Prostitution Is a Problem Caused by Men Essay Example for Free

Prostitution Is a Problem Caused by Men Essay Prostitution is a problem caused by men. There arent any prostitutes for women. Its men who create the problem and men who make the laws. We have to admit that this is the reality. Although threr is a Gender equality law which was passed a long time ago (since the 1920s), women still have to suffer unequal treatment in many fields especially in creating the laws and prostitution is one of the most contraversial problems. We all know human beings have a desire for sex, except for sick or impotent people and cloisterers as well as monks. That is a normal physical demand. Sex is also the manifestation of love but in this case, we are just discussing a basic instinct. Men always have a stronger need for sex than women. That does not mean women do not, it is because of their shyness and social morality that keep them from expressing their desires. And men also keep the right to make the laws so that is the reason why prostitutes are for men only. I totally disagree with legalizing prostitution. It draws a guilt free road for men, especially married men. Some men vindicate that prostitutes help them clear out the stress that they get from work and meet their demands completely when their wives can not. But in fact, everything they do is worse. If prostitutes are just for fulfilling sexual needs, it is okay, but in many cases, men are addicted to prostitutes and spend most of their time relaxing with them. They do not care about what their wives think, give lots of money they earn to call-girls and treat their wives and children badly especially when their wives or children discover the bad things they do. And the two most dangerous consequences of prostitution are that men can bring sexually transmitted infections to their wives and many families might or have to cope with the breakdown when the wives can not stand their husbands’ behaviour any more. The other negative side of prostitution is the unequal field. There are just red light districts for men but not for women. Women and men have the same biological needs, so why do they not have their own playplace? Because of morality or the number of women in Congress and also the number of women holding a leadership position in a country is smaller than men? It is common even in the most developed nation The United States of America. In our history, only two queens have been able to control men and really spread equality all over their nations, they are Cleopatra of Egypt and Wu Zetian of China. I extremely admire them. If there were a person like them existing in this world, humanity’s history could change in another way and I am really sure it would be magical.

Barcode Reader Technology Overview

Barcode Reader Technology Overview A barcode reader (or barcode scanner) is an electronic device for reading printed barcodes. Like a flatbed scanner, it consists of a light source, a lens and a light sensor translating optical impulses into electrical ones. Additionally, nearly all barcode readers contain decoder circuitry analyzing the barcodes image data provided by the sensor and sending the barcodes content to the scanners output port. Methods Scanning methods are distinguished by the amount of operator manipulation required: Pen or wand-type readers: requires the operator to swipe the pen over the code. Semi-automatic handheld readers: The operator need not swipe, but must at least position the reader near the label Fix-mount readers for automatic reading: The reading is performed laterally passing the label over the reader. No operator is required, but the position of the code target must coincide with the imaging capability of the reader and ll Reader gates for automatic scanning: The position of the code must be just under the gate for short time, enabling the scanner sweep to capture the code target successfully. Types Of Technology The reader types can be distinguished as follows: Pen Type Readers Pen type readers consist of a light source and a photodiode that are placed next to each other in the tip of a pen or wand. To read a bar code, the tip of the pen moves across the bars in a steady motion. The photodiode measures the intensity of the light reflected back from the light source and generates a waveform that is used to measure the widths of the bars and spaces in the bar code. Dark bars in the bar code absorb light and white spaces reflect light so that the voltage waveform generated by the photo diode is a representation of the bar and space pattern in the bar code. This waveform is decoded by the scanner in a manner similar to the way Morse code dots and dashes are decoded. Laser Scanners Laser scanners work the same way as pen type readers except that they use a laser beam as the light source and typically employ either a reciprocating mirror or a rotating prism to scan the laser beam back and forth across the bar code. As with the pen type reader, a photodiode is used to measure the intensity of the light reflected back from the bar code. In both pen readers and laser scanners, the light emitted by the reader is tuned to a specific frequency and the photodiode is designed to detect only this modulated light of the same frequency. CCD Readers CCD readers (also referred to as LED scanner) use an array of hundreds of tiny light sensors lined up in a row in the head of the reader. Each sensor measures the intensity of the light immediately in front of it. Each individual light sensor in the CCD reader is extremely small and because there are hundreds of sensors lined up in a row, a voltage pattern identical to the pattern in a bar code is generated in the reader by sequentially measuring the voltages across each sensor in the row. The important difference between a CCD reader and a pen or laser scanner is that the CCD reader is measuring emitted ambient light from the bar code whereas pen or laser scanners are measuring reflected light of a specific frequency originating from the scanner itself. Camera-Based Readers 2D imaging scanners are the fourth and newest type of bar code reader currently available. They use a small video camera to capture an image of a bar code. The reader then uses sophisticated digital image processing techniques to decode the bar code. Video cameras use the same CCD technology as in a CCD bar code reader except that instead of having a single row of sensors, a video camera has hundreds of rows of sensors arranged in a two dimensional array so that they can generate an image. There are a number of open source libraries for barcode reading from images. These include the ZXing project, which reads one- and two-dimensional barcodes using Android and JavaME, the JJIL project, which includes code for reading EAN-13 barcodes from cellphone cameras using J2ME, and Zebra (Changed name to ZBAR), which reads various one-dimensional barcodes in C. Even web site integration, either by image uploads (e.g. Folke Ashberg: EAN-13 Image-Scanning and code creation tools) or by use of plugins (e.g. the Barcodepedia uses a flash application and some web cam for querying a database), have been realized options for resolving the given tasks. Omni-Directional Barcode Scanners Omni-directional scanning uses series of straight or curved scanning lines of varying directions in the form of a starburst, a lissajous pattern, or other multiangle arrangement are projected at the symbol and one or more of them will be able to cross all of the symbols bars and spaces, no matter what the orientation. Omni-directional scanners almost all use a laser. Unlike the simpler single-line laser scanners, they produce a pattern of beams in varying orientations allowing them to read barcodes presented to it at different angles. Most of them use a single rotating polygonal mirror and an arrangement of several fixed mirrors to generate their complex scan patterns. Omni-directional