America’s Prisons and Their Effects On Society Essay -- law, police, g

Every civilization in history has had rules, and citizens who break them. To this day governments struggle to figure out the best way to deal with their criminals in ways that help both society and those that commit the crimes. Imprisonment has historically been the popular solution. However, there are many instances in which people are sent to prison that would be better served for community service, rehab, or some other form of punishment. Prison affects more than just the prisoner; the families, friends, employers, and communities of the incarcerated also pay a price. Prison as a punishment has its pros and cons; although it may be necessary for some, it can be harmful for those who would be better suited for alternative means of punishment. What are prisons for? This is a question that must be asked in order to understand the problems facing prisons. Prisons serve two main functions; separation and rehabilitation. Criminals cannot be allowed to walk around with everyone else without being punished; they must be separated from society. The thought of going to prison helps deter most people from crime. Rehabilitation is the main goal of prison; making a bad person into a good person by the time they are released. These seem like cut and dry functions, but as of late some believe that prisons in the United States have failed in their attempts to separate and rehabilitate. Not only do prisons separate the criminals from the innocent, to be effective, according to Lappin and Greene, they must also separate the criminals from the worse criminals. Convicts in prison for non-violent offenses are not supposed to be housed with violent offenders. â€Å"Unfortunately, our prisons are becoming more and more overcrowded maki... ... abuse offender policy options.(The field works.). Policy & Practice, 33-34. Lappin, H. G., & Greene, J. (2006). Are prisons just? In C. Hanrahan (Ed.), Opposing Viewpoints: America’s prisons (pp. 51-98). Detroit: Bonnie Szumski. Muhlhausen, D. B., Dyer, C. C., McDonough, J. R., Nadlemann, E., & Walters, R. (2006). Do prisons protect public safety? In C. Hanrahan (Ed.), Opposing Viewpoints: America’s prisons (pp. 16-48). Detroit: Bonnie Szumski. Shaw, V. N. (1998). Productive labor: A secondary goal but primary activity. Prison Journal, (78), 186. Trachtenberg, B. (2009, February). Incarceration policy strikes out: Exploding prison population compromises the U.S. justice system. ABA Journal, 66. Young, M. G. (1998, July). Rethinking community resistance to prison siting: Results from a community impact assesment. Canadian Journal of Criminology, 323-325.

Is Liberate Art A Way of Life Essay

In many instances, individuals neglect to acknowledge the importance of school and a higher education. The individuals who view education as their number one priority see staying in school is important. Why is it important? Is staying in school going to benefit the student/individual? In this essay, I will explain why the literate arts are important and for what they are good. I will also give the opinions of others and what my views are. Richard Miller, the writer of † The Dark Night of The Soul† writes, † I have these doubts, you see, doubts silently shared by many who spend their days teaching others the liberate arts. Aside from gathering and analyzing information, aside from generating critiques and analysis that forever fall on deaf ears, what might the literate arts be said to be good for?† (424). I agree when Miller says that the doubts are silently shared by many people. Miller and Friere have specified their outlooks on specific parts of literate arts. The literate arts can be explained in a plethora of different ways. Friere explains, â€Å"Yet only through communication can human life hold meaning. The teachers’ thinking is authenticated only by the authenticity of the students’ thinking. The teacher cannot think for his/her students, nor can she impose her thoughts on them. Authentic thinking, thinking that is concerned about reality, does not take place in ivory tower isolation, but only in communication†(322). Communication allows the individual to express what could not express though other liberates. I feel that liberate arts are put to good use when expressing ones self. It teaches individuals/students different ways to get away from reality when everything is falling apart around them. To me, without literate arts, society would deteriorate. Reading, writing, and communication puts my brain to work and it puts others who think like me brains to work, which is why they are important in education. Being literate helps students efficiently analyze what they read and write. When Miller reviews Amis’ writing, â€Å"The Information,† he explains that reading makes the student smarter and writing provides access to immortality and I agree with both statements. As I try to come up with a literary form that influences my way of thinking and captures me, I seem not to be able to come up with just one. The thing that did constantly pop up in my head was my favorite television show, â€Å"The Ghost Whisperer.† You’re probably thinking, â€Å"What is The Ghost Whisperer? What does that television show have to do with your essay? How does it tie into the topic?† As it turns out, it has a lot to do with my essay because it is another type of literate art. Television influences the mind of individuals just like reading, writing and communication. In â€Å"The Ghost Whisperer,† the main character, Melinda, tries to deal with her day-to-day life while dealing with her supernatural powers and the ghosts with whom she has encounter. Although she goes through all of these things, the main point is that she is human and goes through average person problems. Among the show’s storylines, I tend to find myself relating to some of the situations that the characters face. From the show, there was a quote that captured me the most. The quote that has captured me and influences me to refer to it on a daily basis; it comes from season five; episode eleven, â€Å"If you believe in happiness the way you believe in bad things you will find it.† This quote, in my opinion, has a powerful message within its self because life tends to make people think negatively depending on what people are going through. One has to stop thinking about everything that is going wrong and acknowledge what is going right. As I read, â€Å"The Dark Night of the Soul† by Richard E. Miller, I found it to be an interesting read. He inquires, why we read, why we write and what might literate arts be said to be good for? In his essay he describes the school massacres that have occurred throughout the years. As he describes these events, he asks a deeper question, â€Å"What is the point of continuing to read, write and learn in the face of such underlying dangers. I think that with all that is happening, individuals/students should continue with education because reading, television, writing and communication makes a difference in the lives of individuals around the world. The bottom line is that literary art has a way of touching students unexpectedly one way or another and students should not just throw the art away because of society’s perception. Works Cited Miller E., Richard. â€Å"The Dark Night of the Soul†.Ways of Reading: An Anthology for Writers. 9th. David Bartholomae & Anthony Petrosky. Boston: Bedford St. Martin’s Press, 2010. 420-442. Print. â€Å"Dead Air.† The Ghost Whisperer. CBS. WWJ-TV, New York City. 8 Jan. 2010. Television.

