Cellbazaar, Burgeoning Mobile Marketplace of Bangladesh Free Essays

CellBazaar, Burgeoning Mobile Marketplace of Bangladesh Abstract CellBazaar, MIT Media Lab project, is the biggest mobile based online marketplace in Bangladesh. It is nothing but a platform that contains the information of its customers who are willing to sell their products or services and buyers or people at large go through that information posted by the sellers to search out the product serve their interest best. Cellbazaar is in service industry as well as in IT industry. We will write a custom essay sample on Cellbazaar, Burgeoning Mobile Marketplace of Bangladesh or any similar topic only for you Order Now The main goal of providing service of this organization is to provide error free services to the customer and to fulfill that goal all the activities are run in the organization. Section One: Introduction CellBazaar, often called the Mobile Craigslist of Bangladesh, has provided a martketplace to buy and sell goods and service to Bangladeshis for three and a half years now. Since then, the service has grown and has now user base of just under 4 million. Cell Bazaar processes 1000 posts/day, and founder Kamal Qadir was chosen by the World Economic Forum as a Young Global Leader in 2009. It started its operation in June 2006 that allows people to buy and sell over mobile phones. Nearly 23 million Grameenphone users can buy any agricultural product, such as rice, fish, or chicken, as well as large-scale purchases like an apartment, land, or car, and consumer goods such as a television or refrigerator. People can also offer services, like tutoring, house rent etc. The service is run by the customers: they post items for sale, delete items after they are sold, adjust prices if items fail to sell, and do much more besides. Initially started working in mobile phone platform now it has entered into the Web platform to reach the global audience. Section Two: Overview of Cellbazaar in Bangladesh 2. 1 Idea Generation Kamal Quadir, Bangladeshi by born, originally designed CellBazaar at MIT as a graduate student. In developing countries, the limits on communication technology hinder business. People must travel great distances to get market information. Isolated and uninformed, farmers, traders and business people have little information, and thus no power to bargain with middlemen. CellBazaar was devised to solve this problem. Using this platform, everyone gathers market information so they can make smart business decisions. In the process they provide a birds’ eye view of the entire market for both sellers and buyers (Qadir K. Mohaiemen N. , 2009). 2. 2 Formation Kamal Quadir registered CellBazaar as a U. S. business and moved into rapid-action mode. He raised the necessary capital from Omidyar Network, Barred Rock Capital and Gray Matters Capital in the U. S. Soon, they had registered the company as a Foreign Direct Investor—a process which is normally quite byzantine in Bangladesh had filed a patent application with the Bangladesh patent office, and had signed an exclusive partnership with Grameenphone, the country’s largest mobile operator with 60% market share (Qadir K. Mohaiemen N. , 2009). 2. 3 Growth of Cellbazaar Over the year 2010, Grameenphone is the largest mobile phone operator in Bangladesh with over 23 million subscribers. Dubbed the â€Å"Craigslist of Bangladesh†, it is a mobile application that brings buyers and sellers together in a mobile environment where they can publish and retrieve information on goods or services. 35,396 posts for multiple products in 141 categories are available for viewing, ranging from livestock to education services to agri-produce to electronics. Users pay standard SMS, WAP and voice rates to access the service. Accodring to the world’s number one web site rating organization Alexa the web page of the CellBazar is in the 53th position in Bangladesh and its 98. % of the browse are made from Bangladesh. According to the www. alexa. com (viewed 16 December 2010, at BDT 2:58 pm) daily page viewed of cellbazaar is 13,011 and its daily advertisement cost is $238. 12. The diversity of products posted has resulted in constant innovation and change. As the company grows and matures, it looks set to be the first Internet model startup in Bangladesh’s history, with global media interest, local imitators, overseas expansion plans, and international-standard management and staffing. 2. Platform of Operation (http://corp. cellbazaar. com/) Short Message Service (SMS): SMS has been phenomenally popular since its introduction in Bangladesh. CellBazaar leverages the simple, widespread power of SMS to bring the market to phone. Wireless Application Protocol (WAP): WAP is the next generation of mobile phone technology. 12% of all mobile sets in Bangladesh are already WAP-enabled, and this number is growing rapidly. WAP provides an even faster experience as you browse a simple graphic menu to access the entire market space. WEB: WEB version shows the entire market at a glance on computer screen. Anyone with internet access can browse the market, and post items for sale. Interactive Voice Response (IVR): Any Grameenphone user can dial 3838 and listen to the latest items on the market in Bengali. After dialing 3838, users choose from 8 categories: Jobs, Mobile Phones, Agriculture, Motorcycle, Car, Electronics, Computers, and To-Let. Every few hours, users will hear new information through this service. 2. 5 Partners (http://corp. ellbazaar. com/) Grameenphone (GP): Grameenphone is the largest mobile telecommunication operator in Bangladesh by revenue and subscribers base. It incorporated on October 10, 1996 as a private limited company and commenced service on the independence day of Bangladesh- March 26, 1997. Grameenphone Community Information Centre (GP CIC): It is a shared premise for both Cellbazaar and GP. Katalyst: Katalyst aims at poverty reduction via private sector growth, mainly through small medium enterprises (SME) development. KATALYST is funded by DFID, SDC, Swedish Sida and Canadian CIDA and is implemented by Swisscontact and GTZ International Services and works together with the Bangladesh Ministry of Commerce Thakral: It is a Joint Venture between the Thakral Group of Singapore (operating in 30 countries) and Esquire Group of Bangladesh. Thakral is IBM’s exclusive representative in Bangladesh and works on software development on mainframes, data warehousing, etc. BracNet provides enterprise organizations with a high-speed dedicated Internet access via a Cisco Powered backbone engineered for mission critical data. It is an affiliation of Brac, the world’s largest non-government organization BRAC Bank Limited (BBL): BBL with institutional shareholdings by BRAC, International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Shorecap International has been the fastest growing Bank in 2004 and 2005. The Bank operates under a â€Å"double bottom line† agenda where profit and social responsibility go hand in hand as it strives towards a poverty-free, enlightened Bangladesh. Prothom Alo: Bangla daily newspaper â€Å"Prothom Alo† is Bangladesh’s largest circulation Bengali language newspaper and a key influence on cultural trends. CellBazaar provides Prothom Alo classifieds on the mobile phone. The Daily Star: English daily newspaper â€Å"The daily Star† is Bangladesh’s largest circulation English language newspaper. CellBazaar provides Daily Star classifieds on the mobile phone. Section Three: Conclusion and Recommendation 3. 