Righteous Dopefiend by Philippe Bourgois and Jeffrey Schonberg Essay

Righteous Dopefiend by Philippe Bourgois and Jeffrey Schonberg - Essay Example TIn addition to being homeless, the individuals have to face the structural forces that govern their miserable lives. The book tries to give profiles of various homeless people residing on the encampment. This is crucial in understanding the reasons that lead to homelessness. In addition, there is need to learn and appreciate the problems faced by these homeless individuals. This information is crucial in formulating strategies to reach out and help these people. The gruesome dependence on drugs is highlighted in the paper. The homeless addicts are dirty and some urinate on themselves. They steal, beg and engage in prostitution in exchange for drugs. The book concentrates on approximately 10 people in the Bernal heights a popular area in San Francisco (Elsa 178). It is evident that the majority of the writing assesses the method through which the dynamics of race, gender and class affect the lives of the homeless and drug addicts. The themes that stand out in this book include race, sexuality, suffering, trauma and inequality in the society. The authors writing style includes the use of flashback in the lives of the ten individuals depicted in the book to make the book more realistic. The author writes about the love stories, family trauma and embodied suffering in most situations to highlight the plight of these individuals. The use of pictures and flash back creates an actual scenario as described. This makes an individual to understand the inequality and the facts highlighted in the book effortlessly. This powerful book makes the reader to fully integrate into the world of drug addiction, extreme poverty and homelessness in the most developed country, the United States of America (Bourgois & Schonberg 214). Photographs in this book include the scars brought about by addiction, social closeness among romantic pairs and partners who are on the run because of drugs, and the homeless people covered in the book (Angela 200). They are pictures of homeless people who reside in shacks on the encampment. These shacks are off the street and they comfortably rest on their beddings, and take drugs. The most intriguing pictures are of Tina and Carter (a homeless couple that is deeply in love). One cannot help but admire this couple. They may be poor, but they are happy as they have each other. They are oblivious of their surroundings and happily hug and show affection to each other. Through the pictures, it is evident that most of the homeless people are drug addicts. It seems that the homeless people use the drugs to counteract feelings of desperation, anxiety and fear. The commonly abused drug is heroine and intoxication of the drug elicits feelings of euphoria. The homeless on the encampment derive great solace from drug abuse. This is a true picture also in the society, and individuals should avoid drugs such as heroin and crack. The pictures were ethical since a writer has authority to utilize any style of writing which includes pictures and other literature. A writer should be able to pass the informa tion to the reader effortlessly. This style of including pictures is acceptable and ethical since it gives emphasis on the texts in the book. The pictures are not pornographic in nature neither do they discriminate both gender, and race they are appropriate and relevant to the book (Elsa 178). Substance abuse

The Culture of Italy Architecture, People and History

The Culture of Italy Architecture, People and History The main focus of this culture project will be the nation of Italy. Italy is a peninsula, with two main islands which include Sardinia and Sicily, located in south central Europe and extending into the Mediterranean Sea. Italy has a land mass, including the islands, of about 116,300 square feet. To get a better proportion in mind, Italy is only slightly larger than the state of Arizona. Italy is the land neighbor of several countries including Austria, France, San Marino, Slovenia, and Switzerland (Cia.gov). The country of Italy has a unique range when it comes to climate. In northern Italy, the weather is more extreme with temperatures dropping below freezing with snow typically blanketing the region. Southern Italy on the other hand has more a more moderate climate with warmer weather. Southern Italy is the less populated region, and despite the hot temperatures the area is more known for its rural areas and farming communities (GoAbroad.info). Throughout the nation, Italian cultur e is as alive today as it ever has been, but it goes back a long way. Evidence of human existence has been shown through recent excavations in Europe, which date back to the Paleolithic and Mesolithic time periods (Italy1.com). Italy is a nation rich in culture and customs, and this will be an interesting journey. 4C Archaeology To understand any culture, it is first important to get an understanding of the history of the location. One way to do this is to study from an archeological stand point. Archaeology is one of four subplots of Anthropology, and is the excavation, recovery, and analysis of remains of past human behavior. Archaeologists look for artifacts (such as tools, ceramics, textiles) to give them an idea of and show evidence for past human behavior. Italy, especially Northern Italy and around Rome, is rich in archaeological findings. Currently there about 56 active sites around Italy, which include sites in Pompeii and Rome. Rome may be the most well known area, because it is still populated today, but the ruins of Pompeii are full of findings of a civilization over 2000 years old. Pompeii (located near the present day Naples) was completely buried by a volcanic eruption that basically set all signs of life in stone for years ahead. The earliest signs of life show that this city was destroyed in 79 AD, which gives archaeologists insight to a city that was popular at the same time as the Roman Empire was at its peak. This site was left virtually untouched until about 1748 when one man found the site and would dig at random searching for treasure only for his own personal gain. Not until 1861 was the proper approach taken, and this included an extensive and systematic excavation led by an Italian appointed representative who was responsible for making plaster casts of the victims. Many objects are still being excavated to this day; these objects include paints (found still in the pottery), tiles, paintings, and floorings. The most interesting is the large amount of brothels found in the city (GoEurope.about.com). Photographer Corrine Gill captured some of the erotic images found, and below is one of her more famous pieces. 