FUNDAMENTALS: THE RASTAFARIAN LIFESTYLE Essay -- essays papers

FUNDAMENTALS: THE RASTAFARIAN LIFESTYLE The Rastafarian religion is unique in having few set beliefs to follow or doctrines to live by. Its African origins teach unity and love among all. There is no unified Rasta church, but it does however hold certain philosophies sacred and a number of principles true. People who believe that Selassie is divine or of divine nature are called Rastafarians. The religion is about justice and freedom of the Black race. It was born from the pains of oppression (Erskine, pg 161, 1998). The messages speaks of freedom from physical and mental slaveries of all kinds. The Rasta philosophy opposes violence, and practices a more peaceful means of resistance. The first evidence of Rastafarians in Jamaica date back to 1930 (Nicholas, pg 25, 1996). The community generally holds some truths evident, but beliefs may vary. But all are united that Haile Selassie was divine. They believe that he was the living God, returned. He was Ethiopia's emperor, but was considered a holy prophet by many more (Baptis t, 1997). There was also a strong movement to renew African culture in ones everyday life. Fundamental Ideas Rastafarians must explore the different ideals presented to them by communicating with Jah, their God, and through careful examination of the Bible. By living a natural life and giving praise to Jah through every deed are key methods to living an eternal life (Nicholas, pg 31, 1996). Through meditation the followers arrive at the truths, and begin to come to understanding what has been left out of the Christian Bible. The Bible gives a representation of the past and future, but can really only be understood within oneself. The idea of personal experience and being guided by Jah shows the Rastafa... ...1998. Garvey, Marcus. African Fundamentalism. Jamaica:1966. Mighty_dread@lineone.net, "Beginners Rastafari Page," URL: http://website.lineone.net/~mighty_dread/ 4/13/00. Napti, "Jamaicans of Ethiopian Origin and the Rastafarian Faith," 2/95, URL: http://www.zhurnal.ru/music/rasta/napti.htm, 4/13/00. Nicholas, Tracy. Rastafari: A way of life. Chicago: Research Associates School Times Publications, 1996. Nolan, P. "Rastafarians and Ganga," 2/98, URL: http://www.uclan.ac.uk/facs/health/socwork/swonweb/journal/issue1/nolan.htm, 4/13/00. Rasjoshi@aol.com, "Dreadlocks," URL: http://members.xoom.com/_XMCM/MindfulJD,K/index.htm, 4/13/00. Rastafari Selassie Center Homepage, URL: http://nettilinja.saunalahti.fi/~hsaarist/, 4/13/00. Simpson, George. (1985) Religion and Justice: Some Reflections on the Rastafari Movement. (Vol. 46) New York: Phylon.

Thomas Aquinas’ Account of the Various Dimensions of Prophecy

The Summa Theologica, one of the principal works of St. Thomas Aquinas, has created remarkable impacts not only in his time but also up to the present generation. A writing that is, according to him, a compilation of Christian doctrine as a manual for his students, the Summa Theologica is actually a complete, systematically arranged exposition regarding theology and Christian philosophy. It consists of questions, articles, and arguments discussing different concepts related to theology (Aquinas,154).One of the most famous and controversial topics included in the Summa Theologica is the various dimensions of prophecy of the philosopher and theologian: prophecy of foreknowledge, prophecy of denunciation, and prophecy of predestination. The first mentioned dimension of prophecy pertains to the revelations of God regarding the events in the future that depend primarily on man's freewill. The samples given by Aquinas have something in relation to life and death, wars and dynasty, and the likes.Therefore, in fulfilling the prophecy of foreknowledge, one's free choice is the major influential factor. In contrast to the first prophecy, the prophecy of predestination deals with what God has revealed that He alone can do, has believed is present for eternity, and what is in His absolute decree. Therefore, a man's free choice is not a contributing attribute in this dimension of prophecy. Lastly, the prophecy of denunciation talks about the event that may and will happen through God's revelation of the future which can be hindered by miraculous deeds.Thus, it is regarded as a â€Å"conditional promise† which is mainly dependent upon other factors that will or may prevent it from happening (Aquinas,154). Aquinas also believed that other than knowledge, revelation is a necessary requirement for salvation. Through this, man can know the supernatural end that actually affects his acts. More importantly, without revelation, only a few would know the truths concerning God after a longer time and with of course, a great possibility of error.Thus, he proved that â€Å"reason,† which is anchored to man's knowledge, is essential not in proving what the truths of faith are but in defending, explaining, and developing the revealed doctrines of Christianity (154). However, not all agree with Aquinas’ belief; some question one of his points of view, specifically regarding active intelligence. Henry Corbin’s statement disapproves of Aquinas’ perception that active intellect functions not in separate ways with spirituality (249).Corbin strongly disapproved this and emphasized that if these two will be linked and treated as one in terms of functions, spirituality may lose its true essence since intellect is classified with relevance to the social norm (249). Thus, when not separated with the socialized arena of active intelligence, beliefs regarding religious arena might as well be affected. A spiritual entity dominated by religious forces, which are influenced by a socialized field of intellect, might as well in return be socialized.This occurrence will result in modifications in one’s points of view and confusion about what truly exists and what does not. An example given in that statement describes the transformation of one’s belief in monotheism to monism (Corbin 249). The former explains that only one god exists but when not done separately from the aspect of intellectual side, it then results in monism wherein one believes that one god only exists but with manifestations in various religions. This scenario just illustrates what Corbin tried to explain if intellect comes in the way of spirituality.