1 Conclusion CellBazaar is a virtual marketplace that allows buyers and sellers to connect with one another and buy and sell goods and services using their mobile phones. CellBazaar enables entrepreneurs and small businesses in Bangladesh to start and grow operations in a market that wouldn’t otherwise be available in their local community, thereby creating jobs, stimulating the economy, and delivering products and services that improve the lives of millions of poor people. The service is not just mobile classified ads but a social development service. It cuts outs the middlemen for buyers and sellers which means more profit and savings for them. 3. 2 Recommendation CellBazaar successfully provides over 3. million buyers and sellers in Bangladesh masses of market information at their fingertips, unlike similar environments in developing markets. However, CellBazaar is limited to search facilities only. Its effectiveness in providing users with the full potential of mCommerce is restricted by two key factors: 1. A lack of a secure and trusted payment method to complete transactions on the system; and 2. A lack of cost-effective, reliable infrast ructure to permit delivery of goods to take place through the system. In addition, a critical success factor that is required in order to enable transactions to be completed on the system is trust between parties: trust that sellers will deliver goods that fit the description and quality standards previously communicated, and trust that the buyer will make the payment. In other more sophisticated cellbazaar trusts is ensured by feedback mechanisms; this includes buyer and seller ratings, comment facilities, etc. A lack of policies which offer some kind of safeguards, should there be a breach in trust by either party will deter parties from engaging in transactions in an eMarketplace. References 1. Qadir K. Mohaiemen N. , â€Å"Cellbazar: A Market in your Packet†, innovation/mobile world congress, 2009, pp. 59-71 2. Stevenson. J. W. , â€Å"Operation Management†, McGraw-Hill Irwin, 2009, pp. 397-471 3. http://corp. cellbazaar. com/ 4. www. wikipedia. org 5. www. alexa. com 6. CB Amazon – lirneasia. net ———————– WEB IVR WAP SMS Platform GP BRAC Net Thakral Katalyst GPCIC Prothom Alo The Daily Star BRAC Bank Content Partners Technological Partners Educational Partners Core Partners Partners How to cite Cellbazaar, Burgeoning Mobile Marketplace of Bangladesh, Essay examples

3 Non Traditional Religions Voodoo, Spiritualism, Essay Example For Students

3 Non Traditional Religions Voodoo, Spiritualism, Essay CultsReligion is primary agent of social control in our society. Due to its communally held beliefs and principles, we have a foundation on which we can rest the laws, values, and the main doctrine, of almost any society. Here in America, we have tremendous freedom in both establishing and in choosing the religion of our choice. This freedom has given birth to many non-traditional religions and practices. When discussing the topic of social control and order within a society, these non-traditional religions can be used very strongly to bring about social change within an individual then into the population. On the rise in our nation, is the emergence of voodoo practices, the belief in spiritualism, and many groups of cults. Each one of these religions has the extreme ability to influence the individual in many psychological and physical ways, drastically changing a persons behavioral patterns. While inducing these changes upon the individual, many people can and usually will, succumb explicit exploitation of themselves as well as their economic resources. Voodoo, whose name derived from the African word for spirit (Origins of Voodoo), came to us through the European colonization of the West Indies. African tribes were forcibly shipped overseas, primarily to Haiti and other Caribbean lands, to be used as agricultural slaves. Upon the arrival in their new country, the slaves were baptized into the Roman Catholic Church. In fear of revolt, the colonists separated the many tribes of slaves and had them dispersed all across the new land. This result was a mixture of African slaves, forced to live together, naturally adapting to each others lifestyles, habits, and beliefs systems. The slaves were forced to attend a Catholic Mass on a regular basis, however, many of the assimilated tribes continued to practice their native religion. When the colonists found this out, the persecution of many African slaves took place. They were violently beaten and killed for worshiping their own gods, and not the one of the Catholic religion. It was through this persecution that the tribes did not separate; rather, they came together and formed together with the common bond of their religion. The religious beliefs and the rituals from many of the tribes began it integrate, ultimately creating a new religion: Voodoo. Voodoo is based on the manifestation of the spirit world through the channel of the human being. This is achieved through the acts of rituals in highly structured Voodoo ceremonies, which are preformed by a Voodoo Priest. A male priest is referred to as a Houngan, and a female is referred to as a Mambo. There are two types of Voodoo or magic, used in Voodoo, White Magic, and Black Magic. White Magic involves the usage of candles, oils, plants, and potions, to obtain certain things in life. For example, one might attend or perform a White Magic ceremony to obtain power, love, or money. This ritual or ceremony is used in a positive manner only, it causes no harm, nor does it pose any threat upon the individual or on others. Black Magic or Red Voodoo, on the other hand, involves evil and harmful acts. Black magic is preformed by a Bokor, which is one who uses evil acts of sorcery, involving death and zombie curses. A zombie curse involves a ritual where the Bokor poisons his human subject, resulting in death. After three days, the dead is revived and becomes the Bokors eternal slave (Haitian Voodoo Culture). The followers of the Voodoo religion believe in one Supreme Being, named Bondye. Under Bondye, there are hundreds of minor gods and Loas. A Loas refers to the spirit of someone who has led an exceptional life. The Loas exercise control over nature, health, wealth, happiness, and all prosperity of mortals. The human followers and the Laos exercise a dependency-based relationship with one another. The Loas provide prosperity, and the humans provide food, and other material objects to the Laos as an offering. The altars that are each dedicated to one specific Loa are encompassed with candles, pictures of the Loa, and anything else referring to the Loa. A prime example of a Loa is one named Zaka. Zaka is the god or spirit of agriculture; he provides prosperity over the crops of any given land. One might want to make contact with this Loa to ensure abundance in the years crop. Through the ritual and the altar, one might present an offering of seeds, fruit, or a shovel. In return, the Loa will provide health, fortune, and protection of evil spirits over his followers. In the doctrine of Voodoo, the human soul is made up of two parts: the Gros-bon-ange and the Ti-bon-age. The Ti-bon-age is the part of the soul that leaves the body during sleep and the part that can also be possessed by a Loa in a ceremony. The Gros-bon-ange is the part of the soul, which upon death, rejoins with the sprit world and can be reused. It a common belief in Voodoo, that the soul can be taken over by evil spirits when it is freed from the body. It is through the act of rituals in ceremonies that a voodoo priest is able to make contact with the spiritual world. A Voodoo ceremony takes place in a temple called a Honfor. At the center of Honfor is a spirit pole called a Poto-Mitan. The Poto-Mitan represents the center of the universe and it is through this pole, that humans