The Afghanistan War With The Soviet Union History Essay

The Afghanistan War With The Soviet Union History Essay The Afghan War changed the Soviets leaderships policies of using armed forces to impose political decisions, and additionally it is important to understand the culture and geography in order to better understand the victory of Afghanistan. Preceding the attack on Afghanistan in late 1970s the Soviets had previous success with invasions. Their strong successful power was shown in Ukraine (1945-1951), East Germany (1953), Hungary (1956) and Czechoslovakia in (1968). The Soviets invasion in Afghanistan was a repeat of 1968 and also similar to the Vietnam US War. The Soviets main idea to invade Afghanistan, encountered several problems which kept them in Afghanistan for over nine years, predating both the coup of 1973 and the April revolution also known as Saur revolution; seizing power from Daoud. This revolution occurred in 1978 after the death of the Parcham which was a name given of one of the factions of PDPA. The PDPA (communist peoples Democratic party of Afghanistan), was divided into two factions in 1967; the Khalq and the Parchem. The PDPA was under the Khalq faction, who wanted to include womens right, although strong Islamic believers did not agree, and the Parcham was a move toward socialism. The PDPA assisted Daoud to take power over Sahir Zhah, setting off the coup. Soviet were supporting Parcham because they believed that Afghans werent developed enough to undergo communism. The PDPA eventually collapsed and Nur Mohammad Taraki, Babrak Karmal, and Hafizullah Amin overthrew the regime of Daoud, and renamed the country the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (DRA). April 1973, Minister Daoud took power over his cousin who was the king and became President of Afghanistan. Little did he know that six years later in April 1979, he would be overthrown by a communist groups engineered by army and air forced officers who had studied the Soviet Union (Grau, W. L 2004, p.136) .Although, in 1973 Daoud Khan came to a violent end, there was an enormous military attack in Kabul and with the help of Afghan military they killed Daoud and family members. It all began following this military coup, which the communist peoples Democratic Party of Afghanistan were heading. During his rule Daoud eliminated all communists from the cabinet and began legislation to ban communist parties in Afghanistan. In December 1979, Muslim guerrillas emerged resisting to follow the coup, leading to Soviet troops moving into Afghanistan setting off an international crisis (Grau, W.L. 2004, p.134). The Soviets were invited into Afghanistan to help fight the rebels who were so power ful and resisting this regime of communism, officially installed April 27 1978. The coup led pro Soviet Armed forces in, who installed a Marxist government under the leadership of Noor Mohammed Taraki. Rebels in Afghanistan were resisting this new Marxist government who were anti religion. Marxism was mainly a dispute between socialism and capitalism. In 1979 Amin, who later became Prime Minister, assassinated President Taraki. The Prime Minister, Hazifullah Amin, tried to take out Muslim traditions, but the country as a whole had strong Muslim beliefs making this a lot harder to sweep aside. Amin was also a leader of a government who rejected religious beliefs and arrested thousands of Muslims. This caused thousands of Muslims to join the Mujahideen a guerrilla force on a holy mission for Allah (Hughes, G. 2008, p.336) who wanted to overthrow those who supported Amin. The Mujahideen were great opponents to this, accounting for seventy-five percent of Afghanistans populations and th e second most powerful military power there was absolutely no way they were going to allow religion to be swept away over communism. This outrageous attack took place on Christmas Eve as Soviets were well aware that Western governments were not prepared to attack. Soviets seized the salang tunnels, key airfield, key government and communications sites in Kabul They occupied the main cities and expected it to all finish right then and there. The overall suffering that the Soviets caused on Afghanistans during the War was more than Germany on the Russians in World War II. Furthermore they killed Amin bringing into power Babrak Karmal as president. It quickly became evident by mid 1980 that the Afghans were incapable of defeating the Mujahideen, and supporting a communist party in Kabul. Building socialism was illusory. This touched upon the Russians, who were now in Afghanistan claiming they were invited and that they were there to support the Amin government. The Soviets ideology took a lot longer than planned. Ideally the Soviets planned to send in the Red Army to take over or at least change political and economical domination (Hughes, G. 2008, p.333). Their concept for military occupation of Afghanistan was based on stabilizing the country by garrisoning the main routes, major cities, airbases and logistic sites. Providing logistic, air, artillery and intelligent support to Afghan forces; accepting minimal Soviet casualties; and strengthening Afghan forces (Grau, L.W.2008,p.3), so once the resistance was defeated, the Soviet Army could be withdrawn Quickly within months Afghans armed themselves ready to attack the personal and the entire population in Kabul were chanting God is great, emphasizing their strong Muslim beliefs. In 1980, President Reagan administration supplied Afghan rebels with stinger surface- to-air-missiles, which substantially reduced the effectiveness of Soviet airpower in the war (Kalinovsky, A. 2008, p.384). These missiles were being launched up to take down helicopters, and they were mounted up on the shoulders of the soldiers. In 1986 Karmal resigned and Mohammed Najibullah took power. The Afghan War fought under four general leaders who went through the process of leadership throughout the invasion in Afghanistan