Descriptive Essay

College Writing 2 October 2012 Descriptive Essay A compact two-door car might not mean a lot to someone, but to me, working and improving my car is my favorite thing to do. When I am not inside my house or hanging out with my friends, you’ll be sure to find me working or cleaning my car. For most people, leaving their car stock is passable for their needs, but to me it’s not. My car is modified which makes it one of a kind. My car consists of its exterior, interior, and performance level.The exterior color of my car, which is a 2005 Nissan 350z, is called Silverstone. Silverstone is the factory painted color. Silverstone is a shade of gray but, this gray isn’t just your average gray; it’s a two tone looking gray that reflects its color tone the different ways the light hits it. For example, on a sunny day, the top half of the car will be a light gray, where as the bottom will be a deep, dark, glossy gray. Like I stated earlier, my car is heavily visually m odified.I have painted the wheels black, painted the front bottom section of the front bumper black to give the car a more aggressive look, painted all the emblems on the car from chrome or silver to black, painted my door handles from a silver, that stood out like a sore thumb, to black to flow with the rest of the car, painted my side markers from a reflective orange to deep black, replaced all the lighting in the car lights to hyper white LED bulbs, upgraded my headlight bulbs to HIDs which let me see the entire road and then some, swapped the ugly orange blinkers to chrome dipped blinkers so they would not have the orange tint that reflects inside the headlight assembly, upgraded my high beams to a eye squinting blue halogen bulb that reflects a blue tint in the lower portion of the headlights, 20% illegal tint put on the side and rear windows with a 5% strip on the front windshield to hide my radar detector, illegally tinted my tail lights and reverse lamp which I buffed to a g lossy, mirror finish, installed aftermarket fog lights that required me to take apart the front of the car to tap into the correct wire, installed HID reverse lights to shine through the tint that are brighter than most headlights, installed illegal air horns with a compressor that is almost as loud as a trains’ horn that makes you jump out of your skin, swapped 16† antenna to a 6† antenna to take the attraction of the antenna away, took the front license plate off the factory mounting plate and relocated it to the left side of the grill so the plate would not stand out as much. Most of the things done to my car are illegal, but I don’t really care considering I want my car to look exactly how I want and police have never given me trouble. My mild OCD has affected my car a lot, especially the exterior.Everything has to be perfect or else I start completely over. When I was tinting my taillights, I used a spray on tinting film that comes in a spray paint can called VHT Nightshades. The first time I used this product, I realized the finish was dull and would not buff out. I thought I would be able to live with it and completely reassembled the car. One of my friends said it looked great, but after one day, I thought it looked like trash. To most, it would have been good enough, if not perfect, but to me, it looked like trash. So guess what I did? I dissembled the entire rear bumper again, sanded down the entire taillight and completely restarted from scratch.This was about another 20-hour process. I even sacrificed driving my car to school that day and had my parents take me because the rear bumper was still off my car. By the time I was done, the taillights were perfect and the 20 hours I had spent with no vehicle was well worth it. When getting inside of my car, you’ll immediately know that this car is not stock on the inside either. The inside of my car is black interior accented with super thin neon orange thread stitching. R ight when you open the door, you are greeted with the beauty of unique LED lighting. I have installed all new interior lights to a whitish-blue hue that is almost annoyingly bright.After seated with the door shut and the lights dim, you’ll notice everything is dark because of the tint. You’ll notice the aftermarket stereo that pulsates from over 100 different colors. After adjusting the rear view mirror down, you can see the top of a small 8† subwoofer tucked underneath the rear sway bar. About 8† to the left of the rear view mirror, you’ll see a compact device with a small 1-line screen that appears to be cordless. This is the infamous device that has saved me many, many times from being pulled over and receiving speeding tickets. This brilliant creation is known as a radar detector. A regular radar detector has a 1 inch spiraled cord that plugs into the cigarette lighter that hangs down from the windshield.This is very annoying considering every ti me the car shifts its weight, the cord slashes around the car, not to mention how ugly a cord hanging from the ceiling of the car to the foot well is. I have fixed this problem which now makes the radar detector seem cordless. It appears to be cordless because the cord is completely invisible. It is invisible because I purchased a 6 foot long black cord that connects to the detector and ran it inside my headliner, down the side pillar, to the cigarette lighter to give the car a clean factory look. A street right by my house is heavily patrolled by police officers doing radar trying to catch speeders. On a rare occasion my small sized, black dog Ralph accompanies me on drives. On one specific day, he was not cooperating with me and I was trying to make him sit.Long story short, I was not paying attention to the road, or my speed at all. My full attention was on him. All of a sudden my detector blares a ringing tone alerting me ahead that a radar gun has been activated. This entire ne xt part happens in one second. I look down to check my speed and I am doing 50 in a 30. I glance up to the rear view mirror and check to see if anyone is close behind me. One might not think that I can do these things within 1 second, but I have practiced. Yes, that sounds weird, but when a huge ticket is on the line, it’s worth it. When I see no one is behind me, I jam on the brakes and poor Ralph goes shooting into the dashboard and then plummets to the floor.By the time I get down to speed around the bend, sure enough, a police car is on the side of the road with an officer present doing radar. It is amazing how powerful the brake calipers are to grip the rotor and grind the car to a halt. Approaching the police officer, I make sure Ralph is fine and then drove past the police officer grinning. This is just one of the many experiences I’ve been saved by this amazing device. Once you turn the key to start the car, you are welcomed with an exceptional exhaust tone tha t is a mixture of elegance and power. Within 1 second after, you’ll hear the radar detector starting up and going through its warm up phase. After the stereo starts up, it is music to your ears, literally.I have replaced the entire stereo system. I have installed a completely new head unit that boosts the wattage to the aftermarket Polk speakers that can hit an uncomfortable loudness as well as adding an 8† subwoofer to give it some boom. Some say an 8† subwoofer won’t be loud enough because of its size, but when its less than a foot from your head and is on full power, it’s more than enough. This subwoofer is one of the best. It is the perfect size that fits under the rear support bar and gives you the perfect thump with your music without it being overbearing. Hearing music and feeling music are two totally different things; this subwoofer adds the feeling.An indescribable feeling is the subwoofer rattling the entire inside of your body and feeling the hair on the back of your neck stand up. If you are craving attention and want to be noticed, turn the subwoofer up and heads will turn whilst the contents of the car is being misplaced. One of my favorite parts of my car is the aftermarket shift knob because of the way it contours to your hand and the performance increase. This shift knob is a lot better than the stock one because it is ? lighter than stock which allows me to speed shift through the gears ultimately making my car quicker. Performance is a huge part of this car considering it is close to 300 horse power and is specially tuned. The car is called â€Å"350z† because the car comes with a 3. L naturally aspirated engine, which means the car is not equipted with any turbos or supercharger. The â€Å"z† in â€Å"350z† lets everyone know that this car is a continuation of the Z family. Nissan has been making Z’s since 1969 and the 350z is a continuation of the family. The 0-60 mph time for m y car is about 5-5. 5 seconds, which is plenty fast, but me being a thrill seeking, naive teenager, I want it to be faster. Upgrading my car is my ultimate hobby, as would the engine but considering I have been pulled over 3 times and received 6 tickets within the first year of driving, my dad will not let me even touch the engine. I’m surprised he even lets me look at it.Don’t get me wrong; I am not one of those spoiled kids that have their parents bail them out of trouble. If I mess up and make stupid decisions, I deal with it and I pay. Every ticket and lawyer I have had, I have paid for, not my parents. Even though tickets are costly and ruin your mood, it’s worth risking because no one buys a sports car to drive it like a mini van. Money will come and go but the memories and experiences will stay. The feeling I get when I achieve a driving stunt is unreal. A classic huge grin from ear to ear. To me, the feeling of conquering a difficult driving maneuver is like quenching someone’s thirst to someone else; indescribable.I crave the feeling of successfully drifting sideways around a turn and looking in the rear view mirror seeing a condensed smoke cloud in the air and deep black tire marks on the ground while hearing the engine and tires beg for mercy is absolutely exhilarating, except when the turn you choose to do this on has a police officer approaching you. That will turn your feeling of exhilaratingly satisfied to a terrible, terrible day. One of the most important things about my car is I can say I’ve done 99% of the work on it myself. Every single thing done to my car excluding the tint and some of the mechanical work, I have done myself. I am not the type of person who takes their car to a shop and tells them what I want done; I do it myself.This makes me appreciate my car so much more considering, yes it saves money, but knowing I did it. I can show up to car meets and tell them I received professional results even though an 18-year-old kid did it. When someone asks me â€Å"Wow, how much have you spent on your car to make it look like that? † I say â€Å"100’s if not 1000’s of hours. † The amount of time and money put into the car is considered ridiculous to some, but to me, absolutely and worth it. I’ve had some of the most memorable experiences in my car and every cent and second put into it makes it more than just a car to me; it makes it part of my life. If anything happened to my car, the word devastation wouldn’t even come close to the feeling I’d be experiencing. Descriptive Essay English 1301 Week 4 The Narrative Essay My First Flight The seasons are approaching in which families gather to celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas. This time of year does not carry the same feelings for me as they did when I was young. I am a military spouse and my husband has been away for most of our holidays. One peculiar Christmas I received the opportunity to spend the holiday with him this was my first flight experience. The morning of my flight, I got up at 2 o’clock, said a prayer, and kissed the children.My mother-in-law drove me to the airport. I was very nervous and excited. I went to the kiosk to get my tickets and check my luggage. I made my way to security, once there I had to take off my shoes and jacket. I placed my carry-on on the conveyer and walked through the security scanner, I was alarmed because of the loud buzzing sound. The security lady pulled me to the side and began to scan me with a wand. I was nervous and embarrassed. She asked me if I had and k nifes or weapons on my body I gave her a deranged look and replied no.She asked me if I had any sharp objects on my person, again I replied no. I started sweating because I was very nervous and wanting to go back home. I did not know why the body scanner and wand was beeping and buzzing because I did not have any metal in my possession. The security lady asked me did I have metal in my bra, I turned and looked at her with a surprising look and replied yes. We both laughed I explained to her this is my first airplane ride and I was nervous and afraid. She tried to help calm my nerves by telling me funny stories.I walked down to the boarding site and the two luggage men playfully said to me and two others