Public Relation Campaign for Big Brother Big Sister Assignment

Open Relation Campaign for Big Brother Big Sister - Assignment Example You can be guaranteed that his Big Brother or Big Sister has experienced a broad individual verification since we esteem your child’s wellbeing. Moreover, all coaching connections are firmly checked and have the sponsorship of expertly prepared match facilitator. The Big Brother or Big Sister will help your youngster in making progress in school and keeping him from going to medications or liquor. Most children who select at Big Brothers Big Sisters become increasingly certain and perform better in school. Their associations with their families and companions enormously improve. All the more significantly, they rest easy thinking about themselves (Big Brothers Big Sisters of America , standard 2). In the event that you are focused on letting your kid investigate his tremendous possibilities and need to create him to turn into a develop, capable and a balanced individual, this is the open door you have been hanging tight for. You may reach us at phone number ____________ and we will happily examine with you about our projects. Older siblings Big Sisters Australia Limited. Worldwide associations. 2009. bigbrothersbigsisters.org. Web. 22 October 2012

How much IT involved in Auditing to (reduce Duration, Cost and Dissertation

The amount IT associated with Auditing to (lessen Duration, Cost and increment Efficiency and Effectiveness), thoroughly analyze stud - Dissertation Example To examine the genuine situation, this examination work has embraced subjective review strategy for gathering information about the exploration situation. Information have been gathered from twelve unique associations that have actualized IT based reviewing apparatuses. The information gathered were deciphered appropriately and exposed to Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) investigation to get the consequences of the examination. It has been discovered that IT based reviewing instruments decrease the hour of investigation and information recovery. They give great accessibility of information. They are increasingly precise, proficient and compelling in leading review strategies. The cost associated with executing and keep up them is impressively more. Contrasting United Kingdom and Kurdistan, United Kingdom is more broadly utilizing IT based review devices than Kurdistan. List of chapters Chapter 1 - Research Introduction 1.1. Presentation 1.2. Research Scenario 1. 3. Explanation of the examination Problem 1.4. Point of the Research 1.5. Principle Research Question and Hypotheses 1.6. Extension and Significance of this Research 1.7. Approach of Research 1.8. Subjective study strategy 1.9. Information gathering instrument 1.10. ... Section Summary Chapter 3 â€Research Methodology 3.1. Research Methods 3.2. Subjective study strategy 3.3. Subjective Sampling 3.4. Subjective Data Collection 3.5. The Qualitative Questionnaire 3.6. Legitimacy and Limitations of the information 3.7. Part Summary Chapter 4 - Research Data Analysis 4.1. Subjective Data portrayal 4.2. General Qualitative Data Analysis 4.3. SWOT investigation 4.4. SWOT examination of subjective information 4.5. SWOT examination of Research information 4.6. Section rundown Chapter 5 †Discussion of Results 5.1. Conversation of Results 5.2. Speculations testing with SWOT factors 5.3. Proposals Chapter 6 †Research Conclusion References List of tables Table4.1. SWOT factors in table structure List of figures Figure. 2.1. IT in various phases of examining Fig.4.1. The SWOT grid portrayal of the components. Section 1 - Research Introduction 1.1. Presentation: This section gives a presentation about this exploration work with the examination issue p roclamation, point of the exploration, fundamental research question and the strategy of research to be received. 1.2. Research Scenario: The strategies for evaluating have changed fundamentally in the ongoing past because of the progressions in IT. Striking principles for the adequacy in examining have developed. The nature of examining is basic for money related revealing and evaluating (FRC, 2008). Evaluating includes the introduction and conversation of fiscal summaries of an association. The conversation might be among the review group and the top level administration. Examining is viewed as basic action taking into account the general capital resources and market certainty. Present examining rehearses are very sufficient yet their information realness is less. This might be unfavorable to an association as they experience the ill effects of

Self Efficacy and Why Believing in Yourself Matters

Self Efficacy and Why Believing in Yourself Matters Theories Personality Psychology Print Self Efficacy and Why Believing in Yourself Matters By Kendra Cherry facebook twitter Kendra Cherry, MS, is an author, educational consultant, and speaker focused on helping students learn about psychology. Learn about our editorial policy Kendra Cherry Updated on October 07, 2019 Studio Firma/Stocksy United More in Theories Personality Psychology Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Behavioral Psychology Cognitive Psychology Developmental Psychology Social Psychology Biological Psychology Psychosocial Psychology In This Article Table of Contents Expand Overview Role Sources Examples Strength of Self-Efficacy Building Self-Efficacy View All Back To Top When facing a challenge, do you feel like you can rise up and accomplish your goal or do you give up in defeat? Are you like the famous little train engine from the classic childrens book (I think I can, I think I can!), or do you doubt your own abilities to rise up and overcome the difficulties that life throws your way? Self-efficacy, or your belief in your own abilities to deal with various situations, can play a role