4D Culture Culture, in its simplest form, is a set of beliefs, ideas, behaviors that are shared and learned. The culture of Italy is a beautiful and unique one. From greetings to the food, Italian culture is something special. One really distinct difference between foreign and Italian culture is the way Italians will greet each other. The most common way to greet someone and see them off is with a light kiss on each cheek. This practice will usually seem strange to a foreigner and Italians expect this and most Italians will usually stick to the typical handshake to make the outsider feel more comfortable. Another aspect of this culture that may seem strange to foreigners is the way Italians dress. A foreigner will be the obvious stand out if they have not dressed in the same, up to date fashion as the rest of the culture. Italians of all ages typically dress in the same way, following the newest trends and fashion codes. The only real clothing restrictions come when you are entering a church or sometimes even a museum, there will typically be written rules for proper attire (ItalyHeaven.com). Growing up in a mostly Italian family, I know the part of Italian culture that is most important to me: food. Italy has nearly 20 different regions, all of which have their own style of food. Food is a great tradition in Italy, and this is usually paired with a love of wine. Wine is not looked at in the same light in Italy as it is in America. In Italy, wine is the typical drink to have paired with a fine Italian meal. An example of when a large meal would be prepared would be after a funeral. The whole family would be together, and they would celebrate the life of the lost loved one together. An Italian funeral is a beautiful ceremony that gets many of the loved ones involved, with most of the family holding candles throughout the service and most of them offering prayers in front of the casket. The whole family will then lead the deceased to his final resting place. Italians like t o make a big deal out of their ceremonies, most notably their wedding ceremonies and Christening services (Windsor-Communities.com). The Italian wedding has a few special traditions that are worth noting. One of these traditions is that the groom will carry a small piece of iron ore which is meant to ward off the evil eye. The other tradition unique to Italian weddings is when the bride and groom shatter a vase or piece of glass, they do this so that each piece will represent one year of happy marriage (CompletelyWeddings.com). Both events (weddings and Christenings) will be held in a church for a special service, and then will be followed by a special party afterwards. The party will usually include lots of families and friends, food, wine, and also music. The music typically played at these events will be Opera or anything that can be danced to. Italians love most styles of music, as it is a major part of their daily lives. Opera has the largest following in Italy because that is the origin of this style (Windsor-Communities.com). Below is a picture taken from CompletelyWeddings.com (the photographer is unknown), and it shows what a typical Italian wedding is like. 4E Domestication Much of Italy is covered in mountains which therefore include forests which are home to many different plants and trees. Tuscany, part of the northern region of Italy, has many trees which include beech, pine, fir, yew, oak, wild oak, and ash. The mountains of Tuscany are also home to animals like the fox, mountain goat, bear, and both the Apennine wolf and lynx (KidCyber.com). On top of the many trees and plants throughout the country, Italy has many herbs including rosemary, lavender and thyme. 4F Cities/States For most of Italys history the country was run by a dictator and for some time before that it was ruled by the Catholic Church with the Pope having control of the territory. Until 1948, the nation was ruled by different dictators. In 1948, after World War II, Italy switched over to become a Republic (EveryCulture.com). A Republic is the most common form of government, and it is basically where citizens of a nation have the ability to help control the government. A Republic government leaves a lot of room for change, but the static point is that citizens have the right to vote for their elected officials (WiseGeek.com). Italy is currently led by the Head of State Giorgio Napolitano. Napolitano was elected, as is any Head of State, for a seven year term by the Electoral College. Below Napolitano is Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi who was elected for a 5 year term. Italian government is easy to understand because it is very similar to the United States government (Fco.gov). An interest ing point when looking at Italy and their form of government is the Vatican City, which is the only surviving city-state left in the world. A city-state is, as stated by Professor Kuba from class, a political system of an independent city to rule over a fixed area. The Vatican City has not always been an independent state though, as it was only made to be its own state in 1929 due to a treaty that was signed between the city and Italy. The ruler of the Vatican is not necessarily an elected official either, because the leader of the Vatican is actually the Bishop of Rome, who is the Pope to the rest of the Catholic community. The Vatican City is actually very small in land size, as it is only slightly larger than The Mall in Washington, DC (Buzzle.com). 4G Social Stratification To judge if a society is socially stratified, we look at three main traits which include prestige, power, and economic resources/wealth. It is difficult to place Italy in any of the categories, but it is best represented by a Class Society due to the unequal access to everything. The major differences within the nation fall between the northern and southern parts of Italy. The unemployment rate of the nation is very high, which causes the differences in wealth to be highly noticeable. Wealth is especially apparent in immigrants because they typically come from poorer countries. Lower classes have been affected recently by budget cuts to the welfare system which were required by the European Union (which Italy founded in 1957). The most prominent markers of social class are speech and dress. The closer ones dialect is to the national language, it is common that the speaker is wealthier than others. Also, fashion is a big deal in Italy, and it is also a statement in class. Certain desi gners or labels will be out of reach for the lower class, and they will stand out because of how up to date Italy is with fashion. Another factor to judge someone by is the amount and style of their leisure time. Where a person goes for a vacation, the amount of time they spend there, and where they stay are usually good ways to gauge an Italians social status. Fashion, leisure, and food are three key factors when looking at Italian culture. Two of these have been discussed; the third and not yet talked about is food. Food is a universal constant and no matter what your social status, you will eat it. Food can also help gauge a persons social status by what kind of food they are eating. Meat will usually be eaten mainly by the wealthy, while the less fortunate will stick to just Pasta or simpler foods (EveryCulture.com). In Italy there are differences in classes, but there are no noticeable different groups. The only difference lies within a persons social status, such as their pres tige, power, or economic resources. 