Critical Response Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Critical Response - Essay Example Also, the author points out the similarity of the case to the inclusion of the phrase â€Å"In God we trust† in the United States dollar; however, Wilde distinguishes this similarity as inverted as she contends that the focus is absolutely different: the In God we trust in US dollar is employed for business undertakings while under God in the Pledge of Allegiance is used in recitation of loyalty. While the author makes manifold convincing points in her article, there are three most salient points that should not be overlooked: (1) the phrase â€Å"under God† is descriptive of something; and that description, while does not attempt to establish a religion, creates a link to the deeply-embedded Christian heritage of America; (2) that â€Å"under God† and â€Å"In God do we trust† are phrases that are used distinctively for very different purposes; (3) Many Americans do not believe in God; as a matter of fact, â€Å"70 or 80% of the Americans are atheistâ₠¬  (Wilde 2). Therefore, there is more reason for the rewording of the Pledge of Allegiance as not everyone is willing to identify themselves with the included phrase. â€Å"Under God† is descriptive of something and it is divisive Since 1954, the Pledge of Allegiance reads: â€Å"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands: one nation under God, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all† (Djupe 329). Wilde is persuasive in the fact that the phrase â€Å"under God† is descriptive of something; and that description is something ironical to the intention of the pledge: notice the phrases â€Å"with Liberty and Justice for all† – the First Amendment of the United States constitution strongly prohibits the establishment of religion in any law that the Congress would intend to create. In this regard, it can be observed every American citizen, whether an permanent resident or a citizen, sh ould be given complete justice and liberty, including religious liberty and the right to exercise their religious freedom; nevertheless, the fact that the Pledge of Allegiance is for every American citizen to recite, whether they are willing to do it or not, it breaks the intention of the pledge that there is justice and liberty for all considering that not everyone believes in God and yet everyone are deemed to recite it. Even if they choose to be silent in the phrase when reciting the pledge, why should they be silent in the first place? While Chief Justice Rehnquist calls the phrase â€Å"under God† as a â€Å"descriptive phrase†, he was not able to specify what the phrase is describing. Granting that the Chief Justice was right, for the sake of argument, it could then be inferred that the phrase is descriptive of monotheism - something that denies many non-Christian Americans to conform to the law; and thus, a political harassment of some sort. Since it is a pledge intended for the people of the United States of America, then no one is exempted from it, including atheists. By and large, the wordings have fallen short of the real character of America: a land that is free. How can a country that claims to be free, with â€Å"Justice and Liberty for all† would make an act that is discordant for its people? The solution may be just be a revision of the pledge itself and nothing more. â€Å"

Women status in islam Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Women status in islam - Essay Example But this status is not enough for the modern world. Before the advent of Islam, women were treated in a derogatory manner. They were considered mainly as possessions that could be transferred from father to son as inheritance. There was also a prevalent custom where women were burned alive as infants since every family wanted a man rather than a woman. With the emergence of Islam, women got an improved status within the society and thus practices were severely looked down upon. Women were no longer considered as possessions but rather as partners in a marriage. Islam ensured the women were treated with due respect and kindness. In this regard, Prophet (PBUH) is reported to have said: The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) on various occasions highlighted on the status of women. He preached that Muslim men should treat their women with respect and kindness. His attitude towards his wife is a testimony of his preaching. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) married various time for different reasons and in every case, he treated his wives very kindly. None of his wives ever used a negative comment regarding the Prophet (PBUH) and always referred to him the most praiseworthy manner. Before embarking on the argument of equality between men and women, it should be understood that equality does not mean that these genders should be considered same. They lie of different ends of the spectrum and thus both these genders have their own status. Islam has not made men superior over women; it just provides a clear distinction of the role of the men and women. While men are the breadwinners of the household, women are required to look after the household. The equality between men and women can be judged from a quote that Holy Prophet (PBUH) is reported to have said: ‘All people are equal, as the teeth of a comb. There is no claim of merit of an Arab and non-Arab, or a white over a black person or a male over a

Other then the obvious( washington,adams,franklin,jefferson) which Essay

Other then the obvious( washington,adams,franklin,jefferson) which american political or military leader do you think had the mo - Essay Example Through the legislation that he introduced and his impassioned rhetorical style, he helped encourage Americans to rise up against the British and take their destiny into their own hands. No one can doubt that he made a major difference in America's quest for independence. Henry was born and raised in Virginia and served in the Virginian legislature, alongside many famous men of the era (Beeman, 12). He was deeply interested in states' rights, and opposed the idea of being ruled by a distant king in a foreign land. The mood in the American colonies was changing during Henry's years of service and he captured that mood powerfully in his public speeches. He often came within a whisker of making statements that were treasonous to the British king. Nevertheless, he stood by his viewpoints. In one of his first acts after being elected in Virginia he introduced a response to the Stamp Act. His actions were widely seen as being one of the first and most radical steps against British rule in the colonies. It effectively said that Americans could not be taxed by London without representation in London. It was the speech he gave at this time which Thomas Jefferson once said surpassed anything else he had ever heard in his life (Jewett). During this time, and in the years following it and leading up to the Revolution, Henry's rhetoric was noted as inspiring many people.

