Advantages of Boarding School

Good evening, parents and students, and welcome to our school. I understand that many of you are considering joining our school and I would like to share my personal experience of studying at a boarding school. I spent six years studying at a non-residential school and the last three years at the boarding school. I have gained much from my days at a boarding school and I would like to share with you the advantages of studying at such a school. Boarding schools help students to learn to be independent. They learn to understand that they themselves are responsible for many thing that other students take for granted, such as waking up on time and finishing homework within a certain time frame. Boarding school also save time which is spent on travelling to and back from school, not to mention transport expenses. Students also benefit from having regular and nutritious meals provided to them. Staying at the school also makes it possible to have more times for extra-curricular activities. These activities are done on daily basic as opposed to non-residential schools where they are done twice or three times a week. Another benefit is that students have ample time to discuss their homework with their classmates and teachers during the common study periods. There is, therefore, no need to spend money on private tuition. Students and teachers enjoy a closer bond as a result of spending more time together. Teachers provide support and guidance so that students can derive maximum benefit from their schooling experience. I hope that you will join our big family here at this boarding school. Thank you for your time and attention.

Muslim and Hindu Hatred: Gandhi’s and Muhammads Views

Question 2 For hundreds of years there was religious fanaticism in the Hindu and Muslim religions leading up to extreme enmity between both. In India Hindus were the majority while Muslims were the minority therefore Muslims feared that a rule by Hindus would destroy what was more precious to them. This anger towards each other created two separate political groups, the Indian National Congress whose leader was Mohandas Gandhi, and the Muslim League whose leader was Muhammad Ali Jinnah. Although they were from opposing sides they both agreed that cooperation between both religions was necessary for India’s independence.In the section The â€Å"Condition of India† from his pamphlet Indian Home Rule Gandhi expresses his feeling and beliefs towards Muslims, he felt that Hindus and Muslims were the same that both have the same blood running through their veins, and together could form one nation. On the other hand in his Speech to the Muslim League Muhammad makes it clear t hat although he wished for there to be cooperation among both religions he knew that Muslims had to separate from Hindus and become their own nation before things would end in their destruction. Both leaders had similar but also differing views in regards to the anger between Muslims and Hindus.Gandhi was an outstanding figure in India who advocated non-violence when India was seeking its independence from British rule. As India’s independence was approaching Gandhi was struggling to maintain the cooperation between Hindu’s and Muslims. He believed that there could be a fusion of Hindu, Muslim, and Christian in India. In 1908 he wrote a pamphlet known as Indian Home Rule that contains many of his ideas and principles that guided him throughout his career. In the section The condition of India he refers to the concerns of a reader regarding the conflicts between the Hindus and Muslims.In the section the reader is concerned that the introduction of Islam has unmade the n ation. Gandhi responds by stating that â€Å"India cannot cease to be one nation because people belonging to different nations live in it† (Gandhi 214). He believed that the different religions can all merge into one nation. Hindu’s must be dreaming if they believe that only Hindu’s should live in India. According the Gandhi all of the different religions in India must live in unity for their own interest. Another concern that the reader has is in regards to the inborn enmity between the Hindus and Muslims.Gandhi replies by stating that the inborn enmity was a phrase created by their mutual enemy, the British. He also reminds the reader that long before the British occupation Hindu’s and Muslims both recognized that their mutual fighting was a suicidal act and realized that neither was going to abandon its religion with violence, and therefore decided to live in peace. This at least only lasted until the British colonized. Gandhi was not a man of hatred, and although Muslims have different religious beliefs he believed that they both come from the same ancestors and the same blood runs through their veins (Gandhi 215).Muhammad Ali believed that the differences between Hindus and Muslims such as religion and law and culture were not mere superstitions. According to him two divergent nationalities can’t be expected to become one nation by means of the British parliamentary statute. If the unitary government of India failed to accomplish this task then the central federal government would fail as well. In his Speech to the Muslim League Muhammad Ali expresses his support for the establishment of separate homelands. He wanted the division of India into â€Å"autonomous national states† (Jinnah 217).He had little hope for the evolvement of a common nationality between both religions. This was because he believed that Hindus failed to understand the true nature of both religions, and that both were â€Å"distinct social ord ers†. According to Muhammad, â€Å"The Hindus and Muslims belong to two different religious philosophies, social customs, and literatures†, therefore the impression that India could become one nation had to end for it could lead to its destruction (Jinnah 217). Their destruction would also be in part to an increasing dissatisfaction since Muslims were the minority and Hindus the majority.Muslims feared that if both religions were to be brought together under a democratic system they would become ruled by Hindus. Rule by the majority would mean â€Å"the complete destruction of what is most precious in Islam† (Jinnah 217). This fear is the reason Muslims wanted to become their own nation to have their own territory, and their own state. This was exactly what Muhammad was advocating in his speech. India had been a British colony since the 1760’s that provided cotton, labor, and was also a market for British goods.There had always been afflicting poverty in I ndia however in the late 19th century there was growth of Indian intellectuals, education, nationalism, its economy, and communications. This growth lead to the formation of the Indian middles class as well as the growth of political organizations (Lecture). There was the Indian National Congress where its members proposed economic reforms and self-rule. Although the congress represented Muslims as well it was predominantly Hindu and because Muslims feared Hindu majority they began to withdraw from the Congress.This resulted in the Muslim League where self-rule and democratic reforms were advocated. The hatred between Hindus and Muslims was one of India’s biggest problems. Each side had religious fanaticism that if populations were to mix there was violence between both sides. This feud created the two separate parties where the Congress party was led by Gandhi and the Muslim League was led by Muhammad Ali Jinnah (Lecture). Muhammad Ali joined the National Congress in 1906 an d then the Muslim League in 1913.Because he was a member of both organizations he served as an intermediary between both, however he abandoned the Congress because he opposed Gandhi’s campaign of civil disobedience and because they refused to support equal voting rights for the Muslim minority. Spite of that Muhammad continued to work for cooperation between both religions for one cause, India’s independence. Although he worked hard to mitigate the disagreements between Hindus and Muslims the violence between both groups convinced him that it was impossible to fix such a feud, and Muslims would have no future in an independent India.Gandhi on the other hand was a Hindu and so therefore was part of the majority and was leader of the Congress. His main goal was to gain independence for India. But although he was Hindu he was a good person who had no hatred towards Muslims and truly believed in the possibility that both Hindus and Muslims could come together and merge int o one nation. Being that both of these leaders are from opposing sides, and although there might have similar beliefs they each had different views in regards to the violence and hatred between Muslims and Hindus. These differing views can be seen in both Gandhi’s pamphlet and Muhammad’s speech.At first both agreed with cooperation for the forward movement of independence, however both knew that it would be a difficult task. Gandhi’s pamphlet demonstrates that even with all the demonstrations of violence he never lost hope and always believed that both religions would someday come together as one. Muhammad’s speech on the other hand shows that unlike Gandhi he lost hope and realized it was impossible; Hindus and Muslims would never merge into one. Neither of them had hatred towards each other’s religion, both truly wanted for the cooperation and the end of the communal feuds but neither could break such a strong animosity.The enmity between Muslims and Hindus was so strong that neither Muhammad nor Gandhi was able to get both sides to cooperate and get along with one another. Their pamphlet and speech both demonstrate their views and reactions towards the failed attempt for harmony between both sides. Both demonstrate their differing views, Gandhi thought it was possible to reach a consensus and merge into one nation, while Muhammad seemed more realistic and realized it was a lost cause for the Hindus and Muslims.

