RR #1 Essays - Animals, Dog Breeding, Animal Welfare, Dogs

Good Dog, Bad Dog " Bad Dog" by Rachel Maizes is a very interesting essay about a dog named Chance who was actually owned by the writer herself. At the time of the essay, Chance is an old worn down dog who once "stood like a champion" but now he "looks like a ghost" even though he is still alive. The reason he is so worn down?... Chance has a temper, a very big one, It started as early as 2 yrs old when he used to "growl at other dogs, chase children/cyclists and even flatten puppies under his paws". This temper would continue with him throughout his life as it led him into many fights which is why after 14 years, his body is so beaten and brittle. Most would probably label Chance as a so called "bad dog" but Rachel doesn't see it that way as she feels Chance is perfect for her as she describes herself as a "introvert who identifies with his desire to be alone". She mentions how Chance was there for her after her divorce and "took care of her", Funnily enough she even admits she is sometimes ashamed of having a "bad dog" and even fears he may attack someone. However the question I pose to you as a reader is that even though Chance is seen by most as a bad dog, is he truly a bad dog or a by product of a bad situation? My answer to that very question is that Chance while a bad dog to the rest of the world is actually a good dog to Rachel (his owner). Yes I know that him attacking other dogs and even threatening to attack humans and other animals isn't good behavior. I also know the fact that he can't even interact with pretty much anyone besides rachel also isn't a very positive trait to have. However, all of that doesn't affect my answer as I feel he is a good dog to/for Rachel because not only does she truly love him, he will always be there for her and she will do the same. Another reason I believe he is a good dog is the story she describes in the essay about when a yellow Lab lunged at Chance and digged his teeth into him. Uncharacteristically, Chance didn't fight back and just let the Lab tear at his face until the owner finally pulled the Lab off of Chance. Amazed at what she had seen, Rachel wondered to herself why a (young Chance at the time) didn't fight back, why he didn't just go after the Lab like he normally would, as he seemed to hold back. To me this is evidence that deep down Chance while rough around the edges is just like a every other dog and isn't so bad after all but in fact it is Rachel herself who is the problem as I feel she is a bad owner/parent. She even partially admits her faults when she says "I didn't know when i adopted chance, that puppies need to interact with other dogs to learn social cues" this is just an example of the faults she committed as an owner. She also admits to "failing Chance" on multiple occasions. With this being said I think it is clear that while Chance is a bad dog to the world (because of the bad parenting by Rachel) he is a good dog to Rachel and their relationship while a very peculiar one, works for them and in the end that's all that matters (Bad dog + Bad owner = Good relationship) 31

Is homework on school holidays necessary

Is homework on school holidays necessary Should school homework deprive families of the quality time and prevent young people from being what they are on school holidays? Is Homework on School Holidays Necessary? The primary purpose of homework is to build or improve study skills, self-control and discipline, and responsible behavior among students. Therefore, extending the learning environment outside school setting is necessary. There is no doubt that basis for homework is realistic, informed, and with a noble in intention that would surely benefit students. However, extending the learning environment from classroom to each student’s home with no clearly defined boundaries may result in some unwanted effects. These include reduced family time, social isolation, stress, health problems, reduced motivation, and loss of interest in learning due to long hours spent on daily homework and those that consumed their school holidays. This school-home partnership for students’ development  must, therefore, draw a line between educational and personal needs. The reasons are regardless of life benefits, education is not the only thing that matters to people and as government, religion, economics, and other rule-governed social institutions, schools have limited influence on people. Schools should realize the fact that students, as members of the most important institution in our society can â€Å"Say No To School† or #DigaNoAEscolaPq on matters affecting the quality of their lives. HIGH SCHOOL IS A MUST-DO Homework in Reality School homework is generally students’ out of the  class task that normally requires research, problem-solving, reading, or writing. It is normally prepared and completed after class hours and submitted on next class meeting. The purpose (initially) is to help students learn or acquire some more information about the subject matter. Another purpose of homework is to keep students busy while away from home. A study conducted in 2007 found 45% of grade 3-12 in the United States is spending one hour while 6% spend 3 hours a night on their homework. On average, young and older students spend about 7 hours of a week. In contrast, the 2014 Stanford University research team found that high school students spend an average of 3.1 hours of homework per night. More than 50% of these students experienced greater stress, suffered health problems, and spend less time with their family, friends, and not enjoying their hobbies. Overall, spending more than 2 hours of homework is counterproductive, stressful, health hazard, and negatively affects students’ personal and social life. The call #DigaNoAEscolaPq or â€Å"Say No To School† by a disgusted Brazilian student exposed the enduring school practice of assigning students homework that they need to work on during school holidays. The student actually missed all the fun and excitement because she spent almost half of her two months summer vacation doing homework. This kind of cruel and distressful homework can easily affect young people who by nature are outgoing creatures. They already spent so much time in school, thus being with their family and friends during the holiday are so important to them. There is nothing wrong with homework as it can help develop students’ knowledge, skills, and behavior. The real problem actually is the misuse of the learning tool that until now has a weak link to achievement, but scientifically proven counterproductive when abused, depriving families of the quality  time, and preventing young people from being what they are on school holidays.