are able to connect with the spirit world. A voodoo ceremony has several key elements that make it possible to connect with the spirit world. A general voodoo ceremony would be acted out as follows:A feas t would be held before the main ceremony. This feast may include the sharing of food, and or alcohol. The ceremony will them begin with the introduction of the Veve banners or flags. A Hounsis (A Voodoo priestess), will bring these flags out and wave them around to assist in the summoning of Loa. The flags are created by the Houngan and are made out of silk or satin material. They are decorated with sequins, beads, and seed pearls. Meanwhile, in the background there is a constant rhythm of drumbeats. The music and dancing play an important role in the ceremony. It is through the music that one is able to be put into a trance-like state and become possessed by the Loa. Within the ceremony, there are usually three particular drums used. Within the ceremony, their are generally three drum used. The Manman, which is the largest of the three, it is about three feet tall, and is beating standing up using a small wooden hammer in one hand and the other bare hand. The Segond drum, which is about two feet tall, is played by a seated drummer holding the drum between the legs. The drum is beaten using both hands. The smallest drum is named bula. It is beaten using two very long thin sticks. Dancing is performed by the Houngan and Hounsis. The Houngan focuses the dance around the spirit pole. It is through the dancing of the Houngan that intensity builds up resulting in the Hounsis becoming possessed by a loa. The Houngan also uses the aid of an Asson. An Asson is sacred rattle constructed out of a gourd that is decorated with coral and snake bones. The Houngan will also create a Veve, which is a sand painting. The Veve is constructed on the floor of the Hounfor and is created around the spirit pole. The Veve is made out of flour or cornmeal and is dedicated to the Loa in which the ceremony is being acted out. A Voodoo ceremony may include an animal sacrifice. The Houngan may sacrifice a goat, sheep, pig, or chicken to satisfy the hunger of their Loa. The throat of the an imal is slit, and the blood is collected in a special ceremonial cup, the Hounsis, or person possess, will then drink the blood. This is believed to satisfy the hunger of the Loa. (Vodun (Voodoo))Haiti still remains the dominant country in which Voodoo is practiced in. Voodoo was able to bring together many people in a time of sorrow and persecution. Throughout the years, many people have suffered for their beliefs in the Voodoo religion. Voodoo still stands strong in many cultures and is a dominant force in many peoples lives. Voodoo encompasses the whole family and embraces the influence of ancestors in ones individual life. Voodoo is not only a religion, but a way of life. The use of extravagant and clairvoyant formal ceremonies is used in many non-traditional religions to manifest the realm of the spiritual world, right here the natural. As seen, Voodoo has its own distinct ways of communicating with the spiritual realm. Many other religions also use spiritual items or objects o f nature, as means of transcending into the spiritual realm; which brings us to the next topic of spiritualism. The Prevalent Issues of Surrogate Parenting EssayOut of the millions of people who fall victim to the persuasion of the cult way of life, very few escape this lifestyle. Those who do are exposed with long tern psychological effects, creating many problems for the individual, as they try to readjust to normal every day life. Frequently, cult survivors initially suffer from depression. The fact of no longer belonging to an elite group, or not having a sense of purpose within themselves, causes the individuals to fall into massive depressive states. Those who have been involved in the cult for quite sometime will also suffer from loneliness, as they have left their former source of family and friendship. Indecisiveness is also a major symptom; normal decisions become very complicated for this individual because everything had been previously decided for them (what to wear, what to eat, etc.). And fear of their former cult reigns inside them. At the very thought of betrayal and the coe rced effects if it, leaves the individual with an underlying sense of fear and insecurity. Surviving members are highly recommended to get some sort of psychological counseling immediately after exiting the cult. Those who do receive counseling have a quicker and a greater success in merging back into society as productive individuals. Non-traditional religions thrive on the limiting involvement of the government concerning religion. Many of these religions have highly unorthodox practices in which followers faithfully participate it. In any other circumstances excluding religion, many of these practices would be deemed abnormal or deviant behavior. Legally very little can be done about the un-ethical practices found in these non-traditional religions. As a society we have to be very careful and aware at all times, recognizing the pressures that religion can force upon an individual. We also have to be conscious, and the face the fact that we are very vulnerable; each one of us can easily fall into the sway of lifestyles of these non-traditional religions, against our own will. BibliographyA.F.F. (The American Family Foundation), http://www.csj.org. (1999)Billingsly, Lloyd., Religions Rebel Son, Multomah Press. Portland, OR. (1986)Belgum, E., Voodoo, Greenhaven Press. San Diego, CA. (1994)Hassan, Steven. Freedom Of The Mind, http://www.freedomofmind.com/Mather, G.A. ; L.A. Nichols, Dictionary of Cults, Sects, Religions and the Occult, Zondervan. Grand Rapids, MI. (1993)McDowell, Josh and Bill Wilson, A Ready Defense. Heres Life Publishers. San Berdino, CA. (1990)Origins Of Voodoo, http://swagga.com/voodoo.htm (June 8, 2000)Origins Of Voodoo (Voodoo Secrets), http://www.nando.net/prof/ carice/origins.htmlSpiritualism. Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2000 http:// Encarta. msn.com (2000)Vodun. http://religioustolerance.org/voodoo.htmSociology

Reseach on Determinents of Junk Food Habbit of Youngsters free essay sample

We all the group members forward our acknowledgement to Dr. Bhavesh Vanparia (Professor-Tolani Institute of Management Studies) for imparting us the knowledge of research and how to make one. We are whole heartedly thankful to him to guide us throughout the research and make it a valuable document. PREFACE Now a day the importance of research has increased in the day to day changing scenarios and business environment. Businesses demand for management person who are able to manage and develop in such continues changing environment in successful way. PGDM is such a course in which student’s gets practical exposure of such changing dynamics of business environment by doing various projects and such researches. We selected this particular research which expanded our boundaries of thinking about implication of the theoretical knowledge in the practical field. Abstract In this study we have found out the youngster’s preference towards fast food. We have conducted research on youngsters in between 15-24 years. We will write a custom essay sample on Reseach on Determinents of Junk Food Habbit of Youngsters or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page We have found that there is no significant difference between gender and their preference towards fast food eating. And maximum of them agree that education on healthy/organic food should be given. Maximum of them also disagree that fast food is healthy food to eat. Maximum of youngsters