in not only how you feel about yourself, but whether or not you successfully achieve your goals in life. The concept of self-efficacy is central to psychologist Albert Bandura’s  social cognitive theory, which emphasizes the role of  observational learning, social experience, and  reciprocal determinism  in developing a personality. According to Bandura, a person’s attitudes, abilities, and cognitive skills comprise what is known as the self-system. This system plays a major role in how we perceive situations and how we behave in response to different situations. Self-efficacy is an essential part of this self-system. Overview According to  Albert Bandura, self-efficacy is the belief in one’s capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to manage prospective situations. In other words, self-efficacy is a person’s belief in his or her ability to succeed in a particular situation. Bandura described these beliefs as determinants of how people think, behave, and feel.?? Since Bandura published his seminal 1977 paper, Self-Efficacy: Toward a Unifying Theory of Behavioral Change, the subject has become one of the most studied topics in psychology. Why has self-efficacy become such an important topic among psychologists and educators? As Bandura and other researchers have demonstrated, self-efficacy can have an impact on everything from psychological states to behavior to motivation.?? Our belief in our own ability to succeed plays a role in how we think, how we act, and how we feel about our place in the world. Self-efficacy also determines what goals we choose to pursue, how we go about accomplishing those goals, and how we reflect upon our own performance. Role Virtually all people can identify goals they want to accomplish, things they would like to  change, and things they would like to achieve. However, most people also realize that putting these plans into action is not quite so simple. Bandura and others have found that an individual’s self-efficacy plays a major role in how goals, tasks, and challenges are approached.?? People with a strong sense of self-efficacy: View challenging problems as tasks to be masteredDevelop a deeper interest in the activities in which they participateForm a stronger sense of commitment to their interests and activitiesRecover quickly from setbacks and disappointments People with a weak sense of self-efficacy: Avoid challenging tasksBelieve that difficult tasks and situations are beyond their capabilitiesFocus on personal failings and negative outcomesQuickly lose confidence in personal abilities Sources How does self-efficacy develop? These beliefs begin to form in  early childhood  as children deal with a wide variety of experiences, tasks, and situations. However, the growth of self-efficacy does not end during youth  but continues to evolve throughout life as people acquire new skills, experiences, and understanding.?? According to Bandura, there are four major sources of self-efficacy: 1. Mastery Experiences The most effective way of developing a strong sense of efficacy is through mastery experiences, Bandura explained. Performing a task successfully strengthens our sense of self-efficacy. However, failing to adequately deal with a task or challenge can undermine and weaken self-efficacy.?? 2. Social Modeling Witnessing other people successfully completing a task is another important source of self-efficacy.?? According to Bandura, Seeing people similar to oneself succeed by sustained effort raises observers beliefs that they too possess the capabilities to master comparable activities to succeed. 3.  Social Persuasion Bandura also asserted that people could be persuaded to believe that they have the skills and capabilities to succeed. Consider a time when someone said something positive and encouraging that helped you achieve a goal. Getting verbal encouragement from others helps people overcome self-doubt and instead focus on giving their best effort to the task at hand.?? 4. Psychological Responses Our own responses and emotional reactions to situations also play an important role in self-efficacy. Moods,  emotional states, physical reactions, and stress levels can all impact how a person feels about their personal abilities in a particular situation. A person who becomes extremely nervous before speaking in public may develop a weak sense of self-efficacy in these situations.?? However, Bandura also notes it is not the sheer intensity of emotional and physical reactions that is important but rather how they are perceived and interpreted.?? By learning how to minimize stress and elevate mood when facing difficult or challenging tasks, people can improve their sense of self-efficacy. Examples So what exactly does high self-efficacy look like? You can probably think of some examples from your own life including areas where you feel a great deal of efficacy. People may possess a general sense of self-efficacy or in a specific domain where they believe they can do well such as school, work, friendships, parenting, sports, hobbies, and other areas. Some examples of strong self-efficacy include: A student who feels confident that she will be able to learn the information and do well on a test.A woman who has just accepted a job position in a role she has never performed before but feels that she has the ability to learn and perform her job well.A man who is struggling to manage his chronic illness but feels confident that he can get back on track and improve his health by working hard and following his doctors recommendations. Self-efficacy can play an important role in health psychology and how people manage their health, nutrition, and illness. For example, having a strong sense of self-efficacy can help people who are trying to quit smoking stick to their goals. Maintaining a weight loss plan, managing chronic pain, giving up alcohol, sticking