coming to realise that they were unable to defeat the Afghans; Brezhnev, Chernenko, Andropov and Gorbachev. Brezhnev, who was in power in 1970 and was an important political figure for the Soviet Union, until his death in 1982, was the one lead communism to Afghanistan. Prior to 1970 there was the Brezhnev doctrine which stated When forces that are hostile to sociali sm try to turn the development of some socialist country towards capitalism, it becomes not only a problem of the country concerned, but a common problem and concern of all socialist countries. The doctrine was also to justify the soviet invasion in Czechoslovakia, and Hungary, Furthermore to put an end to democratic liberalization. Many treaties were signed, although they were so broad that they even used these principles to justify their military intervention in Afghanistan in 1979. Mikhail Gorbachev became leader of the Soviet Union in 1985 and neither him nor his people in the government, were party to the decision to invade Afghanistan in 1979 (Kalinovsky, A. 2008, p.388). These decisions were taken into account before with the general leader Leonid Brezhnev, who was in favor of limiting interventions only to maintain independent but openly pro Soviet Afghanistan. Brezhnev was not taking orders from Moscow and that is when they took him out of power and put their own candidate in power, and used an adverse intervention to aid the DRA, to fight against the Mujahideen as a cover and the Mujahideens then began a Holy War. The Mujahideens with time were becoming more equipped with modern weapons. They were becoming smarter as to how to fight the Soviets and didnt leave it easy for them. Receiving new and more powerful weapons they adapted to Soviets strategies; learning how to shoot down helicopters. Gorbachev since October 1985 started pressing Karmal to change party policy and abandon communism and form a government in which included elements of the opposition (Kalinovsky, A. 2008, p.384). Although, two years later in 1987 the situation finally became clear to Moscow that it was more serious than they had thought. Soviet leaders were becoming aware that their plans for saving the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan government, was insufficient (Kalinovsky, A. 2008, p.384). This became one of Gorbachev worries, and that was how the Soviet Union would be looked at in the Third World if the DRA regime was to collapse. They were failing to defeat the Mujahideen, and couldnt believe the power Afghanistan had overcome. In Hungary and Czechoslovakia they had it a lot easier. The Soviets had been trying to influence Afghanistan ideologically and economically and they were not ready to be destroyed. Gorbachev needed to make it clear that they were serious about their withdrawal. He point ed out that the USSR wanted to be neutral in Afghanistan and did not need to maintain military bases. He knew at this point that withdrawing troops within twelve months would be feasible (Hughes, G. 2008, p.333). Soviets leaders tried to find many ways to withdraw from Afghanistan without undermining Soviet status. Gorbachev was willing to sacrifice his long standing position as a leader to stop the supply and arms to the Afghans. The USSR also insisted that by occupying Afghanistan, Moscow would secure advantages over Pakistan and Iran. Moscow coerced Afghan into signing papers under the UN auspice that April 14 1988 the Soviet army would withdraw. During this time Pakistan and Iran were providing aid to the Mujahideen, and other place like the US, China, Britain, France, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and United Arab Emirates began funnelling military and humanitarian aid through Pakistan. It was Pakistans best interest to support the Mujahideen who would never accept the Soviets presence (G rau, 2004). The war in Afghanistan left the country with many political, economic and ecological problems. More than 1 million Afghans died in the war and 5 million became refugees in neighbouring countries. In addition, 15,000 Soviet soldiers were killed and 37,000 wounded. Economic production was drastically curtailed, and much of the land lay to waste (Hughes, G. 2008, p. 342). The CIA provided Muslims between 1986 and 1988 with approximately 1,000 of the missiles. After the Soviet Union withdrew from Afghanistan in 1989 in a humiliating defeat, the Afghan government continued to suffer attacks from the Mujahideen who were never going to accept the idea of bringing in Soviet troops to throw away their religion. The Afghan government received funding and arms from the Soviet Union until it collapsed in 1991(Grau, W.L. 2004, p.134). Furthermore once the Russians withdrew the US government demanded the return of the weapons, although the response they received by the leader of the I slamic party at the time Yunis Khalis was We will not return the stingers, we need them the most (Prados, J. 2002, p.471). There was then a long process from the US to get back their missiles and they were buying them back for twice the amount, although in 2001 they still believe that 100 to 200 stingers are in the hands of Afghans. Today the Afghanistan War with the Soviet Union has been studied to prove that it led to a major rise of Islam. The following section which elaborates on concerns society has about contribution to Afghanistan and furthermore it will also look at how the US views Islam in todays society. The invasion of Afghanistan by the Soviet Red army in 1979-1989 consisted of the US supporting the Mujahideen once again but here against communism. This is where Khalid mentions in his article, how Bin Laden was fighting against Soviet Invaders; US supporting and training Bin Laden. But it had also been an argument that the Muslims were a threat to Western Christendom long before they became a problem (Khalid, A. 2007, p. 128). Furthermore it raised the question of necessary enemy. Osama Bin Laden was working against the Soviet