Contemporary Disaster Management Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Contemporary Disaster Management - Term Paper Example The studies and researches done by Centre of Research of the Epidemiology on Disasters confirm that natural catastrophes such as flood, windstorm, surge, and other water-related disasters have killed approximately one million people in the past 20 years. Furthermore, these water-related disasters have affected the livelihoods of more than 300 million people. According to EM-DAT, these natural disasters have directly damaged the global economy and countries around the world have lost more than $US 800billion. Researches have also revealed that regions characterized by the monsoon climate are the most vulnerable. Disasters are also common in areas with large population and where economic development is quite rapid (Brown, & Duguid, 2000). Barton (1999) argued that disaster management has been a problem in most countries of the world hence the impacts of the phenomena are recurrent. Nations all over the world have joint efforts in aid to reduce the effects of these disasters on the livelihoods in the next coming years. Through Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015 and the Hashimoto Action Plan: Compendium for Action, countries have established strategic goals and the appropriate global actions that reduce the effects of disasters on the economic system. Asia is one of the countries among others which have been affected negatively by water-related disasters. Asian-Pacific countries have established Asia Pacific Water Forum, a body which is primarily concerned with policing water-related disaster management programs. There are very many bodies emerging all over which would diligently improve the quality of life of populations affected by disasters. These organizations are expected to facilitate disaster management strategies in addressing effective disaster reduction solutions in the most stricken areas (Epstein, 2000).  