scanners are most familiar through the horizontal scanners in supermarkets, where packages are slid across a glass or sapphire window. There are a range of different omni-directional units available which can be used for differing scanning applications, ranging from retail type applications with the barcodes read only a few centimetres away from the scanner to industrial conveyor scanning where the unit can be a couple of metres away or more from the code. Omni-directional scanners are also better at reading poorly printed, wrinkled, or even torn barcodes. Housing Types The reader packaging can be distinguished as follows: Handheld scanner: with a handle and typically a trigger button for switching on the light source. Pen scanner (or wand scanner): a pen-shaped scanner that is swiped. Stationary scanner: wall- or table-mounted scanners that the barcode is passed under or beside. These are commonly found at the checkout counters of supermarkets and other retailers. Fixed position scanner: an industrial barcode reader used to identify products during manufacture or logistics. Often used on conveyor tracks to identify cartons or pallets which need to be routed to another process or shipping location. Another application joins holographic scanners with a checkweigher to read bar codes of any orientation or placement, and weighs the package. Systems like this are used in factory and farm automation for quality management and shipping. PDA scanner: a PDA with a built-in barcode reader or attached barcode scanner e.g. Grabba. Automatic reader: a back office equipment to read barcoded documents at high speed (50,000/hour) e.g. Multiscan MT31 Methods Of Connection Early Serial Interfaces Early barcode scanners, of all formats, almost universally used the then-common RS232 serial interface. This was an electrically simple means of connection and the software to access it is also relatively simple, although needing to be written for specific computers and their serial ports.{10} Proprietary Interfaces There are a few other less common interfaces. These were used in large EPOS systems with dedicated hardware, rather than attaching to existing commodity computers. Wand emulation is another output type that takes the raw wave and decodes it, normalizing the output so it can be easily decoded by the host device. Wand emulation can also convert symbologies that may not be recognized by the host device into another symbology (typically Code 39) that can be easily decoded.{11} Keyboard Wedges With the popularity of the PC and its standard keyboard interface, it became ever easier to connect physical hardware to a PC and so there was commercial demand similarly to reduce the complexity of the associated software. Keyboard wedge hardware plugged between the PC and its normal keyboard, with characters from the barcode scanner appearing exactly as if they had been typed at the keyboard. This made the addition of simple barcode reading abilities to existing programs very easy, without any need to change them, although it did require some care by the user and could be restrictive in the content of the barcodes that could be handled. Later barcode readers began to use USB connectors rather than the keyboard port, as this became a more convenient hardware option. To retain the easy integration with existing programs, a device driver called a software wedge could be used, to emulate the keyboard-impersonating behaviour of the old keyboard wedge hardware. PS/2 Port Most barcode readers now use a PS/2 or USB cable for output: PS/2 cables are connected to the host computer in a Y formation, the PS/2 keyboard port with its first end, to the keyboard with its second, and to the barcode reader with its third end. The barcode characters are then received by the host computer as if they came from its keyboard decoded and converted to keyboard input within the scanner housing. This makes it easy to interface the bar code reader to any application that is written to accept keyboard input USB is supported by many newer scanners. In many cases a choice of USB interface types (HID, CDC) are provided. Some have Powered USB. Wireless Networking Modern handheld barcode readers are operated in wireless networks according to IEEE 802.11g (WLAN) or IEEE 802.15.3 (Blueooth). However, such configuration limits the time of operation from battery or rechargeable battery and required recharging at least after a shift of operation. Resolution The scanner resolution is measured by the size of the dot of light emitted by the reader. If this dot of light is wider than any bar or space in the bar code, then it will overlap two elements (two spaces or two bars) and it may produce wrong output. On the other hand, if a too small dot of light is used, then it can misinterpret any spot on the bar code making the final output wrong. The most commonly used dimension is 13 mils (0.3302 mm). As it is a very high resolution, it is extremely important to have bar codes created with a high resolution graphic application. While cell phone cameras are not suitable for many traditional barcodes, there are 2D barcodes (such as Semacode) which are optimized for cell phones. These open up a number of applications for consumers: Movies: DVD/VHS movie catalogs Music: CD catalogs, play MP3 when scanned Book catalogs Groceries, nutrition information, making shopping lists when the last of an item is used, etc. Personal Property inventory (for insurance and other purposes) Calling cards: 2D barcodes can store contact information for importing. Brick and mortar shopping: Portable scanners can be used to record items of interest for looking up online at home. Coupon management: weeding expired coupons. Personal finance. Receipts can be tagged with a barcode label and the barcode scanned into personal finance software when entering. Later, scanned receipt images can then be automatically associated with the appropriate entries. Later, the bar codes can be used to rapidly weed out paper copies not required to be retained for tax or asset inventory purposes. If retailers put barcodes on receipts that allowed downloading an electronic copy or encoded the entire receipt in a 2D barcode, consumers could easily import data into personal finance, property inventory, and grocery management software. Receipts scanned on a scanner could be automatically identified and associated with the appropriate entries in finance and property inventory software. Code 39 Code 39 (known as USS Code 39, Code 3/9, Code 3 of 9, USD-3, Alpha39, Type 39) is a barcode symbology that can encode uppercase letters (A through Z), digits (0 through 9) and a handful of special characters like the $ sign. A Code 39 Barcode Label The barcode itself does not contain a check digit (in contrast to—for instance—Code 128), but it can be considered self-checking by some; on the grounds that a single erroneously interpreted bar cannot generate another valid character. Possibly the most serious drawback of Code 39 is its low data density: It requires more space to encode data in Code 39 than, for example, in Code 128. This means that very small goods cannot be labeled with a Code 39 based barcode. However, Code 39 is still widely used and can be decoded with virtually any barcode reader. One advantage of Code 39 is that since there is no need to generate a check digit, it can easily be integrated into existing printing system by adding a barcode font to the system or printer and then printing the raw data in that font. The name Code 39 is derived from the fact that three of the nine elements that constitute a codeword are wide elements, the remaining six are narrow. Code 39 was developed by Dr. David Allais and Ray Stevens of Intermec in 1974. It was later standardised as ANSI MH 10.8 M-1983 and MIL-STD-1189. The width ratio between narrow and wide can be chosen between 1:2 and 1:3. The details of CODE 39 can be seen in Appendix A.

