Appiled Arts Essay Example for Free

Appiled Arts Essay Although we now tend to refer to the various crafts according to the materials used to construct them-clay, glass, wood, fiber, and metal-it was once common to think of crafts in terms of function, which led to their being known as the applied arts. Approaching crafts from the point of view of function, we can divide them into simple categories: containers, shelters and supports. There is no way around the fact that containers, shelters, and supports must be functional. The applied arts are thus bound by the laws of physics, which pertain to both the materials used in their making and the substances and things to be contained, supported, and sheltered. These laws are universal in their application, regardless of cultural beliefs, geography, or climate. If a pot has no bottom or has large openings in its sides, it could hardly be considered a container in any traditional sense. Since the laws of physics, not some arbitrary decision, have determined the general form of applied-art objects, they follow basic patterns, so much so that functional forms can vary only within certain limits. Buildings without roofs, for example, are unusual because they depart from the norm. However, not all functional objects are exactly alike; that is why we recognize a Shang Dynasty vase as being different from an Inca vase. What varies is not the basic form but the incidental details that do not obstruct the objects primary function. ?Sensitivity to physical laws is thus an important consideration for the maker of applied-art objects. It is often taken for granted that this is also true for the maker of fine-art objects. This assumption misses a significant difference between the two disciplines. Fine-art objects are not constrained by the laws of physics in the same way that applied-art objects are. Because their primary purpose is not functional, they are only limited in terms of the materials used to make them. Sculptures must, for example, be stable, which requires an understanding of the properties of mass, weight distribution, and stress. Paintings must have rigid stretchers so that the canvas will be taut, and the paint must not deteriorate, crack, or discolor. These are problems that must be overcome by the artist because they tend to intrude upon his or her conception of the work. For example, in the early Italian Renaissance, bronze statues of horses with a raised foreleg usually had a cannonball under that hoof. This was done because the cannonball was needed to support the weight of the leg. In other words, the demands of the laws of physics, not the sculptors aesthetic intentions, placed the ball there. That this device was a necessary structural compromise is clear from the fact that the cannonball quickly disappeared when sculptors learned how to strengthen the internal structure of a statue with iron braces (iron being much stronger than bronze). Even though the fine arts in the twentieth century often treat materials in new ways, the basic difference in attitude of artists in relation to their materials in the fine arts and the applied arts remains relatively constant. It would therefore not be too great an exaggeration to say that practitioners of the fine arts work to overcome the limitations of their materials, whereas those engaged in the applied arts work in concert with their materials.

Strategies to Lower Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Emissions

Strategies to Lower Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Emissions Carbon dioxide emissions from Annex I countries have established since 1990 but are growing rapidly in developing countries (non Annex I countries) at a rate of approximately 4% per year which is reflected in the world emissions which are growing roughly 600 million tons of CO2 per year. Carbon dioxide emissions are the dominant component of greenhouse gas emissions, but represented in 2006 only 69,6% of the total emissions. The remaining 30.4% are methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O) and fluorinated gases with high global warming potential (GWP) which are: SF6 (sulphur hexafluoride), HFCs (hydrofluorcarbons) and PFCs (perfluorcarbons). (Figure 4). Usually one expresses GHG emissions in CO2 equivalent. Total emissions in 2005 were approximately 45 Gtons of CO2.equivalent of which 30 Gtons of CO2. To reduce CO2 and other GHG emissions became thus one of the most urgent tasks we are facing today. There are two approaches to handle this problem: use energy more efficiently, consequently emitting less CO2 and extending the life of fossil fuels reserves. increase the contribution of renewable energies in the world energy matrix National governments as well as some sectors of the productive system (industry, transportation, residential and others) can adopt these solutions in differentiated degrees. In industrialized countries, which have already reached a high level of energy consumption per capita, energy efficiency is the low hanging fruit approach that can be more easily implemented. Renewable energies can also play a significant role. In developing countries where energy consumption per capita is low, and the need for the growth for energies services is inevitable, it can be done incorporating early, in the process of development, clean and efficient technologies as well as renewable energies, following a different path than that done in the past by todays industrialized countries We will discuss hereafter the potential of energy efficiency, renewable energies and emissions trading schemes in achieving the objectives of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. RENEWABLE ENERGIES Table I lists the renewable energy used in the world at the end of 2008 by all types of renewable sources, as well their yearly growth rates. Traditional biomass is left out of this table because it is used mainly in rural areas as cooking fuel or charcoal in ways that are frequently non renewable, leading to deforestation and soil degradation Renewables (including large hydro) represented, in 2008, approximately 5% of the world?s total primary energy consumption but are growing at a rate of 6.3% per year while total primary energy supply is growing at a smaller rate of approximately 2% per year. Taking into account the appropriate efficiency and capacity factors* the numbers in Table I can be converted into the total primary energy contribution from renewables (Table II) and Figure 6. An extrapolation of the contribution of renewables up to 2030 on the basis of the rates of growth in the last 10 years is shown in Figure 7. To give an idea of the effort