Homer Simpson and Contemporary American Values of Fatherhood Essay

The Simpsons is one of the many television shows in the United States of America which features a full length cartoon narrating the everyday lives of a family. The show makes us confront the absurdities of how some Americans live through the jovial portrayals and behaviors of the characters in the animated show. While each of the members of the Simpson’s family represent a several prevalent attitudes of Americans—some bordering on the obscene and some bordering on the good—the viewer’s perceptions not only about the American society in which he or she lives in but also about his or her self is challenged. The show seems to attempt to push its viewers to reexamine their lives, reflecting on each character in the Simpson’s family and the rest of the characters in the show. In general, the Simpson household is a dysfunctional family, never aging through the course of the show in years and often ends the show portraying the family members still loving one another despite the odds. For the most part, the Simpson’s family both reinforce and subvert contemporary American values in a number of ways. Each episode highlights the struggles of the family members of the Simpson household and the neighborhood, sometimes reaffirming several social stereotypes and sometimes challenging our comfort zones and our accepted beliefs. In any case, it is important to note that even the seemingly absurd gestures and encounters of every character in the animated show point to contemporary American values that may be either subverted or reinforced, depending on the interpretation of the viewer in most cases. Homer Simpson, the father of the household, embodies the typical American dad. He is a father who enjoys drinking his beer—specifically called â€Å"Duff†Ã¢â‚¬â€who is physically overweight and who is protective of his family. He works at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant despite his careless characteristic, thereby suggesting that he has this potential to bring chaos to the rest of the community with his slightest mistakes while at work. Apparently, Homer’s characteristics reflect the typical American father who has the responsibility to raise his kids and secure the welfare of his family. His character subverts the contemporary American perception that divorce oftentimes results from a family that is dysfunctional. Despite his failures to provide for several needs of the Simpson household, he has never resorted to divorcing his wife, Marge. At the end of the day, Homer finds himself at home together with his wife in bed looking forward to the coming day ahead. Moreover, Homer has been shown to have a strong regard for the welfare of his family in difficult times, such as in â€Å"Lisa the Beauty Queen† (1992) where he sold his prized car in order to enter her daughter, Lisa, into a beauty pageant to make her feel better and in â€Å"A Millhouse Divided† (1996) where he arranged for a second wedding for his wife, Marge, to compensate for their unsatisfactory first wedding ceremony. On the other hand, some of Homer’s characteristics also reinforce some contemporary American values. One of these values is the thinking that typical American fathers spend their time drinking beer and submitting themselves to their weaknesses quite easily. Some of Homer’s weaknesses are his strong craving for doughnuts, his aggressive behavior in difficult times or in times when he is not able to complete his tasks and his low intelligence. In general, these things reinforce the stereotype of the American dad, reflecting the cultural struggle of the American father in the American landscape, losing his intellectual edge along the way. Looking at the ways in which Homer Simpson handles himself before his family, it can be said that his character implies the binary opposition between depth and superficial, centering and dispersal, and distance and participation. For one, the character portrayal of Homer suggests the depth of his personality, one that can be easily interpreted as the typical American father at first glance but one that can also be interpreted as an unusual American dad on closer inspection. Despite raising a dysfunctional family on a daily basis, Homer has not given up on his task as a father although there are times when he seems to be on the verge on giving up on things. While he is considered to be a borderline alcoholic, he does not end up entirely succumbing to his habit. On the contrary, he is able to maintain his fatherly figure and image and goes on to raise his family even when it meant attending to several jobs on many occasions. There is both the depth and the superficial qualities in Homer Simpson that represent American fathers in contemporary society. While at that, Homer’s character is also able to create distance and participation among the viewers. It is not surprising at all if the viewers of the show are able to relate to the experiences of the Simpson household because the experiences of Homer’s family might just as well be the same daily experiences that other households experience. By focusing on the typical experiences of American families, the animated show is able to draw the attention of the viewing public and, in a way, to allow them to â€Å"participate† in the show at least in terms of being able to relate to and find a part of themselves in the show. However, the animated show is also able to distance the viewer from the characters. In the sense that the nature of the show—meaning, its â€Å"animated† structure—makes the characters open to seemingly absurd situations, it is not always the case that the viewers are able to expect an exact representation of their daily experiences. That is, the cartoon characters can perform unrealistic behaviors that the real-life viewers can hardly imitate. The binary opposition between distance and participation in the show is also