that were walking to the plane, â€Å"Sorry but you just missed it. † I instantly felt tears in my eyes then they just started laughing and shook their heads saying go on before it does leave! I ran to my seat, which was 10A, a window seat all to me. I was on a plane; somethin g I thought would never happen because I was afraid of heights and my nervousness. A couple minutes later the plane started to go backwards then turned to the right toward the runway.I watched the left wing change a piece of itself to angle downward to catch the wind. We had to wait a bit since there were two other big planes in front of our; we rolled up right after the last big plane was on its way into the air. As we were rolling, you could hear the strain of the engine getting ready to lift off. The plane picked up speed slowly till we were going full speed, my heart was pounding to the beat of the cracks on the pavement. I was becoming scared now. I watching as the plane’s wheels went off the ground and the ground itself got farther and farther away from me.I dug into my purse for my Bubba gum because I could feel my ears getting ready to pop, as mother-in-law had warned me. It hurt so much when it got to that point sometime, or it was just annoying. During the hour and thirty-minute flight I would chew my now tasteless gym, would drinking some water and chewing or sucking on the ice, I was given with the drink. It was all to have a different reason for swallowing since I forgot most of the time from looking out the window or looking at all the other people on the plane.The flight attendant said we clear to us our electronics, so I pulled out my camera and took a picture of the ground when the sky was clear then another picture of the cloudy sky that was covering the ground. Right after I took the second picture a lane went into the clouds while another was coming out of it, it was no wonder they both did not hit each other from not being able to see! The plane started tilting to the right and I felt myself going with it, I clung to my chair and pressed myself against my window so I didn’t fall out of my seat, even though I was buckled in.Once the plane was straight again did I release my death grip on my chair, my knuckles were still red fr om my hold. We were told that we had to put away our electronics again, after I put my camera back into my purse I looked out the window and my heart started to pound in my chest again. I realized I was in Virginia, the place where Roderick was, the place I would have until January 8, 1998 to stay with him. Tears came to my eyes, I was no longer afraid of the flight but happy and excited to my next visit by plane.As the plane finally touched down, I was eager to get the hell off the plane and get my luggage to wait to be picked up by Roderick. I already had my purse and bathroom pouch on my arm and ready for the people in front of me to get off. We were finally unloading once the plane came to a complete stop; I was trying very hard to stay standing since my legs felt like Jell-O from the flight. I didn’t care though, I walked out then started to walk fast to get my luggage and see Roderick. Turn out to get to see Roderick before my luggage.He was standing in front of the sec urity line but on the opposite side where people are getting off their flights and heading to the luggage claim. He was wearing his military uniform. I went at a dead run to him and then stopped before I ran into him. I was so happy to hold him that tears start rolling down my face. He looked at me and said its ok and we went to get my luggage. After getting my luggage we made our way out of the airport hand in hand, Roderick and I. Once to his friend car we threw my bag into the trunk and get in the car to drive to where he was living.He got my attention by saying my name, when I looked to him he kissed me deeply which I eagerly returned. After all that worry about maybe my plane could end up crashing, the worry about something happening either to me or something that would prevent me from seeing him. My nerves making me have slight little panic attacks over mothering. I had to wait over a year to see him again face to face for a second time. So my for my first plane flight theory that has been analyzed by me and not the news reporters is this, simply amazing! Sure, it was scary when it’s your first time.Yet, if you have someone or something waiting for you at the end of the flight. It is worth the scare, the nervousness, going through security, missing the first flight, arguing with people who should have spoken up to the security guards , the ears popping, feeling like you’re going to fall out of your seat at every turn made even with a seat belt on, etc. Everything I experienced on my first flight made me not longer afraid of heights nor or flying. All because I had the one I love waiting for me on the other side of that flight. Descriptive Essay Kylie Harrison English 1104-34 October 8, 2012 Descriptive Essay It was a hot muggy afternoon during the early season of fall. The wind was strong that day, the force blowing against my hair causing it to rise and fall as the wind came and left without warning. I could feel the sun beating down upon my back, causing my body to fight against the heat to stay cool. The constant sound of voices ring in my ears and throb my forehead. I was at the picnic table outside the bridge of Bryant place, and it was the most busy and uncomfortable place on campus at that time.Many people would think being outside in West Virginia would be peaceful and relaxing; however, this is a loud, busy college campus. The repeating sound of my peers talking, yelling, or singing is distracting from my focus. As I glance around this uncomfortable, rough seated picnic table, the soft song of a violin rings through my ears and into my heart. Little did I notice before, a shoulder length, blonde hair young girl was showing off her inspirational talent on her new violin.The notes of the song flew through the air as a dandelion in the summer. Ambulance sirens screeched through my ears suddenly. The pain I experience when I hear ambulances is breathtaking. The fact a child, a mother, a husband or someone’s sister could be in trouble lingers in my head as the sirens rush through town. Noises can motivate your brain to think back to the good or bad memories of your past times. As many states, West Virginia citizens smoke cigarettes. I sit on this wood splinter table and the smell of cigarettes inhales through my nose.Noticing most college students smoke the tobacco filled cigarette, I usually leave the table when I feel the turn in my stomach and the headache rushes through my skull. A worker from Aladdin's at the Falcon Center carefully stepped down the steep high steps. She held a foil covered dish plate. The smell of pizza blocked the smell of cigarettes for one moment. The smell of pizz a made my stomach girgle and my brain to crave it. Smells of a college campus is different than sitting in a hammock on a hot summer day in the woods!The picnic table outside Bryant Place is one of the busiest and uncomfortable places on campus at times. The muggy heat sticking to me as my hands get clammy. The talking of my classmates scream through my ears. The wind blows my hair as the sun shines on it. West Virginia is a peaceful place in most parts of the Mountain State; however, college campus isn't the place to read a good book or rest your eyes in the calming fall afternoon as leaves fall from the trees. Descriptive Essay Descriptive Essay As my sister’s wedding drew near, given that I was her maid of honor, it became apparent to me that it was my job to take all of the ladies in the wedding party to the salon on the day of the wedding. This was fine with me, except that I hadn’t worn makeup or done my hair for years. After much convincing from the bride, I decided to get my makeup done with them, and regretted that decision every second after it was made. The day approached all too soon. I was blown back by the smell of burnt hair and nail polish immediately upon opening the door for the wedding party.Trying to keep a happy face for my sister, I put holes through my tongue with my teeth so as not to gasp or gag in disgust. For all of the other females, this assault on the nostrils seemed enjoyable, as if they had all found they’re natural environment. Every face I saw look back at me when I peered through the haze was burnt to a crisp, similar to the color of pumpkin pie, and lay ered in a spectral mask. As I led the party back to our reserved section, we passed women of all ages sitting with glee as their hair was ripped from their head, being scorched with no mercy, and their faces were plastered with unnatural chemicals.I was astounded at how happy and childlike these women looked while their heads were being tortured; had they no idea? I tried to hide away after getting all of my ladies settled, but they would have none of it. My heart started pounding as a pack of rabid hyenas, cackling and foaming at the mouth with excitement, dragged me by my wrists to the hard as rock chair that I was sure had a layer of styling goo and makeup crust on it. I feared that would never release me from its grasp again. Instantly after my obviously not-cushioned-enough butt hit the chair, a whole new group of jackals was hovering in my face, plotting its demise.Although I’m sure to other people it looked gentle, as far as I could tell they spent the next few minutes slamming bottles and cards into the side of my face to match my â€Å"foundation†. Going through every unnecessary option first, they eventually broke into laughter at my apparently as-colorless-as-it-gets face. The crowd dissipated and I was left with just one, the most intimidating one in my opinion. She grabbed the previously voted on bottle, and shook it so hard her hand was just a blur and I feared she would hit her temple and knock herself out.Or maybe I was just hoping that would be the case†¦ Violently thrashing some of the liquid into her hand, she analyzed my face once again, putting me into an even worse state of discomfort. She grabbed a little white sponge that too most would probably look and feel velvety and gentle, but to me was tempestuous and coarse. As she smeared the scratchy substance on my face, I had to resist the urge to bat her hand away and rub off what she had done. After rubbing it into every corner of my face, that I never knew was so big, s he moved on to an absurdly sharp pencil and aimed for my eyeball.The mischievous fiend snatched up my eyelids and held them in place, without as much as a warning to blink first. I struggle to keep them still as she chiseled away at the little bit of skin I had there to protect my precious ogles. After finishing the bottom she moved to the top, getting so close to my eye that I was sure to see a line right through the middle when she was done. Next was the mascara. At this point I was so defeated that I saw no point in arguing that I didn’t want it, more than anything else. I had no desire to look like a raccoon, or resist the urge to rub my eyes all night.Once she felt like she had jabbed the stick into the tube enough times, she again grabbed my already abused eyelids and initiated another cruel punishment upon them. What could have been the calming strokes of the brush still seemed cruel and unnecessary. She stepped back and gave a prideful exhale. While still looking at m e, she started to fumble through lipsticks behind her when I decided that my face had been through too much to have yet another random color added. â€Å"Don’t bother! † I snapped out, more harshly than intended. I settled my nerves enough to not show how much I hated this stranger. It will come off by the time I get there anyways, I think you did enough. † Without giving her enough a chance to argue, I got up and rushed to my mother’s side to cower like a fool. She looked me over, clearly wondering if anything had actually been done. I gave her a look to show that it had and she better not ask. â€Å"Well dear,† she said, â€Å"I guess you’re just a natural beauty and that was a waste of time. † And with that I decided that there is no need to ever walk into a salon or makeup department again, and that my mother is much better at giving advice after the fact. Descriptive Essay College Writing 2 October 2012 Descriptive Essay A compact two-door car might not mean a lot to someone, but to me, working and improving my car is my favorite thing to do. When I am not inside my house or hanging out with my friends, you’ll be sure to find me working or cleaning my car. For most people, leaving their car stock is passable for their needs, but to me it’s not. My car is modified which makes it one of a kind. My car consists of its exterior, interior, and performance level.The exterior color of my car, which is a 2005 Nissan 350z, is called Silverstone. Silverstone is the factory painted color. Silverstone is a shade of gray but, this gray isn’t just your average gray; it’s a two