Chain of Command Essay Example for Free

Chain of Command Essay The main focus of Article II of the United States Constitution is the executive branch and the role that it plays in the government. By definition an executive is â€Å"a person or group of persons having administrative or supervisory authority in an organization.† The President, who is elected, is the head of the executive branch and the US government’s chain of command. Second in command is the Vice President who must also be elected. Article II is broken down into four sections in the Constitution and outlines who the qualifications to run, the term that a President can hold office, as well as the duties, responsibilities and powers that he has and the grounds for impeachment. Section 1 Section one of Article II outlines the executive power in 7 clauses. Clause 1 and Clause 2 support each other. Clause 1 states that the President of the United States shall hold office for a term of four years with a Vice President who must be elected for the same term and that executive power shall be vested in the President. Clause 2 describes the appointment and qualifications for presidential electors. In Clause 2, it says that each state shall appoint a number of electors equal to the whole number of senators and representative to which the state may be entitled in the congress but no senator or representative that hold office under the United States can be appointed as an elector. This means that each state chooses electors equal to the number of representatives, representing them in congress, but no senators, representatives or federal officers can become an elector. It then goes on to describe the original method of electing the president and vice president. Originally, an elector would cast two votes for the president, one at least one vote had to be from a state different than the elector’s and who ever had the majority of votes became the president and the vice president would be the runner up. If there was no person who received the majority of votes the House of Representatives could have chosen one of the five with the greatest number of votes. If there was a tie, the House of Representatives could have chosen one of the candidates. When the House would vote, each state representative would cast one vote, and a quorum of two-thirds applied in both houses. One member from two thirds of the States, and a member from two thirds of the states and a majority of all the states were necessary to choose a President. If two or more candidates tied, the senate broke the tie. This was superseded by the twelfth amendment which made some significant changes. Now, electors cast one vote for president and one for vice president rather than two votes for president. If there is a case where no presidential candidate receives the majority, the house chooses from the top three instead of the top five. In addition, the amendment requires the senate to choose the vice president from the candidates with the two highest figures if no vice president candidate receives the majority of electoral votes. The twelfth amendment also specifies that to be vice president, a candidate must also qualify to be President. Clause 3 states that congress may determine the time of choosing the electors and the day for casting their votes. Clause 4 states the qualifications for the office of the president. According to the clause, the president and vice president must be at least 35 years old, both must be a natural born citizen of the United States, and both must have been a U.S. resident for 14 years. The twelfth amendment required the vice president to meet all the qualifications of an eligible president and the twenty-second amendment prevents a president from being elected more than twice. The 5th clause states that in the case of removal of the president from office, or his death, resignation, or inability to discharge the powers and duties of office, the vice president shall assume his duties. In the case that both the president and vice president were removed, resigned, deceased, on unable, then congress, by law would declare which officer would act as president until the removal, death, resignation, inability were to occur or a president was elected. This caused much controversy when President William Harrison died in office. A debate occurred on whether vice president John Tyler would become president, or just be the acting president. Tyler felt like he had a right to become president, and eventually took the Oath of Office, while set the precedent for vice presidents, Millard Fillmore, Andrew Johnson, Chester Arthur, Theodore Roosevelt, Calvin Coolidge, Harry Truman and Lyndon Johnson to ascend to the presidency. Because of this, the Presidential Succession Act was adopted in 1947 which established the line of succession of the office of the presidency in the event that the President or Vice President becomes unable to fill the vacancy. The Presidential Succession Act makes clear that only someone serving as Vice President can ever succeed to the title â€Å"President of the United States† and anyone who takes office under its provisions can only act as President† even if they have to act for 4 years. Clause 6 of Article II states that the President shall be compensated, at stated times for his services. This compensation shall never be increased or diminished during the period he is elected and also during that period, he also shall not receive any other compensation from the United States meaning federal and local government. The Presidents salary is currently $400,000 a year. Clause 7 states that before he enters office, the president shall take the following oath or affirmation: â€Å"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.† Section 2 Section 2 of Article II outlines the President’s powers while in office. Clause 1 of Section 2 states that the President shall be commander in chief of the army and the navy of the United States. Although he is the commander in chief, Article One gives Congress the right to declare war, not the President. The President may require the principal officer in each of the executive departments to give their advice in writing. Additionally, the President may grant pardons or reprieves for offenses against the United States, except in cases of impeachment. Clause 2 of Section 2 is also known as the advice and consent clause. The President exercises the powers in the clause with the advice and consent of the senate. The President can enter the U.S. into treaties but they aren’t effective until they are ratified by a two thirds vote in the senate. The President may also appoint judges, ambassadors, consuls, ministers and other officers with the advice and consent of the Senate. However, by law Congress may allow the President, heads of executive departments, or the courts to appoint inferior officials as they see fit. Clause 3 of Section 2 gives the President the power to fill vacancies that may occur during the recess of the senate by granting commission that expire at the end of their next session. Section 3 Section 3 of Article II outlines the Presidents responsibilities while in office. While in office, the President must â€Å"from time to time† give congress information on the State of the Union and recommend to congress’s consideration measures that he judges as â€Å"necessary and expedient.† The President may, in â€Å"extraordinary occasions† call one or both houses into session. If both houses disagree on the time of adjournment, he may adjourn them at a time he thinks is fitting. The President receives all ambassadors and other public ministers. Most importantly, â€Å"he shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed, and shall commission all the officers of the United States.† The President commissions all officers including military and foreign service and although the President has discretion in how and when to enforce laws, he cannot refuse to enforce constitutional law. Section 4 Section 4 of Article II allows impeachment. Section 4 states â€Å"The President, Vice President, and all civil officers of the United States, shall be removed from the office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery or other high crimes and misdemeanors. â€Å" The President, Vice President, executive officers as well as judges can all be impeached by the House of Representatives and tried in the Senate. If an official is convicted by impeachment, he is immediately removed from office and remains liable to trial and punishment in court for civil or criminal charges. The trial, if any is separate from the impeachment itself. There have been two U.S. presidents that have been impeached by the House of Representatives, Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton but they were acquitted at trials that the senate held. The House Judiciary Committee voted on Articles of Impeachment for President Nixon, but he resigned before the full House of Representatives could vote, therefore he was never impeached. Why is Article II important? Article II is important because it establishes the office of the President and the Vice-President, and sets their terms to be four years. It defines the job that the President has to do and the rules that he has to follow. In a sense, it’s his job description and prevents him from overstepping his boundaries. Not only does Article II make the President Commander in Chief, it allows cabinet to aid him, and make treaties with other nations as he sees fit to protect us. It commands him to keep the Union informed about the status of country through the State of the Union address and to most importantly to enforce all laws.