How to raise a child Essay

Amy Chua’s article â€Å"Why Chinese Mothers are Superior† appeared in the Wall Street Journal on January 8, 2011. When this article was published the controversy began. One article in argument to Amy Chua’s was James Bernard Murphy’s article â€Å"In Defense of Being a Kid† which also appeared in the Wall Street Journal on February 9, 2011. Murphy contends by stating Amy Chua’s method of how to raise a child will do nothing but turn children into neurotic, self-absorbed and unhappy adults. James Murphy, author of â€Å"In Defense of Being a Kid† and professor of government at Dartmouth College argues that children should live childhood and enjoy childhood innocence, not be pressured or forced to prepare for their adulthood and the pressure that comes with it. â€Å"Part of the point of childhood is childhood itself. ‘ (Summers 279) Childhood takes up a quarter of one’s life and it would be nice if children enjoyed it. Murphy continues to explain what the unique blessings of childhood are. First, children have a gift of moral innocence, children are unaware of what is to come in their future and the burdens, and therefore they put their trust in us fully. Children are open to new adventures and unaware of time thus cannot be wasted. We as adults forget that most of us produced our best art, asked our deepest philosophical questions, and most readily mastered new gadgets when were children. We as parents need to take a step back from teaching our children and realize how much we can learn from them. Murphy uses emotion when he states â€Å"children are people with distinctive powers and joy. † He realizes what children are capable of if they are given space to imagine and explore ideas of the world that we have forgotten. Murphy thinks like a child and is defending their youth. It is important to know when to give a child space to allow them to become an individual. In defense Murphy argues, â€Å"most of us would like Tom’s childhood followed by Mill’s adulthood. But as parents we are stuck with trying to balance the paradoxical demands of both preparing our children for adulthood and protecting them from it. † The article seems to indicate you can’t have that childhood and young adulthood. I disagree because that is exactly how I grew up. Yes we did have responsibilities on the farm, but when chores were done we did what we wanted to do. We were taught what was right and what was wrong. I believe if you are raised with good morals, respect for yourself and others you can be very successful. I feel the drive to succeed comes from a supportive family and the want to be successful at what you love to do, not what you are forced to do. Murphy uses logic with the comparison of the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle and Jesus. Two of which did not have the same beliefs of children. I disagree with Aristotle when he said â€Å"no child is happy†, the only time a child is happy is when they have thoughts of the achievements as an adult. When a child is given space it gives them the opportunity to imagine, to think outside of the box and capable for intellectual activity. We have to encourage and embrace their uniqueness and imagination or as Jesus did praise our children. I strongly agree with Murphy’s fourth thought, â€Å"We forget that most of us produced our best art, asked our deepest philosophical questions, and most readily mastered new gadgets when we were mere children. † (Murphy 279) As children we are more carefree and have less sense of our surroundings and what people think of us. We are eager to learn and curious about adulthood but should not be rushed to become one. I believe in realizing the capacity of a child, you need to know their capabilities and their limits. Work Citied Behrens, Laurence, and Leonard J, Rosen. Writing and Reading Across the Curriculum. 12th ed. Boston: Pearson, 2013. Print