tone looking gray that reflects its color tone the different ways the light hits it. For example, on a sunny day, the top half of the car will be a light gray, where as the bottom will be a deep, dark, glossy gray. Like I stated earlier, my car is heavily visually m odified.I have painted the wheels black, painted the front bottom section of the front bumper black to give the car a more aggressive look, painted all the emblems on the car from chrome or silver to black, painted my door handles from a silver, that stood out like a sore thumb, to black to flow with the rest of the car, painted my side markers from a reflective orange to deep black, replaced all the lighting in the car lights to hyper white LED bulbs, upgraded my headlight bulbs to HIDs which let me see the entire road and then some, swapped the ugly orange blinkers to chrome dipped blinkers so they would not have the orange tint that reflects inside the headlight assembly, upgraded my high beams to a eye squinting blue halogen bulb that reflects a blue tint in the lower portion of the headlights, 20% illegal tint put on the side and rear windows with a 5% strip on the front windshield to hide my radar detector, illegally tinted my tail lights and reverse lamp which I buffed to a g lossy, mirror finish, installed aftermarket fog lights that required me to take apart the front of the car to tap into the correct wire, installed HID reverse lights to shine through the tint that are brighter than most headlights, installed illegal air horns with a compressor that is almost as loud as a trains’ horn that makes you jump out of your skin, swapped 16† antenna to a 6† antenna to take the attraction of the antenna away, took the front license plate off the factory mounting plate and relocated it to the left side of the grill so the plate would not stand out as much. Most of the things done to my car are illegal, but I don’t really care considering I want my car to look exactly how I want and police have never given me trouble. My mild OCD has affected my car a lot, especially the exterior.Everything has to be perfect or else I start completely over. When I was tinting my taillights, I used a spray on tinting film that comes in a spray paint can called VHT Nightshades. The first time I used this product, I realized the finish was dull and would not buff out. I thought I would be able to live with it and completely reassembled the car. One of my friends said it looked great, but after one day, I thought it looked like trash. To most, it would have been good enough, if not perfect, but to me, it looked like trash. So guess what I did? I dissembled the entire rear bumper again, sanded down the entire taillight and completely restarted from scratch.This was about another 20-hour process. I even sacrificed driving my car to school that day and had my parents take me because the rear bumper was still off my car. By the time I was done, the taillights were perfect and the 20 hours I had spent with no vehicle was well worth it. When getting inside of my car, you’ll immediately know that this car is not stock on the inside either. The inside of my car is black interior accented with super thin neon orange thread stitching. R ight when you open the door, you are greeted with the beauty of unique LED lighting. I have installed all new interior lights to a whitish-blue hue that is almost annoyingly bright.After seated with the door shut and the lights dim, you’ll notice everything is dark because of the tint. You’ll notice the aftermarket stereo that pulsates from over 100 different colors. After adjusting the rear view mirror down, you can see the top of a small 8† subwoofer tucked underneath the rear sway bar. About 8† to the left of the rear view mirror, you’ll see a compact device with a small 1-line screen that appears to be cordless. This is the infamous device that has saved me many, many times from being pulled over and receiving speeding tickets. This brilliant creation is known as a radar detector. A regular radar detector has a 1 inch spiraled cord that plugs into the cigarette lighter that hangs down from the windshield.This is very annoying considering every ti me the car shifts its weight, the cord slashes around the car, not to mention how ugly a cord hanging from the ceiling of the car to the foot well is. I have fixed this problem which now makes the radar detector seem cordless. It appears to be cordless because the cord is completely invisible. It is invisible because I purchased a 6 foot long black cord that connects to the detector and ran it inside my headliner, down the side pillar, to the cigarette lighter to give the car a clean factory look. A street right by my house is heavily patrolled by police officers doing radar trying to catch speeders. On a rare occasion my small sized, black dog Ralph accompanies me on drives. On one specific day, he was not cooperating with me and I was trying to make him sit.Long story short, I was not paying attention to the road, or my speed at all. My full attention was on him. All of a sudden my detector blares a ringing tone alerting me ahead that a radar gun has been activated. This entire ne xt part happens in one second. I look down to check my speed and I am doing 50 in a 30. I glance up to the rear view mirror and check to see if anyone is close behind me. One might not think that I can do these things within 1 second, but I have practiced. Yes, that sounds weird, but when a huge ticket is on the line, it’s worth it. When I see no one is behind me, I jam on the brakes and poor Ralph goes shooting into the dashboard and then plummets to the floor.By the time I get down to speed around the bend, sure enough, a police car is on the side of the road with an officer present doing radar. It is amazing how powerful the brake calipers are to grip the rotor and grind the car to a halt. Approaching the police officer, I make sure Ralph is fine and then drove past the police officer grinning. This is just one of the many experiences I’ve been saved by this amazing device. Once you turn the key to start the car, you are welcomed with an exceptional exhaust tone tha t is a mixture of elegance and power. Within 1 second after, you’ll hear the radar detector starting up and going through its warm up phase. After the stereo starts up, it is music to your ears, literally.I have replaced the entire stereo system. I have installed a completely new head unit that boosts the wattage to the aftermarket Polk speakers that can hit an uncomfortable loudness as well as adding an 8† subwoofer to give it some boom. Some say an 8† subwoofer won’t be loud enough because of its size, but when its less than a foot from your head and is on full power, it’s more than enough. This subwoofer is one of the best. It is the perfect size that fits under the rear support bar and gives you the perfect thump with your music without it being overbearing. Hearing music and feeling music are two totally different things; this subwoofer adds the feeling.An indescribable feeling is the subwoofer rattling the entire inside of your body and feeling the hair on the back of your neck stand up. If you are craving attention and want to be noticed, turn the subwoofer up and heads will turn whilst the contents of the car is being misplaced. One of my favorite parts of my car is the aftermarket shift knob because of the way it contours to your hand and the performance increase. This shift knob is a lot better than the stock one because it is ? lighter than stock which allows me to speed shift through the gears ultimately making my car quicker. Performance is a huge part of this car considering it is close to 300 horse power and is specially tuned. The car is called â€Å"350z† because the car comes with a 3. L naturally aspirated engine, which means the car is not equipted with any turbos or supercharger. The â€Å"z† in â€Å"350z† lets everyone know that this car is a continuation of the Z family. Nissan has been making Z’s since 1969 and the 350z is a continuation of the family. The 0-60 mph time for m y car is about 5-5. 5 seconds, which is plenty fast, but me being a thrill seeking, naive teenager, I want it to be faster. Upgrading my car is my ultimate hobby, as would the engine but considering I have been pulled over 3 times and received 6 tickets within the first year of driving, my dad will not let me even touch the engine. I’m surprised he even lets me look at it.Don’t get me wrong; I am not one of those spoiled kids that have their parents bail them out of trouble. If I mess up and make stupid decisions, I deal with it and I pay. Every ticket and lawyer I have had, I have paid for, not my parents. Even though tickets are costly and ruin your mood, it’s worth risking because no one buys a sports car to drive it like a mini van. Money will come and go but the memories and experiences will stay. The feeling I get when I achieve a driving stunt is unreal. A classic huge grin from ear to ear. To me, the feeling of conquering a difficult driving maneuver is like quenching someone’s thirst to someone else; indescribable.I crave the feeling of successfully drifting sideways around a turn and looking in the rear view mirror seeing a condensed smoke cloud in the air and deep black tire marks on the ground while hearing the engine and tires beg for mercy is absolutely exhilarating, except when the turn you choose to do this on has a police officer approaching you. That will turn your feeling of exhilaratingly satisfied to a terrible, terrible day. One of the most important things about my car is I can say I’ve done 99% of the work on it myself. Every single thing done to my car excluding the tint and some of the mechanical work, I have done myself. I am not the type of person who takes their car to a shop and tells them what I want done; I do it myself.This makes me appreciate my car so much more considering, yes it saves money, but knowing I did it. I can show up to car meets and tell them I received professional results even though an 18-year-old kid did it. When someone asks me â€Å"Wow, how much have you spent on your car to make it look like that? † I say â€Å"100’s if not 1000’s of hours. † The amount of time and money put into the car is considered ridiculous to some, but to me, absolutely and worth it. I’ve had some of the most memorable experiences in my car and every cent and second put into it makes it more than just a car to me; it makes it part of my life. If anything happened to my car, the word devastation wouldn’t even come close to the feeling I’d be experiencing. Descriptive Essay Four years ago I lost two of the most essential people in my life, my Grandmothers Delores Rugley and Elizabeth Cargill. They were the sweetest, funniest, and most loving people I could ever imagine. They filled the room with smiles and cherished moments. Having two grandmothers whose arms were always opened wide to welcome you with love was a great feeling. Their smile was brighter than the stars that sparkled high above. They listened without judgment and took the time to share. But that was just the beginning. My grandmother Delores was the one who did all of the wonderful cooking.I could just imagine all those great Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners we had. I could smell and taste her wonderful sweet potato pies, juicy greens, sweet cornbread and the list goes on. Cooking was not all she did though; even in her 70s she was a hard worker. Delores was never terrified to say what was on her mind. She always kept her grandchildren and great-grandchildren in check. In 2008, she passe d away due to ovarian cancer. My family was never the same after that tragic moment. My grandmother Elizabeth was a little on the sweet side. Every time I would come visit her she would have the biggest smile on her face.She did not do a lot of cooking but she could give out a lot of love. She was always there for me when things got a little out of hand. I could hear her now telling me everything is going to be alright. She was diagnosed with breast cancer and had to get surgery to get her breast removed. But one thing I realized about her was that she was a fighter. She may have had that surgery but she did not let that cancer get her down. As she got older my family decided to put her in a nursing home. I remember all the times I visited her in the nursing home she would always be so proud to tell her nurses that I was her granddaughter.As she was in the nursing home she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Also in 2008, that was the one battle she did not win. That was a devastating year for me. Delores and Elizabeth were more than just my grandmother’s; they were my life, my soul, my world. But as I think about it, they are now my angels. Sometimes I can feel their tough as they are guiding me to the right side of the path. When I wake up in the middle of the night I can sometimes see them standing over me. That just goes to show me they are still here with me every step of the way.