reflected in terms of how the show portrays the stereotypes prevalent in American society and, in the process, causes its viewers to identify themselves first with the show’s characters and eventually causing them to redefine themselves. The fact that The Simpsons explores the negative stereotypes in contemporary American society suggests that its viewers may or may not be able to fully relate to these stereotypes. Those who are able to relate to these stereotypes are more or less likely expected to distance themselves from these stereotypes or, more specifically, from Elizabeth Traube calls as â€Å"the fictional self that it (stereotype) constructs† (Traube, p. 129). Chandra Mukerji and Michael Schudson further suggest that popular culture has not only been the offspring of society’s â€Å"beliefs, practices and objects generated from political and commercial centers† but has also become â€Å"an entity on its own† (Mukerji and Schudson, p. 53). Thus, it is not surprising to say that there will be so-called â€Å"popular culture† so long as there are conduits for expressing the generally observed patterns of behavior among people. The Simpsons is just one of the many social elements that showcase such patterns. The assumption here is that some television shows such The Simpsons do not only serve the purpose of highlighting parts of the generally observed behaviors of people—behaviors that are parts of stereotypes—but also reinforce and subvert such observations at the same time. The very presence of these kinds of television shows help people realize what they have become. They aid the human civilization to notice the things that have become so familiar they no longer strike the vein of our senses and sensibilities. In â€Å"The Visible Evidence of Cultural Producers†, Maureen Mahon suggests that forms of popular culture serve as â€Å"arenas in which social actors struggle over social meanings and as visible evidence of social processes and social relations† (Mahon, p. 467). Apparently, Homer Simpson’s character in the animated series struggles over social meanings within the context of the show. The context of the show, however, is anchored on the realities happening in the society. That, in turn, suggests that, indeed, the character of Homer is a visible evidence of several social processes and social relations in real life, from his struggles to raise his family and his role as a father. Jerry Herron also suggests that Homer Simpson is not only a â€Å"reminder† of how much of contemporary America has declined but is also a symbol for challenging our attitude towards the social stereotypes. In particular, Homer Simpson is â€Å"an appeal to the sensibility of the public towards popular culture to redefine themselves from the negative to the positive† (Herron, p. 12). But what exactly are these positive and negative aspects and how are we able to identify them without confusing one over the other? The answers do not seem to be as clear and as simple as they seem. Based on Jerry Herron’s article â€Å"Homer Simpson’s Eyes and the Culture of Late Nostalgia†, it appears that Homer Simpson is both a criticism to society’s stereotypes and, at the same time, as an embodiment of those stereotypes. Homer plays the role of an intellectually challenged but loving father. He takes the role of the typical American dad who loves to drink his favorite beer and yet his is a character that challenges the contemporary attitude towards dysfunctional marriages and families. He directs the viewer’s attention to his character while making them reflect on their own lives and society at the same time. He shows some of life’s worse obscenities and yet allows the viewers to realize the stark contrasts between a life worth living and a life that is worthless. In essence, Homer Simpson subverts and reinforces contemporary American values. In â€Å"Stereotypes and Registers of Honorific Language†, Asif Agha argues that stereotypes â€Å"are consciously grasped† and are, hence, â€Å"reportable, discussable, open to dispute† and that â€Å"they serve as models for some individuals and counter-models for others† (Agha, p. 152). Following Agha’s interpretation of stereotypes, the social perception towards the stereotype American father is still open to dispute and can in turn serve as the â€Å"counter-model† for what the American should be. Using Homer Simpson as an example, our notion of the â€Å"right† American dad can be derived from some of the qualities of Homer Simpson. The conscious exposure of the viewing public towards The Simpsons can be an eye-opener for reassessing our standing perception of the stereotype American father. While the image portrayed by Homer is â€Å"an entity on its own†, it is nevertheless still created from the social realities that persist in contemporary America. It is only through a radical change in the contemporary American value system can the American society be lifted from its status quo. But that is not to say that the task of removing the binary opposition between depth and superficial, centering and dispersal and distance and participation begins at the stage where the American public is able to realize the stereotypes and recognize the â€Å"counter-models†. Rather, it begins right at the criticism of such stereotypes prevalent in popular culture. The creation of the character of Homer Simpson is perhaps the first stage in bringing the things that â€Å"dumb down† America into the public awareness. Of course, it is not enough to have shows such as The Simpsons, among others, to emphasize the cultural problems of America and to compel people to address these problems. However, it is only necessary to first bring elements of popular culture into the surface, elements that both reinforce and subvert contemporary American values in order to proceed with the tasks of criticizing what has become of this nation and its people and of resolving what needs to be resolved.