Identity Theft Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Identity Theft - Essay Example Criminal identity theft, the most common non-financial type, occurs when someone gives another's personal information to a law enforcement officer when he or she is arrested. In addition to the financial losses resulting from identity theft, the person whose personal information has been used will have an erroneous credit or criminal history that is often expensive and time-consuming to correct. This type of identity fraud involves taking on someone else's identity in order to commit a crime, enter a country, get special permits, hide one's own identity, or commit acts of terrorism. These criminal activities can include Computer and cyber crimes, Organized crime, Drug trafficking, Alien smuggling and money laundering. The incidences of identity theft augmented drastically beginning in the late 1990s due to the computerization of records and the capacity to use someone else’s personal information incognito over the Internet. This scam has amplified in the last few years. According to a September 2003 survey conducted by the Federal Trade Commission, an estimated 10 million people in the United States found out they were victims of identity theft in the previous year, much higher than the 500,000 to 750,000 victims estimated in 2001. Since all victims do not make the reporting of this fraud, these figures do not disclose the real rigorousness of this offense. Identity theft is likely to cause massive harm to people on individual basis as well as the state economy, darkening the consequences of usual crimes. It is very easy for criminals to steal identities. No one is immune from this crime. Los Angeles Police Department sergeant Sunil Dutta says, "Technology has simplified most scams. Anyone with a computer, printer, and scanner can falsify personal checks, credit cards, and various forms of identification. Fake ID templates are available on the Internet. Every day, countless credit card offers are mailed to consumers and credit card purchases are processed. Americans can open accounts, deposit money, and spend funds without speaking to a single person. Data that can be entered into a computer or on a telephone keypad are used to identify most customers."2 (Sunil, 2003) Stealing someone's identity actually requires very little effort. Names and mailing addresses of almost anyone can be found out online by paying a nominal amount. Similarly, for not a very high fee, Social Security numbers and employment information can be purchased on the Internet, all in a matter of a few seconds. The privacy has become endangered primarily due to the prevalence of high-speed computers and decryption software. The first and foremost reason that identity theft has become widespread these days is the ease with which one can find out Social Security numbers. Social Security numbers are used as identification and account numbers by many entities, in fact, some states put Social Security numbers on their drivers' licenses. Insurance companies, universities, utility companies, banks, brokerages, and even department stores often have records of Social Security numbers, resulting in a glut of places where our Social Security numbers are floating around; any thief can fish for them and use them to start new credit card accounts or apply for loans. In worst-case scenarios, someone may commit a crime in someone else's name and have the law enforcement