invaders, during the invasion in Afghanistan and when the Talibans came to power. Bin Laden was originally receiving training from the CIA, who later handed him over to the Is lamic fighters. In an article by Oleinik, he views the Afghan war from different perspectives, not only a geopolitical one and military issues, but he observes that there was an important economic factor with regards to the oil and gas industry. The Soviet Union had an interest in exploitation of gas in Northern Afghanistan (Oleinik, A. 2008, p. 289). Afghanistan is a very important country connecting Pakistan and India with rich oil and gas. Another problem was the Soviets realizing the Taliban controlled most of the country. Despite the economic factors, the Soviets were engaged in many reforms in Afghanistan, they assisted in training, and in building the police, army, the government and educational systems. The Soviets contributed to a large role in Afghanistan. They created an Afghan syndrome (Prados, J 2002, p. 469), and for them in was a turning point in 1986 when the US supplied air-missiles. Afghanistan declaring victory will remain in history. Most political and economic issues have been ignored for many years, but recently after the attack in New York in September 2001, there are numerous rumors saying that the US created Al-Qaeda. Al-Qaeda is an Islamic group which was founded in the time of the invasion in Afghanistan 1988 and late 1989. They are formed mainly of Sunni Muslims, and a stateless army in which the majority consider them to be a terrorist organization. Despite the fact of false beliefs which indicate the US and allies created Al-Qaeda, there is absolutely no evidence to prove this, although it is typically ironic how the US does view Islam in todays society. The US since the 1980s always backed up the Afghan Mujahideen, however in the late 1990s America strove to overthrow Taliban Regime, which mostly belonged to Majahideen. The US had always followed a sort of double standard relationships with Islam, although terrorist attacks have openly presented an opportunity for Washington to attempt to constrain the emerging international system as a whole, to focus it on the issue of anti-terrorism (Yazdani, E. 2008, p. 44). The main issue that has affected the US global policy is the terrorist attack on 9/11. It first began with President Bush who tried to identify a fight, although it was quickly focused against the Muslim and Non Muslim world. This point ended up stating that America considered being supporters of terrorism. This therefore created possible links between the Al-Qaeda terrorists in Afghanistan and some groups of the Islamic world in Central Asia made these parts a US security priority (Yazdani, E. 2008, p. 47). Bush at this time proclaimed that the evidence they had gathered was pointed towards an affiliate terrorist organization, and that the leader was Osama Bin Laden. He also linked other organizations in other countries including the Egyptians Islamic Jihad and more. The US seems to be fighting against authoritarian governments of some Islamic nations, and in other ways the US shows that they are supporting cruel and dishonest monarchies (Yazdani, E. 2008, p. 40). In other words the re is a lot of controversy regarding the invasion in Afghanistan and the US creating Al-Qaeda. Main argument was that they trained Bin Laden for these attacks and there has not been any substantial evidence despite the links they have previously made. The Afghanistan War till today is seen as an event in time where the Soviet leaderships policies of using armed forces were taken into account while invading. The Soviets did not use any armed forces to attack or tragically destroy a country like the Atomic Bomb dropped in 1945 by the Americans. Although the Soviets at the time were incapable of defeating the Mujahideen for example and they were in possession of serious armed forces, the Afghan War made them consider their political powers. The Soviets were considered throughout history to be the most powerful army having the Red Army in power, and they defeating the German Nazis which was a huge defeat. When Gorbachev made his final decision to withdraw, he did know however that it was important to keep authority and power, because his own people and the outside world. He explains how difficult, long and painful this process was and he wanted to refrain from public embarrassment. The Mujahideen brought upon the Soviets tough opponen ts, which they knew they were unable to defeat, although they did not want to underestimate their powers. The Afghan War left Afghanistan with a tragedy they will not forget. Furthermore in todays society the Afghanistan War has left many with doubts of this war creating Al-Qaeda and terrorism, and the US being the main focus, causing the attack in New York on September 11, 2001. Today many believed that within the next twenty years or so the US will become seriously involved with a guerilla War. The US remains in Afghanistan, creating a larger risk of setting off a crisis. The Afghan War furthermore demonstrated that regardless of any lessons in past history, there is no army however sophisticated, well trained, material rich, numerically overwhelming and ruthless can succeed on a battle field if not psychologically fit and motivated for the fight (Grau, L.W. 2008, p.10). The Soviets greatly determined this statement, and the Afghans proved it right. Winning a war consists of moral qualities, strong faith, stubborn determination, individualism and unending patience (Grau, L.W.2008, p. 10). Word Count: 3290

Forming Public Policy on AIDS epidemic in Sub-Saharan Africa :: essays research papers