Professional Dancing

March 6, 2012 Professional Dancing â€Å"There is a bit of insanity in dancing that does everybody a great deal of good. † Edwin Denby. Dance has not left behind identifiable artifacts that prove when dance was created. It is not possible to place a date on when it became part of human culture. For billions of years people have expressed emotions and feelings through movements.Over the years dance has transformed into an art of great proportion in our daily life. Everyone dances for a different reason. Some because dance is a stress reliever and others, it’s a way for them to express themselves, but for professionals it’s because they cannot live without it. To become a professional dancer it takes hours of practice in a studio and the acceptance of not becoming a huge star with a lot of money.To embark on the journey to become a professional dancer the first decision to make is what style of dance, after the decision is made the next step is to find a dance stud io, during the training in the studio cross training will be needed to become stronger and more flexible, the finance, competitions and injuries are all ideas to consider before committing to a vigorous but rewarding schedule. Even though becoming a professional dancer has a high risk of failure and very low pay, the career can be very rewarding and enjoyable.Finding a dance studio that will push the dancer to become a professional is hard. Usually after finding a studio around where the aspiring dancer lives, research is done to make sure the studio is going to push them to be their best. Many dancers train in multiple studios and possibly even a dance school before becoming a professional. To receive a bachelor’s in dance it costs about $25,000 per year. Most aspiring dancers attempt to get scholarships and sponsors. After graduating the jobs offered for dancers are back-up for videos and concerts, teachers and, theater performances.An audition for these jobs is usually man datory. Almost all professional dancers start out at a young age in ballet classes. By the age of 18 the dancer starts to audition for jobs and begin their career. Ballet is known as the foundation of all dance styles. Ballet provides structure of almost all dance moves and control of the body to continue on in the dance style preferable. To continue on in dance the style has to be chosen by the dancer. The number of styles of dance are uncountable but the most popular are ballet, hip hop, contemporary, and ballroom.Usually those four are the styles that become a profession. Most dancers have a preferable dance style they like because of watching others dance on television or in the studio but to choose the style of dance the best way is to experiment with many. Usually after a few years of learning the foundations of dance the dancer starts to train in the style of dance they have chosen but training in the studio is not the only training a professional has to do. To become a profe ssional dancer cross training is needed to build muscle and endurance.Most advise pilates, upper body work, interval training, yoga, and tai-chi. These work outs help the dancer’s flexibility and strength to jump higher and carry out harder more complicated dance moves. With all this pressure to become a better dancer problems start to occur. An estimated amount of almost 100% of dancers has struggled with an eating disorder (Ballet Dancers). â€Å"Almost everyone credits George Balanchine, the renowned dancer, teacher, and choreographer, with the current aesthetic of ballet in the West, referred to by most as the â€Å"Balanchine body,† or the â€Å"anorexic look† (Gordon, 1983).This is one of the many down sides of aspiring dancers. If given help the dancer can usually start eating correctly and continue on in the hope to become a professional. The cost of the dancers training in the studio may cost up to $200. 00 per month. If the dancer decides to enter com petitions the cost to enter train extra and buy the attire can range around $300. 00. The profession of dancing becomes very expensive. Unless the dancer is getting paid to dance the dancer usually has another job on the outside creating the income to pay for the extra necessities of dance. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that dancers and choreographers earned a mean hourly wage of $16. 55 as of May 2010† (Dancing Care†¦). The career in dance is very risky and unpredictable. As an individual dancing everyone has their opinion of what they like and do not like. Because of this it makes the career very hard to get into and successfully have without the struggle of not having enough money. To become a known new aspiring dancer in the fierce profession entering competitions are a must.Usually a solo in a competition costs $90. 00 to enter. Before learning the routine created by a teacher reading the regulations is a smart idea to know what is allowed in the routine and what is not. If the routine was created before the regulations the dance might have to be tweaked so the dancer is not disqualified. A competition can last just a day or over a weekend. The judging is fierce and the competition makes the dancer want to strive even harder to become an amazing artist. Dance is strenuous. In fact, dancers have one of the highest rates of non-fatal on the-job injury. † The causes of most dance injuries are pushing for perfection so hard that muscles are strained, shin splints occur, plantar fasciitis happens, and stress fractures are created. When dancers have this the best way to cure it is stretching before and after dancing. If any serious injury occurs like breaking bones landing a move wrong it could ruin the dancer’s career.Most dancers retire around the age of 30 if an injury happens early the dancers career they will usually retire a teacher. Recovering could take a few weeks to years. A lot of dancers have permanent damage to their body after a vigorous career of muscles being strained and the body being pushed to its limit. Becoming a professional dancer is risky but rewarding. To become a professional dancer it takes hours of practice in a studio and the acceptance of not becoming a huge star with a lot of money.To embark on the journey to become a professional dancer the first decision to make is what style of dance, after the decision is made the next step is to find a dance studio, during the training in the studio cross training will be needed to become stronger and more flexible, the finance, competitions and injuries are all ideas to consider before committing to a vigorous but rewarding schedule. Every dancer has a different opinion of this profession but the ones who love to dance and have the passion that no one could ever take away from them are the ones who are happy and loving every second of it.