that would be needed to curb CO2 emissions up to 2050 the IEA produced recently two scenarios of what would be required in terms of renewables in the electricity sector. The results are shown in Table III. In the IEA Scenarios nuclear energy and coal and gas fired thermal power plants (with carbon capture and storage CCS) are included. These numbers are very large but give an idea of the effort required to prevent a catastrophic climate change. The main policy instruments used to accelerate the introduction of renewables in the energy system of a number of countries are feed in tariffs and renewable portfolio standards (RPS) Feed-in tariffs: this is a policy adopted by governments to accelerate the introduction of renewable energy sources in their matrixes. Power companies are obliged to buy renewable energy from independent producers, at a fixed price above the average cost of production. These incremental costs of renewable energy over fossil fuels can be transferred to consumers. Germany has had striking success with feed-in tariffs over the last two decades, supplying 15% of its energy needs through renewable sources. The German approach involves guaranteed fixed payments for 20 years designed to deliver a profit of 7 to 9 percent. The rates charged vary by energy source and are tied to the cost of production. The rates paid for new contracts decline annually, forcing the green energy sector to innovate. Renewable Portfolio Standards: such approach places an obligation on electricity supply companies to produce a specified fraction of their electricity from renewable energy sources (typically 10-20%). Certified renewable energy generators earn certificates for every unit of electricity they produce and can sell these along with their electricity to supply companies. RPS-type mechanisms have been adopted in the UK, Italy and Belgium, as well as in 27 States in the US and the District of Columbia. Regulations vary from state to state, and there is no federal policy. Four of the 27 states have voluntary rather than mandatory goals. Together these 27 states account for more than 42 percent of the electricity sales in the country. Renewable energies are being introduced in a significant way in many countries particularly in Europe in the form of distributed generation* ( ) (mostly renewable) which seems to be the approach to be used in large scale in the future. (Figure 8) ENERGY EFFICIENCY The amount of energy required to provide the energy services needed depends on the efficiency with which the energy is produced, delivered and used. Gains in energy efficiency are usually measured by indicators, one of which is called energy intensity and defined as the energy necessary (E) per unit of gross domestic product (GDP). I = E/GDP Reduction in the energy intensity over time indicate that the same amount of GDP is obtained with a smaller energy input as shown in Figure 9. In terms of CO2 emissions for the OECD countries means a reduction of emissions of roughly 350 million tons of CO2 per year. The reasons for such decline are a combination of the following factors. structural changes in industrialized and transition countries which can come from increased recycling and substitution of energy-intensive materials improved material efficiency and intensified use of durable and investment goods, shifts to services and less energy-intensive industrial production, and saturation effects in the residential and transportation sectors (i.e., a limit to the number of cars, refrigerators, television sets, etc., that a society can absorb). Since more than 80% of the energy used in the world today comes from fossil fuels the reduction in energy intensity is reflected in a reduction in carbon intensity (I=CO2/GDP) which is shown in Figure 11. As can be seem there is a steady decline in the carbon intensity in OECD countries. In non-OECD countries there was also a decline but it has stabilized after the year 2000. Over the next twenty years the amount of primary energy required for a given level of energy services could be cost-effectively reduced by 25 to 35 percent in industrialized countries. Reductions of more than 40 percent are cost-effectively achievable in transitional economies within the next two decades. In most developing countries ? which tend to have high economic growth and old capital and vehicle stocks ? the cost-effective improvement potential ranges from 30 to more than 45 percent, relative to energy efficiencies achieved with existing capital stock. The combined result of structural changes and efficiency improvements could accelerate the annual decline in energy intensity to perhaps 2.5 percent. How much of this potential will be realized depends on the effectiveness of policy frameworks and measures, changes in attitude and behavior, as well as the level of entrepreneurial activity in energy conservation and material efficiency. Standards (e.g., building codes; well-informed consumers, planners, and decision makers; motivated operators; market-based incentives such as certificate markets; and an adequate payments system ( ) for energy) are central to the successful implementation of energy efficiency improvements. EMISSIONS TRADING In addition to national efforts to curb GHG emissions through increased energy efficiency measures and the use of renewable energy source trading emissions is a strategy used to control pollution by providing incentive s for achieving reductions in the emission of pollutants. Usually it is called a ?cap and trade? system and the way is works is the following: A central authority (usually a government or international body) sets a limit or cap on the amount of a pollutant that can be emitted. Companies or other groups are issued emission permits and are required to hold an equivalent number of allowances (or credits) which represent the right to emit a specific amount. The total amount of allowances and credits cannot exceed the cap, limiting total emissions to that level. Companies that need to increase their emission allowances must buy credits from those who pollute less. The transfer of allowances is referred to as a trade. In effect, the buyer is paying a charge for polluting, while the seller is being rewarded for having reduced emissions. An early example of an emission trading system has been the SO2 trading system under the framework of the Acid Rain Program of the 1990 Clean Air Act in the U.S. Under the program, which is essentially a cap-and-trade emissions trading system, SO2 emissions were reduced by 50 percent from 1980 leve ls by 2007. Some experts argue that the cap and trade system of SO2 emissions reduction has reduced the cost of controlling acid rain by as much as 80 percent versus source-by-source reduction?.