Geography Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Geography - Assignment Example The country I have chosen to discus is Estonia which is officially called the Republic of Estonia. Gulf of Finland borders it on the north, Baltic Sea lies on the west; it shares a border with Latvia on the south and to the east lies the Russian Federation. One of the primary centripetal forces acting on Estonia is the Estonian Language, which is very closely linked with Finnish and thus Estonians are Finnic people. Another centripetal force that acts on Estonia is Music; the Estonians have a tradition of â€Å"Estonian Song Festivals which emerged during that Estonian National Awakening in 1969. Presently, it is one of the largest amateur choral events world-over, and generally a choir comprises of about 18,000 people. Centripetal force acting on Estonia is the Estonian Constitution which guarantees absolute religious freedom, clear distinction between state and religion, the individual privacy in religious practices and affiliations. This leads for Estonia to have one of the highe st levels of irreligious individuals, the highest percentage is of religious followers is that of is Evangelical Lutheranism which has only 14.8% followers in the Estonian population. Estonia also possesses a very well-built information technology sector, it is also measured as the most â€Å"wired† and advanced country in the entire Europe in light of e-Government of Estonia. Estonia is expected to receive 3.4 billion Euros in the next few years which will be invested in the energy sector, economic and local development and welfare activities. The cultural indicators of language and music will also continue to bind the Estonian people, so I predict that these initiatives will boost the Estonian economy I the next ten years. The centrifugal forces acting on Estonia are in terms if their main industry and the impact they are having on the environment. Environmentally conscious individuals as well as the Estonian Government are very