Utilitarianism As The Principle Of Happiness Philosophy Essay

Utilitarianism As The Principle Of Happiness Philosophy Essay According to John Stuart Mill (author of Utilitarianism), utility is happiness, and happiness is pleasure minus pain. Widely known as a universal hedonism, utilitarianism is an ethical philosophy in which the most ethical acts are those which serve to increase the happiness for the most people or at the very least, decreases the suffering for the most people. Nonetheless, albeit with the fact that happiness is recognized as a universal though objectively valuable goal , utilitarianism has been for centuries recognized as the doubt of most moral philosophers, criticized for being impractical, cold and distant from individual rights and the real complexities of life. Bernard Williams is one of the critics, who brought about explicit series of objections against utilitarianism in his book, A Critique of Utilitarianism (Williams 1973b). Obviously, it is impossible for me to cover all areas concerning utilitarianism and so concentrating on morality objections, I will first of all attempt to present Bernard Williams integrity objection and the well known counter-examples against utilitarianism. Then, I will try to counter these objections, and rebutted Williams argument with stern objections as well, with Mills Utilitarianism as my reference. At the end of this essay, I hope to show that utilitarianism is indeed right, and likewise, moral intuitions are without a doubt unreliable to be used as a base in criticising utilitarianism. From what I can understand, Williams believes that utilitarianism fails to recognise the reality of complexities in life, the value of integrity, and as I mentioned earlier, individual rights. Morality comes with the recognition of individual rights and if decisions or judgments are made based on numerical value of the greatest number of happiness in a situation, the happiness of this lesser number group is ignored. Hence, integrity failed to be satisfied. In order to maximize the number of happiness, simply favour the largest number of members in a group and this irked the mind of Williams. Moreover, according to Williams, a normal utilitarian man wouldnt be able to fulfil the demanding ridiculous principle of utilitarianism. It is asking too much of an individual person and so because of that the theory must be flawed. From experience itself we can be sure that morality indeed, does not require so much of us.   Yet, the latter argument of Williams can still be argued as it is not that the theory is demanding, it is just that people dont want to fulfil their moral obligations, and that we just dont like being told to do what we dont want to do.   After all, a moral theory that wouldnt ask us to do what we dont want to do would be useless. Critics of utilitarianism have never fail to construct hypothetical situations where in each of them is the definite clear expectation of what the utilitarian would say, and it is also clear that the saying of the utilitarian would always be potentially wrong in almost all hypothetical cases. These counter-examples against utilitarianism do not conclusively show that utilitarianism is wrong, but indeed they are common reasons why people are rejecting it. And so because of that, I will present two such common counter-examples and the expected utilitarian response for these counter examples. First Counter-Example: Hypothetically speaking, there would be a television show of the future, a show where a person is taken and subjected to tortures on the show.   This is a pay-per-view show that costs a good amount of money to get.   Only people who want to see the show will ever see it, but there are a large number of people who get a great amount of pleasure from seeing this plus all the profits go to charity.   This isnt a regular program, it may only happen once.   Should this show be made? Speaking in a utilitarian manner, it is indeed right to give a green light to this show as even though, it is really sad and bad for this one person, it is however, brings a lot of happiness and pleasure to those who will see it (obviously thousands of watchers). Moreover, all the profits will go to the charity thus benefited a lot more people! Clearly, the benefits outweigh the harms. But obviously, it is indeed still wrong to torture people. This could indeed be the main argument of the opponents. Regardless of the benefits, it is still a violation of that tortured mans rights. Furthermore, to enjoy watching the torture could indeed be more morally wrong than to be physically involved in the show. Second Counter-Example: Jim, a botanist travelling in South America, comes upon a public execution in a small town. A military captain has lined up 20 Indians. He explains to Jim that they have been chosen at random from the local population, which has recently been protesting against the government. The captain offers Jim a guests privilege. If Jim wishes, he can select one of the Indians and shoot him; the other nineteen will then go free. Otherwise, the execution by the captains henchman, Pedro, will go as planned. Utilitarianism seems to claim that it is obvious that the right thing to do is for Jim to just select one of these Indians to be shot at, so that another 20 lives could be spared. To not choose, or refusing to choose could lead to unhappiness of 20 persons, whereas to choose could only cause unhappiness of one. And so as we are referring to the theory of maximizing utility, to lose one is better than to lose 20. However, the objector will claim that it is just obvious that this is the wrong thing to do.   Killing a persons life is still wrong for whatever the reason is. From what that I can deduce, the two counter-examples have one thing in common that is our sense of Morality or our moral intuitions clashes with the principles that utilitarianism hold. Indeed, opposite commands. Nevertheless, it does not mean that utilitarianism must be wrong or flawed. First of all, the arguments made by these counter-examples can only be conclusive if only our moral intuitions are correct.   However, as we all know, our moral intuitions are volatile due to the complexities of life and due to the significant numbers of gray areas that could result in confusion, according to Mill, that is why we refer to moral theories in the first place. Since it is unclear to us of the universal approval for moral intuitions, the critics cannot use their moral intuitions as the base for rejecting a moral theory which is in this case, the moral theory of utilitarianism. Indeed, of course, for example, stealing is a disgrace yet to think of it now, maybe our other supposed to be right moral beliefs might be wrong. Yet, is stealing really wrong? What about Robin Hood? Is he a hero or just a plain mere thief? The point that Im trying to state here is that we dont really know which are right and which are wrong. Our moral beliefs are inconsistent.   