Jarrod Stafford Government 9 A.M. Forming Public Policy on AIDS epidemic in Sub-Saharan Africa Strengths of Current Policy †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  15 billion dollars of aid over 5 years †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Bring African AIDS epidemic to forefront †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Dispersing resources quickly †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Using new approaches and leadership model †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Employing evidence-based decisions †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Demanding accountability for results  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Weaknesses of Current Policy †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Not attacking root causes of problem †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Waited many years to act effectively Opportunities †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Drug testing †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Drug market †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Showing long term good will around world †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Increase influence in government and economy. †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Case study for HIV/AIDS  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Threats †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Increase spread of HIV/AIDS throughout world †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Compound economic and societal problems such as starvation, lack of education, and poverty †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Reduce the ability of the government to handle the rising social structure dilemmas and healthcare costs †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Exacerbate regional and ethnic tensions †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Further strain on economy †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Discourage foreign investment and tourism The HIV/AIDS epidemic is a horrific plight affecting every country in the world. HIV stands for 'human immunodeficiency virus'. HIV is a retrovirus that infects cells of the human immune system and destroys or impairs their function. AIDS stands for 'acquired immunodeficiency syndrome' and describes the collection of symptoms and infections associated with acquired deficiency of the immune system. At the end of 2004, 39.4 million people worldwide were estimated to be infected . No other area has been hit harder than the Sub-Sahara Africa region. Sub-Saharan Africa has just over 10% of the world’s population, but is home to more than 60% of all people living with HIV—some 25.4 million . Africa’s AIDS challenge is a multifaceted problem which requires a unique, flexible, and multipronged approach. Education, prevention, and treatment are a necessary start but the United States must look deeper in order to effectively and properly help the communities of Sub-Saharan Africa. Current US policy under President George W. Bush is a massive change to previous policy. It commits 15 billion dollars of aid over a five year period. It is supposed to get resources to the frontlines of this battle quite quickly, use new approaches and a new leadership model. It is described to employ evidence-based decisions and demand accountability for results as well. The world must pray that the enemy has not grown too efficient in the 14 years since it has been identified. It does lack a focus on key issues that are at the root of the problem. AIDS, as are many diseases, is spread rapidly in areas of poverty.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are many threats and even a few opportunities relating to HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa. Left unchecked this situation would most definitely spill over and increase the rapid spread of HIV/AIDS through out the world.

Its Time to Crack Down on Plagiarists and Eliminate Plagiarism :: Free Essays Online

It's Time to Crack Down on Plagiarists and Eliminate Plagiarism Plagiarize v. 1. To appropriate and pass off as one’s own (the writings, ideas, etc., of another). 2. To appropriate and use passages, ideas, etc. from. 3. To commit plagiarism. [1] Plagiarism is an age-old habit of many people, with a large portion of these people being students who write essays or passages to earn a grade in a class. However, these students are unaware of the act they are doing which meets the criteria of the definition explained above. The consequences are very clear: Using another person’s thoughts or ideas without being authorized or noting that it was from another source constitutes plagiarism and will be grounds for failure or to the extreme, dismissal from a program or from a university entirely. The fight is now against those who desire to crack down on plagiarists and the sources of the material being plagiarized. There are many ways to inhibit copywritten material being used again. The obtainment of works cited, bibliography, footnotes and notation of quotes are just the beginning. However, with the widespread use of the Internet as a cesspool of information, how is a person to discover whether the person is cheating or no t? The ball is now in the professor’s court to now use the Internet to their own advantage to catch the thieves in their tracks. When a student decides to write a paper, the first thing in the mindset of that student, as well as many other students is relatively a common thing: the Internet. Although there is so much information to be found, this information is also at the disposal of the professor who administers the assignment. In many cases, the student is simply lazy and becomes sloppy in copying. This leaves noticeable mistakes because of the failure to proofread, ultimately leading to their fate resting in the hands of the professor. The person grading the paper must know what to look for and most of the time it is detected very quickly and precisely. In one case, a professor found the probable source of a particular piece of a student within five minutes and an additional ten minutes to confirm that indeed the paper was a case of word-for-word plagiarism.