Effects of Armed Conflicts on Women

Armed conflict has always been an inherent characteristic of the world we live in. The causes of conflict can be multifarious ranging from attempts to gain economic, political or territorial advantage to social factors such as religion and ethnicity. Armed conflicts can also be varied in nature with inter, intra and even non state combatants fighting against each other. The complexity and scale of armed conflicts have increased to a great extent with the emergence of non-state terrorist and mercenary groups that lacks the distinctiveness of traditional state armies fighting against each other. The consequences have been devastating for an increasing number of the population of the world who are affected by such armed conflicts. These include not only the combatants but also civilians who get caught up in the fighting in one way or the other. In fact civilian casualties have been on the rise and climbing â€Å"dramatically from 5 per cent at the turn of the century, to 15 per cent during World War I, to 65 per cent by the end of World War II, to more than 75 per cent in the wars of the 1990s. † (UN Report, 2001) A very stereotypical view regarding armed conflicts is that it is the men who fight the battles while the women support them by taking care of the home front. Men are perceived as the fighters who suffer causalities while women have to play out the traditional roles of wives, mothers and care givers and are therefore comparatively unaffected by war. Byrne (1996) however holds that even though it is largely men who directly fight and die in battles, it is women who constitute an overwhelming majority of the civilian casualties of war. Byrne goes on to add that the concept of women staying safely at home while the men fight the war at the front, and the differentiation between ‘conflict’ and ‘safe’ zones in armed conflict are essentially myths that do not take stock of the practical situation. Moreover, the fact that a growing number of women are also participating in armed conflicts around the world as active combatants and not merely as passive support providers adds a new dimension to the effects of armed conflicts on women. The Independent Experts’ Assessment on the Impact of Armed Conflict on Women and the role of Women in Peace-Building (2001) commissioned by the United Nations Development Funds for Women chose ‘During Armed Conflict Women’s Bodies Become a Battleground’ as the title of the introductory chapter of its report. This exemplifies the extent of violence against women as a result of armed conflicts. Civilians have become the primary targets in new terror tactics that have evolved in armed conflicts. But it is women who suffer most. Men and boys as well as women and girls are the victims of this targeting, but women, much more than men, suffer gender-based violence. Their bodies become a battleground over which opposing forces struggle. † (Rehn & Sirleaf, 2001) The United Nations defines violence against women as â€Å"any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, inc luding threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private. † (Machel, 2000) It is a matter of grave concern that women are actually subjected to every conceivable act of violence and more, that can fall under the purview of the definition. Not only do women face generic violence such as torture, killing, imprisonment and forced labour under conditions of war, but they also suffer gender-specific violence that strike at the very core of their existence. They are abducted and raped, used as sexual slaves, forced to cook, clean, carry water and loads and do other domestic chores; and even used as human shields or put to risky undertakings such clearing minefields. There are numerous examples. Rehn & Sirleaf (2001) reports that â€Å"94% per cent of displaced households surveyed in Sierra Leone had experienced sexual assaults, including rape, torture and sexual slavery†¦ at least 250,000 – perhaps as many as 500,000 – women were raped during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. † This however is only the tip of the iceberg. The sufferings of women in armed conflicts never seem to end. They are forced by the circumstances to sell sex to survive, they are taken advantage of sexually even by people who are supposed to help them, and finally, they have to face censure at the hands of those very near and dear ones for whom they make all the sacrifices. Such is their plight. The Reason Why The roots of the violence that women suffer during the course of armed conflicts are however opined to lie elsewhere. Violence is said to be perpetuated on women not solely because of the conditions of war but because of a direct relation with violence in the life of women even during peace time (Rehn & Sirleaf 2001). The relationship between the genders is determined by the extent of access to or distribution of power. Men are in more control of resources and power than women. Since women do not have control over power and resources they as a gender are usually not the cause behind wars. In spite of that they suffer because of their inherent power and control position vis-a-vis men. Again, the greater emphasis by nations on increasing their military strength results in a deterioration of the rights of women exacerbating the inequalities in gender relations. In a display of unadulterated hypocrisy however, many armed conflicts are justified on the grounds of restoring or maintaining gender equality. This was clearly the case in the American invasion of Afghanistan ion 2001 when liberation of women from the fanatical regime of the Talibans was cited as a reason even though there was hardly any concern for the plight of the same women during the five years prior to the invasion even when local and international NGOs constantly strived to draw attention to their sufferings (Jack, 2003). It is very true that â€Å"although entire communities suffer the consequences of armed conflict and terrorism, women and girls are particularly affected because of their status in society and their sex. † (Beijing Declaration, 1996). The effect of war on women depends to a great extent on their gendered role that defines their constraints and opportunities in society. Women become more vulnerable war atrocities when they are perceived as symbolic bearers of the pride and honour of a community. In such cases women are specifically targeted as a way of denting the very essence of he rival community. In regions where women are deemed to represent the cultural and ethnic identity of communities as the producer of future generations, any assault on their honour becomes an assault on the morale and honour of the entire community. Under such circumstances public rape and torture of women is considered to have serious demoralizing effects on enemy communities. The victors or occupation forces resort to sexual exploitation of women because of such underlying war strategies coupled with inherent sexual urges. Yet the same symbolic role of women can be a cause of threat or attack even from their own community for not conforming to the role in some way or the other in adverse conditions, such as not wearing a veil or venturing into forbidden areas as has been the case in the Islamic world. Armed conflict is therefore like a double edged sword for women. Societal norms also force women to bear atrocities. The comments of a doctor working with Save the Children Fund, in an ICRC/TVE film (2000) illustrate the point: In certain villages bordering conflict young girls have admitted that armed men come in at night – these girls are used as sex workers – they are not allowed to protest – they are not allowed to lock their doors and the whole community tolerates this because these armed men protect the community – so it is a trade off. †¦Ã¢â‚¬  When sexual violence is used as a means of warfare or when women are pressurized to bear children as a means of supply of future soldiers, women become a very vulnerable gender to the violence of armed conflict. In conflict zones such as Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo, sexual violence was used as a means of ‘ethnic cleansing’. The Serbian police and paramilitary forces used rape to punish women belonging to the Kosovo Liberation Army (Human Rights Watch, 2000). Different Wars, Different Stages, Different Roles The different kinds of armed warfare, their different stages and the different roles that women play in these conflicts all have different effects on women. Modern armed conflicts are fought between adversaries that are very different from the conventional state armies. Terrorist groups and non-state players give armed conflicts a new dimension in the modern world. The problem with such combatants is that they do not adhere to international laws governing warfare and have no scruples in indulging in violence and atrocities that would fall in the category of war crimes. The Geneva Conventions and its protocols find no takers in them. They are not regulated by any authority and are guided either by their own perverted consciences or by fanatical ideologies. As a result women become more susceptible all kinds of violence from such elements in armed conflict. Armed conflicts usually pass through different stages viz. the pre-conflict stage or run up to the conflict, the conflict itself, the stage of conflict resolution or the peace process and the post conflict stage of reconstruction and reintegration. Each of these stages hold different horrors for women depending on the different roles that women play in such conflicts. Women act as agents of change when they participate in the prevention, resolution or management of armed conflicts. Their participation is very important because without them the views, needs and interests of half of the population go unrepresented. Conversely, women also act as agents of change when they indirectly support the men to take up arms for any cause which they may believe in. In the case of Rwanda, women were found to have been accomplices to and participants in gross acts of genocide (Lindsey, 2001). This indirect participation of women takes on added significance in their role as the primary influence on children. Women as mothers can influence children in many ways and mould them to serve as soldiers in armed conflicts. The simple act of women telling stories centered on sensitive issues of ethnic or clan conflicts could sensitize the children. Encouraging future generations to fight, may be considered as subtle participation of women in the armed conflicts as agents of change. Acting as agents of change is fraught with dangers because women often have to consciously take sides in their efforts to better the situation or to protect themselves and their families. They put themselves at risk in doing so. In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) women of the South Kivu region were buried alive by people of their own villages because they were said to be witches. It was however found that they suffered their fate because the villagers suspected them of providing food and medicines to armed groups which the villagers did not support (Rehn & Sirleaf 2001). Women participate as active combatants in armed conflicts. â€Å"†¦the number of women who