Some may percei ved certain things are right. Some may not. And so, we cannot know that our common sense moral intuitions about The Torture Show or Jim and The 21 Indians are right mainly because we dont really know which of our moral beliefs to trust. Second of all, the counter-examples are based on complicated moral situations; and truth to be told, biased as have they are design in such a way that the morally right answer seem obvious.   In reference to Jim and the 21 Indians, let me re-describe the situation to highlight the utilitarian benefit. Indeed, it is hard to overlook how terrible the consequences would be if 20 Indians are to be killed, when Jim has the power to prevent that. We must acknowledge the fact that, yes, although it is easy to sympathize with one innocent unfortunate person, we must also sympathize with the other 20 people, each of whom will suffer greatly if they are to be killed.  In this case, the morally right action is not obvious.  The situations presented are almost always unusual and extraordinary they are situations that one is unlikely to come across, much less to be prepared for when one does come across it.   And so conclusively, we based our moral intuitions on our moral educations. Mor al education is applicable to our daily lives and if it was to be applied in aggravating counter-examples and in every possible situation, it is indeed impossible. And so because of that, moral intuitions are not valid and any objections based on them are flawed and can be disregarded. Conclusively, these could somehow rebut the arguments made by William on the basis of integrity and morality. Conclusively, we can actually deduce that things that are morally wrong usually involve the harming of people and things that are of high moral values such as charity work, heroic deeds all contribute to the welfare of the people. Moreover, it is not a coincidence that wrong actions harm people and right action help people.  Indeed, utilitarianism claimed that the reason that right actions are right is that they help people, and the reason that wrong actions are wrong is because they harm people.   The basis of morality is inside the principle of utilitarianism. You make people happy when you help them and you make them unhappy when you harm them. And so, conclusively, as long as a person accepts that it is best to help people as much as possible and hurt them as little as possible, he or she must accept that utilitarianism is right! Works Cited/References: Crisp, Roger 1997: Routledge Philosophy Guide Book to Mill on Utilitarianism. E. Goodin, Robert 1995: Utilitarianism as a Public Philosophy. Mill, John Stuart (Reprinted in Penguin Classics 1985, first published in 1859): On Liberty. Would you kill someone to save one hundred people? CreateDebate. Retrieved on 15th November 2009, from http://www.createdebate.com/debate/show/ould_you_kill_ someone_to_save_one_hundred_people Utilitarianism Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia. Retrieved on 12th November 2009 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utilitarianism Bernard Williams Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia. Retrieved on 12th November 2009 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Williams Introduction to utilitarianism. Retrieved on 16th November 2009 from http://www.utilitarian.org/utility.html Utilitarianism by John Stuart Mill Retrieved on 18th November 2009 from http://www.utilitarianism.com/mill2.htm

Gilgamesh, The Iliad, And The Aeneid :: Gilgamesh, The Iliad, And The Aeneid

Even though the Aeneid shares many features with the Homeric epic, as an epic it is diverse in significant ways. For this motive, the Aeneid is denoted to as a literary or else secondary epic so as to distinguish it from primeval or primary epics like the Homeric poems. The word "primitive", "primary" besides "secondary" should not be understood as value verdicts, but simply as signs that the inventive character of the epic was improvisational in addition to oral, though that of the Aeneid, collected later in the epic tradition, was fundamentally non-oral and fashioned with the benefit of writing. As realized, the Homeric poems offer substantiation of improvisational methods of composition concerning the usage of numerous formulas (RankovicÃŒ , Slavica, Melve, and Mundal 6). This form of composition is appropriate to the demands of creativeness before an audience which do not tolerate the poet interval to generate new ways of voicing several thoughts. So to preserve his recital goin g he must hang stock phrases, which are deliberate to fill out innumerable rations of the dactylic hexameter line. Conversely, Vergil, composing in isolation, perceptibly spent abundant time on crafting his own individual poetic linguistic. As a result in reading the Aeneid one will be able to realize the absence of the persistent repetition of formularies, which are redundant in a literary or secondary epic ( Fleming, Daniel, Sara and Milstein 8). Literary works are separated into various groupings called genres in harmony with their distinguishing form and context. The Iliad fits to the genre of epic. An epic is a lengthy poem which tells a story concerning gods, heroes and heroic deeds. Since the epic is by its self-same nature extensive, it tends to be somewhat loosely prearranged. Not every chapter is unquestionably obligatory to the main story and departures from the subject are not unusual. It is significant to notice how diverse in this regard is the genre of drama, in which every single episode tends to be indispensable to the plot and departure from the subject are incongruous (Presnell and Jenny 3). The events recounted in epic are derived from legend pretty than devised by the poet and are characteristically of great implication as in the incident of the Iliad, which transmits an important episode focusing around the paramount hero of the Greeks in the Trojan War, the greatest eminent war of Greek legend. The epic poet inclines to present his tale impersonally, not sketching thoughtfulness to himself except for a few occasions, as in the leading line of the Iliad when Homer talks to the goddess who stands to be the Muse of epic poetry (RankovicÃŒ , Slavica, Melve, and Mundal 9).