( ) At the international level the Kyoto Protocol (KP) adopted in 1997 and which came into force in 2005, binds most developed nations to a cap and trade system for the six major greenhouse gases. In spite of being a signatory of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the United States is the only industrialized nation (i.e., under the KP Annex I) which has not ratified and therefore is not bound by it. Emission quotas were agreed by each participating country, with the intention of reducing their overall emissions by 5.2% of their 1990 levels by the end of 2012. Under the Treaty, for the 5-year compliance period from 2008 until 2012, nations that emit less than their quota will be able to sell emission credits to nations that exceed their quota through use of the following flexibility mechanisms: Joint Implementation projects (JI) Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) International Emissions Trading (IET). The second commitment period of the KP, together with a long-term cooperative action under the UNFCCC, will be discussed by nations at the end of 2009. THE EUROPEAN UNION EMISSIONS TRADING SCHEME (EU ETS) The European Union Emission Trading System (EU ETS) is the largest multi-national, emissions trading scheme in the world, and is a major pillar of EU climate policy. Under the EU ETS, the governments of the EU Member States agree on national emission caps which have to be approved by the EU commission, allocate allowances to their industrial operators, track and validate the actual emissions in accordance against the relevant assigned amount. In the first phase (2005-2007), the EU ETS includes some 12,000 installations, representing approximately 40% of EU CO2 emissions, (2.4 billion tons of CO2 equivalent) covering energy activities (combustion installations with a rated thermal input exceeding 20 MW, mineral oil refineries, coke ovens, production and processing of ferrous metals, mineral industry (cement clinker, glass and ceramic bricks) and pulp, paper and board activities. The scheme, in which all 15 member states that were then members of the European Union participated, nominally commenced operation on January 1st, 2005, although national registries were unable to settle transactions for the first few months. The first trading period of the EU ETS ran for three years, from January 1st, 2005 until the end of 2007. With its termination first phase allowances became invalid. The goal of the trial period was primarily to gain experience with key elements of the trading system in order to have a fully operational system for 2008-2012 when compliance with binding reductions would be required under the Kyoto Protocol. (Table IV) The price of allowances increased more or less steadily to its peak level in April 2006 of about ?30 per tonne CO2, but fell in May 2006 to under ?10/ton on news that some countries were likely to give their industries such generous emission caps that there was no need for them to reduce emissions. When the publication of 2005 verified emissions data in May 2006 highlighted this over-allocation, the market reacted by substantially lowering the price of allowances. Prices dropped precipitously to ?1.2 a tonne in March 2007, declining to ?0.10 in September 2007, because allowances could not be carried over or ?banked? and used in the next trading period. Although the first phase ended disastrously, because the allowances could not be banked to the next phase, it did not impact on the prices for contracts for 2008, the first year of the second phase. Market participants knew already in 2007 that phase II would be more stringent in relation to the cap and less lenient in relation to allowances, which explains the high prices for 2008 allowances. The first EU ETS Trading Period expired in December 2007. Since January 2008, the second Trading Period is under way which will last until December 2012. Currently, the installations get the allowances for free from the EU member states governments. Besides receiving this initial allocation on a plant-by-plant basis, an operator may purchase EU allowances from others (installations, traders, the government). In January 2008, the European Commission proposed a number of changes to the scheme, including centralized allocation (no more national allocation plans) by an EU authority, a turn to auctioning a greater share (60+ %) of permits rather than allocating freely, and inclusion of other greenhouse gases, such as nitrous oxide and per-fluorocarbons. These changes are still in a draft stage; the mentioned amendments are only likely to become effective from January 2013 onwards, i.e. in the third Trading Period under the EU ETS. Also, the proposed caps for the third Trading Period foresee an overall reduction of greenhouse gases for the sector of 21% in 2020 compared to 2005 emissions. The EU ETS has recently been extended to the airline industry as well, but these changes will not take place until 2012. In addition, the third trading period will be both more economically efficient and environmentally effective. It will be more efficient because trading periods will be longer (8 years instead of 5 years), and a substantial increase in the amount of auctioning (from less than 4% in phase 2 to more than half in phase 3). The environmental effectiveness will be guaranteed by a robust and annually declining emissions cap (21% reduction in 2020 compared to 2005) and a centralized allocation process within the European Commission. A robust secondary market for carbon certificates exists through which investors bank on the future value of the EU ETS certificates changing many times. However the ETS doesn?t include transport, thus this action is limited to industrial process and energy sector. JOINT IMPLEMENTATION (JI) Joint implementation is one of flexibility mechanisms set forth in the Kyoto Protocol to help countries with binding greenhouse gas emissions targets (so-called Annex I countries) meet their obligations. In this mechanism any Annex I countries can invest in emission reduction projects (referred to as Joint Implementation Projects) in any other Annex I country as an alternative to reducing emissions domestically. In this way countries can lower the costs of complying with their Kyoto targets by investing in greenhouse gas reductions in an Annex I country where reductions are cheaper, and then applying the credit for those reductions towards their commitment goal. The process of receiving credit for JI projects is somewhat complex. Emission reductions are awarded credits called