Space Shuttle Columbia Disaster

The Space Shuttle Columbia was the second space shuttle disaster and the first shuttle lost on land happened on February 1, 2003. In this mission, six American astronauts and Israel's first spaceman died when the space shuttle Columbia disintegrated 200,000ft above Texas. They are David Brown, Rick Husband, Laurel Clark, Kalpana Chawla, Michael Anderson, William McCool and Ilan Ramon. Rick husband is the Columbia's commander was a US air force colonel recruited to the space program in 1994. He made his first flight in 1999; last week's was his second.William McCool is the Columbia pilot was on his first flight. A naval commander and test pilot, he was selected for the space program in April 1996, and trained at the Johnson space centre. Michael Anderson is one of only a handful of African-American astronauts, Anderson had logged 211 hours in space before the Columbia disaster. A USAF lieutenant-colonel, he joined Nasa in 1994. Kalpana Chawla is an experienced astronaut who made her f irst flight on STS-87 in 1997. David Brown was a military flight surgeon before joining the astronaut corps.Laurel Clark joined Nasa in the same year as Brown, and was trained as a space flight surgeon. Lastly is the Ilan Ramon, an Israeli air force colonel, Ramon was his country's first astronaut. He took part in the 1973 Yom Kippur war and the 1981 bombing raid that destroyed an Iraqi nuclear reactor. With the Columbia accident, not only has the nation lost a four-billion-dollar shuttle, seven outstanding astronauts and priceless experimental results, it has also lost confidence in manned space flight and space exploration. February 1, 2003 was a sunny day.It was the perfect day for the Columbia shuttle return to earth. Everyone at NASA was excited for their return because the shuttle would bring back a lot of useful information from the 16 days mission. No one suspected tragedy will happen. At around 9am, the shuttle lost contact with NASA. The mission controllers thought it was a temporary problem because of the shuttle reentry into the atmosphere and also the temperature sensors on the inboard and outboard elevons (A control surface on an airplane that combines the functions of an elevator and an aileron. on the left wing had stopped functioning minutes before. NASA start to recognize something unusual happened when several 911 calls were made by the residents in Texas, Arkansas and the Louisiana area. The space shuttle Columbia and her seven crewmembers were lost. Immediately after losing of the shuttle and the seven crewmembers, NASA stopped all shuttle operations at Kennedy Space Center. They collected all the remains piece of the Columbia shuttle and grid on the floor of the Reusable Launch Vehicle Hangar.The Columbia Reconstruction Project Team attempted to reconstruct the bottom of the orbiter as part of the investigation into the accident. The engineers found that a 20-inch piece of hardened insulation foam breaking off the main fuel tank and hitti ng the shuttle’s left wing during the launch on January 16th. They asked the top shuttle managers for outside agency assistance, but the request was denied. This is because the shuttle managers concluded that there was no safety concern due to the foam’s impact and decided to let the mission continue. Other possible causes were pilot mistake and space debris.After investigations continued in the next few weeks, some molten aluminum debris from the shuttle’s wing structure, as well as molten steel debris, had been found. When the engineers eliminated the other possibilities, they began to focus on the foam from the external tank only. When the shuttle reenters the atmosphere, the temperature on its surface can reach nearly 1649oC. So the Thermal Protection System (Various materials applied to the outer structure protect the orbiter from excessive heat) on the shuttle is critical. There are four different materials in the space shuttles Thermal Protection System ( TPS).There are high-temperature reusable surface insulation (HRSI) , low-temperature reusable surface insulation (LRSI), felt reusable surface insulation(FRSI), and