to an exercise schedule, and following an eating plan can all be influenced by a persons levels of self-efficacy.?? Bandura suggests that self-efficacy can benefit a persons sense of well-being in a number of ways. Because individuals with high self-efficacy look at difficulties as challenges rather than threats, they tend to be more intrinsically interested in the tasks they pursue. Difficulty and failure dont mean defeat; instead, these individuals redouble their efforts and look for new ways to overcome. They remain optimistic and confident in their abilities, even when things become difficult. People who are low in self-efficacy tend to see difficult tasks as threats they should avoid. Because of this, they also tend to avoid setting goals and have low levels of commitment to the ones they do make. When setbacks happen, they tend to give up quickly. Because they dont have much confidence in their ability to achieve, they are more likely to experience feelings of failure and depression. Stressful situations can also be very hard to deal with and those with low self-efficacy are less resilient and less likely to bounce back.?? Strength of Self-Efficacy There are a number of different scales that are used to evaluate levels of self-efficacy including the General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSE) and the Self-Efficacy Questionnaire. For a quick, informal assessment of your own self-efficacy levels, consider the following questions: Do you feel like you can handle problems if you are willing to work hard?Are you confident in your ability to achieve your goals?Do you feel like you can manage unexpected events that come up?Are you able to bounce back fairly quickly after stressful events?Do you feel like you can come up with solutions when you are facing a problem?Do you keep trying even when things seem difficult?Are you good at staying calm even in the face of chaos?Do you perform well even under pressure?Do you tend to focus on your progress rather than getting overwhelmed by all you still have to do?Do you believe that hard work will eventually pay off? If you can answer yes to many or most of these questions, then chances are good that you have a fairly strong sense of self-efficacy.?? If you feel like your self-efficacy could use a boost, consider some of the following strategies for improving your sense of efficacy. Building Self-Efficacy Fortunately, self-efficacy is a psychological skill that you can foster and strengthen. Start by looking for ways that you can incorporate Banduras sources of self-efficacy into your own life. Celebrate Your Success Mastery experiences play a critical role in the establishment of self-efficacy. Bandura actually identified this as the single most effective way to create a strong sense of self-belief. When you succeed at something, you are able to build a powerful belief in your ability. Failure, on the other hand, can undermine these feelings, particularly if you are still in the early phases of building a sense of personal efficacy.?? The ideal sorts of successes, however, are not necessarily those that come easily. If you experience a lot of easy success, you may find yourself giving up more readily when you finally do encounter failure. So work on setting goals that are achievable, but not necessarily easy. They will take work and perseverance, but you will emerge with a stronger belief in your own abilities once you achieve them. Observe Others Bandura also identified vicarious experiences obtained through peer modeling as another important means of establishing and strengthening self-efficacy. Seeing others putting in effort and succeeding, as a result, can increase your belief in your own ability to succeed. One factor that plays a key role in the effectiveness of this approach is how similar the model is to yourself. The more alike you feel you are, the more likely it is that your observations will increase your sense of self-efficacy.?? Seek Positive Affirmations Hearing positive feedback from others can also help improve your sense of self-efficacy. By that same token, try to avoid asking for feedback from people who you know are more likely to have a negative or critical view of your performance. For example, your doctor telling you that you are doing a good job sticking to your diet plan can be encouraging. Feedback from friends, mentors, health practitioners, and people who you respect can help you feel greater confidence in your own abilities. Positive social feedback can be helpful for strengthening your already existing sense of efficacy, but negative comments can often have a powerful undermining effect. Bandura suggested that social feedback alone is not enough to build your self-belief, but it can be a useful tool when you need a little extra encouragement.?? Pay Attention to Your Thoughts and Emotions If you find yourself getting stressed out or nervous before a challenging event, you might feel less sure of your ability to cope with the task at hand. Another way to boost your self-efficacy is to look for ways to manage your thoughts and emotions about what you are trying to accomplish. Do you feel anxious? Looking for ways to ease your stress levels can help you feel more confident in your capabilities. Do you find yourself dwelling on negative thoughts? Look for ways to replace negativity with positive self-talk that promotes self-belief.?? A Word From Verywell Developing a strong sense of self-efficacy can play an important role in almost every aspect of your life. Life is full of challenges and high levels of self-efficacy can help you better deal with these difficulties more effectively. Your belief in your abilities can predict how motivated you feel, how you feel about yourself, and the amount of effort you put into achieving your goals.

Political and Emotional Dictatorship within Junot Diazs...