4H Marital Residency and Kinship Italy is not unique in any real fashion when it comes to marriage practices in comparison to the rest of the world. When it comes to marriage, Italians have followed practices common throughout. In the past, marriages were typically arranged by the parents and the daughter would bring a sum of money to the husband at the time of the wedding. It was not uncommon though for the son or daughter to have the chance to influence their parents decision, and this practice was much easier for the poorer class. Most people in Italy will eventually marry, but it is not unheard of to have a restriction for the child to hold off marriage so they can care for their older parents. When the marriage does take place, most couples will move in with the brides parents and follow the matrilocal residency. Alongside of this, it is typical for two nuclear families to live together (EveryCulture.com). Kinship in Italy is a little more difficult to understand. Italy and people of Italian decent are known for their large families, so the question is, how are they related? The family will typically extend and include both the fathers and mothers side of the family. There a couple of generalizations that can be drawn from Italian kinship. One of these is the bond that is typically found between the males of a family and to his mothers sisters. It is believed that is due to the fact that the son chooses to be with the more loving side, rather than the strict side that the father offers. Following this line of thinking, it would mean that I would be really close with my two aunts from my mothers side but have a typical, not resistant, relationship with those on my fathers side of the family. 4I Religion and Magic Religion is a set of beliefs, attitudes, and practices pertaining to the supernatural (Notes). Religion is also one universal constant. No matter when or where society has existed, signs of some form of religion or magic have been found. As discovered through writings or archaeological sites, Italy is no different. Witches and sorcerers are now all but forgotten, but they used to hold a strong position in the past. These practices led many to believe in spells, charms, and many different types of omens. Many of these beliefs have succeeded to modern day religion, but some people still believe in this ancient line of thinking. Italy, home to the Vatican City (the home of the Catholic Church), is a highly religious country. Over 90% of all of Italy is Roman Catholic, with the other religions being a mix of Jews, Muslims, and Orthodox. Italy is full of religious history, with Rome and the Vatican being the focal point for tourist attraction. The cities are full of churches and religious relics, and people flock from around the world to view them first hand. The Roman Catholic Church is very strict with its practices and holds many events throughout the year. The main holidays celebrated in Catholicism are the Immaculate Conception, Christmas, Easter, and the Pentecost. These are celebrated throughout the world, but for a nation nearly all Catholic, they are very important. In Italy, death and the celebration of the death are regarded as highly important. Most Italians believe in the afterlife, and view heaven and hell as reality (going along with Catholicism, they also believe in Purgatory). The funeral for a deceased loved one is held in a funeral home, and Italians view attendance as mandatory. Missing the funeral of a loved one can cause serious harm to that persons relationship with other friends and family (EveryCulture.com). So far I have identified Italy by three major things: family, friends, and food. Religion, and specifically Catholicism, can be added to this list. The Vatican City Home to the Catholic Church, a religion followed by over 90% of Italy 4J Linguistics The official language of Italy, not surprisingly, is Italian. Italian is the number one used language, while German is second, and French and Slovene have a small role in the nations linguistic history (Cia.gov). Italian has a long history, and it is said to be a part of the Romance group, a subplot of the Indo-European family. All Romance languages were spawned from Latin, and Italy is the one that closest resembles it to this day. One issue with the Italian language has always been the number of different dialects found within the country. Dating back to the early 13th century, different dialects can be found in different regions, and this caused many different writings and schools of thought in numerous dialects. It was not until the 17th century, when Tuscany began to be one of the most successful regions in the nation that the Tuscan dialect began to take over and is now considered to be the true national language and dialect. The earliest form of the written word of Italian is said to be from the 13th century, where we find numerous popular plays and stories. Dante Alighieri is one of Italys most famous authors for his work, Devine Comedy, which was written in Latin. The Italian language is basically entirely derived from Latin, and Latin is the official language of the Vatican City (Italian.about.com). The Italian language has a less than half of the letters that English does, as their language only has 14 letters. Italian is a very romantic language, and because of this many common Italian phrases are well known to much of the English speaking society.   4K Sex and Gender Italy is surprisingly equal when it comes to gender roles. I would have viewed Italian culture as very old fashioned, with women staying at home while the husband went off to work, but this is not entirely true. It could be said they are old fashioned in the sense that they have stuck to their almost original gender roles, but that means the men and women are treated as equals. Archaeological sites have shown evidence that men and women were almost equal in the amount of work they contributed to society. In modern society, prior to World War II, men would be the ones who went to work while the woman would stay at home, but these practices have changed and stayed the same since. Now, men and women are equals in every aspect of Italian culture. The numbers of men and women enrolled in universities and the work force is almost the same throughout Italy. Women still hold the same role as the leader of home life, but have taken on new roles to make themselves equals with men in social, ec onomic, and political areas of life. These facts show that Italian women are the most liberated in all of Europe (EveryCulture.com). One major difference between Italian men and women is the effects of having a child. Italian men typically have little to do with the child rearing process and offer little support and guidance to the mother. This absence leaves a very heavy job for the mother to handle alone. The job market is very tough, and it is nearly impossible for a mother of even one child to re-enter the job market after a short absence. This puts a strain on a family because of the difficulty it brings to the family because they have to live off of one income. These facts have caused a dramatic decrease in the amount of children being born in todays Italy (Family.jrank.org). 