Emission Reduction Units (ERUs), where one ERU represents an emission reduction equaling one tonne of CO2 equivalent. The ERUs come from the host countrys pool of assigned emissions credits, known as Assigned Amount Units, or AAUs ( ). After a long preparatory process JI projects began to take shape. As of June 2009, 207 projects have been submitted. If all implemented they will lead to emissions reduction of 338,048 million times CO2 equivalent in the period 2008-2012. The great majority of the projects are in the Russian Federation and Eastern European countries. The number of JI projects by type is given in Figure 14. So far the only certificates issued (ERUs) emissions reduction units are 651 thousand CO2 equivalent for coal bed/mine methane. CLEAN DEVELOPMENT MECHANISM (CDM) The Clean Development Mechanism is an arrangement under the Kyoto Protocol allowing industrialized countries with a greenhouse gas reduction commitment (called Annex B countries) to invest in projects that reduce emissions in developing countries as an alternative to more expensive emission reductions in their own countries. A crucial feature of an approved CDM carbon project is that it has established that the planned reductions would not occur without the additional incentive provided by emission reductions credits, a concept known as additionality. The CDM allows net global greenhouse gas emissions to be reduced at a much lower global cost by financing emissions reduction projects in developing countries where costs are lower than in industrialized countries. The CDM is supervised by the CDM Executive Board (CDM EB) and is under the guidance of the Conference of the Parties (COP/MOP) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). By June 1 2009, 4,417 projects have been submitted which if all implemented correspond to 2,931,813 million tons of CO2 equivalent. It represents roughly 1% of the total necessary effort to curb GHG emissions until 2050. Roughly 75% of the CDM projects are in China. In contrast to emissions trading schemes which are actively traded in the stock market JI and CDM are project-based transaction. THE STIMULUS PACKAGE A significant amount of the stimulus package adopted by a number of governments to face the financial crisis of 2007/2008 is made of investments in so called ?green? activities. They amount to 6% of the total recovery packages announced by governments (US$184.9billion dollars). (Figure 17) China and the US remain the leaders, in nominal terms, of the green stimuli activities, earmarking US$ 68.7 billion and US$ 66.6 billion respectively. The sector break-down shows that energy efficiency (Figure 18) remains at the heart of the low-carbon fiscal stimuli. Accounting for as much as 36% of the total US$ 184.9 billion, the sector will receive a boost of some US$ 65.7 billion globally, mainly via building efficiency projects. In addition to that, US$ 7.9 billion has been announced for research and development in energy efficiency. The second major winner is electricity grid infrastructure. More than US$ 48.7 billion has been earmarked for its development and upgrade, accounting for some 26% of the total funds. The Department of Energy has already disbursed US$ 41.9 million in grants for fuel cell energy projects. Furthermore, US$ 101.5 million has been directed to wind energy research and detailed plans have been disclosed on US$ 2.4 billion to be spent on carbon capture and storage and US$ 4 billion for grid upgrades. Details of almost US$ 1.3 billion, out of US$ 2 billion to support energy science research, have also been confirmed and there are now only some US$ 725 million remaining to be allocated.

Their Eyes Were Watching God Joe Starks Analysis

Their Eyes Were Watching God Joe Starks Analysis The character of Joe Starks in the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God written by Zora Neil Hurston is Janies second husband and an entrepreneur who is very charismatic and well off financially. However, Starks is a bit overzealous in his ambition. There isnt a lot of communication between him and Janie, or anyone else for that matter, and he has a huge a superiority complex, which leads to an uncontrollable jealousy over his most prize possession, Janie. Starks has envisioned himself as a big man in the novel. During the course of the story, Starks, in the beginning, is seen as a charming man, with a big dream and good intentions, ends up becoming the most powerful man in town, who is somewhat disliked because of spending practices and actions. Starks is somewhat seen as an imitator of the white man on top and the people of Eatonville resent him for it. When Starks is first mentioned in the novel, Starks a well dressed man, not usually seen in the parts Janie was from, he was dressed nice and looking good for the world to see, Janie sees Starks coming down the road. He wasnt just another passerby, he sees Janie, this beautiful girl on the road and he heads right for her, shes the one thats what he wants (Hurston 27). The character Joe Starks is an example of a man who knows what he wants in life, though he seems kind, and generous in nature, it is all a faà §ade. Starks is a selfish person, playing a role of a big man who sees himself above others. Through his strong sense of confidence, charismatic personality, and his financial background, Starks is able to gain the power and influence that he seeks within the town of Eatonville. He uses Janie his wife, as a symbol of personal success. She in his eyes is more of a trophy than someone he loves. Mr. Starks shallowly believes that with all his money and power should he be entitled t o a beautiful wife. From the moment that Starks meets Janie, he promises her the world. He guarantees all kinds of nice and exotic of things to her, not because he genuinely likes the girl, but because Starks sees something that he would like to have, and in order for him to get it, he has to promise the world to take Janie away from Logan Killicks, to whom she was currently married. There wasnt really a distinction between the two men, well besides physical appearance and age. They were two men wanting the same thing. The use of Janie as a way to progress in life, for Killicks, it was to work the land, to make it more valuable in the promise to turn it over to Janie. To Starks she would be a symbol of his power and success. Their Eyes is a lyrical novel that correlates the need of her first two husbands for ownership of progressively larger physical space (and the gaudy accoutrements of upward mobility) (Gates 197). Starks eventually succeeds in taking Janie away from Logan. After that she came to where Joe