Substance abuse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Substance abuse - Essay Example Karen wanted to draw strength from her two daughters, not knowing whether what she has said could make things better, or worse. Philip was nowhere to be found, or he was gone off with somebody. Kids seemed responsible high school students. When Karen is off for the office, she’d see the girls in their room studying, but mostly, Marie is much busy with the internet. As time went by, Marie showed signs of irritability and getting angry over small things. The two kids would also fight over trivial matters. And Karen couldn’t give the needed extra attention to the kids; her job demanded as much time now that she had to earn more. Some chain reaction: Joanne’s school report of falling grades, and behavior problems like prolonged temper tantrums, excessive aggression, impulsivity or risk taking. Sometimes, Karen would discover sticks of cigarettes, rolling paper and pipe in Joanne’s handbag, and the smell of alcohol in her young girl’s breath. Is it too late for Karen to have discovered Joanne’s – and Marie’s – substance abuse? The basic institution in a community which is the family has the first responsibility of detecting and coping with substance abuse in kids. Parents should be able to detect early signs of drug problem in their children before things get worse. But what if the single parent, in this case Karen, has first to recover from the trauma of divorce? According to Crowley and Whitmore, adolescents who might be using drugs have a change of behavior. The signs Karen observed in her two kids are indications that one or both are into drugs. Where could they have gotten of the illegal drugs? Numerous sources could provide – school, peers, the internet, etc. Forman (2008) has an intriguing article entitled â€Å"Drug Dealers in Your Home†. He said that the â€Å"internet is a haven for selling and buying all sorts of drugs without prescription.† This means that anybody can buy drugs through websites

Impacts of Cybercrime on Shareholder Value and Marketing Essay

Impacts of Cybercrime on Shareholder Value and Marketing - Essay Example This discussion declares that Yahoo.com, Ebay.com, and Amazon.com were attacked by cyber-terrorists in February, in the year 2000. It is believed that the attack was conducted by a hacker and Elias Levy the chief technology officer at that time, of CSIS, mentioned that it was difficult to find who did the attack since there were many machines that were used to do the attack, and the attack could have been directed from any part of the globe. In addition, according to him, the same group could have held all the attacks in these three online sites since it happened almost the same day. It was later discovered that a boy by the name of Michael Calce was the one who executed the crime. Michael Calce was a fifteen year old Canadian citizen whose nickname was Mafia boy. This paper highlights that Amazon announced to its users that their passwords had to be changed, what they termed as a preventive measure towards protecting the users passwords. This was after they detected various passwords and email addresses that did not relate to Amazon, posted online. So, they had to change their user’s passwords because they believed that the same passwords were used in other websites. Users were advised not to use their previous passwords for the sake of safety. The software helped him to hack into the websites of Amazon, eBay, Dell, CNN, and yahoo and made some harmful alterations to the program coding.

Final report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Final report - Essay Example The target audiences of the kit is both children and adults. To facilitate the programming of the kit, a programming language referred to as NXT has been developed by LEGO. This programming language gives everyone the ability to possess full control of the Lego Mindstorm Kit (Valk). The use of this programming language if efficient even for people who lack programming language skills. This project is aimed at constructing a programming a robot that has the ability to pick balls from the ground, carry the ball for at least one meter following a black line drawn on the ground and place the ball in a container 0.50 metres high. A LEGOÂ ® MINDSTORMSÂ ® NXT 2.0 kit will be utilized in building and programing the robot. The choice of this kit among other robotics platform was very carefully chosen due to various reasons. The kit fulfilled several requirements. This requirements are; it has an architecture which has made able to be programmed efficiently at different complexity levels. Moreover, the kit is exploitable at many levels of complexity. And finally, it’s simple yet equipped with robust functionality which are expandable. The equipment also has several advantages which include very short start – up time, the setup process does not involve electrical wiring, among other advantages. Lego Mindstorm NXT, which is a kit used to program robots, is dated back to 2001 when it was released by LEGO (Nguyen). The kit is advantageous over other robotic programming kits since it has the ability to interact efficiently with the outside world by use of input and output sensors. Moreover, Lego Mindstorm platform has the powerful ability to support a wide variety of sensors which include the EOPD sensors, the compass sensors, the Acceleration sensors, the Gyroscope sensors among many others. With this sensors, the developed robot is able to harvest signals from the environment in order to carry out the predefined tasks. To