Flannery O Conner :: essays papers

Flannery O Conner If you try to get more from a writer than what you seen on the page , usually depends on the writer and their ability to make you see, and of course your own imagination. When the writers stories are so different and the characters are so clear, you sometimes think you know something about that writer and who they were. People say that a writer can be found in their words. However, some writers are good writers not only because of their words and works. One writer that goes beyond words is a writer that we have recently read a story on. Flannery O’ Connor. The contradictions of violence and faith in her fiction distinguishes her among Southern writers and make one wonder who she was and where she was from. O’ Connor’s life greatly influenced her work. Born in Savannah, Georgia, O’ Connor was educated at the Georgia State College for Women and the State University of Iowa (now called the University of Iowa). Most of her life was spent in Milledgeville, Georgia, where she raised peacocks and wrote. O’Connor’s work , of two novels and two volumes of short stories, has been described as an unlikely mixture of southern Gothic , prophecy and evangelistic Roman Catholicism. In many of her stories she included rural settings from her homeland. For example â€Å"Good Country People† takes place in rural Georgia. Flannery used her well-known writing styles of grotesque humor in the stories she wrote , including â€Å"Good Country People†. Unlike most of the writers from the South Flannery probably would not have wanted to be found. She was rather quiet in her lifetime and enjoyed the solitude of her home in Milledgeville, Georgia. It seemed as if there were a part of her that wanted to remain mysterious and unfound. After reading some of her fiction like â€Å"Good Country People† you can see the humorous side she pokes at the world and herself. Her writing , often deep, dark and violent has a flip side it is also humorous. Flannery O’ Connor remains a powerful voice in literature today. Before her tragic death which claimed her young life at the age of 39, she had written two novels and thirty-two short stories. as well as commentaries and reviews. She died from Lupus, the same disease which shortened the life of her father. O’ Connor’s work has not always been understood completely and appreciated for her unique and powerful themes. Many critics did not like her first novel, Wise Blood , positively because of its seemingly strange themes and characters.

Night World : Black Dawn Chapter 17

He stared at her for an instant, his golden eyeswide. â€Å"Don't you believe me?† â€Å"I wouldn't put it past Sylvia to try,† he said. â€Å"ButI don't think she's strong enough.† â€Å"She said she got special ingredients. And shesaid that nobody else could take the spell off.†When he still looked doubtful, although a bit more grim, Maggie added, â€Å"Why don't youtry it?† He reached down with long, strong fingers to pullat the fastenings of his brace. It came off easily,and Maggie's eyebrows went up. She blinked. He extended his arm, pointing it at the wall, anddrew a dagger from his belt. Maggie had forgotten about the blood part. Shebit the inside of her cheek and didn't say anythingashe opened a small cut on his wrist. Blood welled up red, then flowed in a trickle. â€Å"Just a little blast,† Delos said, and looked calmlyat the wall. Nothing happened. He frowned, his golden eyes flaring dangerously. Maggie could see the concentration in his face. Hespread his fingers. Still nothing happened. Maggie let out her breath. I guess spells are invisible, she thought. The brace was just for show.Delos was looking at his armasif it didn't belong to him. â€Å"We're in trouble,† Maggie said, trying not tomake it sound like I told you so. â€Å"While they thought they were alone in here, they were talkingabout all kinds of things. All Hunter cares about is getting you to help him destroy the humans. Butthere's been some big split in the Night World, and the witches have seceded from it.† Delos went very still, and his eyes were distant.†That means war. Open war between witches and vampires.† â€Å"Probably,† Maggie said, waving a hand vaguely.†But, listen, Delos, the witches sent somebody here,an ambassador, to talk to you. To try to get you on their side. Hunter said they've got one of the Wild Powers on their side already-the witches, I mean.Are you getting this?† â€Å"Of course,† Delos said. But now his voice wasoddly distant, too. He was looking at something Maggie couldn't see. â€Å"But one out of four doesn'tmatter. Two out of four, three out of four-it's notgood enough.† â€Å"What are you talkingabout?† Maggie didn't waitfor him to answer. â€Å"But, look. I know the girl whocame to talk to you. It's the girl I was with on therocks, the other one you saved from Bern. She'sAradia, and she's Maiden of all the witches. And,Delos, they're looking for her right now. They wantto kill her to stop her from getting to you. And she's my friend.† â€Å"That's too bad.† â€Å"We've got to stopthem,† Maggie said, exasperated. â€Å"Wecan't.† That brought Maggie up short. She stared at him.†What are you talking about?† â€Å"I'm saying we can't stop them. They're toostrong. Maggie, listen to me,† he said calmly and clearly, when she began an incoherent protest. That's the first time he's said my name out loud, she thought dizzily, and then she focused on hiswords. â€Å"It's not just the spell they've put on me. And it'snot just that they control the castle. Oh, yes, theydo,† he said with a bitter laugh, cutting her off again. â€Å"You haven't been here very long; you don'tunderstand. The nobles here are centuries old,most of them. They don't like being ruled by a precocious child with uncanny powers. As soon asHunter showed up, they transferred their loyalty to him.† ‘BUt-â€Å"‘ â€Å"He's everything they admire. The perfect vampire, the ultimate predator. He's ruthless andbloodthirsty and he wants to give them the wholeworldas their hunting grounds. Do you really thinkany of them can resist that? After years of huntingmindless, bewildered animals that have to be rationed out one at a time? With maybe the oddcreaky slave for a special treat? Do you think any of them won't follow him willingly?† Maggie was silent. There was nothing she couldsay. He was right, and it was scary. â€Å"And that isn't all,† he continued remorselessly.†Do you want to hear a prophecy?† â€Å"Not really,† Maggie said. She'd heard more thanenough of those for one lifetime. He ignored her. â€Å"My old teacher used to tell methis,† he said. â€Å"‘Four to stand between the light and theshadow, Four of blue fire, power in their blood. Born in the year of the blind Maiden's vision;Four less one and darkness triumphs.'