participate in fighting forces is increasing in nearly all conflicts. Women have constituted significant proportions of combatants and combat support operations in conflicts in Eritrea, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Vietnam, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Uganda, and Rwanda † (USAID, 2007). As active combatants women face the same ravages of war as fighting men do. However, in many cases, women are abducted and forced to participate as combatants. The Revolutionary United Front in Sierra Leone made it a practice to raid villages and abduct children of both sexes to force them to join in the fighting. The abducted children were often raped, starved and drugged and then forced to kill. It has been the same in Uganda, Mozambique, Liberia and other war torn places. Women also get involved in the fighting as ‘followers’ of fighters. In such a role the woman does not carry arms but provide full and active support to the fighters. She acts as cook, domestic servant, sexual partner, guard or porter or all of these together. She may even be used as human shield in the fighting. It is not very difficult to imagine the trauma that she goes through in such roles. Women become victims and spoils of war. It is a very common practice of conquering forces to claim women of the defeated party as spoils of war. In an occupied land, women are also forced to curry sexual favors to the victorious forces for the sake of their own survival and the survival of their families. The fate of women is closely linked to the fate of their men. When men leave their homes to fight or die in the fighting, the women often becomes the primary bread winner of the family and has to take on additional role and responsibilities. This puts the woman in an entirely new social position, one that could even turn out to be advantageous but is more often than not a position that entails untold hardships on her. Left to fend alone for her family and herself, a woman could be driven to any extent and exploited easily under such circumstances. A woman usually finds herself in such a role in the post conflict stage of reconstruction and reintegration. Scars that do not heal Armed conflicts affect women physically, psychologically, economically, socially and even spiritually. They are more susceptible to violence than men because they are women. â€Å"Women are victims of unbelievably horrific atrocities and injustices in conflict situations; this is indisputable. As refugees, internally displaced persons, combatants, heads of household and community leaders, as activists and peace-builders, women and men experience conflict differently. Women rarely have the same resources, political rights, authority or control over their environment and needs that men do. In addition, their caretaking responsibilities limit their mobility and ability to protect themselves. † (Rehn & Sirleaf 2001). Gender Based Violence (GBV) can take many forms. Sexual violence in the form of rape, sexual slavery, forced pregnancy, trafficking, genital mutilation and soliciting of sexual favors, as horrifying as they are, is only one aspect of the affect of war on women. Steep increase in domestic violence due to armed conflicts; the travails of displacement, forced or otherwise; the resultant adverse affects on health and increased exposure to infections and life-threatening diseases such as AIDS/HIV; the burden of additional social and economic responsibilities; and the lingering psychological, physical and social effects even after the end of hostilities are the multidimensional impacts of armed conflicts that are not quite as obvious, but devastating enough to merit closer scrutiny to understand their mechanism of operation. Sexual Violence and Physical Torture The continent of Africa is rife with armed conflicts. Many factors such as bad governance, illiteracy, deplorable economic conditions, political unrest and breakdown of social structures have contributed in fomenting armed struggles on unprecedented scales. Africa is a classic example of a society where the status of women as a subordinate and deprived class has added to their miseries during time so war. The majority of women in Africa is uneducated and live in abject isolation cut off even from all that is happening around them in politics and power play. They are therefore caught completely unawares when armed conflicts erupt. The subordination of women in Africa is accentuated in conflict situations. They are not only used as sexual objects who are to be humiliated and demeaned, but are also tortured and mutilated to deter them from carrying out stereotyped roles that are perceived to go against the interests of the perpetrators. During the documentation that has been carried out in Uganda, Liberia and Sierra Leone, women have testified that rebels cut off their lips, ears and nose giving various reasons for such acts (Ochieng, 2004). The same study also documents an instance in which a father was shot dead by enemy combatants when he refuse do have sexual intercourse with his daughter. The intention in this case was to inflict severe psychological torture on both the father and the daughter as incest is considered a blasphemy in Africa as in the rest of the world at large, and would leave permanent scars on the psyche of individuals and the society. Even when women participate as combatants on their own will, they are expected to submit to the sexual exploitations of their superiors. A United Nations document on the situation in Columbia states that â€Å"the situation of women and girls making part of illegal armed groups continues concerning the Council. Women and girl-combatants were objects of sexual abuse by their superiors in the hierarchy. † (Franco et. al. 2006). Abduction of women during armed conflicts is a practice that has its roots in deep in history. A well-known example is the large group of women who were labeled the ‘comfort women’ in the Far East during the Second World War. Things have not changed much. Only the scale, range and scope have. The sexual violence is not restricted to a particular stage of armed conflict but is widely prevalent in all the stages. If it is exploitation by the same side during the initial stage, the victorious lay their own claim on the womenfolk of the vanquished during the stage of active combat; this is followed by sexual exploitation of displaced women who go from place to place as refugees and are hounded sexually by a host of anti-social elements as well as those who are meant to protect and shelter them. This extends into the peace process and the reconstruction and reintegration stage when women ravaged and left helpless by the experience of war easily succumb to the lure of currying favors in exchange of sex. â€Å"Women are physically and economically forced or left with little choice but to become sex workers or to exchange sex for food, shelter, safe passage or other needs; their bodies become part of a barter system, a form of exchange that buys the necessities of life. † (Rehn & Sirleaf 2001). There have been reports of the situation being attenuated by the arrival of peacekeeping forces when personnel from these forces also indulge in sexually exploiting women in return for food, security, shelter, employment and other favors. The independent study commissioned by the United Nations Development Fund for Women were told by members of the local community in the Kisangani and Goma regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo that peace keepers having sex with local girls and that condoms were lying visibly scattered just outside the UN compounds. It was however the desperate women who took the initiative for such sexual liaisons. Trafficking is another adverse affect that is closely associated with armed conflict. Countries with armed conflict are ideal breeding grounds for trafficking because breakdown in law and order and reduced border controls and policing. Criminal networks of arms and drug dealers that operate in war torn countries easily double up as traffickers in women. The women are taken out to work in illegal factories, as slaves or as prostitutes in brothels in red light areas. Rise in armed conflicts have triggered a simultaneous rise in trafficking throughout the world. Trafficking worldwide grew almost 50 per cent from 1995 to 2000 (Financial Times, March 19, 2001), and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimates that as many as 2 million women are trafficked across borders annually. A survey conducted in Cambodia in 1995 revealed that about 31 per cent of the prostitutes in Phnom Penh and 11 other provinces were between the ages of 12 and 17, and had been trafficked out of the conflict-stricken countryside (Human Rights Task Force on Cambodia, 1996). Trafficking in women has assumed alarming proportions in Columbia due to the civil war which has dragged on for decades in the country. It is estimated that around 50,000 women are trafficked out of Columbia every year. Bosnia and Herzegovina in south-east Europe also experience very high trafficking in women due to the same basic reason. Traffickers lure women out of these areas on the pretext of giving them jobs. They are then forced into sexual slavery. The traffickers take away the travel documents of the women so that they are not able to escape. Once they are in the trap it is very difficult for these women to return home to their societies even if they are rescued. Though many family in the war torn countries are desperate enough not to question where the money their daughters send home comes from, they will also not accept the women back if they come to know that they had been working as prostitutes or sex slaves. As a result, the girls go through multiple traumas: first they are separated from home, thereafter they are sexually exploited and brutalized and finally they face rejection from their own families. Trafficking is a vicious trap that leads the women who fall prey to it to ultimate destruction unless there is institutional intervention. Since armed conflict and trafficking go hand in hand, women in trouble-torn regions are always vulnerable to trafficking. Forced Displacement Forced Displacement is actually not an inevitable outcome of all armed conflicts, but it is frequently adopted as a strategy of war to destabilize enemy families and communities, to uproot the enemy so that it is scattered and weakened. Forced displacement is however a â€Å"the clearest violation of human, economic, political and social rights and of the failure to comply with international humanitarian laws† (Moser & Clark, 2001). Though displacement during armed conflict is viewed as a temporary process, examples in countries such as Sudan, Sri Lanka and Somalia show that it could extend into a prolonged affair, with succeeding generations having to stay away from the place of origin. Displacements can have multiple effects on women. For women displacement implies increased difficulties in managing household responsibilities as access to resources is cut off or becomes unavailable. Displacement has also been found to lead to a reversal in roles with women assuming the position of the head of the household. This is very evident in Sudan. Ethnic groups such as the Dinka, Nuer and Nuba