Political and Emotional Dictatorship within Junot Diazs Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao Works Cited Missing Junot Dà ­az published his first novel and second book The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao in 2006, forty-five years after the 1930-1961 rule of Trujillo over the Dominican Republic collapsed. Thats the central theme of the novel: dictatorship. It concerns not only political, man-over-man, Trujillo-brutal dictatorship (though that is a haunting image throughout), but also psychological despots: the dictatorship of fear, of orphanage, of blighted love, of displacement, of cancer, of nerdiness, of ostracization, of obesity, of unrequited love, of male sexual hunger (both under- and over-supplemented), and, above all, of†¦show more content†¦Thus, for practical as well as literary reasons, Dà ­az focuses on the psychological and emotional despots stemming from one political dictatorship?that of Trujillo . But Dà ­az, again, is disciplined: He structures the plights of the Cabral-Wao lineage as the history of fukà º: Fukà º began with Colombuss step onto the sand of the We st Indies and, as a V, expanded to the crushing poverty and political unrest abounding in Latin America today, the plights of the Cabral-Wao lineage began with Trujillo and expanded with each generation, culminating in the doomed-to-sorrow, dictatorship-riddled life of Oscar Wao. Because of this structure, it suits to begin with the earliest generation chronicled: thus, Oscar Waos grandfather, Abelard Luis Cabral. Abelard is a member of the Fortunate People(213)?read wealthy people?which of course means not much dictatorship affected his life before Trujillo, but Trujillo, remember, is the beginning of the Cabral-Wao V. When the brutal Trujillo seizes power, however, Abelard must maintain the outward appearance of the enthusiastic Trujillista (215), which he wasnt. So he has to deal with keeping the household conversation off politics, but that is the only strong despot of his life. Thus marks the bottom of the V, both for the entire Cabral-Wao lineage recorded in

The Little-Known Secrets to How to Right an Essay about Yourself

The Little-Known Secrets to How to Right an Essay about Yourself In order to comprehend how a personal essay appears like, you should go through few successful samples. You're able to find samples of private essay online. There are sources that can provide you sample essays to use directly from their websites while some give room for downloads so that you may use the example at your own moment. Among the points to take into account when trying to find a sample essay about yourself is the caliber of the paper. How to Right an Essay about Yourself Ideas For example, you can begin your essay with an anecdote. Again, you don't have to include whatever you write here, in your primary essay. A superb essay is interesting irrespective of the chosen topic. Therefore, if you take advantage of an essay example strictly for its structure and to be certain you stay focused, then you'll be OK. After reading this kind of essay, readers should feel your essay differs from a personal essay that's written and published on a blog. By reading personal essays of different writers, you will know what's common in different writers. Make certain you read your essay aloud and you have a minumum of one friend do the exact same. Do not depart from your readers guessing your essay is all about to end. Today, there are numerous sources a student can depend on for an illustration of a personal essay. There's no ideal solution on the best way to compose an effective essay. As you are writing an essay about yourself, there are lots of things you can tell your readers. The entire essay writing procedure is made even more difficult once the subject of the essay is personal and about yourself! There isn't ever a smooth sailing in college are on the job. It can be disastrous to skip a lifetime opportunity due to a poorly done personal essay. The essays function as a glimpse into how your mind works, how you see the world and gives perspective. Your essay will provide the admission officers a glimpse into the way that your mind operates and the manner in which you perceive the world. The One Thing to Do for How to Right an Essay about Yourself You may also think about an ending that mirrors the start of your essay. Always make sure that you revise your essay so as to do away wit h the demand for use of pronouns in sentences thus developing a formal fashion of writing that is more appropriate. If your essay is describing a process, like how to make a huge chocolate cake, make sure your paragraphs fall in the proper order. Naturally, writing an essay requires not just significant command over the language but in addition dollops of creativity. If you've got a lot of things to include in the essay, begin by telling your readers the most fascinating and vital things about you. Instead, pick a topic which you find unique, interesting and captivating to offer a description of your nature and life to your readers. Theoretically, you may select any topic but what determines the success of your private essay is the way you demonstrate your thinking, logic and the capacity to hold the interest of your readers. Nobody would like to read a boring piece whenever there are dozens and dozens of essays to experience. A superb anecdote can be pivotal in engaging the officers from the start of your essay. Your essay will just have so much time to stick out among the crowd. Write a proper ending for your private essay To some individuals, ending a personal essay has become the most challenging bit. Be certain to inspect the course out so that you may write the greatest personal essay possible. The program Explain why you wish to join a specific course. Colleges care about the quantities of acceptances deeply, so it can help to understand you're a sure thing. The major question of all students who must compose a reflective or private essay is whether it's possible to produce such sort of academic paper without sounding too egotistical. An introduction is the surface of the applicant. The details that you include in your own personal essay should be decided by the instructions or guidelines supplied by the instructor or the college that you're applying for. A well written example needs to be concentrated on the subject, clear in points and simple to read.

Themes of Modern Terrorism Bakunin’s God and the State Free Essays