† â€Å"Uh huh,† Maggie said. To her it sounded likejust more of the same thing. The only interestingthing about it was that it mentioned the blindMaiden. That had to be Aradia, didn't it? She wasone famous witch. â€Å"What's `born in the year of the blind Maiden'svision?†Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ she asked. â€Å"It means all the Wild Powers are the same age,born seventeen years ago,† Delos said impatiently. `But that's not the point. The point is the last line,`Four less one and darkness triumphs.' That meansthat the darkness is going to win, Maggie.† â€Å"What do you mean?† â€Å"It's inevitable. There's no way that the humansand the witches can get all four Wild Powers ontheir side. And if there's even one less than four,the darkness is going to win. All the vampires need to do is kill one of the Wild Powers, and it's allover. Don't you see?† Maggie stared at him. She did see what he wassaying, and it was even scarier than what he'd saidbefore. â€Å"But that doesn't mean we can just give up,†she said, trying to puzzle out his expression. â€Å"If we do that, it will be all over. We can't just surrender and letthem win.† â€Å"Of course not,† he said harshly. â€Å"We have tojoin them.† There was a long silence. Maggie realized that her mouth had fallen open. â€Å"†¦ what?† â€Å"We have to be on the winning side, and that'sthe vampire side.† He looked at her with yelloweyes that seemed as remote and deathly calm as apanther's. â€Å"I'm sorry about your friends, but there's no chance for them. And the only chance for youis to become a vampire.† Maggie's brain suddenly surged into overdrive. All at once, she saw exactly what he was saying.And furygave her energy. He was lightning-fast, but she jumped up and out of the way before he could close his hands on her. â€Å"Are you out of your mind?† â€Å"No â€Å"You're going to killme?† â€Å"I'm going to save your life, the only way I can.†He stood up, following her with that same eerie calm. I can't believe this. I †¦really †¦can't †¦ believe this, Maggie thought. She circled around the bed, then stopped. It was pointless; he was going to get her eventually. She looked into his face one more time, and saw that he was completely serious. She dropped herarms and relaxed her shoulders, trying to slow herbreathing, meeting his eyes directly. â€Å"Delos, this isn't just about me, and it's not justabout my friends. It's about all the slaves here, andall the humans on the Outside. Turning me into a vampire isn't going to help them.† â€Å"I'm sorry,† he said again. â€Å"But you're all that really matters.† â€Å"No, I'm not,†Maggie said, and this time the hottears didn't stop at her eyes, but overflowed and rolled down her cheeks. She shook them off angrily, and took one last deep breath. â€Å"I won't let you,† she said. â€Å"You can't stop me.† â€Å"I can fight. I can make you kill me before youturn me into a vampire. If you want to try it thatway, come and take your best shot.† Delos's yellow eyes bored into hers-and thensuddenly shifted and dropped. He stepped back, hisface cold. â€Å"Fine,† he said. â€Å"If you won't cooperate, I'll putyou in the dungeon until you see what's best foryou. Maggie felt her mouth drop open again.†You wouldn't,† she said. â€Å"Watch me.† The dungeon, like everything else in the castle,was heart-stoppingly authentic. It had something that Maggie had read about in books but hadn't seen in the rooms above: rushesand straw on the floor. It also had a stone benchcarved directly into the stone wall and a narrow,barred window-slit about fifteen feet above Mag gie's head. And that was all it had. Once Maggie had poked into the straw enoughto discover that she didn't really wantto know whatwas down there and shaken the iron bars that made up the door and examined the stone slabs in the wall and stood on the bench to try to climb to the window, therewas nothing else to do. She sat on the bench and felt the true enormity of the situation trickle in on her. She was really stuck here. Delos was really serious. And the world, the actual, real world out there, could be affected as a consequence. It wasn't that she didn't understand his motivation. She had been in his mind; she'd felt thestrength of his protectiveness for her. And she wanted to protect him, too. But it wasn't possible to forget about everyoneelse. Her parents, her friends, her teachers, thepaper girl. If she let Delos give up, what happenedto them? Even the people in the Dark Kingdom. Laundressand Old Mender and Soaker and Chamber-pot Emptier and all the other slaves. She caredabout them. She admired their gritty determination to goon living, whatever the circumstances-and theircourage in risking their lives to help her. That's what Delosdoesn't understand, shethought. He doesn't see them as people, so he can'tcare about them. All his life he's only cared abouthimself, and now about me. He can't look beyondthat. If only she could think of a way to makehimsee-but she couldn't. As the hours passed and thesilence began to wear on her, she kept trying. No inspiration came. And finally the light outsideher cell began to fade and the cold started to settle in. She was half asleep, huddled on her chilly bench,when she heard the rattle of a key in a door. She jumped up and went to peer through the bars, hoping to see Delos. The door at the end of the narrow stone corridoropened and someone came in with a flare. But itwasn't Delos. It was a guard, and behind him wasanother guard, and this one had a prisoner. â€Å"Jeanne!† Maggie said in dismay. And then her heart plummeted further. A third guard was half marching, half supporting Aradia. Maggie looked at them wordlessly. It wasn't like Jeanne not to fight, she thought, asthe guards opened the cell door and shoved theother girls in. The door clanged shut again, and the guardsmarched back out without speaking. Almost as an afterthought, one of them stuck a flare in an ironring to give the prisoners some light. And then they were gone. Jeanne picked herself up off the floor, and thenhelped Aradia get up. â€Å"They've got P.J. upstairs,†she said to Maggie, who was still staring. â€Å"Theysaid they wouldn't hurt her if we went quietly.† Maggie opened her mouth, shut it again, andtried to swallow her heart, which was in her throat.At last she managed to speak. â€Å"Delos said that?† â€Å"Delos and Hunter Redfern and that witch.They're all very chummy.† Maggie sat down on the cold bench.†I'm sorry,† she said. â€Å"Why? Because you're too stupidly trusting?†Jeanne said. â€Å"You're not responsible for him.† â€Å"I think she means because she's his soulmate,†Aradia said softly. Jeanne stared at her as if she'd started speaking a foreign language. Maggie stared, too, feeling hereyes getting wider, trying to study the beautiful features in the semidarkness. She felt oddly shy of this girl whom she'd calledCady and who had turned out to be something shecould never have imagined. â€Å"How did you know that?