Curious Images Essay

Images are significant parts of our lives as they confine and define all that is familiar to us. Human mind has a tendency to associate feelings with images. Each feeling has a face; our fears, contemplations, pleasure, hope, failure etc. , all have a face. So vivid are these faces that as soon as an emotion or thought sprouts in the mind, an image flashes to gratify our senses; so strong is the grip of these images that we keep relating and projecting our thoughts, feelings and memories with them. We see an example of this in R. L. Stevenson’s â€Å"The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr.  Hyde†, where the personality of Mr. Hyde becomes active as soon as his Dr. Jekyll’s thoughts change. For this reason, something that is unknown always causes a feeling of discomfort as it has no visual representation. Our entire lives revolve around familiar and unfamiliar images. The conscious part of our mind always relies on these images to identify our world. Thus, images influence us strongly, sometimes manipulating us, while at other times, playing tricks upon us, like ceiling fan and motion pictures, as demonstrated by Oliver Sack in â€Å"In the Rivers of Consciousness†. Our perceptions sometimes makes us prisoner of our thoughts, binding us into bouts of endless torment. Society often slots our actions into bold categories of good and bad, which forces people to lead dual lives, becoming unwittingly, victim of these images. Dr. Jekyll from the â€Å"The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde† is one such person who is suffering from this inner conflict of maintaining a good image in the society (R. L. Stevenson). Due to this obsession he undertakes the task of transforming his personality chemically. â€Å"A change had come over me. It was no longer the fear of gallows, it was the horror of being Hyde that racked me. † (430). In an attempt to get rid of the evil side of his personality, Dr. Jekyll drinks a potion he creates, which brings out the personality of Mr. Hyde. However to his horror, he discovers that Mr. Hyde becomes more and more monstrous as days go by. This really bothers him because ironically Mr. Hyde had turned out to be totally opposite to what he had imagined. It becomes very difficult for him to keep this side of his personality hidden any longer and this fear of being discovered ultimately with a negative image causes him to kill himself. Tormented by his thoughts of wanting a good image for himself, Dr. Jekyll carried out a dangerous experiment which turned out to be a disaster. Here we see how images created in the mind can manipulate a person to create a harmony between the bigger image created by the society, making him a prisoner of his thoughts. In case of Dr. Jekyll, we also observe that thoughts, for example, of good and evil which translates into an image of moral stance, become more powerful when suppressed. â€Å"By then, Freud emphasized, the wish maybe disguised to the point of being unrecognizable. Things might even appear their opposites: pleasure as pain, desire as fear. † (Gelman, Dreams on the Couch). Here we take a look at Freud’s explanation of seemingly weird dreams. He goes on to explain that something which is like a social taboo, gets suppressed in the mind to an extent where it seems to be exact opposite. Such an image, due to getting suppressed becomes more powerful. â€Å"Thus there are two forces operating: the wish, and a defense against it, a censor. † (133). The wish or desire being a social taboo, causes the dreamer to dream exact opposite of what he desires. But this is not always the case, as argued by many other analysts. â€Å"There is no need to assume dreams have a latent content†, says Harry Fiss†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (134). The images or memories which have been very significant to the dreamer must be taken into consideration as they remain in subconscious and influence our thought process. Thus, we see how the image created by the society influences the images created in the minds of people. Human mind works in a complex way to decipher the images which it keeps viewing, creating and transforming. Sometimes the captured image puts the mind into a trancelike state and at other times tricking the mind to cause an illusion. â€Å"Freed from inhibitions of verbal communication, it seems, we respond to visual imagery that may have been our earliest mode of thinking- one reason, perhaps, why the language of poetry can stir us as it does. That may explain, too, why some dreams can haunt us with a power more persuasive even than that of poetry, shimmering in the mind like lost cities or leaving us, for hours afterward, with an unaccountable feeling of terror. † (Gelman, Dreams on the Couch). A moment which might have been very significant in a person’s life lays hidden in the subconscious layers of the mind. Constant storage of images in our minds, sometimes cause them to jumble up. That’s why our dreams are made of up of images that sometimes make sense and very often do not, explaining why we sometimes have pleasant dreams and at other times suffer from nightmares. â€Å"When the analyst asked the patient if he associated anything with the â€Å"Malarial Area†, he decided, after some thought, that the phrase could be an anagram. † (137). Here we see how the patient’s long forgotten childhood memories distorted his dreams. â€Å"In this patient, whom they call Mrs. M. , there were â€Å"freeze frames† lasting several seconds, during which Mrs. M. would see a prolonged, motionless image and be visually unaware of any movement around her, though her flow of thought and perception was otherwise normal. † (Sacks, In the Rivers of Consciousness). Here we see Mrs. M. getting caught in a frozen moment. The similarity between these situations is how images manipulate these two patients to be caught in the moment. The interesting difference here is how perception creates an image, which one remembers in his dream with his eyes closed, and the other doesn’t with her eyes open. Images sometimes play a trick of optical illusion, causing the brain to believe and perceive motions differently. When we see a series of still images in quick succession, there is an illusion which leads us to believe that we are in fact looking at one continuous motion picture. This optical illusion tricks the mind into believing that which is not the case. â€Å"Another striking example of perceptual standstill could be demonstrated with a common visual illusion, that of the Necker cube. Normally, when we look at this ambiguous perspective drawing of a cube, it switches perspective every few seconds, first seeming to project, then to recede, and no effort of will suffices to prevent this switching back and forth. † (Sacks, In the Rivers of Consciousness). This perspective switching portrays an image which keeps changing and is not still. This is in huge contrast with the case of Mrs. M. , who experiences a standstill trance like state, where she perceives the image in front of her to be motionless. Her perspective doesn’t change for elongated periods of time, until perhaps someone interrupts her. Similarly, ceiling fan sometimes seems to be going in the forward direction, while at other times in the opposite direction. Further, as Sacks goes on to explain how people who suffer from migraine perceive what they see. The migraine patients in their delirium see flickering images, which accelerate to restore normal motion. In all these case, we see how