string(134) " As a global community, we express daily outrage when acts of terror be they car bombings, hijackings, kidnappings and murders occur\." Mohit Mulani Prof. James Gilligan 22/12/12 â€Å"God and the State† The idea of malevolent terrorism is fundamentally rooted in an extremist interpretation of religion enabled and to a great extent encouraged by priests and political figures. To examine this closely with reference to historical situations and ideas, we can apply the notions bought forward by the Russian 19th century philosopher and nihilist Bakunin in his seminal book, â€Å"God and State. We will write a custom essay sample on Themes of Modern Terrorism Bakunin’s God and the State or any similar topic only for you Order Now † In the book, doctinaires are critiqued quite heavily for their relentless imposition of impractical ideals upon the world. With regards to the, Bakunin states, â€Å"They are so jealous of the glory of their God and of the triumph of their idea that they have no heart left for the liberty or the dignity or even the sufferings of living men, of real men. Divine zeal, preoccupation with the idea, finally dry up the tenderest souls, the most compassionate hearts, the sources of human love. God the State, 65)† Comparing these 19th century doctinaires with modern day terrorists we see a group of people so completely enthralled by the superiority of their belief systems that they are more than willing to compromise the lives of non-believers to ‘persuade’ others. This follows in the line of a traditional process that requires the destruction and absolute overhaul of a current system and its institutions in order for a new one to establish itself and thrive. Referred to in the line, â€Å"Every development necessarily implies a negation,† the idea is the basis of aggressive and violent terrorism globally (God the State, 9). The September 11th attacks for instance were planned to include bombings of the Pentagon and White House, both symbolic locations representing the centers of Western imperialism and sources of resentment for the jihadis. This is particularly important given how modern day authors, journalists and thinkers have emphasized the peaceful nature of Islam when interpreted by its scriptures. Looking at the sheer organization and potency of terrorist rganizations, it seems as though the hyper-violent aspect of this otherwise ‘peaceful’ religion must have arisen from an understanding of this dogma. There must prevail the idea that without the destruction of certain reviled Western ideals, their preferred value systems cannot be secured across the world. Another aspect bought up in Bakunin’s statemen t about doctrinaires was the erasure of love and sympathy towards the victims of terrorist acts. The perpetrators here have been blinded by the aggressive, nationalistic rivalry between ideologies towards the pain and suffering of others. In some cases, the real or imagined suffering of their own people, often at the hands of the West is used as a tool to harden their emotional facilities towards demonized groups of people. Several recruitment communications and propaganda display in explicit detail the torture practices, prison camp conditions and drone attacks the Western nations have inflicted upon suspected terrorists. This intensifies the unbridled hatred that ultimately fuels the metaphorical terror machine-churning out thousands of graduates armed with suicide vests and destructive ideals that they wish to impose upon the world. An important point here is that the origin of such behaviour isn’t singularly caused by hate or resentment; it is rather the amalgamation of several factors including socio-political ones that in their totality create this belligerent section of the world. Bakunin speaks of, â€Å"the whole history of humanity, intellectual and moral, political and social, [being] but a reflection of its economic history (God the State, 9). † The fiscal nature of countries and their people often have direct consequences on the views and positions adopted by them. The effect of poverty on the terrorist world-view most directly can be two fold. In the first case, people join jihadist factions for direct monetary recompense to themselves or their family; a significant factor in desperately poor nations and villages. An instance of this was seen after the Mumbai train bombings of 2008 in which the prime suspect Ajmal Kassab confessed to expecting approximately US$3,352 after succeeding in his mission. According to police sources, he was unaware of any Islamic tenets or verses from the Quran but had a virulent message to send nonetheless. The other effect of a poor economic state is an increased susceptibility to false priests and their version of religion. Lower socio-economic groups when faced with inconsequential lives resort to belief systems that give them comfort, solace and often a sense of superiority with respect to ideology held. This often translates to more suicide bombers by means of greater anticipation for the afterlife. A fair amount of terrorists that go onto perform suicide missions do so after comparing their current lives with the ones they expect to lead in heaven or jannah. They see poverty, distress, debt and suffering as something they can leave behind to reach a land of fountains, gardens, angels and virgins if they do the right thing. Here is where opportunistic priests and politicians swoop in employing, â€Å"base and criminal means †¦ to keep the nations in perpetual slavery. (God the State, 11)† These self-proclaimed, â€Å"guardians and the fathers of the people,† clearly do not have their best interests at heart and see them rather as tools by which they can achieve their respective political and religious agendas. A preacher who sermonizes on the value of taking lives, leveling cities and particularly in Iran- the use of nuclear weapons, cannot possibly be representing to the people any interpretation of religious texts. Instead of performing his duties as the spiritual head of a community, he uses incendiary rhetoric to stir people who are repeatedly manipulated by their governments into believing serious propaganda against Western nations. Bakunin expresses particular outrage at such figures referring to their acts as, â€Å" this crime of treason against humanity committed daily, in broad day, over the whole surface of the civilized world. This is interesting mostly because it alters our perspective on ideas of terrorism and makes us look intensely at what goes into the formation of one. As a global community, we express daily outrage when acts of terror be they car bombings, hijackings, kidnappings and murders occur. You read "Themes of Modern Terrorism Bakunin’s God and the State" in category "Essay examples" Caught up in these, it gets difficult to see the simultaneous crime being carried out throughout large tracts of the Middle East where the populace is systematically denied a real education in lieu of religious madrasas and indoctrination. Though vastly different, we can examine Bakunin’s analysis of 19th century education and modern day madrasas. â€Å"Such are the absurd tales that are told and the monstrous doctrines