reinforced carbon-carbon composite (RCC). The HRSI cover the high surface temperature reaches between 649 and 1260oC. The LRSI cover the low surface temperature reaches between 371 and 649oC. For another 2 materials are used in small amounts. Due to the temperature during reentry exceeds 1260oC at the nose cap, chin panel, forward external tank, and wing leading edge panels and T-seals, the RCC was break down.For reuse purpose and to prevent oxidation, the outer layer of the RCC is converted into silicon carbide in a furnace filled with argon with a temperature cycle up to 1649oC. The main reason of the shuttle to break down is because the foam from the bipod of the external tank was shed, and struck the shuttle’s left wing during the launch. It had damaged the wing’s leading edge RCC structures which allow ing reentry plasma to penetrate and disintegrate the underlying aluminum, damaging the wing’s structure.The foam of the bipod ramp is BX-250, polyurethane foam applied with CCF-11 which is used to cover outside of the tank to prevent ice and frost on the surface. The foam is to reduce the weight so it made by light material. The engineers couldn’t believe that such a light material could damage the wing of the shuttle. Thus, some research had done by the Southwest Research institute. They used a compressed air gun to fire a foam block of similar size and mass to that which struck Columbia and at same estimated speed.To represent the leading edge of Columbia's left wing, RCC panels from Enterprise and from NASA stock, along with fiberglass mock-up panels, were mounted to a simulating structural metal frame. In the final round of testing, a block fired at the side of an RCC panel created a hole 41 by 42. 5 centimeters (16 by 17 in) in the protective RCC panel. The tests clearly show that the foam could cause visible crack on the tested RCC panels. These cracks could lead the shuttle breakup during reentry. The final report of the Columbia Accident Investigation was released on August 26th, 2003.It concluded that this tragedy was caused by technical and organizational failures. The foam problem of the bipod area has existed for years, and NASA engineers have looked at a variety of ways to correct it. The report indicated that the space shuttle should not have been launched with this problem extant. The report further proposed that, although the shuttle had always returned to earth safely after the foam hit the wing during previous shuttle flights, the managers at NASA should not have rejected the engineers' requests to make sure Columbia's wing was not damaged this time.Finally, it suggested that NASA should have had a backup plan for fixing the shuttle in space and insuring the crew's safety if they found out the wing was badly damaged. On 26th Jul y 2005, a shuttle discovery was launched. NASA had formed an independent Return to Flight (RTF) panel to monitor its preparations. There are 7 out of the 26 RTF panel members issued a minority report prior to the launch. They questioning if Columbia’s lessons had been learned and also expressing concerns about NASA’s efforts.During launch, a large piece of foam separated from the external fuel tank, but fortunately did not strike the shuttle, which landed safely 14 days later. The shuttle fleet was once again grounded, pending resolution of the problem with the external fuel tank insulating foam. Reference: Columbia space shuttle disaster 2003. World news. http://www. guardian. co. uk/gall/0,,888045,00. html Space shuttles thermal protection system (TPS). US Centennial of Flight Commission. http://www. centennialofflight. ov/essay/Evolution_of_Technology/TPS/Tech41G2. htm Final report of Columbia Disaster. Columbia Accident Investigation Board http://caib. nasa. gov/ N ASA’s Space Shuttle Program: The Columbia Tragedy, the Discovery Mission, and the Future of the Shuttle. Marcia S. Smith Resources, Science, and Industry Division. Updated by January 4, 2006. fas. org/sgp/crs/space/RS21408. pdf Lessons Learned from the Columbia Disaster. Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS). www. aiche. org/uploadedFiles/CCPS/†¦ /Presentation_Rev_newv4. ppt