† she asked, trying notto sound tongue-tied. â€Å"Can you justtell?† Asmile curved the perfect lips in the shadows.†I could tell before,† Aradia said gently, backing upquite accurately to sit on the bench. â€Å"When youcame back from seeing him the first time, but Iwas too foggy to really focus on anything then. I'veseen a lot of it in the last few years, though. Peoplefinding their soulmates, I mean.† â€Å"You're better, aren't you?† Maggie said. â€Å"Yousound lots moreawake.† It wasn't just that. Aradia had always had a quiet dignity, but now therewas an authority and confidence about her thatwas new. â€Å"The healing women helped me. I'm still weak,though,† Aradia said softly, looking around the cell. â€Å"I can't use any of my powers-not that breakingthrough walls is among them, anyway.† Maggie let her breath out. â€Å"Oh, well. I'm gladyou're awake, anyway.† She added, feeling shy again, â€Å"Um, I know your real name, now. Sorry about the misunderstanding before.† Aradia put a hand-again perfectly accuratelyon Maggie's. â€Å"Listen, my dear friend,† she said,startling Maggie with both the word and the intensity of her voice, â€Å"nobody has ever helped me more than you did, or with less reason. If you'd been oneof my people, and you'd known who I was, it wouldhave been amazing enough. But from a human, who didn't know anything about me †¦Ã¢â‚¬ Shestopped and shook her head. â€Å"I don't know if we'll even live through tonight,† she said. `But if we do,and if there's ever anything the witches can do foryou, all you have to do is ask.† Maggie blinked hard. â€Å"Thanks,† she whispered. â€Å"I meanyou know. I couldn't just leave you.† â€Å"I do know,† Aradia said. â€Å"And that's the amazingthing.† She squeezed Maggie's hand. â€Å"Whatever happens, I'll never forget you. And neither will theother witches, if I have anything to say about it.† Maggie gulped. She didn't want to get startedcrying. She was afraid she wouldn't be able to stop. Fortunately Jeanne was looking back and forthbetween them like someone at a tennis match.†What's all this sappy stuff?† she demanded. â€Å"Whatare you guys talking about?† Maggie told her. Not just about Aradia being Maiden of the witches, but about everything she'dlearned from listening to Hunter Redfern andSylvia. â€Å"So the witches have left the Night World,† Aradia said quietly, when she was finished. â€Å"They wereabout ready to when I left.† â€Å"You were coming here to talk to Delos,† Maggie said. Aradia nodded. â€Å"We heard that Hunter had gotten some lead about the next Wild Power. And weknew he wasn't goingto take any chances on letting Circle Daybreak get hold of this one.† Jeanne was rubbing her forehead. â€Å"What's Circle Daybreak? ‘It's the last circle of witches-but it isn't justwitches. It's for humans, too, and for shapeshiftersand vampires who want to live in peace with humans. And now it's for everybody who opposes the darkness.† She thought a moment and added, â€Å"I used to belong to Circle Twilight, the †¦not-so wicked witches.† She smiled, then it faded. â€Å"Butnow there are really only two sides to choose from.It's the Daylightorthe Darkness, and that's all.† â€Å"Delos really isn't on the side of the Darkness,†Maggie said, feeling the ache in her chest tighten.†He's just-confused. He'd join you if he didn'tthink it meant me getting killed.† Aradia squeezed her hand again. â€Å"I believe you,†she said gently. â€Å"So, you're some kind of bigwig of the witches,huh?† Jeanne said. Aradia turned toward her and laughed. â€Å"I'm theirMaiden, the representative of the young witches. If I live long enough, I'll be their Mother one day, and then their Crone.† â€Å"What fun. But with all that, you still can't thinkof any way to get us out of here?† Aradia sobered. â€Å"I can't. I'm sorry. If-this isn'tmuch use, but if I can do anything, it's only to givea prophecy.† Maggie made an involuntary noise in her throat. â€Å"It came while I was asleep in the healers hut,†Aradia said apologetically. â€Å"And it was just athought, a concept. That if there was to be any helpin this valley, it was through appealing to people's true hearts.† Jeanne made a much louder and ruder noisethan Maggie's. â€Å"There is one more thing,† Aradia said, turningher wide unfocused eyes toward Maggie and speaking as gently asever. â€Å"I should have mentioned thisearlier. I can tell you about your brother.†

Crime and Violence in Jamaica Essay

Jamaica is a small third world country in the Caribbean with a population of approximately 2, 709, 300 people. The country faces many problems yearly but the worst is the ever increasing crime rate. In October 2011 Jamaica was ranked 3rd in a report of countries with the highest crime rates by the Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence and Development . The country has taken a turn for the worst over the past few years. Our local television stations and newspapers are packed with daily stories of robberies, political disputes, abuse in its many forms, murders, kidnappings, rapes and more recently, scamming. There are many factors which may contribute to crime and violence in our country. There are factors such as lack of jobs, lack of education, poverty, abuse or influence in homes, poor justice system and improper methods of dealing with conflict. A primary contributing factor to crime and violence in Jamaica is lack of jobs. Upon leaving school it is extremely difficult for Jamaican youths to find jobs so many of them turn to crime to sustain themselves. Many young people who fail to get jobs, either because they were under qualified or there was just nowhere to accommodate them, turn to felonies such as robbery and drug sale (especially marijuana). When asked why they choose to rob and sell drugs, many persons reply that they are just trying to make a living. There are also some situations in which students whose parents are out of jobs, sell drugs to make money for their tuition. Read more: Crime essay Another primary contributing factor to crime and violence in our country is poverty. It is a well known fact that many families in Jamaica are poor. In many of these families there is usually only a single parent, more often than not- a mother, and several children. In these situations the parent is unable to care for so many children. We see families with five, seven and sometimes even ten or more children appear on our local news programs asking for assistance because their children cannot attend school or they cannot buy necessary items for them. Many of these families are not able to provide proper shelter or food for their children, and they cannot afford to send them to school. A child from such a home might turn out to be uneducated and  may not be able to get a job in the future. Another child might decide that he cannot endure poverty any longer