Gang Violence in the United States Essay -- Exploratory Essays Researc

Gang Violence in the United States Gang violence in America is reaching alarming proportions. Chicago police Commander Donald Hilbring states, "Gangs are everywhere. All throughout the city of Chicago, the suburbs, throughout the state, throughout the nation." Chicago police state that so far this year, more than 100 gang-related murders have occurred. Everyday an other report on the evening news relays the tragedy of a child accidently caught in gang crossfire. The image of black, inner-city teenagers selling "crack" on neighborhood street corners and shooting it out over drug "turf" comes to mind whenever we hear the story told. What can we do to understand and remedy this problem before an entire generation is lost? We hear the stories about abused, abandoned children. We hear about drug-addicted mothers and absent fathers. We hear about children forced to fend for themselves in a cold, hard world. It's no wonder kids join gangs. They need someone to care. They are looking for a sense of belonging and family. Yet, not all youngsters who join gangs are looking for a sense of belonging. Often, adult gang members lure teenagers into gang activity. They establish them as drug dealers, use them as car thieves, and often pay them to commit robberies and even shoot rival gang members. Adults use juveniles because the law does not prosecute them in the same manner as adults. Under the current system, the teenagers are back on the streets, and the adults are rarely caught. Just as we assume we know the reasons kids join gangs, we also assume we know who joins gangs. Gang violence is stereotypically thought of as a Black or Latino, inner-city problem. Dr. George Knox, an expert on gangs, says, ... ...her Chicago neighborhood, COP-Citizens on Patrol, a volunteer group, has formed a neighborhood watch group. They patrol the streets and report any suspicious activity to the police. Their presence helps reduce gang activity on the streets of their community. Juvenile justice reform, programs for rehabilitation, and adult concern and involvement are all ways to help remedy the current crisis of gang warfare in our streets. For those youth already involved in gangs, rehabilitation and counseling may help rescue them. For those youth who refuse to give up the gang lifestyle and crime, tougher juvenile laws should put them in jail, away from other children and the rest of society. Finally, parents and community members need to care. Children who grow with parental guidance, in an environment of care and concern, are much less likely to fall prey to gangs.

Is Your Sore Throat Strep?

Is Your Sore Throat Strep? By Kristin Hayes, About. com Guide Updated October 06, 2009 About. com Health's Disease and Condition content is reviewed by the Medical Review Board Question: Is Your Sore Throat Strep? It can be difficult to tell if your sore throat is strep or simply a cold virus. However, in most cases of strep throat there are some key differences. Answer: The only way to know for sure if your sore throat is strep is to have a rapid strep test or a throat culture.These tests must be performed at a physician's office, but let's face it you can't go running in to the doctor every time your throat gets a little scratchy. Characteristics of strep throat include a severe sore throat that may cause pain or difficulty swallowing. The back of the throat is usually very red and there may be white patches in the back of the throat or on the tonsils. The tonsils and lymph nodes also may be swollen. Some people get a fever. It is not uncommon to be very tired and achy or to lose y our appetite.In some cases you may get a rash. The biggest difference between strep throat and a cold virus is that strep throat usually does not cause runny nose, congestion, sneezing or coughing. All cases of strep throat must be treated with an antibiotic to avoid serious complications including heart problems, kidney problems or Scarlett fever — especially in children. For these reasons, it is very important to see the doctor if you or your child have symptoms of strep throat.