4L Genetics and Evolution The first sign of any human life comes from nearly 200,000 years ago when signs of human remains were found at villages excavated just west of Rome. The evidence of the existence of Homo Erectus humans is shown with the flint axes that were excavated from this site. About 100,000 years old, signs of more humans were found in Rome, and these people are believed to have been Neanderthals. In terms of modern day Italians, the first existence of modern day humans came about in 10,000 BC during the Upper Palaeolithic. Stone tools and engravings of animals in caves and on bones have been excavated from these sites. The engravings were not as detailed or impressive in comparison with those found elsewhere in Europe such as in France and Spain. It is believed that this is a sign that the population of Italy was rather small at this period in time (HistoryForKids.org). List of Resources http://www.everyculture.com/Ge-It/Italy.html Used for general information throughout the project https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/it.html Used for: 3A, 3B, 4J http://italy1.com/history/ Used for 3B http://www.goabroad.info/Italy.html?gID=3207 Used for 3C http://www.loc.gov/rr/international/european/italy/it.html Used for basic search engine http://mapsandflags.com/it.html Used for general information http://goeurope.about.com/cs/italy/a/pompeii.htm Used for information on Pompeii http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/pompeii/ss/BrothelsPompeii_2.htm Used for Pompeii brother picture, Corinne Gill http://www.italyheaven.co.uk/manners.html Used for 4D http://www.windsor-communities.com/italian-traditions.php Used for 4D http://completelyweddings.com/ethnic-wedding-themes/ Used for 4D http://www.kidcyber.com.au/topics/italyflora.htm Used for 4E http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1108/897192220_3020362cf4.jpg?v=0 Used for Pine Forest in Tuscany, Italy picture http://www.caninest.com/types-of-wolf/ Used for Apennine wolf picture http://bubbles6612.wordpress.com/2007/11/ Used for Apennine mountains picture http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-republican-form-of-government.htm Used for 4F http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living-abroad/travel-advice-by-country/country-profile/europe/italy/ Used for 4F http://www.buzzle.com/articles/vatican-city-facts.html Used for 4F http://www.mapsofworld.com/flags/vatican-city-flag.html Used for picture of the flag of the Vatican City http://scrapetv.com/News/News%20Pages/Everyone%20Else/pages/Popes-appeal-for-Mid-East-peace-falls-on-surprisingly-deaf-ears-Scrape-TV-The-World-on-your-side.html Used for picture of Vatican City http://italian.about.com/library/weekly/aa060699a.htm Used for 4J http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/language/italian-phrases.html Used for 4J and phrase chart http://family.jrank.org/pages/979/Italy-Education-Gender-Roles.html Used for 4K http://coquinadaily.com/daily/htmldaily/080305.shtml Used for picture in 4L http://www.lifeinitaly.com/potpourri/fun-facts.asp Used for 4M http://fragmentssynapses.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/thermometer.jpg Used for thermometer picture http://stephaniedoes.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/01/easiestloaf.jpg Used for picture of bread http://jonjonsmith.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/mcshit.jpg Used for picture of cologne http://www.webweaver.nu/clipart/img/entertainment/music/baby-grand-piano.jpg Used for picture of piano http://www.thedailygreen.com/cm/thedailygreen/images/1-30days-pour-wine-lg-63555269.jpg Used for picture of wine

Use of Color in Toni Morrisons The Bluest Eye :: Bluest Eye Essays

Pauline saw the beauty of life through the colors of her childhood down South. Her fondest memories were of purple berries, yellow lemonade, and "that streak of green them june bugs made on the trees the night we left down home. All them colors was in me"1. Pauline and Cholly left the colors of the South when they moved North to Ohio to begin their life together. Through Cholly, Pauline hoped to find those colors of beauty that she left "down home". For a while she did find her colors, her beauty, in the eyes of Cholly. He released in her all the colors of life which were sealed down in her soul. Everything about their early married life was described in vivid colors. This was true even of her sexual experiences with him. Everything was fine, ordered and beautiful in both Pauline and Cholly's life until they moved "up North". Once they moved North everything changed. The colors went out of Pauline's life. "I missed my people. I weren't used to so much white folks...Northern colored folk was different too"2. Cholly only became "meaner and meaner and wanted to fight all of the time"2. He did not help the situation and contributed to his wife's dissatisfaction and disillusionment by not coming home. He found his satisfaction through other people, thus he neglected Pauline. To make up for this neglect and her own insecurities, Pauline sought comfort through movies. Here she would sit and watch the perfect "white" world of Hollywood. Here she would find her colors on the "silver screen". She had a longing for these colors which was going to affect her life and the lives of her family until it destroys them, especially Pecola. When Pecola was born, a major change occured in Pauline's life. According to Susan Willis, "Adjectives become substantives, giving taste and color and making it possible for colors to trickle and flow and finally be internalized..."3. She now wished to live her life like this, through the colors in herself. Right after Pecola was born Cholly again began to pay attention to Pauline again the way he used to when they lived down South. The only problem was that the colors had dimed in Pauline. By working for a white family, she found her order and her colors again but not with the intensity that she once did.