and may turn to crime to get â€Å"quick cash† or to try and make a living. Lack of education is another contributing factor to crime and violence in Jamaica. It is said that â€Å"Education is the key to success†, but sadly in this area, Jamaican youths are found lacking. Many young people have to drop out of school early for a variety of reasons. Some are unable to find school fees, books and other necessary items to attend school, others are made to stay home to look after an ill parent, many teenage girls get pregnant in school also and end up leaving school to try and find work to look after themselves and their child and others decide that school is just â€Å"not working out† and they choose to drop out. With a lack of education and proper training, and with the economy being the way it is, it will be nearly impossible to get a job. Being uneducated and unable to get a job many young people turn to crime to support themselves. The fourth contributing factor to crime and violence in Jamaica is abuse and/or influence in the home or a difficult home life. Some young people come from homes where they are abused or where there is violence. The popular saying â€Å"The child is a product of his environment† proves to be true. Children who grow up in homes where there is violence or criminal activities are more likely to grow up doing the same thing. Sadly, some children in our country are even introduced into criminal lifestyle by their parents. For example there have been cases where teenage girls are led to prostitution by their mothers who are also prostitutes. A child such as this will grow up doing this and even if she decides to change, it will not be easy because it is what she is used to. Also if such a child wishes to change, other factors could also prevent it. Factors such as poverty and lack of education. She will find it difficult to get on her feet and will eventually be forced to continue the lifestyle. In such situations the parents are to be blamed for introducing the child to certain lifestyles but they can also indirectly cause their child to turn to a life of crime. An example of this would be a child who has a difficult home life where there is abuse or conflicts. As a result this child may have a low self esteem and  self worth and will be easily influenced by his/her peers and may eventually get involved with things such as drugs. This same child may also have pent up anger and might be violent with his peers. The influence of music is also a contributing factor to crime and violence in Jamaica. Dancehall music has become increasingly violent over the past few years and it is evident that it is influencing our people negatively, especially our young people. It is no secret that Jamaican teenagers look up to and imitate the behaviors of our Jamaican artists. Watching the incredibly violent videos of dancehall sensation Tommy Lee, it is hard to believe that he would allow the distribution of such violent songs and videos. His videos are so violent that they cannot be viewed on television and can only be found on the popular social network Youtube. His songs are also heavily edited to allow radio play. With so many young people looking up to him and singing his lyrics it is nearly impossible for them not to be influenced by his negative lyrics. And this has indeed been happening in our society. My own brother told me about a situation at his school where a teenager wrestled a fellow class mate to the ground and rubbed his shoe in his face. When taken to the office the boy said his classmate had said something he did not like and he referred to popular lyrics from Tommy Lee. Here we are seeing where music is contributing to violence in our country. Many of these popular songs also include lyrics about the use of marijuana and other drugs. When teenagers listen to these songs and hear the people they look up talking about marijuana , they will want to try it too. This leads to the use and distribution of the illegal substance in our country. Jamaica’s poor justice system is also contributing to crime and violence in our society. Recently we are seeing where persons suspected of committing crimes are held in prison and awaiting trial for months and sometimes years at a time. Others are never convicted and are left to roam the streets and even to commit other crimes. It is understandable that persons will want justice for crimes committed against them and/or their loved ones. It must be very difficult to see someone who is responsible for murder walking around free while someone‘s parent, friend or sibling‘s life has been cut short. The family or friend of this deceased person may eventually decide to  stop hoping for the justice system to come through for them and may take matters into their own hands. When this person decides to end the life of the suspected murderer some friend or family of this person may decide to exact revenge on the disgruntled person, thus the chain of violence continues. It has also come to light that some members of the police force are involved in crimes in the country. If we cannot trust the persons who are supposed to protect us and look out for our best interests, then who can we trust? This also explains why many people decide to take their own revenge instead of waiting for the justice system to work. Even police officers who are not involved in crime will sometimes cause the public to lose faith in the justice system by poor methods of investigation, inactivity and poor judgment. Many investigations and open cases are jeopardized by police officers who are either ignorant or just negligent of the procedures to take when gathering evidence. Considering all these problems with the justice system it is not hard to see why some citizens take matters into their own hands and exact their own revenge. The final contributing factor to crime and violence in Jamaica is ineffective methods of dealing with conflict. The citizens of our country seem to not know how to correctly resolve problems. As soon as we feel threatened or offended, even about the smallest things, we resort to violence to â€Å"get back† at the person. We are not a people who will sit and talk through our problems, instead we find the quickest or easiest way to get revenge. Many people are injured and some even lose their lives over simple misunderstandings that could have been resolved without violence. Though our country has a high crime rate we must continue to hope for and work towards a day when there is no violence and crime plaguing our little island. In order to achieve this goal we must first address the root causes of crime and violence, these include factors such as lack of jobs, lack of education, poverty, influence of music, abuse and influence in the home, ineffective methods of conflict resolution and poor justice system.