eat fast food with their friends, (54 out of 91). And most of male and female prefer home made food. Introduction. We observe that day by day consumption of fast-food among youngster is increasing and thus health related issues. To analyze this and related factors and issues we conducted a research on youngsters and their fast food eating habit. Today we can also see that fast food services/stores are growing in huge numbers. And maximum consumption of fast food is seen among teenagers or young people who for one and another reason frequently have fast food, it may be because of leisure, friends, living far from home, status, and many more. From the above mentioned determinants to find and brief out some important determinants we have conducted research and that too particularly of youngsters between 15-24 years. We defined youngsters as per the World Bank definition of youth that is the age in between 15-24 years. Fast food  is the term given to food that can be prepared and served very quickly. While any meal with low preparation time can be considered to be fast food, typically theterm refers to food sold in a  restaurant  or store with preheated or precooked ingredients, and served to the customer in a packaged form for  take-out/take-away. (Wikipedia). Healthy food is defined by food which is beneficial to health and it also includes natural foods,  organic foods,  whole foods, and sometimes  dietary supplements. (Wikipedia, Wikipedia). This study will be help to brief out some specific determinants regarding fast food eating habits of youngster and may be how to divert youngster’s preference to healthy dietary habits. Research Question: * What are the determinants of youngster’s preference towards fast food eating? * What is the thinking of youth towards traditional food and fast food? * How many youngsters prefer vegetarian food? * Who prefer to have more fast food Male or Female? * What is the age from when youngsters eat fast food? Research Objective: * To know the determinants of youngster’s preference towards fast food eating. * To know the thinking of youth towards traditional food and fast food. * To classify the youth by food habit on the basis of Vegetarian and Non vegetarian. To know the frequency of eating fast food of male and female. * To find the age from when youngster’s start eating fast-food. Name of the Author(Year)| Title of The Paper. | Country| Sample Size| Analysis tools| Finding and Conclusion| Subhash Chandra Verma and Girja Shankar Yadav(2010)| Food habits among the educated youth of Tharu and Buksa tribes| India| 116| Descriptive Research Design. | So me youth are ignoring their own traditional food trends, but some youth are still respecting their culture and Traditional food trends. Effects of other cultures and education were the main reasons of changing food habits. | Hyun-sun Seo,  Soo-Kyung Lee,andSoyoung Nam(2011)| Factors influencing fast food consumption behaviors of middle-school students in Seoul: an application of theory of planned behaviors| Koria| 354| Regression Analysis| In relation to fast food use, attitude would be personal positive or negative feelings toward fast food use, while subjective norm would be how much a person desires to respect and follow the opinions of individuals who are important to him or her. Klazine van der Horst,AOenema,  I Ferreira,  W Wendel,KGiskes,  F van Lenthe  and J Brug  (2006)| A systematic review of environmental correlates of obesity-related dietary behaviors in youth| Netherland| Focus Group(54)| Multivariate Analysis| The research of determinants of dietary intake in children and adolescents has predominantly focused on individual level determinants of these behaviors, such as attitudes, taste prefe rences, social influences and perceived behavioral control.

Research Paper on Video Games Violence Essay Example

Research Paper on Video Games Violence Essay Many people believe video games violence to be a cause of aggression in adolescents. Many sociological and socio-psychological studies on the effect of violence on television on the level of aggressiveness irrefutably prove that after watching such scenes aggression increases in 3-15% of adults. The children are more susceptible than adults, especially when playing, they are not passive spectators, and become active participators in the act of violence. Recently, the public growing concern is violence in video games, which is becoming more and more realistic and sadistic. The main plot of these games is war or fighting. War is an ancient form of human activity. In short periods of peace, people played war and those war games are countless. Among them Olympic Games in ancient Greece, chivalry tournaments, and finally, the modern military exercises and maneuvers. Video games, gaining an amazing degree of realism, has long found application in the military sector. Simulations of combat and other military equipment in general were created specifically for the needs of the military and have been used and are used as simulators. A strategic war games have become an indispensable element of training commanders and staffs at all levels of military academies. Recent studies have found that video games in which there are scenes of violence may affect the brain of adolescents. Researchers at Indiana University have used method of magnetic resonance imaging to see how computer games affect the brain. It was found that the brain of the children, who play video games with violence, changed parts of the brain responsible for cognitive function and emotional control. Doctors attribute this to the fact that our social behavior is caused by our personal experiences. If the child becomes accustomed to violence, drugs, and violence in games, theoretically, this experience can shape his behavior as an adult. Virtual reality is becoming increasingly complex, three-dimensional, and realistic. This brings the players to lose sense of difference between what is real and what is not. The doctors recommend parents should control the video games their children play and to make sure that the age limit set by many of the games, is observed. The study was pub lished shortly after the announcement that the pathological dependence on the Internet and video games, perhaps in the very near future will be officially considered a mental health disorder. We will write a custom essay sample on Research Paper on Video Games Violence specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Research Paper on Video Games Violence specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Research Paper on Video Games Violence specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer If you are about to write a research paper on video game violence topic, it would be helpful to look through free example research proposal on the subject. These free samples, written by experienced professionals, can show you an example of a first-rate research paper. They will help you to outline your thesis statement, stress the most significant parts of your work, and teach you how to draw a conclusion. CAUTION! As far as you know all free research paper samples and research proposal examples about Video Games are 100% plagiarized!!! At EssayLib.com writing service you can order a custom research paper on Video Games Violence topics. Your research paper will be written from scratch. We hire top-rated Ph.D. and Master’s writers only to provide students with professional research paper assistance at affordable rates. Each customer will get a non-plagiarized paper with timely delivery. Just visit our website and fill in the order form with all research paper details: Enjoy our professional research paper writing service!