Starks was waiting for her with a hired rig. He was very solemn and helped her to the seat beside him. With him on it, it sat like some high, ruling chair (Hurston 32). In leaving with Mr. Starks, Janie assumes a role in a higher class, among the people who sit in a high, ruling chair. The same people whom Starks wishes or believes himself to be in. With running off and marrying Starks, Janie has moved up a notch in social standing. It was not because of her education or talents, but because shes beautiful and thats exactly what Starks wanted, a trophy. Starks does what he promised to do with Janie, which is buy her all these nice things and introduce her to a life of riches and luxury. On the train the next day, Joe didnt make many  speeches with rhymes to her, but he bought her the best things the butcher had, like apples and a glass lantern full of candies. Mostly he talked about plans for the town when he got thereà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Janie took a lot of looks at him and she was proud of what she saw. Kind of portly like rich white folks. Strange trains, and people and places didnt scare him neither (Hurston 34). Mr. Starks reveals his intentions or feelings that he already is in a higher class by flaunting his wealth. He buys Janie different kinds of things like fancy clothes and treats like apples and a glass lantern full of candies. Buying Janie all these fancy things is his way of trying to endear himself to her, as well as showing off the type of social class that he comes from. By buying his way into Janies life, Starks s ees to believe that rhymes and speeches are a poor mans way of romancing the woman. But through money and gifts as a form of romance, would be more of a higher class thing to do. Starks comes to Eatonville as a type of vivid dreamer, he has big plans for this little town of shacks and dirt. He brings his money, charisma, and a beautiful young bride to a developing town. The town starts off really small, too small for the town Starks had envisioned. No one really has thought about adding acreage to the town, or let alone about expanding. So here goes Mr. Joe Starks, the self-believed savior of this fledgling little burg. He guarantees the towns people a better place to live. So Starks, being the big man he envisions himself to be, goes right up to the white landowner and comes back with a deed to for the 200 acres the town needed. With the first task of Starks agenda finished, he gets everyone to go to work. So thats where the meeting was held with Tony Taylor  acting as chairman and Jody doing all the talking. A day was named for roads and they all agreed to bring axes and things like that and chop out two roads running each way. That applied to everyb ody except Tony and Coker. They could carpenter, so Jody hired them to go to work on his store bright and soon the next morning. Jody himself would be busy driving around from town to town telling people about Eatonville and drumming up citizens to move there (Hurston 40-1). Mr. Starks is the one who initiates the new building projects and construction of roads, hiring people to work for him, and giving himself the position of a spokesperson. After all, he was the one who bought all the land and the one with the plan itself. Who would argue with the man who come to Eatonville and change it for the better? Having attracted all the attention of the towns people, Joe calls a town meeting and gets himself elected as the mayor of Eatonville. Starks strong sense of self-confidence, execution of his plan for the town, and money, lead to control, and a sense dominance and power over the town. Starks shows off his new wealth and power in a strong resemblance of wealthy southern white man. Use the layout of the town for example. Starkss house sits almost in the middle of town, around his house sit in the rest of the people of the towns homes, but is far less as nice. Take for instance that new house of his. It had  two stories with porches, with banisters and such things. The rest of the town looked like servants quarters surrounding the big house. (Hurston 47). Starks spends his money on extravagant items like fancy spittoons for himself and even his wife. This type of free spending makes the citizens of Eatonville jealous and resent him for it. Before Starks moved into Eatonville, the people had never even thought of or had a reason to think of themselves in a different way, or even as low class, because they were all the same. The people of Eatonville before Starks came were all the same race and poor. Starks brought social differences and a type of class warfare to town, and now everyone else can see what theyre missing out on. It sort of made the rest of them feel that they had been taken advantage of. Like things had been kept from them. Maybe more things in the world besides spitting pots had been hid from them, when they wasnt told no better than to spit in tomato cans It was bad enough for white people, but when one of your own color could be so different it put you on a wonder. It was like seeing your sister turn into a gator. A familiar strangeness. You keep seeing your sister in the gator and the gator in your sister and youd rather not. There was no doubt that the town respected him and even admired him in a way. But any man who walks in the way of power and property is bound to meet hate (Hurston 47).   Starks whole life entails this high sense of esteem that his manhood brings. He has formed this feeling of entitlement because of what he brings to the table. He feels that with what he has done to the town he has a right to power, wealth, and authority. Starks considers himself justified because he was the one basically in charge of building up the town that only he should be the one to run it. He gets to decide what goes on there and whose opinion counts. He runs the town with somewhat of a first of tyranny and the people of Eatonville are often grumbling and comparing him to memories of the old white slave owners and rightfully so. Starks resembles the white man on top in many ways. He is well-fed appearance, dressed in the finest clothes, like the well-to-do white people at the time. He believes himself to be above the townspeople, they are lower than him. Even in the case of his wife Janie. He did not marry her for love. It was all for show. In his marriage to Janie rep resented his control of the people, the town, as the mayor, and the most of the money in town. The only love expressed by Starks, was the love for Joe Starks. He was the big man around town, everything else in his mind, was just symbol in the testament of greatness that is Joe Starks.

