achieved. The penalties for the convicted offenders, for instance, shou ld be as harsh as possible to act as a warning to the possible perpetrators. In the US, the minimum punishment for such offenders is as low as imprisonment for one month only. (Roleff 377) This, in my opinion, is far too low to administer justice and pose as a warning at the same time. The federal governments and the national government should therefore endeavour to enact much stiffer penalties to avert the crime. Gun safety For the licensed gun carriers like the police, it is important to draft guidelines for firearm storage. Research shows that more than 2% of gun violence cases arise from family feuds or disputes. (Roleff 377) Several cases have risen where the law enforcers themselves are involved in gun violence, it‘s therefore inevitable that proper gun storage mechanism is established for the licensed firearm carriers. (Roleff 377) The firearms should not be exposed in the house. Conclusion America has some of the best anti-gun legislation. However, pundits argue that t he laws are â€Å"too liberal.† (Roleff 377) The federal and central government has to â€Å"tie the loose ends† to make the laws effective. It’s also important to establish the social root of gun violence to prevent gun violence. (DeConde 201) Works cited DeConde, Alexander. Gun violence in America: the struggle for control. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 2001. Print. Haerens, Margaret. Gun violence. San Diego, Calif.: Greenhaven Press, 2006. Print. Roleff, Tamara L.. Gun control. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2007. Print.Advertising Looking for essay on political sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More

The Renaissance Art Period - About.com Art History

The Renaissance Art Period - About.com Art History We all know what the Renaissance was, correct? Michelangelo, Leonardo, Raphael, and company created some fabulous paintings and sculptures that we continue to marvel over many centuries later and so on and so forth. (Hope you are nodding your head right now and thinking Yes, yes - please get on with it!) While these were vitally important artists, and their collective work is what usually comes to mind when one hears the word Renaissance, as so often happens in life things arent quite that simple. The Renaissance (a word which literally means born anew) is a name weve given to a period in Western history during which the arts - so important in Classic cultures - were revived. The arts had quite a difficult time remaining important during the Middle Ages, given all of the territorial struggles that were occurring throughout Europe. People living then had enough to do merely figuring out how to stay in the good graces of whoever was ruling them, while the rulers were preoccupied with maintaining or expanding control. With the large exception of the Roman Catholic Church, no one had much time or thought left over to devote toward the luxury of art. It will come as no surprise, then, to hear that the Renaissance had no clear-cut beginning date, started first in those areas which had the highest relative levels of political stability and spread, not like wildfire, but in a series of different phases which occurred between the years c. 1150 and c. 1600. What were the different phases of the Renaissance? In the interest of time, lets break this topic down into four broad categories. The Pre- (or Proto-) Renaissance began in a northern enclave of present-day Italy sometime around 1150 or so. It didnt, at least initially, represent a wild divergence from any other Medieval art. What made the Proto-Renaissance important was that the area in which it began was stable enough to allow explorations in art to develop. Fifteenth-century Italian Art, often (and not incorrectly) referred to as the Early Renaissance, generally means artistic goings-on in the Republic of Florence between the years 1417 and 1494. (This doesnt mean nothing happened prior to 1417, by the way. The Proto-Renaissance explorations had spread to include artists throughout northern Italy.) Florence was the spot, for a number of factors, that the Renaissance period really caught hold and stuck. Sixteenth-century Italian Art is a category which contains three separate topics. What we now call the High Renaissance was a relatively brief period which lasted from roughly 1495 to 1527. (This is the little window of time referred to when one speaks of Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Raphael.) The Late Renaissance took place between 1527 and 1600 (again, this is a rough time table) and included the artistic school known as Mannerism. Additionally, The Renaissance thrived in Venice, an area so unique (and supremely disinterested with Mannerism) that an artistic school has been named in its honor. Northern European Renaissance The Renaissance in Northern Europe struggled to come into being, mostly due to the stranglehold Gothic art maintained for centuries and the fact that this geographical region was slower to gain political stability than was northern Italy. Nonetheless, the Renaissance did occur here, beginning around the middle of the fourteenth century and lasting until the Baroque movement (c. 1600). Now lets explore these Renaissances to get an idea of which artists did what (and why we still care), as well as learning the new techniques, mediums and terms that came from each. You can follow any of the hyperlinked words (theyre blue and are  underlined) in this article to go to the part of the Renaissance that interests you most.