Anthropology Final Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Anthropology Final - Essay Example It aims at creating a concrete feeling of enjoyment for an audience, most commonly manifested in a physical display consisting of displays of pleasure including smiles and laughter.† 1 Another definition of humour, â€Å"is the tendency of particular cognitive experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement† 2 Not all people are talented enough to be humorous. Someone needs to be creative and imaginative. In this case, there is what we call â€Å"humour formula† Root components of humour are being reflective of or imitative of reality and surprise/misdirection, contradiction/paradox, ambiguity. Therefore, methods to create humour include hyperbole, metaphor, farce, reframing and timing. 3 Our society has evolved in different angles. We have learned from our parents, siblings and friends knowing which laughable jokes are and which are not. Sometimes when people are stressed from their work, when they laugh at jokes, it gives them a relaxing feeling, releasing stress. It is therefore healthy to laugh at jokes. But that is not the focus of my paper. I just want to make this paper an informative material to others who may be reading this in the future. I laughed and I learned humour. In our subject Anthropology 2040-1, I thought we will just study how to create jokes and learn the tricks of being a stand-up comedian. It was more of a deep understanding about the origins of humour and how Jewish people are important in the anthropological study of humour. But why did our forefathers like Plato, Socrates and others became curious about the elements of Humour. Who doesn’t want to hear jokes? Of course everyone does. But sometimes people became abusive of their sense of humour. Having a sense of humour is a great talent. It means that you can make everyone laugh, and sometimes people make money for this ability. In some television shows, competition is always present. So, instead of naming the person or show, they use jokes against thei r competitors. Especially if one T.V. show claimed they are number 1 in the ratings, others react and use other means to prove to people they are number 1 too. Humour is sometimes used by people who think they are more superior to the others. Like in schools, the usual scenes are some rich kids prank over poor kids, good looking students prank on not so good looking students. But how far is too far when it comes to humour? Honestly, we are influenced by our society when it comes to humour verbals and visuals. We selectively and consciously laugh at areas we found defects or we found out of the ordinary. Anything that is not perfect in our subconscious is not ordinary and therefore we can say, we laugh about it sometimes because it is not how we expect it should appear. According to Ted Cohen, when a joke involves logic running wild, the joke will present an absurdity – an absurdity in itself or an absurd response to a normal overture or a kind of doubling of absurdity. 4 Reli gious humour is by far the most controversial part of our modern society. Most of the readings about this concept points towards Jewish people. But before we go to Jewish people, let’s first understand why religion entails humour by defining religious

Education reforms Essay Example for Free

Education reforms Essay The problems experienced in the K-12 level of education in U. S. A today are a serious threat to the health of the economy and the future prosperity of society in general. The quality of education is deteriorating though the government has increased funding by 44 percent. â€Å"A rising tide of mediocrity† as reported by the federal commission was the key factor that causes the K-12 education to deteriorate (Kurt 2003). There are no parental choice programs that give them the power to make decisions on how the school should be run. The children are assigned to schools that are nearer to their place of residence and this is based on zoning rules. Another problem is that public schools are performing below the standard and they are not held accountable for their performance. â€Å"The schools are lacking incentive to improve quality or take control of the costs for they are protected by the education act of the government. † (The Washington Post 2008 April 3) The private and religious schools are performing well as opposed to the public schools and this has a negative significance to the students who are enrolled in public schools. Due to the problems discussed above then the government must address the bureaucratic structure reform and especially the public education. For the discussed problems I would advocate for empowering of parents so that they will ensure that students are served better than the administration. They will also be allowed to transfer their children from the schools that are not performing and consequently this will compel the school to improve their quality. The government should ensure that public school are performing and more so come up with strategies that will enable them to perform. The reform will make the schools to be more resourceful with their finances and follow the curriculum accordingly. In his recent public speech, Senator McCain noted that â€Å"markets have losers and winners and United States of America cannot afford any losers in a game of educational roulette. † (The New York Times 2008 July 14). The choice of programs will allow parents to take their children to schools within or outside the districts depending on the performance. There should be also introduction of charter schools which are publicly funded but managed by private officers. â€Å"The bureaucratic systems that prevent funds from reaching the teaching fraternity should be abolished. † (William B. 2007) The two presidential candidates have realized that the deterioration of America’s educational system will be a major concern as for the voters. They have therefore come up with various proposals to reform K-12 education once they get into power. Senator Barrack Obama will establish national standards by ensuring that national tests are done on a voluntary basis. He also promises to empower parents to improve the educational quality and academic achievement. On the other hand, Senator McCain proposed that parents will be allowed to use the proceeds to reform K-12 education as well as pay for their children’s university fees. This is an idea that was rejected by President Clinton but McCain wants to reintroduce the bill. In The New York Times dated 14th July 2008, â€Å"there was an agreement by school officials that vouchers foster competition and thereby force public schools to improve. † Also in The Washington Post dated 3rd April 2008 it was noted that â€Å"new choices in education have sent a powerful message to schools and prompt some of them to acknowledge a threat of competition. † To summarize, it is clear that public schools are providing substandard education to the students. It is because of this reason that there is need to address the bureaucratic structure of schools that does not put the interests of the learners at heart. References Greenwood C. (2008 April 3) K-12 education reforms. The Washington Post. Kurt Finsterbusch (2003) Annual Editions: Social Problems. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education William George Bruce (2007)The American School Board Journal Michigan: National School Boards Association A Smith,(2008 July 14) Bureaucratic System of Education. The New York Times.