Tubing Essay -- Personal Narrative Descriptive Essays

Wiping the sleepies out of my eyes, I quickly glanced at my alarm clock – 5 am. â€Å"Good, I’ve got plenty of time,† I thought to myself. As quietly as possible, which never works when I am trying to, I quickly grabbed a bowl of cereal for breakfast. Checking my list and grabbing my gear I headed out to wait for a taxi in the cool fading morning. I could taste the excitement, or was that the humidity? That day began like all the other missionary kid tubing trips down the Davao River in the Philippines, full of anxious anticipation and adventure. I was so excited you can barely sleep the night before. My mom made sure I had everything I needed, worrying like only mothers know how. My friends and I were off from school for Christmas break. The weather was perfect, having rained for almost three days straight. Two days before, while coming back from a dive trip, my friends and I decided we had better take advantage of the heavenly gift of rain. Friday, January 4th, 2002 was the day we began our adventure – an adventure of a life time. The nine of us gathered at the Bangkerohan Jeepney terminal and loaded up. The whole way to Dominga, our shove-off point, we couldn’t stop talking about the river. Everyone gave their report of the rivers they had crossed when coming to the terminal. Each and every time the jeepney passed over a bridge, crazy white-neck foreigners stuck their heads out like ostriches, straining to get a glimpse of the mad rushing river. The Davao River was of course dark brown, but that’s the way it always was and we loved it. None of us could have asked for a better opportunity to tub the river. We knew it was high and some of us had tubed a flood before, but this flood was different, there was some... ...es, we were able to barter a ride back to Davao. We all reached our families somehow or another, which was a gift from God. What I contributed to luck earlier was not luck at all but the grace and mercy of God. How else could all nine of us, some experienced tubers and some rookies, survive the worst flood in thirty-one years. What took us several hours to tub down on a normal tubing trip took less than an hour. The Davao River usually runs at ten kilometers per hour (about six miles per hour) but this time it was racing at a pace of twenty-two kilometers per hour (about fourteen mile per hour). The nightmarish song of the boulder sized rocks ringing beneath us as we tubed will forever be in my memory. God humbled and saved me from many things that day. Most importantly, he brought me closer to Him and to my friends. It is forever etched into my memory.

Darwin Vs. Pearson :: Natural Selection Essays

The writing of Charles Darwin focuses on the concept of natural selection and its implications on the human race. Darwin understands that allowing weaker people to pass on their genetic shortcomings will ultimately prove to be detrimental. People should have the same reproductive rights and opportunities as all other people. The writing of Karl Pearson also focuses on natural selection and its implications upon the human race. Pearson, however, believes that the weaker people of society should be forced to die off so as not to pass on their genetic malfeasance. Darwin and Pearson agree on the process of natural selection but disagree on how society should utilize the knowledge gained from understanding natural selection. Darwin & Pearson both believe that left unchecked the human race would evolve positively by not allowing unfit people to reproduce. Darwin says, â€Å"With savages, the weak in body or mind are soon eliminated; and those that survive commonly exhibit a vigorous state of health.† Darwin believes that people, without the constraints of society, would allow the weaker elements of their offspring to die off without reproducing. Since people operate in a civilized society, they must tolerate the people who are weaker than they are, even if it is a detriment to society at large, â€Å"We must therefore bear the undoubtedly bad effects of the weak surviving and propagating their kind.† Karl Pearson believes that the knowledge gained from understanding natural selection should be utilized to stop the human race from declining, â€Å"I want you to see selection as something which renders the inexorable law of heredity a source of progress, which produces the good through suffering, an infinitely greater good which far outbalances the very obvious pain and evil.† Pearson believes that even though it will be hard to do, society must stop allowing inferior people to reproduce.

Black House Chapter Twenty-nine

29 â€Å"YOU GUYS READY?† Dale asks. â€Å"Aw, man, I don't know,† Doc says. This isn't the fifth time he's said it, maybe not even the fifteenth. He's pale, almost hyperventilating. The four of them are in a Winnebago kind of a rolling green room that has been set up on the edge of La Follette Park. Nearby is the podium on which they'll stand (always assuming Doc can keep his legs under him) and deliver their carefully crafted answers. On the slope running down to the broad river are gathered nearly four hundred newspeople, plus camera crews from six American networks and God knows how many foreign stations. The gentlemen of the press aren't in the world's best mood, because the prime space in front of the podium has been reserved for a representative sampling (drawn by lottery) of French Landing's residents. This was Dale's one ironclad demand for the press conference. The idea for the press conference itself came from Jack Sawyer. â€Å"Mellow out, Doc,† Beezer says. He looks bigger than ever in his gray linen slacks and open-collared white shirt almost like a bear in a tuxedo. He has even made an effort to comb his acres of hair. â€Å"And if you really think you're going to do one of the Three P's piss, puke, or pass out stay here.† â€Å"Nah,† Doc says miserably. â€Å"In for a penny, in for a fuckin' pound. If we're gonna give it a try, let's give it a try.† Dale, resplendent in his dress uniform, looks at Jack. The latter is if anything more resplendent in his gray summerweight suit and dark blue silk tie. A matching blue handkerchief pokes from the breast pocket of his coat. â€Å"You sure this is the right thing?