Critical, Close Reading Suzanne Collins The Hunger Games Essay

Critical, Close Reading Suzanne Collins The Hunger Games - Essay Example The major strengths of this paper is the use of examples, drawn from the novel as well as real life examples on how authoritarian rule caused rebellion. However, the area I would like to improve on is the analysis section. One of the major themes identified in the novel is power. The main source of power is the authoritarian government that is situated in the Capitol. This is because the Capitol contains majority of the wealth of Panem (Egan and Suzanne, 10). The government also uses this city to control the citizens of Panem. This is by holding the hunger games, whereby teenagers are chosen from the 12 districts and forced to fight to death. The major aim of holding these games was to thwart any form of rebellion from the people. It was also aimed at creating divisions within the districts, and infighting amongst the members of the 12 Districts in Panem (Balkind, 33). This in turn would prevent the citizens of Panem from rebelling against the government. However, these games did not succeed in preventing the citizens of Panem from rebelling. This paper takes a stand that the authoritarian use of power is a motivating factor for rebellion. It identifies circumstances where the citizens of Panem rebell ed against the authorities of the Capitol. This is through the two civil wars that occurred in Panem, and the actions of Katniss Everdeen. Originally, the country of Panem had 13 districts, but due to the authoritarian rule of the Capitol, the first civil war emerged. This was referred to as the Dark Days rebellion, and it was led by the 13th district. However, during this war, district 13 was able to gain independence, and formed its own rule. This is because its military was advanced, and it had threatened to use nuclear weapons to destroy Capitol (Collins, 7). The Capitol and the 13th district signed a secret ceasefire deal that granted district 13 independence. During

Supply chain management article Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Supply chain management article - Essay Example The article, however, argues against these approaches, arguing that they do not help in one-off, complex environments like in construction or shipbuilding (Ullrich, 2014). The main reason provided in the article is that such projects need a combination of many divergent, largely functional products configured in an innovative and unique manner. The paper selects the example of shipbuilding to argue its case. One of the main learning points is the way in which extended supply chains and individual suppliers may be managed in a more proactive manner so that they deliver better performance in the quality of the product, the time of the cycle, responsiveness or flexibility as well as the cost (Seuring, 2013). The most recognized philosophies in supply chain management are Lean Thinking and Agile thinking (Liu, 2007). Lean thinking is in most cases associated with vendor and manufacturing managed inventory namely just-in-time (JIT) and total quality management, also known as TQM. On the other hand, agile thinking involves mass customization and flexible manufacturing (Hugos, 2003). A central preoccupation decides the most appropriate instance to adopt either one of the strategies, or combine them both into one custom strategy referred to as a ‘leagile’ strategy. While the article recognizes the contribution made by several contributors to the topic, Fisher’s contribution stands out because it offers the conceptual foundation for the building of similar supply strategy models (Cantor & Macdonald, 2009). Essentially, he argues in his contribution that the firm’s nature of product offering should determine the most appropriate supply management posture. The main issue, however, is the context in which the testing of these approaches occurs, especially in Fisher’s case (Seuring, 2013). What should be considered, according to this article, is the usefulness of the models in the generation of advice for the

Concepts in Homeland Security Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Concepts in Homeland Security - Assignment Example It is evidently clear from the discussion that partnership between DHS and FBI is important to promote a â€Å"whole community† approach to ensure that every nook and corner of the homeland is safe. The partnership between DHS and FBI and many other agencies enhance the preparedness against low predictability events. This is why professionals in FBI raid jackets can be seen at every other terrorism event despite the fact that DHS is the primary homeland security agency. â€Å"Black Swan† means such a disastrous event whose predictability is very low and its consequences are extremely catastrophic. The disastrous outcomes are high. Some good examples include terrorist attacks, natural and environmental disasters of high scale, and economic failures. The terrorist attack of 9/11 was a big Black Swan event in the history of US because of its zero predictability and high catastrophic outcomes. It was a terrorist attack which could not be anticipated, and thus, preparedness was zero and zilch. So, Black Swan is related to preparedness in a sense that it helps security agencies take measures to implement such classical risk assessment and management policies that help us sort out some of the most predictable events. We can ask ourselves questions, like how predictable is a disaster? What kinds of disasters have been occurring in the neighborhoods or cities in the past? What are the chances that the disaster will become a major event? What can be the level of damage? How much will be the cost for rehabilitation? How will resilience be ensured? What plans and actions can be taken to avoid or deal with such a disaster? These questions will lead us toward preparedness.