The Problems of Illegal Immigration :: Cons of Illegal Immigration, Immigrants

Abstract Engraved in the Statue of Liberty are these words: â€Å"Give me your tired, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore, send these, the homeless, tempest tossed, to me: I lift my lamp beside the golden door†(Cooper). When the United States was created, it encouraged people of all backgrounds to immigrate. America is known as â€Å"a land of hope and opportunity†. Today, immigrating legally to the United States is a life experience that few are fortunate to experience. Many are forced to immigrate illegally. The United States has created many precautions to stop people from immigrating to the United States, but thousands of people still continue to move to the US illegally. As a result, millions of dollars are spent from tax payers’ money on illegal immigrants. While illegal immigration is beneficial to the United States, it comes with costs and therefore has become an issue that has grown out of control. The amount of illegal residents that now reside in the United States has grown rapidly over the last few years. Two million illegal immigrants have entered the United States since 2000 and there are a reported 10 million illegal immigrants living in the United States today. There are those who believe that illegals are a burden to the United States’ society. Many believe that illegal immigrants take necessary tax payers’ money. â€Å"Illegal immigration costs U.S. taxpayers about $113 billion a year at the federal, state and local level. The bulk of the costs — some $84 billion — are absorbed by state and local governments.†(Fiscal Burden). Legal US citizens are angered that people come to the United States and â€Å"leech off† of the economy without paying taxes. In opposition is the belief that illegal immigrants are not only beneficial to the United States, but necessary. â€Å"Contrary to most popular conceptions, most experts say illegals are probably not a net drain on the economy† (Nadadur). In fact, illegals do more good than otherwise known. As well, illegal immigrants continue to keep the economy running by working at a minimum wage and doing a majority of the work that otherwise would not want to be done. Immigrating illegally is a risk of a person’s life, but, at times, retreating to the United States is sometimes a last option In turn, if we did not have illegal immigrants working in the US, the United States might not be as accomplished as it is today.

Chinese education: Then and Now Essay

Education in China began with the Chinese classic texts, rather than organized religion. The early Chinese state depended upon literate, educated officials for operation of the empire, and an imperial examination system was established in the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220) for evaluating and selecting officials. This merit-based system gave rise to schools that taught the classics and continued in use for 2,000 years, until the end the Qing Dynasty, and was abolished in 1911 in favour of Western education methods (Global Oneness Commitment). New approaches to education were encouraged after 1977, after a long period of nothing being done with the growth of education and science. It was in 1985, that school reform was implemented. Schooling was for nine years, with academic achievement having priority over political consciousness. Education comes in two categories – general and specific. The former includes the regular college, junior college, vocations secondary school and middle school levels, and the latter includes elimination of illiteracy rural practical technology training, on-the-job training, education for single-discipline qualification certificates, education for vocational certificates and postgraduate continued education (Asian Info).