Negative Effects of Media Violence on Children Essay -- Television Viol

Americans have felt a growing uneasiness from the growing problem of youth violence with teens from the ages of twelve to eighteen. It is a controversial subject that is an increasingly rising with families and the in the government. Some people believe that the reason behind this national problem is because families are no longer a united unit and are not home to take responsibility of watching their children. There are others who believe that it is the influence of the media and technology. The issue this paper will examine whether youth violence has risen from unattached parenting or because the lack of censorship and influence of the media. Through the presentation of documented support, it will be shown the rising rate of youth violence is the result of the lack of censorship of the media. According to psychologist Craig Anderson, research shows that violent video games, films, television, and music in the media increase the probability of violent and aggressive behavior in long-term and immediate situations within youth (81). In the start of this decade it was estimated that 46 percent of all homes with children have accesses to at least one television set, gaming console, a personal computer or both (â€Å"Violence and the Media† 267). However, this percentage has changed and is growing everyday with the advancement in technology and because it’s easily accessible. The Federal Trade Commission reports that companies’ media and marketing plans advertise their products targeting media outlets most likely to reach children under 17. Using outlets such as commercials during the most popular programs such as South Park, websites such as Mtv.com, and teen hangouts such as pizza parlors or ... ...010. â€Å"New Technology and Youth Violence.† Cdc.gov. Usa.gov, n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2010. Raspberry, William. â€Å"Violence on Television Begets Real Violence.† Times Union [Albany] 4 Feb. 1994, Three Star ed.: A11. LexisNexis Academic. Web. 1 Dec. 2010. Spencer, Terry. â€Å"Boy’s Murder Defense: Pro Wrestling Made Me Do It.† Charleston Gazette 14 Jan. 2001, sec. A: 5. LexisNexis Academic. Web. 2 Dec. 2010. Strahota, Hilary. â€Å"Facebook Partnership, Tip Line Add to Growing List of Anti-bullying Tools.† States News Service [Washington] 12 Nov. 2010, sec. B12: n. pag. LexisNexis Academic. Web. 2 Dec. 2010. Surette, Ray. â€Å"Media, Violence, Youth, and Society.† World & I 9.7 (1994): 370+. Points of View Reference Center. Web. 5 Dec. 2010. â€Å"Violence and the Media.† Congressional Digest 78.11 (1999): 266+. Academic Search Premier. Web. 22 Nov. 2010.

Hamlets Indecision, Hesitation and Delay in Relation to the Abuse He Suffered :: GCSE English Literature Coursework

Hamlet's Delay in Relation to the Abuse He Suffered  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚   In recent times, a psychoanalytical approach has been taken to explain a person's behavior. Freud argued quite heavily that people have a subconscious drive that determines many of their actions. Hamlet does not differ from this. A psychoanalytical approach will find a reasonable explanation of Hamlet's actions in Shakespeare's Hamlet. His actions are characteristic of one who has been abused. Hamlet's Oedipus complex is more pronounced because of it. Other factors indicate abuse. Ultimately, his delay is due to the abuse as well. It is important to understand that he was abused as a child, which is reflected, first, in his Oedipus complex. A complex which must be understood better. An Oedipus complex is often misinterpreted as a son who is in love with the mother and truly wants to kill (or has killed) the father. The Oedipus complex is defined by the American Heritage Dictionary as: a subconscious sexual desire in a child . . . for the parent of the opposite sex,usually accompanied by hostility to the parent of the same sex. If unresolved naturally, this complex may result in neurosis and an inability to form normal sexual relationships in adulthood. Hamlet clearly has some problems. He is having trouble forming a sexual relationship with Ophelia. His constant banter with her is almost ridiculous. Throughout the play, Hamlet toys with her, never quite able to just say anything or take any action. Hamlet says, "be thou chaste as ice, as pure a snow, thou shalt not escape calumny. Get thee to a nunnery, farewell." (3.2.. 133) He also makes some suggestions to her prior to the play within the play.: HAMLET: Lady, shall I lie in your lap. OPHELIA: No my lord. HAMLET: I mean, my head upon your lap. OPHELIA: Ay, my lord. HAMLET: Do you think I meant country matters. OPHELIA: I think nothing my lord. HAMLET: That's a fair thought to lie between a maid's legs. (3.2. 101-106) One does not have to be a genius in order to understand that Hamlet is referring to sex. No where in the play does he taken any action to initiate a relationship of sexual orientation with Ophelia. Instead, like the previous statement, he is playing with her and the notion of sex. According to Steven Bavolek, Ph. D., abuse can cause sexual tension which "may be diverted into games involving teasing, mock spanking, and wrestling" (106).