Philosophy essay

Philosophy essay Philosophy essay Philosophy essay1)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   What is the â€Å"Do No Harm† principle and how is it used in determining Safety versus Acceptable Risk? What is the difference between Corporate Liability and Strict Liability? What are the ways in which the â€Å"Do No Harm† principle can be used in the ethical amelioration of pollution?The â€Å"Do No Harm† principle serves as a guide for many business ethical decisions as it is one of the key principles of business ethics. The â€Å"Do No Harm† principle ensures ethical professionalism in business environment. It has been found that this principle lies in the basis of biomedical science as it was developed from Hippocrates’ ethical approach: â€Å"First, do not harm†. The â€Å"Do No Harm† principle is often interpreted as the non-maleficence principle, accord to which people should never do harm to others. Human morality is based on this principle. Today many corporations place em phasis on the role of the â€Å"Do No Harm† principle in everyday business practices, providing employees with ethical obligation to never do harm to others (e.g. the general public, business partners and staff members). The â€Å"Do No Harm† principle can be applied to business relationships, interpersonal relationships, as well as to finding the proper solutions to various environmental challenges and health-related issues (e.g. transmission of the HIV virus).     In fact, this principle is often used to determine Safety versus Acceptable Risk. The â€Å"Do No Harm† principle requires improving working conditions in order to prevent employees from any hazards that can cause serious damage to human health. Safety risk stands for various kinds of risks associated with health-related hazards. Acceptable risk can be defined as the risk that can be taken as it is, and the level of this type of risk should be lowered to the acceptable level.   De George argues that â€Å"some jobs are inherently dangerous, and with these, the general rules of determining acceptable risk come into play† (280). The â€Å"Do No Harm† principle is used to identify both safety risks and acceptable risks as it is focused on safety protection and reduction in the amount of risk. Generally speaking, the â€Å"Do No Harm† principle requires the use of the proper skills, abilities and knowledge to guarantee safety in the workplace and the general environment. Employees should be aware of a wide range of risks they encounter in the working setting or in the environment.There are certain differences between Corporate Liability and Strict Liability. Corporate Liability and Strict Liability require the application of the proper ethical and moral principles to control the appropriateness of the actions of individuals.   De George believes that â€Å"liability for actions means that one can rightly be made to pay for the adverse effects of oneâ⠂¬â„¢s actions†(104). Corporate Liability stands for the type of liability, which can be identified at the corporate level. Corporate Liability involves the obligation of employees to prevent corporate malfeasance. Besides, Corporate Liability refers to a wide range of liability risks, which should be taken into consideration by shareholders to provide effective control over the actions of individuals. However, Strict Liability is based on more strict types of obligations, including the individuals’ responsibility for some harmful action regardless of their fault. Richard De George gives a clear definition o the term â€Å"strict liability†: â€Å"the doctrine of strict liability does not assess blame, and is different from finding a company negligent, or culpable of not taking sufficient care in producing its products, or of failing   to correct defects it knows about† (278). Strict Liability places emphasis on the significance of regulation of the indi viduals’ actions, without imposing blame for these harmful actions.There are certain ways in which the â€Å"Do No Harm† principle can be used in the ethical amelioration of pollution. As the â€Å"Do No Harm† is considered to be the moral principle, it can be applied to ethical amelioration of pollution.   De George argues that this principle stands for the â€Å"general obligation binding on individuals and corporations alike†(193). It is possible to prevent pollution by means of the proper strategies based on the â€Å"Do No Harm† principle. In fact, environmental problems are caused by a wide range of factors, including technological problems and ethical concerns. Corporations are focused on the use of the appropriate resources to support the ethical amelioration of pollution through the reduction of various negative effects on the environment and the general public. The â€Å"Do No Harm† principle deals with a wide range of environmen tal concerns, including serious challenges with hazardous wastes, water pollution, air pollution, increased sound levels, and some problems with wildlife and habitat preservation. The â€Å"Do No Harm† principle highlights the necessity to use effective technologies aimed at promoting ethical amelioration of pollution.2)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Please explain the different kinds of whistle blowing. Provide at least one argument for why whistle blowing is morally permissible, and not morally permissible. Please explain under what circumstances is whistle blowing is not only morally permissible, but also, morally required.The different kinds of whistle blowing can be explained by the theory of whistle blowing developed by Richard De George. It has been found that various circumstances affect the appropriateness of whistle blowing.   In other words, whistle blowing depends on the situation.   