that are taught, in the full light of the nineteenth century, in all the public schools of Europe, at the express command of the government. They call this civilizing the people! Is it not plain that all these governments are systematic poisoners, interested stupefies of the masses? † ( God ; the State, 11) There is quite certainly a reason for the establishment of such schools. We can posit that due to a certain moral vacuum, created by the influx of Western/European morality which itself was a consequence of the Scientific Revolution, there exists a motive to enforce conservative and restrictive moral systems. These motives when taken to their extreme engender resentment towards other forms of thinking and see them as counterproductive or directly hostile to their own. In the case of Islamic theology, the teachings have been co-opted by a small, but active militant and extremist sector. This group opposes in principle all people who do not share their belief systems calling them indicatively; non-believers, infidels and heretics. Much like how in post war Europe this very moral vacuum was filled with branches of Totalitarianism and Fascism, the radical Middle East has adopted a similarly authoritarian system. This system is firstly authoritarian in the literal sense as most nations like Saudi Arabia have no free press, democratic governments or political parties. Secondly on a more abstract level, its religious tenets when exercised by extremists or the Mutaween are highly prohibitory and insular. An example of this sprung to international attention when in March of 2002, a girl’s school in Mecca caught on fire. Members of the Mutaween or the religious police were on hand to prevent improperly dressed girls from leaving the burning building. As school was in session with an entirely female population, for the sake of comfort most girls had seen fit to take of their confining abayas and headdresses. When attempting to escape, According to a civil defense officer, the girls were forced to return by use of force. This is one of many examples of religious confinement and how it is inherently parochial and inhibitory. The masses must indeed be stupefied, as Bakunin says if they consider it God’s will that girls burn to death for not being dressed appropriately. Though applicable to a wide range of scenarios, this example gives us insight into the aggressions of terrorist groups. It is clearly not enough that they follow the rigid principles set in the scriptures and interpreted by their mullahs, virtually everyone must do so as well. Some priests go so far as to imply that forcing or â€Å"converting† non-believers to the jihad proffers to them a place in heaven. With this tendency to make the world follow the teachings of Allah, it seems natural that they would resort to the means made popular by tradition and used quite frequently in history for such purposes; violence. Bakunin reprimands this agenda harshly in a letter to S. Nechayev: â€Å"You said that all men should be such, that a complete renunciation of self, of all personal wishes, pleasures, feelings affections and ties, should be a normal, natural, everyday condition to everybody without exception. You wished and still with to make your own selfless cruelty, your own truly extreme fanaticism, into a rule of common life. You wish for an absurdity, an impossibility, a total negation of nature, man and society†¦ no society however perfect its discipline and however powerful its organization can conquer nature(On Violence, 9). † This is precisely what the terrorists seem intent on doing, enforcing by means of violence their way of life upon the world. The term ‘nature’ is used here to reference the progress and advancement of society, morals and behaviour. The Scientific revolution occurred some 300 years ago and since then we have evolved, developing new systems of morality and using the social sciences to fill in the gaps left by religious dogma. These â€Å"science[s] of the future† like psychology and sociology are tools we use to fashion a new way of thinking and living(God ; the State, 61). Though they exist popular and normative definitions of good and evil, we have to a great extent outgrown them as new, more ethically complex situations arise and we approach them differently. Observing moral gray areas that we face everyday like bioethics in legislation for instance gives us an idea as to how we have been forced to evolve our moral ideas to keep up with out lifestyles. Though significant, bioethics is representative of a much larger and more pervasive phenomenon due to which we approach virtually all situations differently. For one, we refrain from moralizing a lot of issues that we would have historically used an ethical framework to describe. Our collective moral psychology as a whole has become more imaginative and we have a much larger scope to use morality in out lives. This broad, nonconservative approach has been interpreted as an empty, decadent and immoral (rather ironically) philosophy that is engendered by liberal Western culture and extends through its rather large sphere of influence. This perceived emptiness or moral vacuum is then filled by priests, zealots and a restrictive culture that is almost reactionary in its principles, formed so diametrically opposed to the ones it aims to eliminate. Bakunin explains to Nechayev that regardless of a particular society’s moral system, it is impossible to â€Å"conquer nature† or stop progress. This evolving of moral systems is the progress we’ve made in a past few centuries and various terrorist movements are largely the backlash experienced as a result of it. The abandonment of traditional value systems is understandably frightening and this very fear has been molded into a consequential, aggressive and parochial movement that uses undiscerning violence to erase centuries of moral advancement and replace it with a very specific, scripture-based morality that is reassuring in its decisiveness. Of note is the attempt made thereafter to brutally enforce this morality upon to world, to ensure that every woman, man and child follows the distinctive set of rules that govern radical Islamic morality. To see how truly regressive such a system is, we can examine the treatment of women in particular. The advance of feminism, especially at the turn of the century, led a revolution of ideas and social norms. The roles previously dictated by a predominantly patriarchal tradition changed and the restrictions placed on women were more or less eliminated. All terrorist groups share a contempt for women’s rights and this can be explained by their aversion to change and the reversal of traditional roles. Though this discomfort with feminism also involves an element of insecurity as male roles in these societies are so dependent and inverse to female roles, it