Literary Criticism Essay

The beauty about literature is that it can be interpreted in a number of ways and all those ways can be regarded as a possibility and even entirely true. No matter what angle, approach or perception a person uses to see, analyze and scutinize a literary work, that analysis will always be considered as a â€Å"possibly correct† literary crticism.However, this is also the problem regarding literary criticisms since there is no wrong analysis, anything can be true. Thus, an analysis does not necessarily help readers in further understanding the text, analyses just give readers the chance to look at a text in a different light.This is what Liane Norman gives readers when anliterary criticism was written regarding the famous work of Herman Melville—Bartleby the Scrivener with a subtitle of A Story of Wall Street. In Norman's analysis, â€Å"Bartleby and the Reader†, she gives importance on the relationship of the text, Bartleby the Scrivener, and the readers itself of the text. According to Norman, the text focused on having the reader as an important character or making the reader play an important role in the structure and interepretation of the text.This analysis of Norman is with loopholes, as with many literary criticisms. She does indeed present a rather effective and convincing judgement on Bartleby the Scrivener but she failed to point out the important of the text on its own. It is as if, the text cannot exist without the role that the reader played in the creation of the text when in fact, Bartleby the Scrivener can be seen as a creation which is intended to point something out to the reader.This argument is what will be contained in this â€Å"criticism† of a literary criticism wherein a premise is presented that Norman did deliver a good argument and judgement on Bartleby the Scrivener but she failed in delivering a good argument that should have not illicited further contestations. In Herman Melville's Bartleby the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street, a scrivener (or copyist or clerk in a firm), is the protagonist while the narrator is the protagonist's boss but who, it seems, wants to be the protagonist himself.Tthe Lawyer who is Bartleby's boss gives too much information about himself and too little information on the protagonist, Bartleby. The story starts off in the Lawyer going on about how he hired and met Bartleby but not before going to great lengths as he introduces himself: I am a rather elderly man. The nature of my avocations for the last thirty years has brought me into more than ordinary contact with what would seem an interesting and somewhat singular set of men, of whom as yet nothing that I know of has ever been written:—Imean the law-copyists or scriveners.(Melville, 2006) The Lawyer and Bartleby soon venture into a rather harmonous and beneficial relationship with each other—that is until Bartleby decides one day that he has enough of being a scrivener and stops doing his job properly to the point that he does not do anything at all. The curious and perverse Lawyer just lets Bartleby be as the scrivener goes on with life doing absolutely nothing. Unfortunately, things get out off hand to the point that Bartleby is imprisoned for hanging out in the building when it is neither his home ror has he any rights to loiter in the place.This ends the story: as Bartleby refuses everything—companionship, food, water—he dies a sad death in prison, all alone. Later on, the Lawyer finds out that Bartleby has been working in the Dead Letter Office wherein he sorts the mail of dead people. The Lawyer associates this previous job of Bartleby as the reason why the scrivener has become depressed and decided to one day, to just let everything go. In Liane Norman's Bartleby and the Reader, the role that the reader plays in giving meaning to Bartleby and the Scrivener is focused on.According to Norman (1971), there is a â€Å"rigorous and demanding human tr ansaction that takes place between the reader and the story†. This transaction is the ability of the text to have meaning only when the reader wills it do so. Thus, the dialogue, lines and other descriptions in the story would be moot and pointless if the reader does not believe otherwise. In fact, the reader becomes a character in the story itself without being in it; as what Norman (1971) asserts, â€Å"the reader is both participant and judge† in the same way that the Lawyer or the narrator of the story is also the participant and the judge.Thus, while the Lawyer is one of the characters in the story, his way of storytelling wherein he is detached from the other characters makes him have the same role as the reader. This in turn, makes the reader as the Lawyer and the Lawyer as one of the readers. But more than this form of analysis, Norman takes the notch further by relating the text and the characters to a greater and more profound extent by juxtaposing it with Chr istian values or ideals and the nature of democracy—two things which are inherently, albeit subtly, presented as the themes in Bartleby the Scrivener.On the other hand, the way Norman anaylzed the literary text was correct in a way that she gives meaning to the context and the content but remiss in her ability to add too much interepretation and meaning to what could have been just simple or meaningless lines. This is perhaps a bigger mistake in not being able to see much meaning in a literary work, that of seeing too much—a case of overreading. Norman was not false in her analysis, but she was extreme in that too much interpretatation is given from too little information.Thus, her mistake was that she was not able to give importance to the interepretation of the literary text as a text itself but she instead, concentrated on the text as how it would be interpreted by the reader. Bartleby the Srivener does not become merely Bartleby the Scrivener but it becomes, instea d, Bartleby and the Reader. Norman placed too much emphasis and importance on the reader as being part of the literary work and literary analysis. But the reader is of course important, for who will analyze a text but that being the reader himself/herself?However, what Norman has done is to indicate that there is but one reading presented by the reader and that is the only correct reading while at the same time the reader is no one but herself. What Norman should have done is present the analysis on the text as being Bartleby and A Reader instead of having it as Bartleby and THE Reader. For using the determiner â€Å"the† indicates that there is only one reader and that one reader is and will always be right.Thus, Norman's analysis gives a vaild credibility to her argument—even if the argument is indeed credible, it is unfortunately not valid. Although, there is something which is admirable and commendable in Norman's analysis which is the last part of her article wher ein she gives a profound interpretation on the implication of the Lawyer's last lines regarding Bartleby's death: The deep sense of disappointment that the story inspires in the reader is a function of the aura of America's hight but impossible promises: men have not escaped their limitations simply by founding a new policy.Bartleby is the test of democratic- Christian principle. If his resistance exposes human shortcomings, his persistence reveals man stubbornly laying claim to his humanity. (Norman, 1971) Norman maginificently gives a clear idea and interepretation on Bartleby's death while at the same time, relates its implication to humanity which is humanity's tendency to gain new insights but miserably ends in not carrying out those new â€Å"policies† or insights.Over all, both Melville (in using the character of the Lawyer) and Norman are correct, society stubbornly believes in their humanity—even if it proves that their idealist views on humanity's â€Å"huma nness† is sometimes misplaced. References Melville, H. (2006). Bartleby the scrivener: a story from Wall Street. Great Short Works of Herman Melville. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. pp. 19-38. Norman, L. (1971). Bartleby and the reader. The New England Quarterly 44 (1): 22-39.