have been displaced from their place of origin and face severe marginalization. The women of these communities take on added responsibilities of the missing men. Much of this added responsibility is transferred to younger members of the family, especially young girls. Young girls have to not only do domestic chores, but also look after the children, sick and the elderly. They lose out on valuable study and play time which affects their futures negatively. All displaced people face social exclusion, so do women. Staying in an alien environment without the usual support and protection from the male members of the family can be a very terrifying and psychologically scarring experience. In strife-torn Columbia, displacement has become a perennial problem. An estimated 40 million people have been forced to flee from their homes and seek sanctuary elsewhere. A whooping 80% of these displaced people are women and children (Security Council Report, 1999). This brings into sharp focus the high impact of displacement particularly on women. â€Å"The circumstances are unique in each country, but the stories are similar. In places such as Afghanistan, Angola, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Republic of Chechnya, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), East Timor, Guinea, Haiti, Indonesia, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Somalia and in the occupied Palestinian territories – whose people constitute the longest-standing and largest refugee population – women have been forced from their homes and exposed to indiscriminate violence while searching for a safe haven. † (Rehn & Sirleaf 2001). Displaced people face violence and hardship as they search for a safe haven. Women are especially vulnerable in such a situation. While on the run, and even after they have found refuge, women have to suffer the humiliation of rape and other forms of physical violence. In their constant struggle to provide for their families and themselves, they are forced to sell their bodies in exchange of provisions and favours. Again, displacement can be of two types: the refugee who has left the country of origin and crossed international borders, and the Internally Displaced Person or the IDP who has been forced to leave the place of original residence and has moved to a different part or region within the country. While international laws do provide some amount of protection and security to the refugee, such laws are not applicable in case of the IDP. The IDP therefore faces a plight worse than the refugee and is practically left all alone in the fight for survival. Even in the case of the refugee, a lot depends on the willingness of those in power in the host country to allow international agencies to aid or help the refugees. In many cases, armed opposition groups may refuse to provide access to international agencies fearing that their own human rights violations will be exposed. Forced displacement however has some positive effects too for women. When the displaced women takes over the reins of the household, many of the traditional shackles lose their hold on them and they find new avenues for self development and progress. They gain a sense of liberty that they did not have in their conventional male-dominated societies. Displacement also becomes a boon for women when they find refuse in well-established and properly run care centers which provide them adequate training and education to enable them to stand on their own feet. When this happens, the suppressed woman can break free and find her own moorings. Domestic Violence during Conflict That domestic violence increases proportionately with increase in armed conflict is a fact that had not been known until very recently. Conflict attenuates domestic violence in two ways: by breaking down communities and the natural regulatory functions of communities, and by escalating violence in the context of masculine and militarized conflict situations. Conflict leads to imbalances in power relations which in turn escalates domestic violence. Many things contribute to the increase in domestic violence – the availability of weapons, the violence male family members have experienced or meted out, the lack of jobs, shelter, and basic services (Lindsey, 2002). In a conflict situation, men get used to violence either by suffering violence or meting violence to others. This sort of acclimatizes them and makes them more prone to the use of violence. The experience of war changes some man from within so that they do not hesitate to apply violence in the domestic context. Combatants who return home after spending long years in fighting have been found to find it difficult to adjust to peace time. There have been instances when men returning form war have killed their own wives. Studies in Cambodia in the mid-1990s indicated that many women – as many as 75 per cent in one study – were victims of domestic violence, often at the hands of men who have kept the small arms and light weapons they used during the war (Lutz & Elliston, 2002). In the Middle East too, there have been reports of men returning from fighting and using the same tactics of torture used in war on their wives in glaring cases of domestic violence. Israel responded to the second Intifada by imposing restrictions on the movement of Palestinians. This led to unemployment, frustration and overcrowded living conditions. The release has been noticed in the form of increased domestic violence within families, crimes against women within the family. Women were being raped and tortured by the frustrated men. The problem in the case of domestic violence is that there are very few laws to protect women from domestic. Even where such laws have been framed, they are not imposed, especially during periods of conflict. The United Nations itself has only recently woken up to the situation. War and Women’s health War has a profound negative effect on health. The direct impact is the casualties of war. Men and women die in large number in any armed conflict. In the event of continued armed struggles medical systems and facilities tend to break down. The expert’s independent report by Rehn & Sirleaf (2001) had this to report of the casualties of war: â€Å"In 2000 alone, conflict is estimated to have directly resulted in 310,000 deaths, with more than half taking place in sub-Saharan Africa. If the commonly held ratio is accurate – nine indirect deaths for every direct death caused by conflict – then approximately 2. 8 million people died in 2000 of some conflict-related cause. Arguably the figure is much higher. When the direct fatalities are estimated by age and sex, children and adolescents account for a significant proportion of the deaths. The highest mortality rates are among men aged 15 to 44, but a quarter of direct mortality is among women. The greatest number of deaths of women is among those aged 15 to 29; some 25,000 women in this age group died directly of conflict in 2000. The International Rescue Committee has estimated that between August 1998 and April 2001, there were 2. 5 million excess deaths (i. e. , above the number normally expected) in the five eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where armed groups have been fighting each other as well as attacking civilians. Only 350,000 of these deaths were directly caused by violence; the majority stemmed from disease and malnutrition. One in eight households had experienced at least one violent death; 40 per cent of these deaths were of women and children. There were more deaths than births in many of the areas studied and, in one area, 75 per cent of the children died before they reached the age of two. † The report speaks volume about the direct casualties that women suffer in armed conflicts. The indirect effects of armed conflicts on the health of women are perhaps more horrendous. The large scale rape and other sexual atrocities on women leaves them exposed to all forms of sexual diseases and infections including AIDS and HIV. Many women who manage to overcome the other travails of war have to finally accept defeat when they learn that they have contacted AIDS at the end of it. There have been instances, especially in the Rwandan armed conflicts when one ethnic community has deliberately tried to infect another ethnic community with AIDS. Epidemics break out in refugee camps claiming thousands of lives. Since the refugee camps house a larger number of women, they are affected the most. Women who have been raped or tortured suffer from mental problems. Unwanted pregnancies and adolescence pregnancies pose considerable threats to the health of women. In places such as Bosnia, Kosovar and Sierra Leone, women faced terrible dilemmas. Would they abort their unwanted babies or would they keep them? A majority of these women chose abortion because they feared rejection if they dared to keep the babies. In Sierra Lone, the matter becomes more complicated because abortions are declared illegal and it costs a lot of hard-earned money to have an abortion. All these have to be seen in the context of the conflict scenario when medical and health systems break down and there are acute shortages of medicines and trained medical personnel. Many women die at child birth due to lack of adequate care. Many babies die at birth leaving their mothers heartbroken. Provisions for Protection The Geneva Conventions of 1949 and its protocols remain the best applicable laws for the protection of women. The customary of international humanitarian laws can also be applied for the protection of women in conditions of armed conflicts. In 1993 and 1994 the Security Council established two ad hoc international criminal tribunals; the first to prosecute serious violations of international humanitarian law committed in the former Yugoslavia, and the second to prosecute similar violations as well as genocide in Rwanda. The statute of the International Criminal Code was adopted in July 1998. All laws include many common clauses that can be effectively used for the protection of women in armed conflicts. These include the clause of non discrimination by which the same protection is to be given both to men and women. The law lays down that both men and women are to be â€Å"treated humanely (†¦) without adverse distinction founded on sex †¦Ã¢â‚¬  Moreover specific protection for women are accorded by Article 14 of the Third Geneva Convention which makes it mandatory that â€Å"women †¦ be treated with all the regard due to their sex. † Considerations for the privacy of women are also taken into account by the laws, so are provisions for expectant mothers. The Human Rights and the Refugee Laws too cover other aspects of protection for women in situations of armed conflict. The crux of the matter however is that the laws are as good as the intentions of those who are responsible for implementing them. The international community has to join hands in taking up the cudgel for women caught up in horrifying situations such as armed conflicts, and they have to take enough women with them to provide the healing touch as representatives of those who have suffered the insufferable. Throughout the ages, women have shown remarkable resilience to the vagaries of armed conflict. It is one war they have to win at any cost.