moving images are perceived by the brain, sometimes rushing and causing fluid like motion. At other times, freezing and causing a trance like state. This concept has today advanced into the making of motion pictures, advanced imaging devices etc. From prehistoric times, man has given immense importance to images. This is confirmed by the ancient cave paintings. We see that drawing or creating images fulfills a deeper aspect of human personality, as it offers a very strong medium of self expression. Sometimes images form a pattern in the mind, locking us in that moment, as we see in the case of Mrs. M. â€Å"In the River of Consciousness† by Oliver Sacks. Sometimes they offer a familiar territory to which we are used to, while at other times, they act as agents in visual communication. Images take on a variety of forms and functions. They create patterns in our minds which make us happy, sad and fearful, as we keep relying upon them subconsciously. Often, we don’t realize how much our lives are influenced by them. The way we dress, work, live, are all influenced by the perceived images which we have created in our minds ever since we were born. This is a never ending process which continues as long as we live. Images rule our conscious and sub conscious, also influencing our dreams, as we observe in â€Å"Dreams on the Couch† by David Gelman. Living in a society, where images and appearances are very important, we often perform actions which do not always leave us happy. R. L. Stevenson’s â€Å"The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde† is a classic example of this. In such situations, our suppressed desires sometimes try to overcome our sensibility, till there comes a point where we are forced to look at the bigger picture. Are we truly what we portray ourselves to be or we pretend to be someone who we want to be? Whatever be the case, one cannot deny the impact that images have on our lives, positive or negative. Man, being a social animal adapts himself to put on various images sometimes for himself, sometimes for the society he lives in; sometimes knowingly, sometimes unknowingly. Works Cited Stevenson, R. L. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. 1886. (Gelman, Dreams on the Couch) (Sacks, In the Rivers of Consciousness)

Method of Money Laundering Essay

Structuring deposits The Bank Secrecy Act of 1970 requires banks to report any deposits exceeding $10,000.01. This is not a problem for most of us, but it is a big barrier to money-laundering criminals looking to rid themselves of some cumbersome currency. Launderers will hire low-level lackeys to make multiple small deposits, either on different days or at various branches on the same day to work around this pesky law that attempts to deter money laundering, It is a complex, time-consuming way to launder money, and one that has been rendered even more difficult by computer algorithms that look for suspicious deposit behavior and raise an red flag when one is found. see more:speech on money for asl Banks Far more exciting and global in the practice of money laundering is the use of offshore and overseas banks. Nations like the Cayman Islands, Bahamas and Panama are very accommodating to criminals looking to legitimize their cash; these nations are unrestricted with regards to burdensome banking laws and anti-laundering procedures, which ultimately helps hide the launderers behind strict veils of secrecy. Opening accounts in a number of these offshore accounts allows launderers to move their money around and create a nearly impenetrable defense against curious investigators. Some countries (China and Pakistan among others) have a history of well-established underground banks that have been accepting deposits from sketchy clients for centuries. They legally operate outside of the mainstream banking system and outside the control of the government. There is often no paper work, just the reputation of the principals involved. Shell companies Enterprising criminals looking to legalize their cash can set up various companies that exist for the sole purpose of money laundering. These so-called shell companies often offer some sort of service that can easily be fudged and usually accepts cash as payment when doing legitimate business (beauty salons and trades like plumbing are commonly used). The dirty money is funneled into the company, made to look like legitimate income with fake invoices and receipts and then deposited into the shell company’s accounts as clean, wonderfully spendable cash money. Using these shell companies to stay one step ahead of â€Å"the man† is a shell game of its own. Forensic accountants can strip away layers of deceit and reveal the shady transactions below, which means that only true criminal masterminds with really good accountants should consider this as a laundering option. Legitimate businesses Criminals looking to clean their money can also be good corporate citizens by investing in legitimate business. Cash-rich businesses like bars and strip clubs are the most common, with the dirty money seeded in with the legitimate revenue and squirreled away in the business’ bank accounts. The safer method is to use the dirty money to â€Å"buy† the services offered by the legit businesses, but this necessitates lots of fake invoicing and troublesome number fudging — and you can safely assume that most criminals choose the easy money of crime out of laziness, which makes this a decidedly unattractive alternative when looking for money-laundering options. Gambling With so many cash transactions taking place every day, casinos have become highly valuable money-laundering institutions because chips can be purchased anonymously with dirty money and after a period of time they can be cashed back in and turned into clean money. Even if the casino follows the letter of the law and asks for ID to record the transaction, the Feds are powerless to prove the money was ever dirty. Global criminal enterprises can even ask that the â€Å"winnings† be used as credit at the casino’s overseas franchises. With some games offering as much as 93% return on your money, certain criminals are willing to chance some losses and turn their illicit cash into legitimate money by actually gambling with it. One particularly popular method involves two associates at the roulette table. While one bets a substantial amount on red, the other places a similar amount on black. Provided neither zero nor double zero come up, one side doubles the money and turns it legit at the same time. However, sophisticated surveillance and casino security have limited this scheme in recent years. Down at the track, some crafty launderers will put the word out that they are willing to buy winning tickets at a premium. They then cash in the tickets as clean money and pass the bonus of cleaning the money onto the unsuspecting legitimate gambler, who is usually so stunned at their good fortune that they cannot appreciate their predicament. No money, No problems It is an enviable position that many would like to be in — having so much cash that you do not know what to do with it. However, cleaning money is harder work than earning it. Criminals have to stay one step ahead of the law and they constantly run the risk of losing their cash to shady launderers or eagle-eyed cops. Often, it is not the drug dealing or the extortion that gets these law breakers busted, it is their attempts at concealing the money. So, if you ever decide to get in â€Å"The Game,† watch what you do with your money.