To what extent do risk, rewards and motives contribute towards an Assignment

To what extent do risk, rewards and motives contribute towards an entrepreneurs goals - Assignment Example Steve Jobs – An Icon of Entrepreneurship Burlingham and Gendron (2013) argue, "Without Jobs, after all, there would have been no Apple II". Steve Jobs is a glaring example of true entrepreneurship in the current times; the one, who assesses risks carefully, faces challenges that come his way, and accomplishes tasks in hand successfully. And in this process, he gets rewarded handsomely so much that in his own life time, Apple, in terms of market capitalization, transforms into the world's largest company. That is a great feat indeed! As per Kathryn Lang, entrepreneurship requires thought, planning, and persistence. It is not always the money that makes people entrepreneur. It is the passion or urge of creating something – product or service that exhorts their entrepreneurial spirit. Fixed paychecks in the job do not excite them and insecurity outside the jobs does not stop them from trading into unchartered territories. That is why entrepreneurs are always ready to take risks and face new challenges to get rewarded handsomely. It is this sense of achievement that drives them towards entrepreneurship. The case of Steve Jobs is no different than this. Major Motives – Innovation and Perfection According to John Kao, a consultant to corporations, it is the innovative culture created by Steve Jobs that is responsible establishing Apple ahead of many of its rivals. Though formal education is required yet attitude to learn more in all situations is a prerequisite for creativity. There is no doubt that Steve Jobs has these traits since an early age. At a fairly young age, he was fascinated toward electronics doing projects on radios. While he is fired from Apple in 1985, his entrepreneurial spirit forces him to float two new companies under the names ‘Next’ and ‘Pixar’. He remains in control of these two companies until 1996 when he returns to Apple and becomes chief executive officer (CEO) there. In 2005, during a commence ment address to the students at Stanford, Steve is quite categorical in his statement, â€Å"It turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me† (Lohr, 2011). What he says is that perseverance pays and it goes without saying that perseverance is one of the key characteristics that make one entrepreneur. Perfection in the product design has always been his obsession so much that even on internal circuitry that no one is going to look at, he insists that "every line of solder on the circuit board be perfectly straight" (Burlingham and Gendron, 2013). That is why on aesthetics too each product of the Apple Inc. receives accolades from the customers. Steve Jobs emphasises on the innovation in the task and jobs that one undertakes and that becomes possible only with experimentation, taking risks in life and being curious. In line with this, he further adds, "I have always wished that for myself. And now, as you graduate to begin anew , I wish that for you† (Lohr, 2011). Entrepreneurship and Risk Taking Ability True entrepreneurs are prompt in taking risks. As saying goes: no risks, no rewards. This remains a universal fact always as one goes deeper into the events that shape the lives

Construction of identity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Construction of identity - Essay Example In the period from 1950 to 1990, the unidimensionl identity of modern women ws replced by bidimensionl identity (Nicholson, 1997:380), phenomenon observed lso in other countries (Woodwrd, 1997:240). In generl, women's lbor force prticiption incresed drmticlly during the twentieth century, nd in recent yers, the continuity of women's creers hs lso risen. Mny women becoming mothers now hve greter occsion to develop nd vest themselves in nonfmilil identities thn did women in the pst. But mny of the culturl chnges tht hve ccompnied economic nd demogrphic chnges mke the question of how to live s n dult problemtic in new wys for such women. Prentl roles re no longer tken to define the mening of womn's dult life or of couple's reltionship. Current culturl rhetorics of individulism men tht, mong the middle clss, it is no longer pproprite for dults to scrifice themselves for their spouses or their children; insted the individul is offered culturl imges of self-reliztion nd of "finding one's self" s guides to identity nd the mening of life. Such chnges in the menings of womnhood nd motherhood, however, re contested. Kaplan (1984:112) points out tht conflict over the socil representtion of motherhood s optionl rther thn centrl in women's lives lies t the hert of the politicl debtes on bortion in the United Sttes. Tody Tody's motherhood is more complex nd diverse in mening. Kpln (1992) speks in this regrd of "postmodern" motherhood. The Mdonn imge--representing the scrificing mother-hs been supplemented with the Creer women imge (Kpln, 1992:115). ccording to Crmer (1997), young mothers re well wre of the conflict between trditionl nd modern models of mother hood. In the view of Hys (1996), mothers tody fce two socilly constructed imges, tht is, tht of the "trditionl" mother-who stys t home nd dedictes ll her energy to the fmily--nd tht of the successful "supermom": The ll-round mother who hs "briefcse" qulities. She not only mnges the household nd rises the children, but lso hs her own creer. With respect to the described chnges within society, it is of interest to investigte how tody's dolescent girls nd young women conceptulize motherhood. The trditionl imge is extended with modern imge of motherhood.The representtion of motherhood s primrily biologicl reltionship conceled the gendered politics of socil nd "nturl" reltions. In Western cultures, women's "embodied humnity," most clerly symboliclly expressed by their biologicl cpcity to mother, hs been used to exclude them from "true humnity"-to relegte them to sphere perceived to be outside history, society, nd reson: tht is, "to nture" (Woodwrd, 1997:242). Nture nd womn were both culturlly ssocited nd empiriclly devlued.Feminist nlyses, however, drw even deeper implictions from these culturl ssocitions nd dulisms. Ecofeminism, for exmple, exposes the wys in which gendered constructions of "humn" (msculine) nd "nonhumn" nture hve been embedded in the emergence of modern sciences nd the ssocited politicl-economic reltions of industriliztion nd coloniztion.Ptrirchl conceptions of womn nd nture, they rgue, re t the hert of destructive ecologicl prctices s well s of the oppressive gender, clss, nd rce reltions on which they re built (Kpln, 1992:115). Not surprisingly, mny contemporry feminists re rethinking motherhood. For the nlysis of motherhood, s Hys (1996) points out, hs the