Case Studies Bus Law Essay

1. How did the court determine that the offer was sufficiently definite? The offer of the Wells Fargo Business Credit, Inc. was submitted to Nebraska Beef in the form of a letter. When Nebraska Beef engaged in accepting a line of credit from Wells Fargo they entered into a written credit agreement that outlined the terms of the line of credit and the over-advance which contained additional and progressive fees for each additional over-advance loan (the amount over the initial credit limit). With each of the three over-advance lines of credit or advances of money that Nebraska Beef took out with Wells Fargo, a formal written amendment to the original credit agreement was provided. Thus even though there were no new agreed upon terms, it is a sufficiently definite agreement in that Nebraska Beef evidenced their acknowledgement of additional fees through these three previous advances and further they acknowledge receipt of information stating these additional fees. In fact it was stated in the case that â€Å"an offer may be inferred wholly or partly from words spoken or written or from the conduct of the parties or a combination thereof.† In this case clearly the conduct of Nebraska Beef indicates an acknowledgement of additional fees based on their previous advances and the associated fees. In the May advances, Wells Fargo simply charged the same additional fees as were in place in the third advancement and then at the end of the month (23rd) they sent a letter that Nebraska Beef acknowledges receiving; outlined the increase of the advancement fees. Nebraska beef continued to take advances throughout May and in this regard the offer was not only sufficiently definite but a unilateral contract existed (a promise for performance). 2.How did Nebraska Beef indicate its acceptance? The Nebraska Beef ultimately engaged in an a agreed contract or ‘acceptance’ of the terms through their action of accessing or taking funds through the over-advance program and thus made Nebraska Beef subject to additional fees through the provisions of the additional amendments. Nebraska Beef accepts by using the money offered through the over-advance by Wells Fargo and continuing to take multiple options of the over the credit line-advances. This is ‘accepting’ the terms of the contract because they exercised their right to the funds and in doing so ‘accept’ the terms of the advance which include additional fees. Chapter 14: Register.com, Inc. v. Verico, Inc. Case Concept Review: 1.Why did the court conclude that Verio accepted the terms of the legend? In this case the court ruled that Verio received daily notices of the conditions of the legend. This implies Verio accepted the terms of the legend at the very least after his initial use, because he continued to access and use the data after the fact of the notice. Although the initial use produced terms after he accessed the WHOIS data and was potentially unaware that the register had conditions for the use of the data until after he received it, Verio admits to being aware of the conditions after the first use and continued to access the data several times a day and repeatedly was sent the notice of the terms of the conditions thereafter. So, once these terms were evidenced after the initial transaction, every transaction thereafter would be subject to the conditions of the data and its use and Verio by continuing to access the data is subject to these conditions. By simply continuing to use and acquire the data, Verio is accepting the terms of the legend. The conditions were prov ided in writing and Verio continued to use this service therefore, his actions demonstrate acceptance of the terms. 2.In another section of the opinion, the court stated that there was no reason why Verio be required to â€Å"click† acceptance of the terms? Based on the material presented above, why do you believe that the court did not impose a â€Å"click† requirement? It does seem as though a ‘click’ requirement would have kept the case out of court, however, as demonstrated in the material and the information provided above, the result would not have been different. Essentially, I believe the court did not impose a ‘click’ requirement because the term notifications are sent to the businesses making the data inquiries and after the data is received notifications for terms of the acceptable use of the data are provided in writing to the businesses. Therefore, by accessing and accepting the data, the actions of the business demonstrate an acceptance to the outlined conditions and therefore no ‘click’ is required. Using the data has certain provisions that are outlined in written notices and companies accepting the data are subject to complying with these provisions. There is an offer to provide the data with provisions for use and acceptance to receive the data and comply with their written acceptable use polic y. ~No click necessary. Chapter 15:Louisa W. Hamer v. Franklin Sidway, as Executor, etc. Case Concept Review: 1. What did the nephew promise? The nephew promised to keep from drinking and smoking, swearing, and playing cards or billiards for money until his twenty first birthday in exchange for a payment of $5000 from his uncle. The $5000 was to be paid to the nephew by the uncle after he turned twenty-one, if he refrained from all of the above actions during the time period prior to turning twenty-one. In this case the nephew kept his promise and his proper execution of the agreement was acknowledged by the uncle in a written correspondence. 2. Why was the nephew’s promise sufficient to qualify as consideration? The nephew’s promise was sufficient to qualify as consideration because in order for there to be consideration, there has to be detriment. In this case, the court ruled that there was detriment to the nephew because he had to give up his right to freely engage in smoking and drinking and in promising to do that he is stating he is giving up this right and accepting the offer and in executing the acceptance he can’t smoke or drink which is something he had not been formally obligated to do (thus constituting a detriment). He had a right to drink, smoke, swear or play cards or billiards for money and he was served a detriment by giving up this right and entering into the agreement with his uncle to forgo these options. The other element in consideration would be the legal benefit that is gained. This occurs when something is received that the party did not have a former legal right to receive. In this case the judge found that the uncle (who made the promise to pay) was benefited â€Å"in a legal sense.† The courts further stated that â€Å"it is enough that something is promised, done, forborne or suffered by the party to whom the promise is made as consideration for the promise made to him.† Additionally, the uncle wrote back acknowledging that the nephews promise was adequately executed per the terms of the agreement and per the nephew and uncle’s agreement, the nephew was entitled to the sum of money promised to him ($5000).There was acknowledged and agreed upon, full performance of the promise. The case was fairly straightforward once it was established that in fact consideration was met in the case.

The governance of international football Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The governance of international football - Essay Example Representative, clean, transparent democracies operating at all levels of the football family, leading to self-regulation within football - FIFA, UEFA, member associations and their components would be sufficiently democratic, transparent and well-organized to avoid any form of external political intervention. UEFA should act as a representative voice for the European football family. The Union of European Football Associations, almost always referred to UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European football. It represents the national football associations of Europe, runs Europe-wide national and club competitions, and controls the prize money, regulations and media rights to those competitions. (Wikipedia) UEFA was founded on June 15, 1954 in Basel, Switzerland following discussions between the French, Italian and Belgian FAs. The headquarters was in Paris until 1959 when the organisation moved to Bern. Henri Delaunay was the first General Secretary and Ebbe Schwartz the president. Its administrative centre since 1995 is in Nyon, Switzerland. It was initially made up of 25 national associations. Currently there are 53 associations. UEFA is one of the biggest of six continental confederations of FIFA. Of all the confederations, it is by far the strongest in terms of wealth and influence over the global game. Virtually all of the world's top players play in European leagues in part due to the salaries available from the world's wealthiest football clubs, particularly in England, France, Italy, Spain and Germany. Many of the world's strongest national sides are in UEFA. Of the 32 available spots in the 2006 World Cup, 14 were allocated to UEFA national teams.(Dyjan 49) Main Missions of UEFA Constitute Ensure a coherent approach to decision-makers and opinion-formers on issues of relevance to European football. Maintain good relations with the other continental football confederations and FIFA. Achieve commercial success and sound finances without distorting the sporting qualities of our competitions. Use UEFA's revenues to support re-investment and re-distribution in the game in accordance with the principle of solidarity between all levels and areas of sport. Target specific aid and assistance to help member associations with the greatest need. Promote positive sporting values, including fair play and anti-racism, as well as safe and secure match environments. (Dyjan 51) FIFA The Fdration Internationale de Football Association, known worldwide by its acronym FIFA, is the international governing body of Football (soccer) and the largest sporting organization in the world. Its headquarters are in Zrich, Switzerland, and its current president is Sepp Blatter. FIFA is responsible for the organisation and governance of football's major international tournaments, most notably the FIFA World Cup, held since 1930. FIFA is the largest sporting governing body and the second largest international organization in the world, after the United Nations, with over two hundred member associations split between six continental regions.(Wikipedia) The laws of football that govern the game are not solely the responsibility of FIFA; they are maintained by a body called the International Football

Leadership and Motivation Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Leadership and Motivation - Assignment Example ese steps include identifying the important priorities, considering the ability and commitment of the available staff and application of the best situational leadership (Learn to be a leader, n.d.). For instance, a manager can determine the staffs level of maturity and competence and after that, adjust their leadership to support the least mature staff while offering the mature staff more room to operate with minimum support. A manager has to understand perfectly the key role of the human resources department (HR). A HR department ensures that an organization reaps benefits from its investment in its staff. Hence, performance can be hampered when an experienced executive assistant discovers that he/she earns the same amount of money as a newly hired janitor. To effectively correct the discrepancies in the payment of the employees, a newly appointed manager can initiate an employee performance appraisal (PA). The PA will enable the organization to make informed choices, such as the contribution of the executive assistant and the janitor to the organization. Once their contribution is analyzed and identified, the management can come up with an effective remuneration plan that matches the input and contribution of the individual employee (Daft, 2013). Specifically, the new manager can also employ rewarding and resourcing as specific HR strategies to address the situation. Through a reward policy, the organization would ensure that its best employees are rewarded for the great job that they are doing. This means that, even if the basic salary for the executive assistant and the janitor are equal, the executive assistant will receive a reward on top of their salary based on the successful application of their work. The company’s decision to offer semiannual bonuses is a good motivation strategy for its employees (Daft, 2013). If employed correctly, such a motivational tool can help in the retaining and motivation of the staff during the tough economic times. The