Whistle blowing is based on employees’ responsibilities to prevent h armful behaviors, actions or policies that violate laws. Actually, Richard De George’s theory of whistle blowing helps to better understand the appropriateness of whistle blowing and its effects on the whistle blower and the company. Richard De George argues that there are three kinds of whistleblowing morally prohibited whistle blowing, morally permitted whistle blowing and morally required whistle blowing. In fact, whistle blowing stands for the employee’s obligation or duty to respond to harmful actions, preventing the company from doing harm to the general public. According to De George, three kinds of whistle blowing have obvious differences that are connected with the level of the employee’s morale and the circumstances. Whistle blowing is morally permitted provided an employee is willing to reveal harmful actions caused by the company to the general public. These harmful actions can be defined as illegal actions if the established laws are violated. In mo st cases, whistle blowing is focused not only on morale, but also on human duty to prevent harm. According to De George, there several conditions, highlighting the appropriateness of morally permissible whistle blowing practices:if harmful action toward others is caused by the company’s products, policies or decisions, affecting the general public;if an employee has reported his/her concerns concerning harmful actions to his/her supervisor(s);if a whistle blower is â€Å"getting no satisfaction from their immediate supervisors† (300).Actually, whistle blowing can be viewed as morally permissible if the company’s actions, decisions, products or services do serious harm to the general public. A whistle blower’s decision is based on moral obligation to blow the whistle and to stop harmful actions.   The act of whistle blowing in this case is justifiable because an employee who blows a whistle is not supported by his/her supervisors. This fact means that th e internal processes in the company are confidential and illegal. Thus, a whistle blower makes a decision to prevent corruption in the company. Indisputably, in this case, the whistle blower’s actions may destroy the company’s image on the competitive market through adverse publicity.Whistle blowing is not morally permissible if a whistle blower does not want to damage the company’s reputation and the company’s harm is not serious.Whistle blowing is not only morally permissible, but also, morally required if a whistle blower has found some interesting facts, documentation or evidence that will help to convince the public of the negative effects of the company’s policies, products or actions. According to De George, â€Å"even with some documentation and evidence, a potential whistle blower may not be taken seriously, or may not be able to get the media or government agency to take any action† (311). This fact means is if a whistle blower has got some important confidential information, it can be used to prevent harm. As a matter of fact, two conditions should be added to defined morally permissible whistle blowing: â€Å"the employee must have good reasons to believe that by going public the necessary changes will be brought about†(De George 311).  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Thus, De George provide strong arguments that help to identify the appropriateness of whistle blowing and find difference between three kinds of whistle blowing. The key principles of business ethics should be applied to the assessment of the act of whistle blowing.3)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   How can one argue that there is a right to employment (in answering this question you must explain how one may have a) a right to work, b) a right to life, and c) a right to respect -not necessarily in that order)? How can one argue for a right to a just wage?One can argue that there is a right to employment that can be regarded a s a fundamental human right. The right to employment is not only one of the fundamental human rights, mentioned in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, but it is also a basic social right. All citizens who have a desire to work should be given the right to employment. Governments are responsible for providing the right to employment to all citizens of the country. The opportunities to be employed should be equal. In addition, the right to employment is closely connected with other important human rights mentioned in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, including a right to work, a right to life, and a right to respect. These human rights are interrelated as these rights are regarded as the fundamental human rights. It is known that employment is one of the major requirements of the U.S. legislation. This fact means that all citizens should be employed. This requirement refers not only to the United States, but also to other countries. It is very important to mention that employment and labor legislation provides a set of comprehensive laws, rules and regulations that refer to various employment-related issues, e.g. hiring, selection and firing procedures, payments, benefits, etc. Generally speaking, employment is part of social and economic growth of the nation, as it deals with various problems caused by poverty. According to De George, â€Å"the right to work is equivalent to the right to employment for those able, willing and desiring to work and unable to engage in productive work if not employed† (425).The right to employment and the right to work have very much in common. The right to work guarantees economic stability of the nation. Governments are interested in providing the proper opportunities for individuals who are employed, including training, coaching, mentoring, as well as safety working conditions. The right to work guarantees massive opportunities to support families. Besides, the right to work is linked to other human right s, including the right to life and the right to respect. The right to life is given to any individual because it is the most fundamental and universal human right, which should be protected by law. Legislation guarantees adequate working conditions, which do not pose threats to human life. Although employment may cause various threats to human life, legislation provides specific employment laws to guarantee safety environment. In addition, individuals have the right to respect, which is linked to the right to employment. Employees require respect for their work. The right to respect is a human right because it is focused on promoting employment opportunities.Furthermore, one can argue for a right to a just wage, which is also linked to the right of employment. The right to a just wage is also closely connected the right to work because an individual receives a just wage for the work he/she has done well. A just wage stands for the wage that allows providing support to one’s f amily. In general, the justice of a wage should be taken into consideration by employers. The inequality in wages contributes to the growth of discrimination. Governments are responsible for promotion of a just wage. The right to a just wage is crucial to business development as it provides motivation and promotes job satisfaction.