Cloud Gate by Mr. Anish Kapoor Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Cloud Gate by Mr. Anish Kapoor - Essay Example The Artist has used stainless steel as the medium of art. The artist has welded up about 168 pieces of stainless steel to make on giant work of art. Stainless steel is an alloy of iron; which cannot be stained but it loses it color and shows finger prints. The chromium in mixed in the alloy to make hard oxide coating on the surface; without the coating it becomes rust liker regular steel. The substance is hard and can be molded into any shape. The piece of art is placed at one of the most prime locations of Chicago; the reflective exterior would mirror the Chicago skyline; whereas its oval shape would twist and distort the image which is reflected; whereas, if a visitor would walk, the surface acts looks like a mirror of any funhouse as it reshapes the images. The underneath of the sculptor act as an indention whose mirror surface would provide numerous reflections of the subject situated below them. Sculptor is a form of art that is to create representational or abstract form, which can be of any shape. These form of arts does not tell a story; and the diversity in art is bought by the material and shapes used. Art is in the mind; these are ideas which are interpreted and then designed. Sculptor art is the most difficult art form; and if we include the size they represent a high level of imaginations.

Banking in the modern world Homework 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Banking in the modern world Homework 2 - Essay Example What is the leverage-adjusted duration gap? Total value of portfolios of Assets = Commercial Loan + Consumer Loan = $400 + $250 = $650 Fractional value of assets at = 61.5 = 0.615% Fractional value of assets B = 38.4 = 0.384% Weighted Average Duration= Duration asset A (% in portfolio) + Duration of asset B (% in portfolio) Weighted Average Duration= 3 years (. 615) + 7 years (. 384) Weighted Average Duration= 1.85 + 2.69 = 4.54 years Total value of portfolios of Liability = IG Bonds + Deposits + Non-deposit borrowing = $65 + $600 + $50= $715 Fractional value of Liability A = .091 Fractional value of Liability B = .839 Fractional value of Liability C = .070 Weighted Average Duration= Duration Liability A (% in portfolio) + Duration of Liability B (% in portfolio) + Duration Liability C (% in portfolio) Weighted Average Duration= 15 years (.091) + 1.25 years (.839) + .50 years (.070) Weighted Average Duration= 1.365 + 1.049 + .035 Weighted Average Duration= 2.4 years Leverage-adjusted duration gap is a formula that measures the overall interest rate of bank and it tells positive or negative changes in the overall interest rate of a banking company. B. What is going to happen to the Bank’s net worth if interest rates will increase or decrease by 1 per cent from the current 5 percent? Interpret the results. Each banking service provider has to face the interest rate risk in its business and if the market rate increases or decrease, it affects the value of cash of banks. Suppose market rate increases with 1 %, then the demand and value of cash will not be affected and it will remain un-changed. But the value of the loan will effect and it will decrease. In this case, the market value of equity of that bank will increase and thus investors will get another opportunity to invest. C. How the Bank can reduce its exposure to interest rate risk? Show this with a numerical example. Each bank has an option to alter its interest rate exposure by making some changes a nd restricting its investment plans, borrowings and other pricing strategies and this can be done with the help of managing maturity times of its current portfolio. Question No. 2. What kind of futures or options hedges would be called for in the following situations? a. Market interest rates are expected to increase and your financial firm’s asset-liability managers expect to liquidate a portion of their bond portfolio to meet customers’ demands for funds in the upcoming quarter. Usually Financial firms expect a lower price for selling their bond portfolio in the market but they don’t expect it if the portfolio consists on short future hedge securities. After selling them on lower prices, they use to repurchase them at a profit giving rate. A similar profit can be made by the bank with the help of Put options for government and financial futures contracts. b. Your financial firm has interest-sensitive assets of $79 million and interest-sensitive liabilities of $88 million over the next 30 days and market interest rates are expected to rise. Financial firm has increased its interest-sensitive assets by $9 million that means this firm is a growing yo bear looser if the interest rate in the market increases. This firm need to hedge its risk it's going to bear on increased $9 million and for this, it should sell financial futures contracts or use a put option on government securities or financial futures contracts. c. A survey of Tuskee Bank’