Can we trust our emotions in the pursuit of knowledge Essay

I feel that knowledge is learning or feeling something that you didn’t know before. The pursuit of knowledge comes through sheer experience. Knowledge surpasses formal schooling. Schooling is educational but neither textbook nor teacher can allow one to experience knowledge that is experienced when on a journey, a journey to explore new things. With emotion on will delve deep and learn more than ever opening up avenues never seen before. That is the pursuit of knowledge. With emotions aiding the pursuit of knowledge one will learn a broader spectrum of things. Using emotions in history and the arts is a trustworthy action. In history one will see that emotions are entwined in every story because that is what history is, a compilation of stories from different sources and point of views. Who’s to say what the truth in history is? Who is the judge on whether a historical account is true or not? No one is the judge. This is what makes the pursuit of knowledge in history a purely emotional experience. It is hard to really know what is true because in different cultures and regions of the world history is told from different angles. History that one learns in school is not told from different angles. It is told from an angle that portrays a certain attitude from the compiler of historical facts. Depending on what side you are on in history reflects the publicity of certain events. In schools certain topics are talked about more often, such as victories. Although the events in history may be emotional the pursuit of this knowledge is not emotional. It is only information; therefore, emotions should not be trusted when dealing with this type. Familial history is different for every person because everyone has backgrounds that are of many origins. When a person learns about their history it is many times oral history that has been told for generations. Oral history is bound to change dramatically because as the story is told, different variations and exaggerations are added. When one person tells a story one portion of the story may be enhanced and talked about more, but that parts that aren’t told as much may be the truth and most important parts of the story. Familial history is emotional. This history encompasses struggles and successes. Each thing that happens in a family’s history holds an emotional impact on the person or people that witnessed these things. Many times if the past is hard to talk about, due to heavy emotional impact, the story is changed or not reported. Tying emotions to pursuit of knowledge in history is unpreventable because history is an emotional subject. When a person sees art many emotions arise that causes wonderment. The journey to understanding what art is conveying is what brings forth emotion that lead one to understanding. African drumming and dancing is something that I grew up doing and listening to. In the beginning it was something that I did and never wondered about. After my retirement from drumming and dancing I saw a performance and it set me on a roller coaster of thoughts. Through the gyrations and deep thuds moving in synchronization I experienced something I never felt while playing all of those years. Through the drumming I felt the rhythm of my own heart and through the movements life was breathed into the auditorium. The swift and acrobatic movement represented structure and valor. The drums often turned into a rough chant that spoke belligerent tones and softened, as the movements became more fluid. The drums spoke and the movements of the dancer’s bodies told a story. Through emotions, art comes alive and new knowledge was gained from that single experiences. Because there is not a wrong answer in art it is often easier to trust emotions. Art is emotional. Emotional is what humans are; this makes us all artist. Because trusting emotions in art is simple one can challenge their mind and try to understand what is behind the art form. Through paintings and mixed media different thoughts could be conveyed according to what emotions it causes a person to have. The artist could have intended for it to convey one emotion when according to past experiences of the viewer it conveys a different tone. In the language arts†¦ Although one can trust emotions in the pursuit of knowledge one mustn’t trust emotion to validate knowledge. People have their own truths. Truth changes, but knowledge doesn’t. Truth changes because of a different perception that each person has. Truth is what we all believe to be valid. Knowledge is different in every person. The pursuit of knowledge is a journey. When the destination is met one can’t trust emotions to thread through the truths and falsifications, but trusting your emotions on the journey is definitely possible and makes the expedition unique to the traveler.

