The Troop Surge and The Iraq War Essay Example for Free

The Troop Surge and The Iraq War Essay Sometimes, what matters to one person may not mean much to another person. This is not because one side is insensitive to the other, but because they are so far removed from the situation that it really does not impact them.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Iraq War is such an example. For 140,000 troops, the Iraq War is a very dangerous reality. For many millions of people, the War is something that does not affect them because it is â€Å"over there.† This does not mean they are insensitive. It just means that there are many people for whom the War does not directly touch, therefore, it does not mean as much to them as it does other people.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   For me the War in Iraq is a serious matter as I am an individual directly involved with the situation. I am an Army Medic and have performed tours of duty in Iraq. With the recent announcement of the troop surge into the Iraqi Theater, I am confronted with something that does mean something to me and affects me directly. The reason for this is obvious: the surge may result in my having to return to Iraq.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   So, for me, the Iraq War is something that touches me and my family on a personal level. It is not a disembodied military action that affects a national psyche or any similar media lamenting verbiage. It is a very real event and it directly impacts my life. This is neither a condemnation nor an endorsement. It is simply a direct reflection of a situation that I am involved.

Does God Exist? :: essays research papers

In my life on this planet I have come to question many things that many take on as blind faith. We all know that someday we will 'physically' die, Yet, we continuously deny the forces working inside ourselves which want to search out the true outcome of what may or may not come after death. It's far easier for humanity to accept that they will go on to a safe haven and be forgiven for all, rather than to question the existence of a super omnipotent being. Fortunately, there are some of us who tend to question the why's and how's that come before us. We question the creation of humanity and the religious teachings received from our parents, our church and our society. This paper examines the many rational arguments for and against the existence of God. It is based on the views of some of the great philosophers and scientists of our world. I will show that there is no sufficient proof or comprehensive arguments for the existence of God. Some people search for eternal peace through the beliefs in God; but this is an impossible belief because of the chances, the plausibility, and because of science. ONTOLOGICAL ARGUMENTS God generally refers to one supreme, holy, personal being,. The divine unity of ultimate good-ness and of ultimate reality. St. Anselm of Canterbury developed what we have learned to be the ontological argument. He began his argument by saying that even a fool can grasp or understand the concept of "a being than of which nothing greater can be conceived." He continues to state that a fool would say that the concept of this being's existence is only in his mind and in the mind of others but not in reality. However he also admits to the possibility of this being existing in reality. Whatever is understood by the fool is argued that than which nothing is greater can be conceived cannot solely exist in the mind but also in reality, hence, God exists. (Angelfire) This personally sounds like a salesperson's pitch to confuse and conquer for a sale. Gaunilo felt the same. He frequently debated with St. Anselm on behalf of the fool. He stated that it was not po ssible to visualize the concept of this perfect being because one can only imagine an image when one has an idea of what that image is suppose to resemble.