Why companies pay dividend Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Why companies pay dividend - Essay Example The different tax treatment between dividends and capital gains however generally work against the former. A number of companies pay dividends and in some, it is a given in the way their organizations are run. This paper will explore why anyone cares about it at all. Specifically, this paper will address the questions why companies pay dividends; why investors pay attention to it; do dividends affect an organization’s value and how do managers use dividends in the organizational financial management; among others. The idea is to identify whether dividends have any bearing or effect on an organization particularly in terms of equity and firm value. The review on the current dividend literature provided in the following section is particularly focused on the areas related to the positive and negative characteristics of dividends to business organizations. Such outline of studies was aimed at determining how other scholars answered the question posed by this paper. The review summarizes the current studies and research on dividends policy, particularly. An important dimension to the review, however, which would have a pivotal effect on this paper as a whole was the passage of the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act. The corpus of literature available in regard to corporate payout policy and dividends is extensive. However, this review would focus on two major areas: why do dividends matter for corporations and does it matter how business organizations distribute cash to its shareholders. Miller and Modigliani are considered to be the authorities in regard to framing dividend questions in their finance research. They, particularly focused on how dividend policy is considered a choice between financing with internal equity or financing with external equity. In their study, Miller and Modigliani offered proof that dividends do not matter in a world that is characterized by

Social Psychology Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Social Psychology - Assignment Example Second, when I was in my college, my mother once asked me to clean up my cupboards and bookshelves and I would delay the task out of my laziness. After some days, when I finally decided to obey, I emptied my cupboards only to find out that my favorite T-shirt, which I had bought with my own pocket money for the farewell party, had been eaten up by insects! How I wished I had listened to my mom. Third, on a serious note, my mother stopped me from being too submissive to my fiancà ©, but I did not listen to her. I would listen to my fiancà ©Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s crappy things he talked about my parents but could not do anything because I was too much involved. He took advantage and defeated me psychologically. After months, I found out that a person does not get respect from anybody if he does not respect himself. By definition, â€Å"counterfactuals are mental representations of alternatives to the past and produce consequences that are both beneficial and aversive to the individual† (Roese, 1997, p. 133). The three events I mentioned relate to upward counterfactual thinking. I could have said no to my friend who asked me for combined study and that would have led to my staying at home and studying properly for a high grade. Here, I am thinking about a better consequence that would have resulted if I had altered my action and had come up with a better decision. Again, if I had listened to my mom about cleaning up my cupboard, I could have saved my favorite T-shirt. Once again, a better result could have achieved by altering my action. Also, if I had listened to my mom about not letting my fiancà © say abusive things about my family, I could have succeeded in gaining a respectful place in my his eyes and could have made him respect me. I could have saved the relationship by pondering deeply upon the facts of life. The regrets I described are â€Å"feelings† while these counterfactuals are

Animal Farm, by George Orwell Essay examples -- Animal Farm Essays

The English language is one of the most complex languages known to man. Words, sentences, and ideas can be built and misconstrued because of the language’s depth. In the novel Animal Farm, the head pigs in charge, Napoleon, twists words in order to gain control and power over the entire farm. The Manor Farm transforms from the totalitarian rule of Mr. Jones, a mean farmer who feeds his animals meager portions, to Napoleon, a pig that will have you liquidated for a bottle of liquor. Language is used as a means of social control because of its irony, it changes, and it’s illegible by some. Irony is the first reason that language may be used as a form of social control. Many words have double meanings, for example: break, spread, dress, match, etc. For this reason, various meanings and definitions can be derived and used as a person pleases. In Animal Farm, when all the animals were first rebelling, Snowball said, â€Å"The only good human being is a dead one." Human being can be interchanged with numerous words, which is what Napoleon did in order to control the animals with an iron fist. ...