Learning Healthcare Organizations Essay

There are two healthcare organizations that I will be discussing that have transformational change to promote/create learning organization. One is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the other one is International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). CDC is a federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services that focuses national attention on developing and applying disease control and prevention. CDC collaborates to create the expertise, information, and tools that people and communities need to protect their health through health promotion, prevention of disease, injury and disability and preparedness for new health treats. Stakeholders at CDC are people invested in the program that are interested in the results of the evaluation, and/or with a stake in what will be done with the results of the evaluation. Representing their needs and interests throughout the process is fundamental to good program evaluation. Those involved in program operations are the management, program staff, partners, funding agencies and coalition members. Those served or affected by the program are patients or clients, advocacy group, community members, and elected official. And lastly, those who are intended users of the evaluation findings are persons in a position to make decisions about the program, such as partners, funding agencies, coalition members, and the general public or taxpayers. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) continues its long standing dedication to improving the health and wellness of all Americans with the Community Transformation Grant (CTG) program. The CTG program is funded by the Affordable Care Act’s Prevention and Public Health Fund and  awarded $103 million to 61 states and local government agencies, tribes, and territories, and nonprofit organizations in 36 states, along with nearly $4 million to 6 national networks of community-based organizations. Focusing on priorities for change for healthier living is improving health and wellness on tobacco-free living, active living and healthy eating, and high impact quality clinical and other preventive services to prevent and control high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Also, focusing on disease prevention and health promotion that includes social and emotional wellness and healthy and safe physical environments, which facilitate the early identification of mental health needs and access to quality services. Specific community interventions includes; promotes healthy eating by supporting local farmers and developing small grocery stores where people live, protecting people from secondhand smoke exposure, improving community environments to make it safe and easy for people to walk and ride bikes. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) is part of the World Health Organization. It coordinates and conducts both epidemiological and laboratory research into the causes of human cancer. IARC main objectives are; to monitor global cancer occurrence, identify the causes of cancer, elucidate the mechanism of carcinogenesis, and develop scientific strategies for cancer control. On February 3, 2014, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) released World Cancer Report 2014, a collaboration of over 250 leading scientist from more than 40 countries, describing multiple aspects of cancer research and control. The report says about half of all cancers could be avoided if current knowledge was adequately implemented. The stakeholders are the scientist’s that has been researching for the cure of different types of cancer; patient’s that are suffering and waiting for the cure, and the leadership of the World Health organization that implements the research. The IARC activities are mainly funded by the regular budget contributions paid by its participating states. The regular budget for the 2014-2015 biennium was approved in May 2013 at a level of 40 424 491 EUR. Recent changes in the epidemiology of head and neck cancer has new findings.  Overall, the incidence of head and neck cancer is increasing in women, whereas it is decreasing in men. Chewing tobacco is a newly recognized risk factor of great public health concern. The role of tobacco smoking and alcohol as the source of cancer has been reinforced. Head and neck cancer among women in developing countries should deserve more attention, as the mortality rates appears to be higher than those of women in developed countries. For never smokers and never drinkers, more research needs to be done to identify their risk factor patterns. While it is true that advances is medical science have led to continued improvements in medical care and health outcomes, the effectiveness of management options remains inadequate for informed medical care and health policy decision making. Frequently, the result is below an optimal level or standard and inefficient care as well as unsustainable cost. In order to maintain quality of care and cost containment, evidence of comparative clinical and cost effectiveness is necessary for healthcare organization. Examples of healthcare organization that I previously discussed have the institutional lessons learned from the process that is learn along the way. As Feinstein said â€Å"a strategic plan is not worth the paper it is printed on unless its underlying vision is embedded in the organization’s culture, (Feinstein W.L. The Institutional Change Process). The most essential element of organizational change is the alignment of all relevant stakeholders to the new directions. The following are critical to achieving momentum and the successful implementation of a vision for change such as: updating the executive’s leadership style, increasing staff involvement in achieving organizational plans, helping the board understand the scope of the change, and strengthening the agency-federation relationship. Enthusiasm, persistenc e, and commitment for change by the leadership are key. References Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2009). Prevention and control of seasonal influenza with vaccines. Recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), 2009. MMWR Early release, 58(Early release), 1-54. Chang, S., & Collie, C. L. (2009). The future of cancer prevention: will our workforce be ready? Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention, 18(9), 2348-2351. Feinstein, W. L. The Institutional Change Process: Lessons Learned Along the Way. Journal of Jewish Communal Service. Jewish Communal Service Association of North America (JCSA), 1999. James, J. (2009). Health Organizations Theory, Behavior, and Development: 273 Saudbery Jones and Bartlett Publishers. Oreg, Shaul; Berson, Yair. Personnel Psychology. Autumn2011, Vol. 64 Issue 3, p627-659. 33p. 1 Diagram, 2 Charts, 1 Graph. DOI: 10.1111/j.1744-6570.2011.01221.x. , Database: Business Source Elite Weiner, B. J. (2009). A theory of organizational readiness for change. Implement Sci, 4(1), 67.