A financial quagmire Essay

The whole world is in a financial quagmire. A myriad of financial woes have engulfed financial institutions and any other corporations in this domain all the world round. This financial meltdown came to the light following the collapse of Lehmann Brothers, after which this financial crunch came to be addressed in the open and by all the governments. The United States of America was at the core of this crunch. This was further aggravated by the fact the Bush administration was finalizing on its clench to power. A presidential election was looming and the major rivals; Barack Obama and John McCain were faced with the uphill task of unveiling their plans regarding keeping the crisis at bay and mitigating the effects. Both unveiled their economic plans to the American public and the public chose to go as per Mr. Obama’s plans; a bailout through a federal stimulus package (BRUNE, para 4). After his election, the Congressional Democrats in partnership with President Obama came forth with an $825 billion dollar fiscal recovery package known to many as the Federal Stimulus Package. This would give the unemployed Americans a chance to improve their lives and ensure that each and every American faces little or no difficulty in dealing with the costs of living during this period. Analysts have come forward and allegedly claim that the effects of this crisis would be felt for the next several years. The package would be used on education, aid to states for Medicaid costs, increase in unemployment benefits and on an arena of public works and projects in order to increase the jobs available to the public (HERSZENHORN, para 2 ). The proposal of the stimulus came under serious criticism and has become subject to a lot of intense haggling, fierce lobbying by the Republicans and its core details have come under intense negotiations. A lot of pessimism has been expressed over this stimulus. Many bear the taciturn notion that it will only plunge the country into deeper waters. The Americans would have to face an ugly recession, which is in its all-time high, and a nationwide unemployment rate of 12%. The plan, christened by the Democrats as â€Å"American Recovery and Reinvestment Bill of 2009†, has been President Obama’s core agenda as many see it as the determining factor of the direction of his presidency. The fact that it was one of his major campaign promises that gave him an edge over his rivals leaves him with no choice but to be more pragmatic and see to it that this succeeds. A breakdown of the package includes $87 billion towards the aid to states for Medicaid costs, $79 billion for colleges and local public schools to avoid cutbacks, $90 billion for infrastructure, $54 billion to push for the production of energy from renewable sources, $10 for science and research, $6 billion for enhancement of broadband services in rural areas, $13 billion for the disabled students, $1 billion towards technology enhancement and $43 billion to extend jobless benefits and retraining; to name but just a few. Though viewed by critics as a step of misplaced ambitions and misdirected energy, it is a major leap and a good example of walking the talk rather than sitting back to let nature take its course (HERSZENHORN, para 8). Economic experts are quick to add that though the stimulus is huge, it is not close to enough in stabilizing the economy of the United States of America. This is the highest amount of bailout that a single government has ever instituted on its economy. It is a great effort and jolt to the American economy, seen as a move to curb economic catastrophe. Bearing in mind that there is no other viable fiscal plan at hand, the stimulus package is worth a try. Many are wise enough to note from history of The Great Depression that counteraction is the measure and any procrastination would translate to nothing short of economic suicide. Work Cited: HERSZENHORN, D. M., Congress Moves on Stimulus Bill and Bailout Money. Retrieved on 2nd April 2009 from: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/16/business/economy/16webstimulus.html?_r=1&pagewanted=1, 2009 BRUNE, T., Economic stimulus package could reach $1.2T. Retrieved on 2nd April 2009 from: http://www.newsday.com/news/printedition/nation/ny-usstim085956982dec08,0,5280976.story, 2008

eaters of the dead essays

eaters of the dead essays In his novel, Eaters of the Dead, author Michael Crichton shows how the Volga Northmen were able to defeat their foes, the wendol, by using their intellect instead of their weapons. This is seen in four aspects. The theme of the novel is that physical courage is not enough to preserve your culture and lifestyle: intelligence and superior knowledge are absolutely essential. Conflict between the wendol and the Northmen shows which group has the intelligence to eliminate the other. Symbolism of wisdom, knowledge, and the lack of such things are used by Crichton to illustrate this moral. The juxtaposition of characters emphasizes the cleverness of the Volga Northmen compared to the Venden Northmen. The theme of the story is that applying intelligence and knowledge is essential in order to keep ones culture alive. A good proof of this is the lack of knowledge of Ahmad Ibn Fadlan, the narrator of the story. He is an Arab who "knows nothing of the ways of the world" (p. 77) because he has never truly experienced the world before that day, since he does not care for adventure. Having no experience with the world and having no knowledge, Ibn Fadlan slowly learns the Northmens way of life. In the end, felt he "had been born a Northman" (p. 152), having spent much time in their company and is no longer the coward he was when he started the trip. His lack of knowledge causes him to be a coward in battle, since he will be battling frightening, mysterious creatures. A better proof of this is that the wendol acts as if they are animals, which are unintelligent. The wendol makes "a low grunting sound, like the rooting of a pig" (p. 97), "have hair as long as a hairy dog" (p. 99), and wear the heads of dead animals as masks. They act as if they were brainless and cannot think of ways of attack on the Northmen. The only thing they can think of when they are losing is to retreat. Their ignorance to provide more guards at the second entrance...