† Jack is completely sure. It's not a matter of refusing to allow Sarah Gilbertson's Color Posse to steal the limelight; it's a matter of making certain that his old friend is in an unassailable position. He can do this by telling a very simple story, which the three other men will back up. Ty will do the same, Jack is confident. The story is this: Jack's other old friend, the late Henry Leyden, figured out the Fisherman's identity from the 911 tape. This tape was supplied by Dale, his nephew. The Fisherman killed Henry, but not before the heroic Mr. Leyden had mortally wounded him and passed his name to the police. ( Jack's other interest in this press conference, understood perfectly and supported completely by Dale, is to make sure Henry gets the credit he deserves.) An examination of French Landing property records and plats uncovered the fact that Charles Burnside owned a house on Highway 35, not far out of town. Dale deputized Jack and two widebodies who just happened to be in th e vicinity (that would be Messrs. Amberson and St. Pierre), and they went on out there. â€Å"From that point on,† Jack told his friends repeatedly in the days leading up to the press conference, â€Å"it's vital that you remember the three little words that lead to most acquittals in criminal trials. And what are those words?† † ? ®I can't remember,' † Dale said. Jack nodded. â€Å"Right. If you don't have a story to remember, the bastards can never trip you up. There was something in the air inside that place â€Å" â€Å"No lie,† Beezer rumbled, and grimaced. † and it messed us up. What we do remember is this:Ty Marshall was in the backyard, handcuffed to the clothesline whirligig.† Before Beezer St. Pierre and Jack Sawyer slipped through the police barricades and vaporized Black House with plastic explosive, one reporter got out there and took numerous pictures. We know which reporter it was, of course; Wendell Green has finally realized his dreams of fame and fortune. â€Å"And Burnside was dead at his feet,† Beezer said. â€Å"Right. With the key to the handcuffs in his pocket. Dale, you found that and released the boy. There were a few other kids in the backyard, but as to how many â€Å" â€Å"We don't remember,† Doc said. â€Å"As to their sexes â€Å" â€Å"A few boys, a few girls,† Dale said. â€Å"We don't remember exactly how many of each.† â€Å"And as for Ty, how he was taken, what happened to him â€Å" â€Å"He said he didn't remember,† Dale said, smiling. â€Å"We left. We think we called to the other kids â€Å" â€Å"But don't exactly remember † the Beez chips in. â€Å"Right, and in any case they seemed safe enough where they were for the time being. It was when we were putting Ty into the cruiser that we saw them all streaming out.† â€Å"And called the Wisconsin State Police for backup,† Dale said. â€Å"I do remember that.† â€Å"Of course you do,† Jack said benevolently. â€Å"But we have no idea how that darn place got blasted all to hell, and we don't know who did it.† â€Å"Some people,† Jack said, â€Å"are all too eager to take justice into their own hands.† â€Å"Lucky they didn't blow their heads clean off,† said Dale. â€Å"All right,† Jack tells them now. They're standing at the door. Doc has produced half a joint, and four quick, deep tokes have calmed him visibly. â€Å"Just remember why we're doing this. The message is that we were there first, we found Ty, we saw only a few other children, we deemed their situation secure due to the death of Charles Burnside, also known as Carl Bierstone, the South Side Monster, and the Fisherman. The message is that Dale behaved properly that we all did and he then handed the investigation off to the FBI and WSP, who are now holding the baby. Babies, I guess in this case. The message is that French Landing is okay again. Last but far from least, the message is that Henry Leyden's the real star. The heroic blind man who I.D.'d Charles Burnside and broke the Fisherman case, mortally wounding the monster and losing his own life in the process.† â€Å"Amen,† Dale says. â€Å"Sweet old Uncle Henry.† Beyond the door of the Winnebago, he can hear the surflike rumble of hundreds of people. Maybe even a thousand. He thinks, This is what rock acts hear before they hit the stage. A lump suddenly rises in his throat and he does his best to gulp it back down. He reckons that if he keeps thinking of Uncle Henry he will be okay. â€Å"Anything else,† Jack says, â€Å"questions that get too specific â€Å" â€Å"We can't remember,† Beezer says. â€Å"Because the air was bad,† Doc agrees. â€Å"Smelled like ether or chloro or something like that.† Jack surveys them, nods, smiles. This will be a happy occasion, on the whole, he thinks. A love feast. Certainly the idea that he might be dying in a few minutes has not occurred to him. â€Å"Okay,† he says, â€Å"let's go out there and do it. We're politicians this afternoon, politicians at a press conference, and it's the politicians who stay on message who get elected.† He opens the RV's door. The rumble of the crowd deepens in anticipation. They cross to the jury-rigged platform this way: Beezer, Dale, Jack, and the good Doctor. They move in a warm white nova glare of exploding flashbulbs and 10-k TV lights. Jack has no idea why they need such things the day is bright and warm, a Coulee Country charmer but it seems they do. That they always do. Voices cry, â€Å"Over here!† repeatedly. There are also thrown questions, which they ignore. When it comes time to answer questions they will as best they can but for now they are simply stunned by the crowd. The noise begins with the two hundred or so French Landing residents sitting on folding chairs in a roped-off area directly in front of the podium. They rise to their feet, some clapping, others waving clenched fists in the air like winning boxers. The press picks it up from them, and as our four friends mount the steps to the podium, the roar becomes a thunder. We are with them, up on the platform with them, and God, we see so many faces we know looking up at us. There's Morris Rosen, who slipped Henry the Dirtysperm CD on our first day in town. Behind him is a contingent from the now defunct Maxton Elder Care: the lovely Alice Weathers is surrounded by Elmer Jesperson, Ada Meyerhoff (in a wheelchair), Flora Flostad, and the Boettcher brothers, Hermie and Tom Tom. Tansy Freneau, looking a bit spaced out but no longer outright insane, is standing next to Lester Moon, who has his arm around her. Arnold â€Å"Flashlight† Hrabowski, Tom Lund, Bobby Dulac, and the other members of Dale's department are up on their feet, dancing around and cheering crazily. Look, over there that's Enid Purvis, the neighbor who called Fred at work on the day Judy finally high-sided