Argues for the decriminalization of medicinal marijuana.

Argues for the decriminalization of medicinal marijuana. Gordon Hanson, an epileptic, served six months in a jail cell in Minnesota. Byron Stamate spent three months in a California jail when he tried to help his disabled girlfriend. Gordon Farrell Ethridge spent 60 days in an Oregon cell, though he had been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Will Forster was sentenced to spend more than 90 years in an Oklahoma jail, despite the fact that he suffered from chronic pain. These four people were all unjustly forced to serve time for trying to self-medicate with marijuana. As a result of the sentences, Hanson served his time despite his sporadic seizures. Stamate's girlfriend committed suicide so she would not have to testify against her boyfriend. Ethridge served his time while enduring the side effects caused by chemotherapytreatments. And Forster still sits in a jail cell, continuing to have chronic pain (Marijuana PolicyProject, mpp.org).There are only seven people allowed by federal law to use marijuana medicinally, though tens of thousands o f people use it as a medicine nationwide (MPP).Drug Enforcement Administration badge.For some people, legal medical options have been proven unsafe or ineffective, leading them to consider marijuana. Their only options are to either continue to suffer from their ailment or break the law, forcing them to worry about the trauma of getting caught. If this happened, their house would besearched and they would be handcuffed and escorted away in a police car. They may serve time in jail, eventually having to deal with court costs and attorney fees. Probation would result in urine tests, preventing the use of medicinal marijuana. The patient could lose their job, resulting in inability to pay for insurance or their bills. They would also get the reputation of being a "druggie," making doctors reluctant to prescribe pain medication to them, even if they...

Mary Wollstonecrafts Life of Thirty-Eight Years

Mary Wollstonecraft's Life of Thirty-Eight Years Dates:  April  27, 1759 -  September 10, 1797 Known for: Mary Wollstonecrafts  A Vindication of the Rights of Woman  is one of the most important documents in the history of womens rights and feminism. The author  herself lived an often-troubled personal life, and her early death of childbed fever cut short her evolving ideas. Her second daughter,  Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin Shelley, was Percy Shelleys second wife and author of the book,  Frankenstein. The Power of Experience Mary Wollstonecraft believed that ones life experiences had a crucial impact on ones possibilities and character.  Her own life illustrates this power of experience. Commentators on Mary Wollstonecrafts ideas from her own time until now have looked at the ways in which her own experience influenced her ideas. She handled her own examination of this influence on her own work mostly through fiction and indirect reference. Both those who agreed with Mary Wollstonecraft and detractors have pointed to her up-and-down personal life to explain much about her proposals for womens equality, womens education, and human possibility. For instance, in 1947, Ferdinand Lundberg and Marynia F. Farnham, Freudian psychiatrists, said this about Mary Wollstonecraft: Mary Wollstonecraft hated men. She had every personal reason possible known to psychiatry for hating them. Hers was hatred of creatures she greatly admired and feared, creatures that seemed to her capable of doing everything while women to her seemed capable of doing nothing whatever, in their own nature being pitifully weak in comparison with the strong, lordly male. This analysis follows a sweeping statement saying that Wollstonecrafts A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (these authors also mistakenly substitute Women for Woman in the title) proposes in general, that women should behave as nearly as possible like men. Im not sure how one could make such a statement after actually reading A Vindication, but it leads to their conclusion that Mary Wollstonecraft was an extreme neurotic of a compulsive type... Out of her illness arose the ideology of feminism... [See the Lundberg/Farnham essay reprinted in Carol H. Postons Norton Critical Edition of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman pp. 273-276.) What were those personal reasons for Mary Wollstonecrafts ideas that her detractors and defenders alike could point to? Mary Wollstonecrafts Early Life Mary Wollstonecraft was born on April 27, 1759. Her father had inherited wealth from his father but spent the entire fortune. He drank heavily and apparently was abusive verbally and perhaps physically. He failed in his many attempts at farming, and when Mary was fifteen, the family moved to Hoxton, a suburb of London. Here Mary met Fanny Blood, to become perhaps her closest friend. The family moved to Wales and then back to London as Edward Wollstonecraft tried to make a living. At nineteen, Mary Wollstonecraft took a position that was one of the few available to middle class educated women: a companion to an older woman. She traveled in England with her charge, Mrs. Dawson, but two years later returned home to attend her mother who was dying. Two years after Marys return, her mother died and her father remarried and moved to Wales. Marys sister Eliza married, and Mary moved in with her friend Fanny Blood and her family, helping to support the family through her needlework another of the few routes open to women for economic self-support. Eliza gave birth within another year, and her husband, Meridith Bishop, wrote to Mary and asked that she return to nurse her sister whose mental condition had deteriorated seriously. Marys theory was that Elizas condition was the result of her husbands treatment of her, and Mary helped Eliza leave her husband and arrange a legal separation. Under the laws of the time, Eliza had to leave her young son with his father, and the son died before his first birthday. Mary Wollstonecraft, her sister Eliza Bishop, her friend Fanny Blood and later Marys and Elizas sister Everina turned to another possible means of financial support for themselves and opened a school in Newington Green. It is in Newington Green that Mary Wollstonecraft first met the clergyman Richard Price whose friendship led to meeting many of the liberals among Englands intellectuals. Fanny decided to marry, and, pregnant soon after the marriage, called Mary to be with her in Lisbon for the birth. Fanny and her baby died soon after the premature birth. When Mary Wollstonecraft returned to England, she closed the financially-struggling school and wrote her first book, Thoughts on the Education of Daughters. She then took a position in yet another respectable profession for women of her background and circumstances: governess. After a year of traveling in Ireland and England with the family of her employer, Viscount Kingsborough, Mary was fired by Lady Kingsborough for becoming too close to her charges. And so Mary Wollstonecraft decided that her means of support had to be her writing, and she returned to London in 1787. Mary Wollstonecraft Takes Up Writing From the circle of English intellectuals to whom shed been introduced through Rev. Price, Mary Wollstonecraft had met Joseph Johnson, a leading publisher of the liberal ideas of England. Mary Wollstonecraft wrote and published a novel,  Mary, a Fiction, which was a thinly-disguised novel drawing heavily on her own life. Just before shed written  Mary, a Fiction, shed