Parliamentary sovereignty Essay

Critically discuss this statement. A.V Dicey gives an introduction to the doctrine of Parliamentary sovereignty as, â€Å"the principle of Parliamentary sovereignty means neither more nor less than this, namely, that Parliament thus defined has, under the English constitution, the right to make or unmake any law whatever; and, further, that no person or body is recognised by the law of England as having the right to override or set aside the legislation of Parliament’. However, there are many discussions as to whether the UK joining with the European Union and adherence to the Human Rights Act 1998 renders sovereignty irrelevant. It will be argued that although following these rules may appear to be contradictory to sovereignty, co-operation is entirely voluntary, necessary, and there are many examples as to why sovereignty is not irrelevant, nor archaic. Firstly, Parliamentary sovereignty is not a constitutional relic. It may seem to be the, as part of the UK constitution continues to rely on extremely early Acts such as The Magna Carta or the Bill of Rights Act , however, these statutes continue to remain as they set out important constitutional principles. Even since 1215, it has been recognised that it is important to limit the power of the monarch, and transfer powers to parliament, in interest of balance, and the separation of powers. Up until present day, supporting Dicey’s summary above, UK courts cannot strike down an Act of Parliament, this is unlike many Supreme Courts in other countries, for example the USA, who are bound to reject legislation which contradicts the written constitutional rights. For example in the case of Mortensen v. Peters , it notes that in the event of a contradiction between international law and Act of Parliament, courts within the UK are bound to apply the UK legislation, and discount the international law. This shows that, while Parliamentary sovereignty is based on ancient fundamental principles, it still has a modern, every day importance, which is key to our constitution, as supported by Jennings ; ‘The supremacy of Parliament is the constitution’. The doctrine of legislative sovereignty dictates that  parliament has power to legislate on constitutional matters, thus parliament can change the constitution by an act of parliament. There is a challenge posed to parliamentary sovereignty by EU law, as in 1973 the UK joined the European Union. Member states must not be permitted to deviate from EU rules common to all, thus overriding Parliamentary sovereignty. This seems to conflict with Dicey’s view of sovereignty. The European Communities Act 1972 tries to establish the relationship between domestic law and EU law ; ‘Any enactment passed or to be passed†¦ shall be construed and have effect subject to the foregoing provisions of this section’. This provides a problem with sovereignty, as it means that the UK will have to adhere to the EU court, rather than our own supreme court. Parliament in the future may no longer be considered as sovereign, as they may no longer be free to make or unmake law. However, courts have tried to find a middle ground with EU and Parliamentary sovereignty, in the case of Macarthys . Lord Denning stats that if Parliament every clearly and deliberately passes an act which is inconsistent with EU law, ‘the duty of our courts to follow the statute of our Parliament’. This shows that Parliament has retained some of its independence, and only acts in accord with EU voluntarily, and because the UK agrees with the EU laws. Leading on from the UK’s voluntary cooperation with the EU laws, is the case of Factortame (No. 2) . Justification for the decision in Factortame was offered by Lord Bridge, which emphasised that; â€Å"whatever limitation of its sovereignty Parliament accepted when it enacted the European Communities Act 1972 was entirely voluntary†; the ECA 1972 was the domestic source of the supremacy of EU law; and there was nothing novel about this decision. Lord Bridges’ speech traces the source of the limit of legislative power to the ECA 1972, suggesting that if Parliament wishes to create a new Act, contradicting EU law, it need only expressly state in the new statute that it is to take place regardless of the ECA 1972. This, supported by Denning’s Obiter in Macarthys , brings us in a compete circle, to Dicey’s view; ‘that no person or body is recognised by the law of England as having the right to override or set aside the legislation of Parliament’, as it suggests that the UK can decide not to follow EU law, therefore Parliamentary sovereignty is not obsolete or irrelevant.