cannot possibly by itself cause men to go around in trucks shooting schoolgirls; that requires priestly or political influence. What the terrorists fail to account is the nature of advancement and how it cannot be prevented from happening by beating people into submission. Everyday there is resistance in the ranks. Malala Yousafzai, an activist from Pakistan was shot on the 9th of October, 2012 while on a school-bus. This sort of advancement is likely to perpetuate itself amidst a large portion of the world and even killing everyone who noticeably advocates it will not prevent its growth. In Somalia, at the age of five, Ayaan Hirsi Ali underwent the torturous procedure of female circumcision (of genital mutilation as it is commonly and aptly called). This was one amongst several regressive traditions of her tribe and yet she emerged from the harshest of circumstances as an adamant feminist and atheist thinker. Man has emancipated himself; he has separated himself from animality and constituted himself a man; he has begun his distinctively human history and development by an act of disobedience and science-that is, by rebellion and by thought. (God the State, 12)† Herein lies the key to our humanity, the very feature that is being suppressed by terrorists in favour of a more convenient, s traightforward and primitive form of thinking. It is inherent in out nature to seek change, to ask questions and to doubt the dogmas we have been handed down. The fact that this leads to a complete social overhaul and the creation of multiple cognitive vacuums does not deter us from repeatedly being skeptical and thinking. The quote mentioned above refers to the Creation story of Genesis which showcases the act of disobedience, questioning of rules and the disastrous results that follow. At the end of it however, as humans we wouldn’t have it any other way. Doubting the doctrines we were brought up with reduces the strangle-hold religion has upon out society and the amount of influence clergymen can exert. This is an important motivation for the priests of the Middle East to carry on with their rabble-rousing diatribes. Doing so can maintain the last vestiges of power they have over people who no longer believe in their divine capacity anymore. By diverting attention from the actual tenets of Islam and bringing to the forefront firebrand phrases from other scriptures to spur people on, they engage in self-preservation rather than the progress of the human race. The key to our development has always been in thought and rebellion, by preventing it combatively, the terrorists hold back the world nd regress us to an age before we challenged conventions. In another section of the letter to S. Nechayev, Bakunin refers to what he observes as, â€Å"an enormous lack of critical sense without which it is impossible to evaluate people and situations, and to reconcile means with ends. (On Violence, 9)† These shortcomings of Russian nihilistic revolutionaries are now echoed by Islamic terro rists. Despite their explicable beliefs, what is truly terrifying about them is the raw violence and destruction jihadis seek to force upon the world. Their defensiveness towards tradition and resentment over past wars has been channeled into a form of nondiscriminatory havoc ceases to differentiate between military personnel and innocent citizens. This method is what is somewhat irreconcilable with the, â€Å"ends† it seeks to achieve. Though a destruction of the current system is required for any meaningful change to occur, it does not have to be gruesome and violent. It is however much harder for priests and politicians to spur their populace on towards peaceful goals than it is to make them favour blind violence. Speaking then about how to deal with an opposing civilization, Bakunin stats, â€Å"Societies which are inimical or positively harmful must be dissolved, and finally the government must be destroyed. All this cannot be achieved only by propagating the truth; cunning, diplomacy and deceit are necessary. (On Violence, 34)† Nowhere in the aforementioned advise does he mention violence as a useful way to achieve success. This is particularly important as there hasn’t as of yet been a noticeable conversion to the Islamic cause. Efficacy is a factor that the terrorists seem not to have consider seeking only to assuage their manufactured rage. â€Å"Hate, the negative side alone, does not create anything, does not even create the power necessary for destruction and thus destroys nothing. (On Violence, 29)† When four homegrown terrorists from London attacked the underground system, their primary motive was to avenge their fellow Muslims who had previously suffered as a result of actions undertaken by the Western governments. A large amount of bombings are becoming more about revenge and hatred than actually changing the status quo. This achieves nothing while a great deal is simultaneously sacrificed. Distinct from revenge, another cause for hatred is how the terrorists perceive the world. Bakunin refers to the source of our progress as, â€Å"Satan, the eternal rebel, the first freethinker and the emancipator of worlds. He makes man ashamed of his bestial ignorance and obedience; he emancipates him, stamps upon his brow the seal of liberty and humanity, in urging him to disobey and eat of the fruit of knowledge. God the State, 10)† It is fair to assume that they see the West and people such as Malala as Satanic and a corruptive influence. Both of these try to upend traditional thought and how we think about morality. By objecting to blind deference to a book or set of purportedly divine rules, democracies seek to alter people’s moral psychology. This procedure has seen a backlash even in Western countries themselves in the form of radical Christianity. Ironically though this branch of religion despises Islam and the jihadis, it seeks to achieve incredibly similar goals. Every time a pastor in some midwestern state pushes for the inscription of the Hebrew commandments in front of court-houses, as a species, we take a collective step backwards into the Middle Ages where people believed in a fixed set of dogmas that seemed more interested in who they worshipped than in how they behaved. Similarly with the feminist movements, with the objectives of terrorism being so inherently misogynistic, we risk living in a world where women don’t have the civil liberties we spent a good couple of centuries achieving. Though things in the past were straightforward and idealistic, they were also horrendously underdeveloped in modern concepts of liberty, freedom, thought, science and society. Reverting back to those circumstances involves necessarily having to deal with all its downfalls as well as the clarity of ethics it provides. We do not get to cherry-pick which part of the Middle Ages we’d like to being