15 Rain Quotes to Drench Your Heart in Pure Joy

15 Rain Quotes to Drench Your Heart in Pure Joy Rain makes the whole landscape look fresh, green, and glistening. While people huddle under their umbrellas, trying to get to work, the child inside wants to throw away their rain gear and enjoy the pinpricks of raindrops on their face and the puddles that follow. Water is the elixir of life, and those of us lucky enough to enjoy regular rain may not recognize how remarkable it really is. Rain is the source of our food, the only liquid we use to stay clean and healthy, and very possibly the reason life evolved on Earth. Its also the source of wonderful songs such as  Singing in the Rain, Umbrella, Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head  and so many others. Next time the drops start to fall, soak yourself in the pure, unadulterated drizzle and let your worries wash away. Hum a tune as you walk in the rain, and feel your spirit soar. Share these rain quotes with your friends and help the rain god cast a spell of magic. Rain Quotes From Famous People Henry Wadsworth Longfellow A feeling of sadness and longing that is not akin to pain, and resembles sorrow only as the mist resembles the rain. Bill Rodgers I ran my fastest marathon in the rain. Saint Basil Many a man curses the rain that falls upon his head, and knows not that it brings abundance to drive away the hunger.   Halle Berry Id like to be able to use Storms powers for good, like have it rain more in Southern California. We could do with it. David Copperfield Im just waiting for people to start asking me to make the rain disappear. Clint Eastwood If you think its going to rain, it will. Langston Hughes Let the rain kiss you. Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops. Let the rain sing you a lullaby. Dave Barry It always rains on tents. Rainstorms will travel thousands of miles, against prevailing winds for the opportunity to rain on a tent. William Shakespeare For the rain it raineth every day. Satchel Paige Dont pray when it rains if you dont pray when the sun shines. Roger Miller Some people walk in the rain, others just get wet. Henry Ward Beecher Rain! whose soft architectural hands have power to cut stones, and chisel to shapes of grandeur the very mountains. Rachel Carson A rainy day is the perfect time for a walk in the woods. Mark Twain It is best to read the weather forecast before praying for rain. Rabindranath Tagore Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky. John Updike Rain is grace; rain is the sky descending to the earth; without rain, there would be no life. Munshi Premchand Trees bear fruits only to be eaten by others; the fields grow  grains, but they are consumed by the world. Cows give milk, but she doesnt drink it herself - that is left to others. Clouds send rain only to quench the parched earth. In such giving, there is little space for selfishness.