Napoleon Bonaparte The Man behind the Soldier Essay

Napoleon Bonaparte The Man behind the Soldier - Essay Example On the other side of the spectrum, there are people who believed that Napoleon was too harsh, heartless, very rigid, and greedy which led to his eventual downfall. Up to this day, Napoleon Bonaparte, his conquests, and his personal life are still alive in society through books including his biography which are studied in schools, through discussions and forums in schools, and through analysis of the courses of events in his life. There is great scrutiny as to factors or influences which contributed to Napoleon's style of leadership or to how he ran his empire. There is a mix of factors that contribute to a person's system of actions, reactions, and initiatives. Employing certain styles or strategies in any activity does not only take into account the present situation or the present environment, it is composed of a combination of personality, life experiences including childhood and adolescence, and predispositions acquired from exposure to the activities and personalities of family members and friends. This paper aims to conduct a discourse on the factors and influences of Napoleon's personal life to the way he ran his empire or to his ruling style. It will first present an introduction, followed by Napoleon's youth and his education. The third part is Napoleon's Marriage and Family then synthesis of the paper will be reflected in the Conclusion. The paper will not expound on the French revolution or on the battles or conquests of Napoleon, but it will only touch on brief segments of history to show the qualities of Napoleon in the different stages of his life. Events relating to military transitions of power and the chronology of Napoleons rise to power will not be points of focus. Instead, fragments of Napoleon's life history will be presented. Napoleon's Youth and Education Napoleon Bonaparte was born in the year 1789 on the 5th of August. He was born in Corsica in a time when France has just defeated Corsica. After Corsica's defeat under France, Corsica rebels fled to the mountains where they continued with their fight. Napoleon's father, Carlo however readily showed his support to French rule. This angered Napoleon and resented his father for forsaking his Corsican heritage. It also created in him an aversion for the French people. Napoleon's mother, Letizia was a plain and tough woman. She was hard on her children and physically punished them in order to teach them discipline and sacrifice. There were even times when Napoleon was sent to bed without supper as punishment. His innate sense of discipline, propriety and punishment systems in the course of his reign as Emperor could very well be the influence of his mother who imposed stringent rules on Napoleon and his siblings. Carlo, Napoleon's father became a Corsican parliament representative where he saw grandeur of the French court. He was able to acquire a scholarship for Napoleon to study at Brienne which was a private academy in France. In 1778, nine year-old Napoleon who could barely speak French went to France for the first time. He had a

Case Brief Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Case Brief - Essay Example Mr. Brown filed in 1951 in United Sates district court. The education board based their decision to establish separate learning institutions on Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537 (1896), in which the Supreme Court judge ruling allowed separate learning institutes to be established for white and for black children (Orlik, 2010). However, the bench did not make it mandatory for districts to form establish separate institutions, though district education board decided to establish separate institutions. The parents felt that their children were denied the opportunity to interact with their colleagues and therefore, they felt they were being treated with inferiority. This was against the Fourteenth Amendment Equal Protection Clause, which granted all the Americans legal safety regardless of their background. The civil right movement arose to fight for equal rights of all Americans which pushed the matter to the court. The case was presented to district court and the plaintiff claimant challenged the Topeka District Education Board for treating the Black-American children unfairly (Orlik, 2010). The plaintiff affirmed that having separate learning institution for black and white people offered an opportunity for the black children to be denied access to superior housing facilities, inferior services and mistreatment. In making the ruling, the bar question whether establishing different learning institutions for black and white children amounted to injustice. The other issue was whether this deprived the black Americans their legal security offered by fourteenth Amendment Equal Protection Clause. The ruling by the court was that although learning institutions offered similar training, housing and transportation facilities, having different institutions for white and black children was unfair because it had emotional damages to Black American children (Orlik, 2010). They declared that the decision by the Supreme Court in 1986 was alright and

Advanced Information Systems Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Advanced Information Systems Management - Essay Example 253). A Customer Relationship Management System (CRM) is a form of information system which involves the application of various hardware and software applications for effective management of information and data on clients or customers with a view of achieving the goals and objectives of the organization. This essay gives a critical analysis and discussion of the value that CRM systems within government owned organization in the UK public sector. The essay includes concepts of contemporary application of information systems in the public sector. More specifically the essay illustrates knowledge management through decision support and application of expert systems in data mining. Customer Relationship Management System (CRM) In accordance to Shanks, Jagielska and Jayaganesh (2009, p. 263), CRM is an information system based business strategy which is designed to help users to achieve an understanding the needs of customers. The CRM also helps in anticipating customer needs and applyin g technological application to manage them with a view of meeting the expectations of customers (Ku, 2010, p. 1087). The implementation or application of CRM involves processes of interaction among people, technology and business processes. Therefore it is through the adoption and application of CRM that effective integration of core processes of customer service, sales and marketing is achieved (Khodakarami and Chan, 2011, p. 256). It is apparent that CRM is a contemporary phenomenon which has been employed within the public sector. This technology is therefore replacing the orthodoxy and less efficient approaches which were employed by government organizations in delivery of services to the public (Wilson, Daniel and McDonald, 2002, p. 195). Figure 1: CRM Value of CRM within Government Organizations in the UK Stjepanovic (2010, p. 273) argues that the value of CRM to a government organization is basically the efficiency which characterizes the use of information system. For exampl e the use of database management systems and application within a CRM framework leads to speedy retrieval and presentation of data and information to clients when they need it. Within a government organization, customer service involves retrieval and presentation of data to customers upon request. This information or data is often retrieved from government databases through the process of data mining (Wilson, Daniel and McDonald, 2002, p. 198). If for instance a customer requests for data on taxation, salaries or benefits, the government owned organizations are mandated to provide it immediately. Nonetheless, the efficiency of data mining and presentation data to the client or customer depends on the level of expertise, skills and knowledge that a government employee has (Stjepanovic, 2010, p. 276). The skills that are required include the use of various software applications within the CRM system such as Microsoft Word Excel and database management applications. Shanks, Jagielska a nd Jayaganesh (2009, p. 264) point out that CRM is valuable to a government organization because it reduces the costs that are associated with business activities or office processes. Within the UK and the EU in general, government organizations are increasingly competing for public funds or government funding. Because of this, many organizations require to reduce the costs of operations in order to achieve effective utilization of the resources available to them. Technology reduces costs

Topic 1 UK Bill of Right + Topic2 Can individual rights Contend with Essay

Topic 1 UK Bill of Right + Topic2 Can individual rights Contend with arbitrary Power - Essay Example Such power decimates ethics, security, and patriotism itself; and this more, the farther it is carried. But it would be a mistake to gaze for arbitrary power only in despotic states. Frequent demonstrations of its workout are discovered under legal authorities and even in republics, in nations ruled by regulation and extended by the Germans under the denomination of Rechtsstaat. These situations of arbitrary power should be ascribed to the account of the discretionary power which the regulations are obliged to depart to a substantial number of agents, or rather to the account of people who submit to the misuse of power without making use of the lawful protecting against at their command. If the functionary knew that every proceed of his, not justifiable by the necessities of the case, would be conveyed before the higher administration of the enclosures, or only before the tribunal of public attitude, by way of the press, he would believe two times before presuming the blame of it. If no one would permission to tolerate arbitrary power, no one would be arbitrary. The phrase random has in supplement a philosophic significance, which should not be confounded with its vulgar sense. We will endeavor to characterize this in a couple of phrases and show the submission it finds in governmental affairs. The activities of men are occasionally very resolute by natural regulations, personal or moral. Sometimes afresh they are not influenced by any insurmountable restriction. A man can not stay hovering in the air without support; here is a personal impossibility. A man can not be appreciative for bad finished him; this is a lesson impossibility. But he is free to allocate a months hold up and, if he desires, two or three months to a debtor; in a phrase, he can accept or allocate a 1000 distinct situation in every one of the 1000 attenuating components of life. This is

Cover story Essay Example for Free

Cover story Essay To investigate what level of obedience participants would show when an authority figure told them to administer electric shocks to another person. Participants: Obtained from advertisements + direct mailing. Self selected or volunteer sample. Â  40 males: 20-50 yrs old from New Haven area in the United Stated of America. Â  Job ranges Included: postal clerks, HS teachers, salesmen, labourers, engineers, etc. Â  Education: one had not finished HS to some who a have degree + qualification in various subjects. Paid: $4.50 regardless of what happened after and before they arrived. This is called COERCIAN. Method and Design: Â  Method: Lab experiment. Â  Observer observed participants for signs of tension/nervousness: sweat, tremble, biting of lips, nervous laughter I. V. /D. V. Â  I. V. There was NO I. V. D. V. Level of obedience; how far theyd go with the voltage to shock the learner. Procedure: LEARNER TASK Â  The teacher (participant) was asked to read a series of word pairs to the learner (confederate), and then read the 1st word of the pair along with the 4 other terms. Learner (confederate) had to indicate which 1 of the 4 terms was originally paired with the 1st word. SHOCK GENERATOR The shock generator perceived to be real professionally made + model printed. There were 30 switches labelled from 15 to 450 volts. 15 volt different between each switch. Â  Labels to describe intensity from slight shock (weakest) to xxx (strongest). Teachers (ppts) were given a 45 volts shock to convince them that the shocks were real. Teacher was told to give shock for every wrong answer while moving a shock level higher on shock generator. Teacher had to read out the voltage to the learner each time they were about to give a shock. Â  If the teacher asked for advice/wanted to stop, experimenter used 4 prods. Example: please continue, this experiment requires that you continue. Controls: Standardised deception. Cover story. Â  Slips of paper drawn (pre-determined teacher). Â  Learner strapped. Standardised prods used by experimenter. Results: (overall %) 65% of ppts continued to shock until 450 volts. Only 35% stopped before. Â  22. 5% stopped at 300 volts. Â  Many showed signed of nervousness and extreme tension. Â  14 displayed nervous laughter; 3 had uncontrollable seizures. Conclusion: Very high rate of obedience 65%. Milgram explained this as being so high because its a strong part of human society. Â  Milgram said: Many situational factors which lead to high rate of obedience.