No Pets Allowed! Professor Ramos Blog

No Pets Allowed! Lisa Towell has been a volunteer at her local pet shelter and tells a story about what happened to an animal which the owner surrenders to them. â€Å"I remember one handsome, friendly black-and-white tuxedo cat who was dropped off at the shelter a while ago. We had lots of other cats available, and the tuxedo cat wasn’t adopted quickly. He handled his new world very well at first, but as the weeks turned into months, he became irritable and unhappy. Eventually, the shelter staff made the difficult but humane decision to end his suffering by euthanizing (to death humanely). He was just 5 years old† (Towell). No Pets allowed! This event is the worst and common to see while looking for a new place to move into. Driving around and you see starving scared stray dogs and cats on the streets, and why is that? That is because approximately 6.5 million companion animals enter the U.S. animal shelters nationwide yearly (ASPCA.org). This event could be for many reasons but one of reasons is abandonment. One way that we can fix that is by more landlords letting renters have animals, and landlords don’t like pets for these reasons. They can cause damage to the property, animals being snuck in, and animals cause liability. Pets for landlords can benefit landlords also by making them more money. Many animals can cause from little to major damage to a property. They do this by going to the bathroom inside, chewing on things, and scratching and shedding. landlord will continuously have to replace carpet and furniture especially if the tenant has a miss behaved dog. This event can be fixed by having pet rent, and a deposit for the future cost. Also, the landlord can limit the sizes of the dog to smaller dogs. This event would lessen the damage if there is any. According to AAOA (American Apartment Owner Association) constant problem landlords face is tenants who sneak in their pets. The Balance Small Business says â€Å"if you allow pets, it will decrease the chances of tenants trying to sneak in pets that you have not approved (Eberlin). Also, you could state on the lease agreement if an unexpected pet is found the violator will be charged a fee plus pet rent from the beginnings of their contract. Some dogs can be aggressive or vicious by nature and landlords are afraid of being held liable. If you are a landlord to lessen the chance of that happening, you can restrict the breeds and avoid the more well-known aggressive or vicious breeds. However, the landlord’s liability is limited. According to Nolo’s legal encyclopedia, â€Å"in general courts hold a landlord liable only if the landlord knew the dog was dangerous and could have had the dog removed; or harbored or kept the tenants dog- that is, cared for or had some control over the dog† (Randolph). If you are worried that a dog might be a problem for you, landlords could ask that the owner would produce of go get a Canine Good Citizen title. According to AKC (American Kennel Club) a Canine Good Citizen â€Å"is designed to reward dogs who have good manners at home and in the community† (AKC). With the restriction on breeds, limited liability, and the Canine Good Citizen landlords should have a pi ece of mind. All worries you might have can be fixed and maintained, but allowing these animals open up the opportunity’s for landlords to make much more money. By allowing animals to your renters opens up a mass pool of candidates. â€Å"that almost 50% of renters own a pet. Therefore, if you make your property pet-friendly tenant as you will have a larger group to choose from† (Eberlin). More tenant options make it more likely for you to lease units much faster. For example, â€Å"David Last, a property manager, developer, and the founder of Last 2 Development, also in Boston, agrees and offers this example, â€Å"If you have 30 units that you can lease even 10 days faster by allowing pets, that’s the equivalent of an additional 300 days of rent. Assuming the average monthly rent is $2,000 per unit, that’s about $20,000 of extra (annual) income† (Gallant). Pet owners make more money and are better tenants. â€Å"According to Practical Apartment Management, b y Edward N Kelly, 65% of pet owners earn over $50,000 a year† (Eberlin). Responsible Pet owners are more responsible because if they are able to take care of a pet they are able to be more responsible about what they are renting. Pet owners tend to stay longer with their lease. This event is because it is harder for them to find a pet friendly place. Because there are fewer pet friendly places landlords can get away with charging a little more for rent if you allow pets. If we bring down the wall of fear that landlords have about pets on how they can cause damage to the property, animals being snuck in, and animals cause liability we can decree the chances of animals being abandoned on the streets or being put into shelters. And we knock down that wall by making the pet having tenants have a pet deposit and pet rent, not harboring known aggressive animals, and have a pet policies and restrictions in place for animals. By doing this, we can save an animal’s life because â€Å"each year, approximately 1.5 million shelter animals are euthanized (670,000 dogs and 860,000 cats)† (ASPCA), and avoid the pain of family’s separation from their pets. â€Å"6 Reasons to Allow or Not Allow Pets.† AAOA, 18 Jan. 2016, https://www.american-apartment-owners-association.org/property-management/latest-news/6-reasons-allow-allow-pets/. Eberlin, Erin. â€Å"The Pros and Cons of Renting to Tenants Who Have Pets.† The Balance Small Business, The Balance Small Business, 30 May 2019, https://www.thebalancesmb.com/should-you-make-your-property-pet-friendly-2125005. Kriss, Randa. â€Å"What Is Canine Good Citizen?†American Kennel Club, 26 Oct. 2017, https://www.akc.org/products-services/training-programs/canine-good-citizen/what-is-canine-good-citizen/. â€Å"Make Your Rental Properties Pet-Friendly.†Buildium, 4 Mar. 2019, https://www.buildium.com/blog/pet-friendly-properties-can-make-more-money/. â€Å"Pet Statistics.† ASPCA, https://www.aspca.org/animal-homelessness/shelter-intake-and-surrender/pet-statistics. Randolph, Mary, and J.d. â€Å"Landlord Liability for Tenants Dogs.†Www.nolo.com, Nolo, 23 June 2014, https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/free-books/dog-book/chapter4-7.html. Towell, Lisa. â€Å"Why People Abandon Animals.†PETA Prime, 20 Sept. 2018, https://prime.peta.org/2018/09/why-people-abandon-animals/.