African american racial status in the 21st century Essay

African american racial status in the 21st century - Essay Example Racism has been a curse for the American society from its birth in 1751. It has stained the nation’s identity with the African-American’s blood for years until the Civil War in **** and the 13th Amendment. Though the 13th Amendment in the US constitution was a resistive response of the most progressive and conscientious part of the US society to the barbaric practice of slavery, slavery had not been wiped out from the society overnight. Racism was so much deep rooted in an American’s heart that the enactments of anti-slavery laws and the relevant amendments in the US Constitution were merely to redirect a racial mind to find alternatives for white superiority over the Black. Indeed the amended Constitution provided the legal safeguard to the Black, barring the practice of slavery at the state level as well as, to the extent the state could interfere into the public affairs. But it could do nothing to bring about the changes in the culture and the society that int rinsically nourished the racial hostility against their former slaves. The inbred racism in the Americans’ heart continues to discriminate between the White and the Black until today. Therefore the 14th and 15th Amendment with along with numerous other subsidiary laws and government-induced initiatives has been required to wipe out the remainders of racism from the American society. But the question whether racism and discrimination against the African-American black have been wiped out from the society may engender a lot of debates since the question itself is ambiguous. Inbred Racism and Racism in the Heart of America A close analysis of the status of racism in American society in the late 20th century and the 21st century will reveal that America has been significantly successful in wiping out the all the institutional and constitutional racisms. But non-formal and non-institutional racisms still are prevailing in the society. In this regard, Saeed Shahbaazz says, â€Å"A CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll, released in December 2006, stated that most Americans, White and Black, see racism as a lingering problem in the United States.† (1). Though racisms at institutional levels are discernible, at non-institutional level they remain out of the reach of the public eye. These non-institutional racisms at the private level are be found by close observational or empirical research. In this paper I will discuss the findings of two such empirical research papers on inbred and institutional racisms. Discussion about the new form of Racism in the 21st Century Racism at the less the private level has been revealed in various researches that were led in the 21st century’s context. One such research article is â€Å"A Fly in the Buttermilk† by Devis et al. In their article, â€Å"â€Å"A Fly in the Buttermilk†: Descriptions of University Life by Successful Black Undergraduate Students at a Predominately White Southeastern Universityâ₠¬  Davis et al explores deep into the self-realization -from the student’s perspective- of a non-white minority student about his or her position among the white majority. The title of their study explicitly asserts the concerns of the Successful Black Undergraduate Students with their University Life among white majority. The researchers prudently selected 11 black students as the participants of their study. Davis et al’s purposed selection of the successful participants can be justified on the pointed that information and experiences provided by the participants would remain free of any fear of being discriminated. The participants were chosen ensuring the following conditions: a. successful students were chosen, because they experienced the full, 2. successful students would be free of being the victim of racial discrimination academically, 3. these students would be able to track any change during their four or five years graduation. Devis et al’s research shows that even in the 21st centur

How have ideas of realism been conceptualized and put into practice by Essay

How have ideas of realism been conceptualized and put into practice by filmakers - Essay Example Not much thought is put on the location and angle of the cameras taking the shots but instead the filming is more or less left to run its course with the cameras just there to capture and take shots . At times which is mostly most of the time, the shots taken end up being not crispy or fine, but this is the intension since it encourages the audience a more involved mental participation since it allows them to explore and appreciate the full complexity and richness of the shots. Another important thing to note in realist films is the simplicity of its editing which is as much as possible kept to the minimal side this is because it is believed that too much editing influences the audiences interpretation in only one way since a lot of the choices and decisions tend to be made at the editing stage. Good examples of films which are more or less realist in style are documentaries. This is due to the fact that they showcase events that have occurred in the past and they tend to bring out these events in a manner that is understandable by the viewer with minimal if any manipulation in terms of the story line or the artistic part of the film. In this article we are majorly concerned with the Italian and British realism and how their ideas were used in filmmaking. First of all we can define Italia realism as a kind of organization that had a national impact in terms of the films they produced and told to its audience such that they were majorly concerned with what was happening in the society be it the poor and working class relationships, to their day to day life not forgetting the things that affected them as poverty, social injustice just but to name a few. In the British realism case it was more of a movement of rebellion rather that an organization whose main concern was to cut off completely the effects that foreign filmmakers like Hollywood was having on its filmmaking industry. To them it was a means to a cause where they envisioned a time where local concerned and styles would be addressed in filmmaking rather than the normal procedures and styles that the likes of Hollywood had brought out as the order of event. We shall take a look at the various characteristics and properties that entailed neorealism films with the issues such as on location filming instead of studio setups coming up, making of films in a documentary kind of style, use of social content when it came to writing film scripts among other issues like the use of non-professional actors. These are just but a few of the points that shall guide us in the analysis of the same. Also to take note is that in the Italian realism analysis we shall use our case study film as the Bicycle thieves film