written to her sister about reading Rousseau, and her admiration for his attempt to portray in fiction the ideas which he believed. Clearly,  Mary, a Fiction  was in part her answer to Rousseau, an attempt to portray the way that a womans limited options and the serious oppression of a woman by circumstances in her life, led her to a bad end. Mary Wollstonecraft also published a childrens book,  Original Stories from Real Life,  again integrating fiction and reality creatively. To further her goal of financial self-sufficiency, she also took on translation and published a translation from French of a book by Jacques Necker. Joseph Johnson recruited Mary Wollstonecraft to write reviews and articles for his journal,  Analytical Review. As part of Johnsons and Prices circles, she met and interacted with many of the great thinkers of the time. Their admiration for the French Revolution was a frequent topic of their discussions. Liberty in the Air Certainly, this was a period of exhilaration for Mary Wollstonecraft. Accepted into circles of intellectuals, beginning to make her living with her own efforts, and expanding her own education through reading and discussion, she had achieved a position in sharp contrast to that of her mother, sister, and friend Fanny. The hopefulness of the liberal circle about the French Revolution and its potentials for liberty and human fulfillment plus her own more secure life are reflected in Wollstonecrafts energy and enthusiasm. In 1791, in London, Mary Wollstonecraft attended a dinner for Thomas Paine hosted by Joseph Johnson. Paine, whose recent  The Rights of Man  had defended the French Revolution, was among the writers Johnson published others included Priestley, Coleridge, Blake, and Wordsworth. At this dinner, she met another of the writers for Johnsons  Analytical Review,  William Godwin. His recollection was that the two of them Godwin and Wollstonecraft immediately took a dislike to each other, and their loud and angry argument over dinner made it nearly impossible for the better-known guests to even attempt conversation. The Rights of Men When Edmund Burke wrote his response to Paines  The Rights of Man, his  Reflections on the Revolution in France, Mary Wollstonecraft published her response,  A Vindication of the Rights of Men. As was common for women writers and with anti-revolutionary sentiment quite volatile in England, she published it anonymously at first, adding her name in 1791 to the second edition. In  A Vindication of the Rights of Men, Mary Wollstonecraft takes exception to one of Burkes points: that chivalry by the more powerful makes unnecessary rights for the less powerful. Illustrating her own argument are examples of the lack of chivalry, not only in practice but embedded in English law. Chivalry was not, for Mary or for many women, their experience of how more powerful men acted towards women. Vindication of the Rights of Woman Later in 1791, Mary Wollstonecraft published  A Vindication of the Rights of Woman,  further exploring issues  of womens education, womens equality, womens status, womens rights and the role of public/private, political/domestic life. Off to Paris After correcting her first edition of the  Vindication of the Rights of Woman  and issuing a second, Wollstonecraft decided to go directly to Paris to see for herself what the French Revolution was evolving towards. Mary Wollstonecraft in France Mary Wollstonecraft arrived in France alone but soon met Gilbert Imlay, an American adventurer. Mary Wollstonecraft, like many of the foreign visitors in France, realized quickly that the Revolution was creating danger and chaos for everyone, and moved with Imlay to a house in the suburbs of Paris. A few months later, when she returned to Paris, she registered at the American Embassy as Imlays wife, though they never actually married. As the wife of an American citizen, Mary Wollstonecraft would be under the protection of the Americans. Pregnant with Imlays child, Wollstonecraft began to realize that Imlays commitment to her was not as strong as she had expected. She followed him to Le Havre and then, after the birth of their daughter, Fanny, followed him to Paris. He returned almost immediately to London, leaving Fanny and Mary alone in Paris. Reaction to the French Revolution Allied with the Girondists of France, she watched in horror as these allies were guillotined. Thomas Paine was imprisoned in France, whose Revolution he had so nobly defended. Writing through this time, Mary Wollstonecraft then published  Historical and Moral View of the Origin and Progress of the French Revolution, documenting her awareness that the revolutions grand hope for human equality was not being fully actualized. Back to England, Off to Sweden Mary Wollstonecraft finally returned to London with her daughter, and there for the first time attempted suicide over her despondency over Imlays inconsistent commitment. Imlay rescued Mary Wollstonecraft from her suicide attempt, and, a few months later, sent her on an important and sensitive business venture to Scandinavia. Mary, Fanny, and her daughters nurse Marguerite traveled through Scandinavia, attempting to track down a ships captain who had apparently absconded with a fortune that was to be traded in Sweden for goods to import past the English blockade of France. She had with her a letter with little precedent in the context of 18th century womens status giving her legal power of attorney to represent Imlay in attempting to resolve his difficulty with his business partner and with the missing captain. During her time in Scandinavia as she attempted to track down the people involved with the missing gold and silver, Mary Wollstonecraft wrote letters of her observations of the culture and people she met as well as of the natural world. She returned from her trip, and in London discovered that Imlay was living with an actress. She attempted another suicide and was again rescued. Her letters written from her trip, full of emotion as well as passionate political fervor, were published a year after her return, as  Letters Written during a Short Residence in Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. Done with Imlay, Mary Wollstonecraft took up writing again, renewed her involvement in the circle of English Jacobins, defenders of the Revolution, and decided to renew one particular old and brief acquaintance. William Godwin: an Unconventional Relationship Having lived with and borne a child to Gilbert Imlay, and having decided to make her living in what was considered a mans profession, Mary Wollstonecraft had learned not to obey convention. So in 1796, she decided, against all social convention, to call upon William Godwin, her fellow  Analytical Review  writer and dinner-party-antagonist, at his home, on  April 14, 1796. Godwin had read her  Letters from Sweden,  and from that book had gained a different perspective on Marys thought. Where hed formerly found her too rational and distant and critical, he now found her emotionally deep and sensitive. His own natural optimism, which had reacted against her seemingly-natural pessimism, found a different Mary Wollstonecraft in the  Letters   in their appreciation of nature, their keen insights into a different culture, their exposition of the character of the people shed met. If ever there was a book calculated to make a man in love with its author, this appears to me to be the book, Godwin wrote later. Their friendship deepened quickly into a love affair, and by August they were lovers. Marriage By next March, Godwin and