Venus And Adonis Essays - Literature, Religion, Operas, Mythology

Venus And Adonis Essays - Literature, Religion, Operas, Mythology Venus And Adonis Venus and Adonis: Images of Sexuality in Nature Love is the answer, but while you are waiting for the answer, sex raises some pretty good questions. - Woody Allen Throughout his plays and poetry Shakespeare imbeds numerous and diverse themes, many of them relating to love, sexuality, life, death, religion and countless others. In his poem Venus and Adonis Shakespeare tackles the theme of sexuality as a representation of love, and a function of Nature. The characters of Venus and Adonis, often times reminiscent of an Elizabethan fallen Adam and Eve, create a sexually charged poem that lends much of the power and influence of love and life and death to Nature. Shakespeare creates a natural phenomenon that physically links the love and actions of these two characters to the forces, both positive and destructive, to Nature herself. The poem allows Venus and Adonis a certain power or authority over the forces that lie within the powers of Nature, but Shakespeare's creation of this sexual narrative as a depiction of erotic desire as a tragic event leads the characters to inevitable misfortune, and a complete loss of control over their circumstances. Shakespeare's text can be broadly divided into three sections. The first being Venus' expressions of love for Adonis, the second involving Adonis' death and the hunt, and the third and final section focuses on Venus' reaction to the loss of Adonis. In the first third, Venus tries with increasing desperation to entice Adonis into sex. The pastoral setting on the primrose bank is ideal for the sexually charged analogies she creates. She bombards him with oxymorons involving hot ice, showers him with floral metaphors, launches into an extended variation on the old carpe diem theme, and cracks familiar puns on words such as harts and deer. Venus seems to have inspired control over her own body, and wondrously metamorphosizes her form to suit her purpose, making it heavy enough to need trees to support it, then giving the violets she lies on the strength of trees (152). For all its desperation, the first section is energetic and hopeful, emphasizing Adonis' youth and Venus' constantly self-renewing flesh. The descriptions of love found here are wholly sexual and physically based, but there is a desperate strength in Venus' repeated attempts and persistence. However, at the center of the poem Adonis announces that he intends to hunt the boar the next day. Venus collapses with the boy on top of her, and follows what ought to be the sexual climax of Venus' attempts to lure Adonis into her bed, but all Venus gets from the encounter is frustration: 'all is imaginary she doth prove' (597). In this next section of the poem, which takes place in the forest, Venus speaks of fear, the fear of the boar and the terror of the hunted hare. Death, which has been a veiled presence throughout the first half, becomes the controlling factor of the second. Instead of urging Adonis to beget, Venus warns him that he will be murdering his own posterity if he fails to make love (757-60). The youthfulness of Adonis, which had been described in such vital terms in the first section, able to 'drive infection from the dangerous year' (508), suddenly finds itself subjected to more infections than it can hope to cure: As burning fevers, agues pale and faint, Life-poisoning pestilence and frenzies wood, The marrow-eating sickness whose attaint Disorder breeds by heating of the blood (739-42). At the same time Venus loses control over her body. As she hurries through the woods after the sound of Adonis' horn, her body is subjected to the intrusive gropings of bushes: Some catch her by the neck, some kiss her face, / Some twine about her thigh to make her stay (872-3). This attack on Venus' physical body, and her inability to stop it renders her even more powerless, and her dominating sexuality is turned to frightened reserve as she searches for Adonis. Her efforts to entice Adonis through her pastoral metaphors have failed, even after she evidences her love through the tangible elements of Nature. In the first half of Shakespeare's poem Venus struggles to create a poetic Eden out of the substance of Adonis' body and her own. She tells him that