Foalktales essays

Foalktales essays A folktale is a general term for any of numerous varieties of traditional narrative. The telling of stories appears to be a cultural and universal tradition, common to primitive and complex societies alike. Folktales are demonstrably similar from culture to culture, and comparative studies of themes and narrative techniques have been successful in showing these relationships. Fairy tales are entirely fictional and often begin with such formulas as Once upon a time . Which is not the case in most folktales which useally express something common to that culture. Folktales are stories that give people a means for sharing their culture, history and values. And so was the case in Mother to Son by Langston Hughes. Hughes discussed problems common to people of color from his culture . One of the most powerful tools used by hughes is imagery . Hughes uses strong imagery to get a clear picture across to the reader. As does he uses Irony and metaphors such ass Life for me aint been no crystal stair Its had tacks in it, And splinters, And boards torn up. HUghes work can be described as a folktale. He writes exactly to fit the definition of the word folktale. And the same formula is used my many writers ...

Architecture of the Twin Tower essays

Architecture of the Twin Tower essays The idea of the Twin Towers came about in the early 1960s by the Downtown-Lower Manhattan Development Association. By 1962, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey began plans to build the two towers. Minoru Yamasaki was chosen out of a dozen other architects. His plan included twelve million square feet of floor area, which also had to accommodate new facilities for the Hudson tubes and subway connections. After studying more than one hundred schemes in model form, Yamasaki decided on a two-tower development to contain the nine million square feet of office space. One tower became unreasonable in size and unwieldy structurally, yet several towers became too approximate for their size and 'looked too much like a housing project'; whereas two towers gave a reasonable office area on each floor, took advantage of the magnificent views, and allowed a manageable structural system. ¹ Critics claimed that the towers would Rob New York of character, ruin the skyline, disrupt television reception, and strain city services. ² They started construction in 1966. The World Trade Center consists of sixteen acres of land. In building of the Twin Towers, five streets were closed off and 164 buildings were destroyed. A total of 10,000 people were involved with the building of the Twin Towers. Sixty people died while in construction. The designs for the towers were inventive in several ways which include its elevator system and its structural system. A regular elevator known as the conventional elevator would have taken up half of the room on the lower floors. Otis Elevators developed express elevators which halved the number of shafts needed for the elevators. The structural system of the towers used an architecture called the Tube. Each tower had a structural core extending from the bedrock bottom to its roof. The cores were rectangular pillars with columns and girders. The...