Wollstonecraft faced a dilemma. Theyd both written and spoken in principle against the idea of marriage, which was at that time a legal institution in which women lost legal existence, subsumed legally in their husbands identity. Marriage as a legal institution was far from their ideals of loving companionship. But Mary was pregnant with Godwins child, and so on March 29, 1797, they married. Their daughter, named  Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, was born on August 30 and on September 10, Mary Wollstonecraft died of septicemia blood poisoning known as childbed fever. After Her Death Mary Wollstonecrafts last year with Godwin had, however, not been spent in domestic activities alone they had, in fact, maintained separate residences so that both could continue their writing. Godwin published in January 1798, several of Marys works that shed been working on before her unexpected death. He published a volume  The Posthumous Works  along with his own  Memoirs  of Mary. Unconventional to the end, Godwin in his  Memoirs  was brutally honest about the circumstances of Marys life her love affair with and betrayal by Imlay, her daughter Fannys illegitimate birth, her suicide attempts in her despondency over Imlays unfaithfulness and failure to live up to her ideals of commitment. These details of Wollstonecrafts life, in the cultural reaction to the French Revolutions failure, resulted in her near-neglect by thinkers and writers for decades, and scathing reviews of her work by others. Mary Wollstonecrafts death itself was used to disprove claims of womens equality. Rev. Polwhele, who attacked Mary Wollstonecraft and other women authors, wrote that she died a death that strongly marked the distinction of the sexes, by pointing out the destiny of women, and the diseases to which they are liable. And yet, such susceptibility to death in childbirth was not something Mary Wollstonecraft had been unaware of, in writing her novels and political analysis. In fact, her friend Fannys early death, her mothers and her sisters precarious positions as wives to abusive husbands, and her own troubles with Imlays treatment of her and their daughter, she was quite aware of such distinction and based her arguments for equality in part on the need to transcend and do away with such inequities. Mary Wollstonecrafts final novel  Maria, or the Wrongs of Woman,  published by Godwin after her death, is a new attempt to explain her ideas about the unsatisfactory position of women in contemporary society, and therefore justify her ideas for reform. As Mary Wollstonecraft had written in 1783, just after her novel  Mary  was published, she herself recognized that it is a tale, to illustrate an opinion of mine, that a genius will educate itself. The two novels and Marys life illustrate that circumstances will limit the opportunities for expression but that genius will work to educate itself. The ending is not necessarily going to be happy because the limitations that society and nature place on human development may be too strong to overcome all attempts at self-fulfillment yet the self has incredible power to work to overcome those limits. What more could be achieved if such limits were reduced or removed! Experience and Life Mary Wollstonecrafts life was filled with both depths of unhappiness and struggle, and peaks of achievement and happiness. From her early exposure to abuse of women and the dangerous possibilities of marriage and childbirth to her later blossoming as an accepted intellect and thinker, then her sense of being betrayed by both Imlay and the French Revolution followed by her association in a happy, productive and relationship with Godwin, and finally by her sudden and tragic death, Mary Wollstonecrafts experience and her work were intimately tied together, and illustrate her own conviction that experience cannot be neglected in philosophy and literature. Mary Wollstonecrafts exploration cut short by her death of the integration of sense and reason, imagination and thought looks toward 19th century thought, and was part of the movement from Enlightenment to Romanticism. Mary Wollstonecrafts ideas on public versus private life, politics and domestic spheres, and men and women were, though too often neglected, nevertheless important influences on the thought and development of philosophy and political ideas that resonate even today. More About Mary Wollstonecraft Mary Wollstonecraft Quotations  - key quotations from Mary Wollstonecrafts workJudith Sargent Murray  - a contemporary feminist, from AmericaOlympe de Gouges  - a contemporary feminist, from FranceMary Wollstonecraft Shelley  - Mary Wollstonecrafts daughter, author of  Frankenstein

Movies Historical Representation Essays

Movies Historical Representation Essays Movies Historical Representation Essay Movies Historical Representation Essay Essay Topic: Historical Name: Course: Lecturer: Date: Movies Historical Representation No country in the world has recorded its history through films as America has. America has created films about the major events in its history. It has served the memories of its past, and has acted as an educational tool. Apart from the documentaries concerning the specific events, many of the movies portray the events as they happened, with an additional touch of fiction and added or exaggerated heroism. These features appeal to the audiences as they add the entertainment value. Audiences across different sectors have different interpretations concerning the movie. This is largely influenced by the directors’ intention and objective when creating the movie. When the directors are more concerned about the entertainment, rather than the awareness or educational objective, they will not take keen interest about the accuracy of the events. They will instead seek to add visual effects and add other elements that appeal to the viewers. Movies can sometimes serve as a preserve for history, and they aim to represent the events as accurately as possible, but they often lack to show all the details concerning the event, thus making them less credible as sources of historical information. . The movie â€Å"Saving Private Ryan† by director Steven Spielberg is one of the most important and realistic movies about World War II. It is the story about a group of US soldiers who have to save Private Ryan. Many of the families suffered when their children went to the war. The government had set a policy that was aimed at making sure that family lines survived. Private Ryan had already lost three brothers in the war, and the government sent soldiers to save him since he was the only son left. The movie details the events of the operation. It shows the courage of the soldiers as they fight to save one of their own. It shows the loss and the heartbreak that the families suffered when their children went to war with no guarantee that they would ever see them again. The movie shows the bond that the soldiers developed as they fought the war, and the lengths they took to ensure that they survived. The battle scenes in the movie are violent, as they seek to show the real extent of the war. Spielberg has directed several movies about different wars. In a culture and country where war movies are released often, the characters and crew involved in the production of the movie might have watched several war movies. Many of the war movies glorify the individual bravery of the American soldiers. There is therefore a lot of influence of such ideologies in the movie. Sometimes, the directors do not research materials concerning the movie that