Free Essays on Gender Identity

This article is mainly about gender identity concerning adolescents. Most boys have a stereotype of playing sports such as baseball, football, and basketball. Playing with cars and army men is usually the expected behavior portrayed by boys. The boy in this article, at age four, loved to wear red, sparkly shoes. He also has fun playing with dolls. As Robert, the boy, advanced higher in school education, other students began to taunt him. The parents of Robert were advised to seek a psychologist about gender issues. For Robert’s sake, the parents looked against the advise because they thought Robert looked happy and anything else would make him feel abnormal. Starting around age five most kids have a sense of identification with their own sex. The kids who don’t go through it may be teased by peers and puzzled by parents. When the teasing starts many parents begin to realize there’s a problem. Not only Robert’s peers criticize him, but adults do as well. As kids get older their sense of emotion develops more. For boys who like doing things that people say are girlish, the situation becomes harder for them. This can drive a boy to become angry and violent at the world; Which is very disturbing. For instance, a boy in the article was constantly being teased while having games played on him. Then one day, out of anger he made a fake bomb threat on his home and blamed the kids who picked on him. All this criticism deprives people from being their own person. Changing schools can put parents into a financial problem as well. Switching from public to private schools can be extremely expensive, but some parents are forced to do so. Sometimes, parents ask themselves if they had done something to confuse their child. That’s a main question parents wonder about when their child doesn’t conform to gender stereotypes. A child psychologist says the parents shouldn’t feel guilty for a child’s likes and dislike... Free Essays on Gender Identity Free Essays on Gender Identity This article is mainly about gender identity concerning adolescents. Most boys have a stereotype of playing sports such as baseball, football, and basketball. Playing with cars and army men is usually the expected behavior portrayed by boys. The boy in this article, at age four, loved to wear red, sparkly shoes. He also has fun playing with dolls. As Robert, the boy, advanced higher in school education, other students began to taunt him. The parents of Robert were advised to seek a psychologist about gender issues. For Robert’s sake, the parents looked against the advise because they thought Robert looked happy and anything else would make him feel abnormal. Starting around age five most kids have a sense of identification with their own sex. The kids who don’t go through it may be teased by peers and puzzled by parents. When the teasing starts many parents begin to realize there’s a problem. Not only Robert’s peers criticize him, but adults do as well. As kids get older their sense of emotion develops more. For boys who like doing things that people say are girlish, the situation becomes harder for them. This can drive a boy to become angry and violent at the world; Which is very disturbing. For instance, a boy in the article was constantly being teased while having games played on him. Then one day, out of anger he made a fake bomb threat on his home and blamed the kids who picked on him. All this criticism deprives people from being their own person. Changing schools can put parents into a financial problem as well. Switching from public to private schools can be extremely expensive, but some parents are forced to do so. Sometimes, parents ask themselves if they had done something to confuse their child. That’s a main question parents wonder about when their child doesn’t conform to gender stereotypes. A child psychologist says the parents shouldn’t feel guilty for a child’s likes and dislike...

Warehousing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Warehousing - Essay Example The need for operations managers to reduce manufacturing costs, optimize productivity and improve product quality in order to stay in the market has become imperative. Many organizations now recognize the importance of automation, optimization of scheduling and a proper inventory management system, and are incorporating total quality management and total quality in their operations. Every organization invests a considerable amount of capital on materials. In many cases, the cost of materials exceeds 50 percent of the total cost of goods produced ((ICMR), 2003). Such a large investment requires considerable planning and control so as to minimize wastage. Even before we talk about planning and control it is inevitable that the material is stored in a safe place and such place of storing materials is termed as a warehouse. Hence, Warehousing can be defined as the process of storing goods or merchandise safely (Answers.com, 2004). Inventory refers to a stock of goods, commodities, or other economic resources that are held by firms at a particular time for their future production requirements and for meeting future demands. Inventories can be direct or indirect. Direct inventories include goods that play an important role in manufacturing of a product and become a part of the finished product. Direct inventories include raw materials, work-in-progress goods, etc. Indirect inventories include goods that are necessary to run the production process but do not become part of the end product. For example, lubricants, grease, oils, stationery etc, are indirect inventories. 2. Brief History of Warehousing As defined above, a warehouse is a commercial building used for storage of goods. Warehouses are used by people like manufacturers, importers, exporters, people in the logistics industry etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial areas of cities and towns. They come equipped with loading docks to load and unload trucks; or sometimes are loaded directly from railways, airports, or seaports. They also often have cranes and forklifts for moving goods, which are usually placed on ISO standard pallets loaded into pallet racks (Answers.com, 2004). With advent of globalization and information technology, now-a-days, warehouses are being fully automated. In such automated warehouses, there are hardly any workers found working inside. The pallets and product are moved with a system of automated conveyors and automated storage and retrieval machines coordinated by programmable logic controllers and computers running logistics automation software (Answers.com, 2004). With the introduction of new and recent technologies like Just-in-time (JIT) and ABC classification systems,

Tax return problem Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Tax return problem - Essay Example For instance, the capsizing of Paul’s boat is not exempted from the tax imposed on his income, but his sale of shares and the profits that he made from the sale of Acme shares are included in the tax thus increasing the amount he is taxed overall. Secondly, the addition of the extension to their house to accommodate Hanna, leads to an increase in the property tax. Another major consideration that has to be imposed is the child support they receive from Bob, since the paper requires the child tax laws to be ignored. Such considerations had to be included in the calculation process. Primarily, income, expenditure and property changes schedule were included to evaluate the changes in the amounts. After the schedule was evaluated, then the tax calculations were made. The focus was put on the changes in the tax, using the same ratio as that imposed by the IRS on previous incomes. Alternatively, all the additional incomes would be collectively collected and then taxed. Additionally, the unreimbursed expenses that Paul underwent were not considered, as the latest the tax refund will be made is in December 2012. This shows that despite the fact that they were unreimbursed, by the time the refund is made the tax will have already been imposed for the next year, thus showing that it will be exempted from the next year