Contrasting “Conflict in Things Fall Apart” and “Heart of Darkness” Essay

Heart of Darkness by Josef Conrad and Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe are two novels that are written to make a statement. Both are meant to stir the emotions of the reader, whether those emotions be anger, hope, frustration, joy, despair, or enlightenment. Both novels take place in the same location and same time period and involve the same groups of people. Both novels depict European imperialism in the African Congo in the 1800s. The obvious distinction between the two is that Heart of Darkness tells a tale from the European point of view while Things Fall Apart tells one from the Native African Tribe point of view. Both authors use extremely well developed characters to manifest and exhibit controversies and bring to light critical aspects of human nature and propensity. Both authors use conflict of various types to ascertain an overall theme. Although the novels use similar settings in the expression of their ideas, the underlying themes Conrad and Achebe choose to focus on are very different. Chiefly, the ultimate conflict in Heart of Darkness is one of Man vs. Himself, while the ultimate conflict in Things Fall Apart is one of Man vs. Man. To begin, both Conrad and Achebe wish to make statements on the negative consequences of Imperialism with their novels, but choose to emphasize completely unrelated and extremely different issues. In Heart of Darkness, the conflict has to do with the destructive consequences of the self-discovery and internal turmoil that goes with segregation from society in an untamed, ruthless, savage place such as the African Congo. Years of life in the jungle drove the brilliant Kurtz to near insanity: â€Å"the wilderness had found him out early, and had taken on him a terrible vengeance for the fantastic invasion. I think it had whispered things to him about himself which he did not know, things of which he had no conception till he took council with this great solitude† (98). For Marlow, the dark and hollow core inside himself and all mankind is also exposed during his conquest into the unfamiliar land, and he too comes very close to being pushed into insanity by his realizations: â€Å"The most you can hope from it is some knowledge of yourself — that comes too late — a crop of  inextinguishable regrets†¦ Since I had peeped over the edge myself, I understand better the meaning of his stare†¦ he had made that last stride, he had stepped over the edge, while I had been permitted to draw back my hesitating foot† (119). Obviously, Conrad chose to focus his novel not on the conflicts that arise between people in societies that try to impose on each other, but rather how a new environment and point of view can lead to self-discovery and internal conflict within oneself. On the other hand, Achebe’s obvious focus was on the falling apart of a culture that can occur with a more powerful culture’s abrupt influence. He emphisizes throughout his novel many directly contrasting aspects of European society and the Ibo people, and the conflict this causes both between the two group and among the Ibo people themselves. As the wise Obierka observes, â€Å"he [the white man] has put a knife on the things that hold us [the Ibo people] together and we have fallen apart†. The use of the words he and we implies that the conflict exists between individuals; between whites and blacks, Europeans and natives, believers and non-believers, loyalists and traitors. More specifically, one can observe the trials of the two novels’ main characters. Both main characters are tragic heroes and develop such dreadful internal conflict that in the end both are led to destruction, this conflict is rooted very differently for each of them. In Heart of Darkness, inner station manager Kurtz is found by Marlow in a state of essential insanity; an intellectual and economic genius turned delusional, raving, fanatical, and savage. As Marlow explains, Kurtz’s â€Å"intelligence was perfectly clear and concentrated, it is true, upon himself with horrible intensity, yet clear; †¦ his soul was mad. Being alone in the wilderness, it had looked within itself, and, by heavens! I tell you, it had gone mad† (113). Kurtz’s downfall was one that had developed from within himself. In Things Fall Apart, former tribal leader and respected warrior Okonkwo ends up losing the admiration of his people and eventually hanging himself. The self-loat hing hopelessness that led to his suicide came primarily from the discord that had developed between himself and the people of his tribe and the hostility of the whites.

Language Is The Common Form Of Language - 1891 Words

Introduction Language is all around us. We have used language for thousands of years from the basic oral skills developed in our early days of humanity to the wide and variant languages we use today. We do this to explain how to communicate our thoughts, feelings and ideas with others around us. The most common form of language is oral language, as most communication is not only done this way, but more is interpreted by listening from what is being said rather than when language is seen via the written language. When using language, as a speaker or a listener, both of these tasks can make language either difficult or easy for us to understand dependent on our life experiences, culture and knowledge that has brought us to understand a particular type of language. This comes from the diversity in our learning of a particular language and how we acquire new languages. It can also depend of our use of our language. We will find that people will have a standard language they used, â€Å"which is a ge neralised dialect used for official communication in formal settings† (Strazny, 2005) where everyone can understand what is going on within a general situation but find that when people are in a particular group of people, a different language may be used that only people who are accustomed to this language will understand. What is Language? Language is a number of things. It is something that is in our heads, a set of rules to how we speak when making social connections, toShow MoreRelatedCubism, Orphism And Futurism Share A Common Language, Dynamism, And New Forms Of Transport And Communication1193 Words   |  5 Pagesis was like to live in an environment that was advancing and developing with incrediable speed . Dynamism became a means for the artists of the time to communicate what has been termed the modern condition. Cubism, Orphism and Futurism share a common language, Dynamism. Dynamism is a mechanism for communicating a sense of change or movement.. Artists also invested their own emotions of what they were experiencing through the use of dynamism. Viewers can understand that there was an excitement, anxietyRead MoreHow Language Is Always Changing And Growing988 Words   |  4 PagesLippi-Green is making the case that language is always changing and growing. Every human speaks some type of language and begins to learn how to use it. No matter where a person is from they speak some form of language. Living language changes to better fit the needs of the people using it. The English vocabulary has expanded past the King’s English. People no longer use the same words and structures to form sentences in speaking. 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Many language experts such as Chomsky (1965) and Pinker (2000) believe this suggests that there is some innate predisposal to acquire language, by this it is meant a genetic mechanism that holds whatRead MoreEnglish-based Pidgins and Creoles806 Words   |  3 PagesSuggestively, within todays society, nearly every continent holds some form of pidgin and/or creole that is used, either by a wide majority or by a small minority for the purpose of both communication and cross communication. Evidently, over time an assortment of scholars has come forth to propose their different theories as to the accounts for the origins and development of English based creoles and pidgins. There has long been a dispute as to the extent these English based pidgins and creolesRead MoreEssay on English-Only Movement1511 Words   |  7 PagesEnglish-only Movement The question of whether the U.S should have an official language and whether bilingual language education can be accepted is highly controversial. 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