Kaplan SAT Book - Full Review

Kaplan SAT Book - Full Review SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Kaplan is a giant in SAT prep, but that doesn't mean its prep materials are good. In fact, they tend to be far from excellent. In this review, we'll examine Kaplan's SAT 2015 book for its strengths and weaknesses. Why trust this review? When you get advice on the internet, it's important to understand why you should believe the advice you're receiving. Because your SAT score is important, follow the wrong advice, and it might be too late to improve your score. To be transparent, here’s why you might be able to trust this review more than others: I like to think that I know what I’m talking about.I scoredtwo perfect scores on the SATand have worked personally with thousands of students prepping for the SAT. I’ve worked with students at all levels, from people at a 1200 level to people aiming for a 2300+. Other writers often don't have the expertise to differentiate between books, and they recommend books as an afterthought (and you can probably tell). I don’t get paid for these recommendations, and I don’t get paid if you buy these books.I’ve studied dozens of books for SAT prep, and I review the books that I come across. Other sites, especially about.com and reviews.com, get paid for featuring books and get a kickback when you buy a book they recommend. One disclaimer: I’m co-founder ofPrepScholar, an online SAT/ACT prep program. I believe we’ve built the best prep program available right now. Itdiagnoses your strengths and weaknessesand gives you a structured all-in-one program, combining the best aspects of the books below, so you know exactly what you need to study at every point. But I want to stress that you don’t need a program to excel at the SAT. In fact, writing this guide may lose us some customers, since you might decide that you don’t need a program at all. But if you decide that you don’t want to manage 10 books and want an integrated complete program that customizes to your learning,check PrepScholar SAT out. Kaplan SAT Prep Book Review When I consider the quality of a book, I think about a few important questions: Who's the author, and what is his or her experience with the subject matter? How effective is the book, and why? What are the book's main pros and cons? About Kaplan If you've researched SAT prep, you've most likely heard of Kaplan. One of the first SAT prep programs, Kaplan established a reputation for being able to improve student SAT scores while the College Board maintained it was impossible to prep for the SAT. Unfortunately, since its heyday in the 20th century, Kaplan has taken a huge fall. Its classes are consistently rated to be bad, and its prep books tend to receive poor ratings. In some sense, its success was its downfall. Because it's such a mainstream company, it needs to cater to a large span of students. To cut costs, instead of tailoring programs to different students, it shoots for the lowest common denominator. This means it provides a lot of students with subpar experiences, just like most Kaplan SAT books. The specific authors of this book aren't clear, but they're likely internal writers in Kaplan. It's therefore hard to judge the credentials of the authors, but you can guess that they're likely not superbly impressive. How Effective is the Book? I'll say it outright - if you're serious about SAT prep and want to improve your SAT score by over 150 points, this is not the book for you. I know there are some students who just want to put in 5 hours, get some exposure to the test, and then take the SAT and forget about it. I personally believe that for most students, improving your SAT score is, hour for hour, thebest way to improve your chances of college admission. So I would say that if you feel this way, you should re-examine your approach. But if you just want a book that does a mediocre job of a lot of things, the Kaplan book is reasonable.It’s an all-in-one book that covers the three sections and contains practice questions and practice tests. It doesn’t excel at any of what it’s doing, but it covers the important bases. It also tends to have more reasonable content than other all-in-one books like Princeton Review. What's wrong with it? The strategies aren't very helpful - the tricks it offers might help students scoring in the 400 range, but they quickly lose effectiveness once you gain familiarity with the SAT. The content isn't thorough - for example, it doesn't cover all the grammar rules you need to know. The questions also tend to not be realistic, compared to official SAT practice questions. By training on low-quality questions, you risk learning the wrong patterns of the actual SAT test. I don’t love this book. I don’t even really like it. I don’t recommend it if you at all want to improve your score seriously and are willing to put in study time. But if you just want a single source that can do an OK job and is easily digestible, this is the best one out there. Kaplan SAT Book Pros and Cons Pros: Covers all three sections and contains practice tests. It's an all-in-one book that provides an acceptable broad introduction to the tests. At $15, affordable for the breadth that it covers. Contains some basic strategies that can get you a few easy points if you get stuck answering questions, or if you're performing at a low level. Cons: Practice questions tend to be unrealistic – they often don’t phrase questions the way the SAT would, and they don’t test concepts in the right way. The questions also don’t trick you in the same ways that the SAT does. Answers and materials can have errors – not great quality control. Strategies are not helpful once you move beyond a 600 score level in the section. Overall Rating Once again, if you're not too committed to SAT prep, want to spend fewer than 10 hours, and want a brief whirlwind introduction to the SAT, this book is fine for you. If any of these isn't true for you, then other top SAT prep books will be much better for you. Overall Rating:50/100 What's next? Read our detailed guide to theBest SAT Prep Booksto put together your own study program based on the best SAT books available now. What's a good SAT score for you?Figure it out with our step by step guide based on the colleges you're applying to. Aiming for a high score? Read ourguide to scoring a perfect SAT score, written by me, a perfect SAT scorer. Check out our industry-leading online SAT program. We've designed it to cover all the advantages of books and tutors at an affordable price. Featuring in-depth strategy lessons and thousands of practice questions, we have the content from the leading books. Beyond that, the programacts like your personal tutor. It guides you step-by-step through what you should be working on at every moment to best improve your score. Itcustomizes to your strengths and weaknesses, then gives you focused practice so you learn the patterns on the SAT. Furthermore, it motivates you to study so that you put in enough time. There's a 160 point guarantee - if you don'timprove your score by 160 points, you get all your money back.