is actually contrary to the obvious notion of heroism and bravery. They do not include material where soldiers from one country betray each other or make foolish decisions. In many movies, it seems like all the soldiers, and especially those in the leadership position, have a supernatural instinct to know the weaknesses of the enemy, and to know the right tactics to use to control the enemy. This is rarely the case however. Perhaps because of the limitation of time, the directors do not take time to know much about the war. However, it is possible that the main intent of the directors is to please the viewers and show them that the war was justified. Many Americans have lost loved ones in the war. Some of those who have fought in various wars feel that they have given something important to their country. They feel devoted to their country and they feel honored when their bravery is recognized. They are therefore pleased and excited when they get the chance to see such movies. Several printed records such as news articles and books that were written and published, as the war was ongoing give vivid descriptions of the war. In some cases, the soldiers did not always make the right decisions. They were often frightened and they ended up making costly mistakes. Many of the soldiers died in the hands of their fellow compatriots. Some of the soldiers made decisions that ended up putting the troops in danger. The soldiers fighting in the war were not always courageous despite the fact that they had been trained and well equipped for the war. They often made decisions out of fear, desperation, panic or pain (Lewis 134). If such accounts are considered, then it follows that many of the war movies, including â€Å"Saving Private Ryan†, may not be credible, and they do not reflect the war as it really happened. The movies usually show the ingenuity of the soldiers, the wisdom of the captains and other leaders, the obedience of the soldiers to their leaders and the courage of the men. In the movie, the captain chose one of the people who had not been trained for war to accompany them in the search for Ryan. The man did not know the intricacies of the war, and it is through him that the audience learns and sees the fear of the men. There are many factors that led to the end of the war, and that determined the winner of the war. In the case of the Second World War, the American soldiers were fighting with the Germans. The Germans had fought for several years during the Nazi invasion. They were short of supplies and resources, including soldiers, and this weakened them. Americans took considerable time before joining other countries to fight the Germans. They had enough resources when they joined other countries. They were therefore in a better position than the Germans and this enabled them to win the war (Lewis 134). Such accounts are not usually recorded in war movie. The fact that the movie directors and producers show scanty details concerning few aspects of the event, contributes to the lack of credibility seen in war movies. In many Hollywood war movies, someone is always willing to sacrifice his life for the others, and â€Å"Saving Private Ryan† is not an exception. In the movie, Captain Miller chooses to stay behind and fight alongside Ryan. He and his troops go through a lot in their quest for finding Ryan. Some of the men, including Captain Miller, end up dead. What the movie directors fail to realize is that in some of the cases, many of the soldiers are more concerned about saving their lives, than they are in sacrificing themselves for their compatriots. Many critics and audiences believe that the movie is one of the most realistic movies about the Second World War. This is largely because of the graphic violence shown in the movie. The movie starts with extremely violent scenes where the American soldiers are attacked and killed by the Germans on land, and in water. The rest of the movie also has other violent scenes although they are not as graphic as they are in the beginning. Despite its shortcomings, the movie was a good production, and it served to depict the horrors of the war. The movie’s graphic scenes helped in showing just how much the soldiers went through when fighting the war. America has continued to fight in other wars in modern time. It has fought in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and many American soldiers have lost their lives. In the movie, Ryan was lucky enough to survive the war. Other families are not as lucky today, as they have continued to lose their children in the war. The movie makes one wonder whether there is any sense in getting involved in the war. In some cases, American troops are involved in wars, without perceived threat to the county. For instance, NATO’s decision to invade Libya led to the deaths of many people. The country was engaged in a civil war yet the international community, including America, felt the need to fight in the war. There are many ways of resolving conflicts between people, and they d o not have to kill each other as a means of finding peace. Wars are necessary in some cases, as the soldiers fight to protect the people and defend their country. Just like other war movies, â€Å"Saving Private Ryan† is meant to preserve the honor of the soldiers who fought in the war. The directors who direct these movies want to show that the soldiers who sacrificed their lives should be honored and remembered for their bravery. Spielberg aims to show the duty and sacrifice that was made by the soldiers. The movie seems to encourage other people to join in the war (Thompson et al., 56). They do not question the legality of the wars. Many films do not capture the fear of the men and the hatred they have for the war. In the movie, Captain Miller confesses that he feels further away from home every time he kills a person. He does not however do anything about it, but he instead chooses to follow orders. Many families detest wars since they end up losing their loved ones. They not only feel a sense of loss when their loved ones die in the war, but they also feel that their country has let them down. War movies do not capture these sentim ents. They do not capture the fact that many of the soldiers would want to be safe with their families. They seem to promote the stereotypical view that men are supposed to be courageous and they should fight for defense. Anyone who does not hold this view is seen as a coward. American war movies do not fail to show the bond that the soldiers develop with each other. They show how the soldiers sacrifice their lives for each other, and the friendship and the closeness that they develop when in the danger zone. They show the wisdom, ingenuity, courage, obedience and heroism of the soldiers. They sometimes show the fear of the soldiers. These are not usually the true representation of the reality on the battleground. The movies fail to show the cowardice that some of the soldiers feel. They fail to show how the soldiers feel whenever they kill a person. Many of the movies with violent scenes show the soldiers killing each other mercilessly and without remorse. This is not usually the case, as the soldiers will usually prefer to use other methods of dealing with the enemy. The movies fail to show the poor decisions that often put the soldiers at risk. They fail to show how the soldiers panic and they end up betraying and killing each other in battle. The movie is less credible because it contains inadequate details of the event, and it concentrates on the positive attributes of the American soldiers.