Monroe Doctrine Essay

Ever since its inception as a nation, the United States of America followed a foreign policy of isolationism right up to president Jefferson. This was become the European nations, which were at the helm of American affairs, were involved in several conflicts and turmoil, and American presidents realized the folly of involving such a young nation in war. Thus in 1793, when France declared war on Britain, Americans had divided opinions on the course of action. The federalists wanted to support Britain, and Hamilton, the secretary of treasury, rallied their cause. Secretary of state, who like many other Americans wanted to support France against Britain. However George Washington stuck by his policy of isolationism and avoided conflict. John Adams, and his successor Thomas Jefferson also adapted this policy. When this conflict between Britain and France increased, Jefferson placed an embargo on trade with both nations. While this action highlighted American neutrality, it was also harmful for the American economy, which led to the removal of the embargo. This step highlighted the folly of the policy of isolationism; making it obvious that United States had to make a stand, while continuing its policy of neutrality, not simply isolate itself from world affairs. Hence was a predecessor to the Monroe Doctrine. The Monroe Doctrine was the fruition of early American foreign policy. It was delivered by president James Monroe, in his seventh annual address to the Congress on the 2nd of December 1823. It stated that United states would not tolerate any attempt by the European powers to colonize or interfere in the functioning of the western hemisphere, whilst the western hemisphere would in no way interfere in the European sphere of influence. It was meant to protect the newly independent Latin American states from European control. It was a defining moment in the separation of the old and new world, and became a long-standing American policy with minor variations, to be invoked by several American presidents. The Monroe doctrine, was delivered, and not read out in the congress unlike the other addresses. In this address Monroe gave the background for such a policy and the existing state of foreign relations, in which he mentioned negotiations with France, and dialogue with Russia on their commercial interests in the United States. He also talked about the Treaty of Ghent and the difference between US and Britain on the boundaries between the US and Canada. The president also announced to Congress a new round of negotiations with the British toward establishing a treaty that would define the exclusive and shared commercial interests of the United States and Great Britain as regarded states and territories bordering on lakes and rivers emptying into the St. Lawrence River. Thus he justified the need for such a policy and in his address included military strategies and provisions to safeguard it, like authorizing additional naval force for safeguarding their commercial interests in the Mediterranean Sea, Pacific Ocean, and the Atlantic coast. The key paragraph of the address, which summed up the foreign policy stated â€Å"We owe it, therefore, to candor and to the amicable relations existing between the United States and those powers to declare that we should consider any attempt on their part to extend their system to any portion of this hemisphere as dangerous to our peace and safety. With the existing colonies or dependencies of any European power we have not interfered and shall not interfere, but with the Governments who have declared their independence and maintained it, and whose independence we have, on great consideration and on just principles, acknowledged, we could not view any inter- position for the purpose of oppressing them, or controlling in any other manner their destiny, by any European power in any other light than as the manifestation of an unfriendly disposition toward the United States†. The Monroe doctrine had its backgrounds in the foreign policy of earlier four presidents, as well as in the experiences of Monroe and Adams as diplomats. James Madison, during his presidency, continued to follow Jeffersonian foreign policy of prohibition of trade with both nations. In 1810, however, the Congress reversed itself, realizing its ill effects on the country’s economy authorizing the president to pursue trade with both countries, provided each accepted America’s policy of neutrality, or trade with only one, if that one accepted America’s view of neutral rights. Of the two, only France complied, hence Madison declared a state of â€Å"non-intercourse† with Great Britain. This led to the war of 1812 between America and Great Britain. The war, which initially proved to be disastrous for America, ended with the treaty of Ghent in 1814, and thus paved way for Monroe’s foreign policy to avoid future war, while protecting American rights. Monroe, who was inspired by Jefferson, and loyal to Jeffersonian policy, saw the need to avoid war, at the same time asserting America’s independence. John Quincy Adams, unlike his father deflected from the Federalist Party, and supported Jefferson in his placement of the embargo on trade with both nations. Thus both Adams and Monroe were inspired by Jeffersonian ideas, and saw the crucial need of making a stand as a newly independent nation, while avoiding the calamity of war. Monroe and Adams were faced with several problems regarding foreign policy, the foremost of which included renegotiating terms with Great Britain, on the treaty of Ghent and establishing new boundaries, reasserting rights that had been previously challenged. Later there arose a problem of Spanish claim over Florida, and Britain, it was suspected, was providing them help. This led to serious and long negotiations between America and Spain for the purchase of Florida, which ultimately led to the Adams- Onis treaty, Onis being the Spanish minister to America. This was considered one of Adams greatest successes as secretary of state, until he drafted the Monroe Doctrine, which influenced American foreign policy for generations to come. The doctrine grew out of several diplomatic problems. The first was the minor clash with Russia concerning the northwest coast of North America. In this quarrel, Secretary of State John Quincy Adams expressed the principle that the American continents were no longer to be considered as a field for colonization by European powers. That principle was incorporated verbatim in the presidential message. The other and more important part of the doctrine grew out of the fear that the group of European governments commonly