with us into this century as the terrorists have made amply clear. We will need to accept the oppression of women, religious minorities, homosexuals, transgenders and scientific thought as though we were actually living in the 16th century. This regression must be avoided at all costs. â€Å"Thus we come back to the essence of all religion–in other words, to the disparagement of humanity for the greater glory of divinity. (God the State, 37)† With this statement Bakunin sums up the thrust of the religious terrorist movements around the world. They seek to avenge a perceived disrespect of a divine being and are willing to kill for it. Though they wouldn’t do so spontaneously, this hatred ad murderous instinct has to be carefully cultivated from childhood by mullahs and other authoritative sources. These children then become people who are capable of leveling entire buildings for the glory of God whose existence they cannot be sure of and an afterlife they might never get to experience. Such is the power of, â€Å"collective insanity,† that drives a movement like this. (God the State, 68) Since the 200,000 years we’ve existed, we’ve spent quite a lot of it questioning, developing and doubting. Attempts to prevent this are shameful in that they send us hurtling back hundreds of years to less enlightened times of dogma and religious persecution. We’ve outgrown the juvenile need for extremely strict religious guidance and have as a society agreed upon a set of common sense laws that don’t vary significantly across national borders. We’ve developed social sciences to deal with the moral vacuum left after the removal of dogmas and are can deal with them without resorting to driving airplanes into skyscrapers. The existence of terrorism proves that for every collective step forward we take, there are elements that will be rendered irrelevant and have thus felt the need to make the loudest clamor possible. Though we cannot obviously devise a straightforward solution to a complex and varying problem, we can however seek to understand it. Bibliography Bakunin, Mikhail, â€Å"God and the State. † Dover Publications, Inc. , New York. 1970 Bakunin, Mikhail, â€Å"On Violence-letter to S Nechayev. † New York: Unity Press, [19–] How to cite Themes of Modern Terrorism Bakunin’s God and the State, Essay examples

Living on my Own free essay sample

When I turned 19, my parents allowed me to move off campus from my small, liberal college into a spacious one room apartment above a popular boutique. I had just finished unpacking the last of my possessions and was envisioning what the place would look like with proper interior design (heavy curtains, burgundy furniture), when the phone rang. It was my mother, anxiously pleading with me to turn on the radio or the television or something, because there were urgent news reports about an upcoming flood. I sighed, exasperated, and cordially informed her that had she paid for my electricity or cable, I would have been delighted to. â€Å"Well, never mind about that, then. You’re high up in that apartment, just stay inside.† I hung up on her, annoyed. I had already been planning to spend a relaxing evening in bed (red wine, Vogue), but felt it was prudent to assert her lack of authority over whether I stayed in or not. We will write a custom essay sample on Living on my Own or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page It was already starting to pour- heavy raindrops exploded on my roof, and although it was 5 o’clock in the afternoon, the world outside my window was a dark shade of grey. I curled up in bed with the aforementioned necessities. The pattering on my roof made my eyelids heavy, and thirty minutes later, the half-drunk bottle of wine lulled me into a deep sleep. I awoke to what sounded like a million shattering chandeliers. The world outside my window was pitch-black, and thanks to my parents’ negligence regarding the electricity bill, my apartment was as well. The raindrops were violent now, and the air was permeated with a splintering symphony of screams. I wrapped myself in the overstuffed comforter my mother had insisted on buying and crept toward the window. The water must have been three feet high; I had never seen such a flood before, and I was voraciously grateful for the altitude at which my apartment stood. People were wading through the streets, up to their waists in black water. There was no power in any house or building for what seemed like miles. Amorphous figures floated past alligators, sharks, dead bodies, courtesy of my cruel imagination. I realized that the splintering sounds I had woken to were coming from the strip mall down the street. There was a crowd of people running from the mall through water and debris, carrying illicit treasures above their heads. Every few minutes another window would break. The people would rush in, trickle out, then rush back for more. I watched with fascination as entire stores were gutted. First came the home improvement store, where middle-aged townies worked, all flannel shirts and friendly smiles. After they had cleared it out, the window looked like a gaping black hole. Lightning reflected off the remaining shards of glass and illuminated the devestation. Next door was a giant department store, generally inhabited by bubblegum teens and staffed by single mothers with premature wrinkles, all of whom wore fake gold jewelry and sensible pumps. Pristine window displays were tumbling out of the windows now- manikins maimed by broken glass, stripped of their brand new clothes. I watched this grisly parade for hours, cocooned in my precious comforter, a thin piece of plexiglass protecting me from the vicious world. The riotous procession slowly moved down the b lock, coming closer with every broken window. Soon they were next door, at old Mr. Parson’s comic book shop. I liked Mr. Parson because he sold single pieces of candy for 2 cents each and looked away when the after school crowd came in to filch them. I hoped the mob wouldn’t find much of interest in his store, but they stayed for nearly an hour. I looked away when they ran with Mr. Parson’s treasures. I couldn’t help but imagine his heart breaking harder and harder as the damage got worse. I turned away from the window and climbed back into bed. Clutching the phone to my chest, I wrapped the warm, secure comforter around my arms and over my ears to block out the cruel noise. I stayed in that position all night, shaking as the mob raided the boutique downstairs. I tried to sleep, but the cacophony of destruction was unrelenting. As the sun rose, I pressed the phone to my ear. She picked up on the first ring. I tried to speak, but found myself sobbing instead. â€Å"I’m coming†, she said. â€Å"Don’t worry, sweetheart, I’ll be right there.† I nodded, dropped the phone onto the bed, and breathed a sigh of relief.