called the Holy Alliance would seek to reduce the Latin American states that had recently gained independence from Spain to a colonial status once again. When France crossed the Pyrenees to help put down a rebellion against the Spanish monarch, Britain worried that this might lead to a joint French-Spanish expedition to retake the Latin American colonies for Spain, which would harm British economic interests in the area. The British foreign minister George Canning communicated with the American minister in London, Richard Rush, and suggested that a joint declaration opposing such a development would serve both their interests. Thus in 1823, the British foreign secretary, George Canning, through Richard Rush, proposed to Monroe that America should join powers with Britain for the joint protection of South American colonies from the Holy Alliance. There was once again a division of views on this matter. Adams believed that Britain had great self-interest behind such an offer. When Monroe consulted with Jefferson and Madison on this issue, Jefferson asked him to accept the proposal, however Madison, like Adams cautioned Monroe to be wary as it most definitely has British self-interest involved. According to Harry Ammon, Quincy Adams was convinced that Britain had ulterior motives in this offer. He believed that using this joint action as bait, Britain was hoping to discourage American intention of taking over Cuba, which Adams believed, was inevitable. After much debate in the cabinet, the decision was reached to reject this proposal, for it seemed that America had nothing to gain through this alliance, and President Monroe was anyway reluctant to do anything that might make the US appear subservient to Britain. However America still needed to protect the southern states from being restored to Spain via the holy alliance. Also if such an attack occurred, and Britain interceded and emerged victorious, Americans would be left at the mercy of the British once again, and the Southern territories would fall under British control. It was then decided that the southern countries needed to be protected not only from Spain, the Holy alliance, or Britain, but also from all non-American powers, and this is how the genius idea behind the foreign policy, to be called Monroe Doctrine emerged. This doctrine, though presented as the annual presidential address, was the brainchild of John Quincy Adams, the secretary of state, whose main motive behind this policy, according to Edward Renehan Jr. , was to deter colonialism. Even though the doctrine shaped future American foreign policy, the immediate impact of the Monroe Doctrine was mixed. It was successful to the extent that the continental powers did not attempt to revive the Spanish empire, but this was on account of the strength of the British Navy, not American, which was relatively limited. According to Alejandro Alvarez, the doctrine was simply a policy for the United States’ self defense, not for its aggression or for its isolationism. The Monroe doctrine also had not stated any disapproval towards Pan-Americanism or even cooperation with other European nations. The Monroe Doctrine was especially influential in the history of Latin American countries. Around the early 1800’s many Latin American areas, under the leadership of Simon Bolivar, had declared their independence from the controlling powers in Europe. These new countries lacked the military strength and experience to fight with foreign powers, however, when the Monroe doctrine was put into effect, they were safeguarded from these wars, and thus welcomed this policy. Over the years, the doctrine became the defining foreign policy of the United States, with continuous changes and variations, however, its two main ideas held true through the years. First, that the United States would not tolerate European powers further colonizing the American continents or interfering in its affairs. And second, that the United States would not interfere in existing European colonies or in Europe itself. According to Edward Renehan Jr. , the Monroe Doctrine had a significant impact, not only in the development of Foreign policy, but also on American history, which would have been significantly different, if not for this doctrine. In essence, ‘Without its existence Latin America would have been severely regionalized by European powers to serve their colonial interests, and a range of European powers, not just Spain but also Holland, Germany, France, and Great Britain—would have gained a major foothold, introducing not only new lines to the map, but also new languages and cultures’. The coinage of the term ‘Monroe doctrine’ first came from President James K. Polk in 1845, when he successfully invoked this doctrine to thwart of French and British efforts against annexation of Texas, as also British threats in Oregon and California. He also expanded the doctrine to include his belief of ‘manifest destiny’. A concept, which along with the Monroe Doctrine came to be referred as Polk Doctrine. Monroe Doctrine greatly changed the American foreign policy, by shifting the emphasis from neutrality, to respect towards America, as a newly independent nation. With the ending of the war between European nations, and the restoration of peace, the American foreign policy was liberated from its earlier inhibitions, which had existed ever since Washington’s presidency. Monroe seized the opportunity to let matters of neutral rights of America dissolve in the background, while bringing to the forefront the concept of the United States as the most powerful in the Americas, and a country which was a serious and powerful republic, which no longer needed the aid or patronage of foreign nations to achieve its diplomatic aims. The Monroe Doctrine was significant in defining and paving the way for American foreign policy for centuries. It was initially drafted simply as a means of asserting America as a power as well as for American self defense, and highlighting it as an independent nation. Its true brilliance was realized only decades later when it was recalled time and again by several Presidents of the United States. It was the first act that grew to see America as a superpower in the world. This simple assertion of non-interference separated the old world from the new world, thus making the United States the biggest power in the Western Hemisphere. It was the first decisive step in the foreign policy of America after Jefferson’s embargo on trade, and it greatly changed as well as shaped foreign policy as the United States for the first time asserted itself as a power without the support or patronage of another nation.