it. There's Rebecca Vilas, looking almost nunnish in a high-collared dress (but cry no tears for her, Argentina; Becky has stashed away quite a nice bundle, thank you very much). Butch Yerxa is with her. At the back of the crowd, lurking shamefully but unable to stay away from the triumph of their friends, are William Strassner and Hubert Cantinaro, better known to us as Kaiser Bill and Sonny. Look there! Herb Roeper, who cuts Jack's hair, standing beside Buck Evitz, who delivers his mail. So many others we know, and to whom we must say good-bye under less than happy circumstances. In the front row, Wendell Green is hopping around like a hen on a hot griddle (God knows how he got into the roped-off area, being from La Riviere instead of French Landing, but he's there), taking pictures. Twice he bum ps into Elvena Morton, Henry's housekeeper. The third time he does it, she bats him a damned good one on top of the head. Wendell hardly seems to notice. His head has taken worse shots during the course of the Fisherman investigation. And off to one side, we see someone else we may or may not recognize. An elderly, dark-skinned gentleman wearing shades. He looks a little bit like an old blues singer. He also looks a little bit like a movie actor named Woody Strode. The applause thunders and thunders. Folks cheer. Hats are thrown in the air and sail on the summer breeze. Their welcome becomes a kind of miracle in itself, an affirmation, perhaps even an acceptance of the children, who are widely supposed to have been held in some bizarre sexual bondage linked to the Internet. (Isn't all that weird stuff somehow linked to the Internet?) And of course they applaud because the nightmare is over. The boogeyman died in his own backyard, died at the foot of a prosaic, now vaporized aluminum clothes whirligig, and they are safe again. Oh how the cheers ring in these few last moments of Jack Sawyer's life on planet Earth! Birds are startled up from the bank of the river and go squawking and veering into the sky, seeking quieter environs. On the river itself, a freighter responds to the cheers or perhaps joins in by blasting its air horn over and over. Other boats get the idea and add to the cacophony. Without thinking about what he's doing, Jack takes Doc's right hand in his left, Dale's left hand in his right. Dale takes Beezer's hand, and the Sawyer Gang raises their arms together, facing the crowd. Which, of course, goes nuts. If not for what is going to happen next, it would be the picture of the decade, perhaps of the century. They stand there in triumph, living symbols of victory with their linked hands in the sky, the crowd cheering, the videocams rolling, the Nikons flashing, and that is when the woman in the third row begins to make her move. This is someone else we know, but it takes us a second or two to recognize her, because she has had nothing at all to do with the case we have been following. She's just been . . . sort of lurking around. The two hundred seats up front have been awarded by random drawing from the French Landing voter rolls, the lucky lottery winners notified by Debbi Anderson, Pam Stevens, and Dit Jesperson. This woman was No. 199. Several people shrink from her as she passes them, although in their happy frenzy they are hardly aware of doing it; this pale woman with clumps of straw-colored hair sticking to her cheeks smells of sweat and sleeplessnes s and vodka. She's got a little purse. The little purse is open. She's reaching into it. And we who have lived through the second half of the twentieth century and have through the miracle of TV witnessed a dozen assassinations and near assassinations know exactly what she is reaching for. We want to scream a warning to the four men standing with their linked hands raised to the sky, but all we can do is watch. Only the black man with the sunglasses sees what's happening. He turns and starts to move, aware that she has probably beaten him, that he is probably going to be too late. No, Speedy Parker thinks. It can't end like this, it can't. â€Å"Jack, get down!† he shouts, but no one hears him over the clapping, the cheering, the wild hurrahs. The crowd seems to block him on purpose, surging back and forth in front of him no matter which way he moves. For a moment Wendell Green, still bobbing around like a man in the throes of an epileptic seizure, is in the assassin's path. Then she heaves him aside with the strength of a madwoman. Why not? She is a madwoman. â€Å"Folks † Dale's got his mouth practically on the microphone, and the P.A. horns mounted to the nearby trees whine with feedback. He's still holding up Jack's hand on his left and Beezer's on his right. There's a small, dazed smile on his face. â€Å"Thank you, folks, we sure do appreciate the support, but if you could just quiet down . . .† That's when Jack sees her. It's been a long time, years, but he recognizes her at once. He should; she spat in his face one day as he left the Los Angeles courthouse. Spat at him and called him a railroading bastard. She's lost fifty pounds since then, Jack thinks. Maybe more. Then he sees the hand in the purse, and even before it comes back out, he knows what's happening here. The worst is that he can do nothing about it. Doc and Dale have his hands in a death grip. He drags in a deep breath and shouts as he has been taught to do in just such a situation as this â€Å"Gun!† and Dale Gilbertson nods as if to say, Yes it is, it is fun. Behind her, pushing through the clapping, cheering crowd, he sees Speedy Parker, but unless Speedy's got a particularly good magic trick up his sleeve He doesn't. Speedy Parker, known in the Territories as Parkus, is just fighting his way into the aisle when the woman standing below the platform brings out her gun. It's an ugly little thing, a bulldog .32 with its handle wrapped in black kitchen tape, and Jack has just half a second to think that maybe it will blow up in her hand. â€Å"Gun!† Jack shouts again, and it's Doc Amberson who hears him and sees the snarling woman crouched just below them. â€Å"Ohfuck,† Doc says. â€Å"Wanda, no!† Jack cries. Doc has let go of his left hand (Dale has still got his right one hoisted high in the summer air) and Jack holds it out to her like a traffic cop. Wanda Kinderling's first bullet goes right through the palm, mushrooms slightly, begins to tumble, and punches into the hollow of Jack's left shoulder. Wanda speaks to him. There's too much noise for Jack to hear her, but he knows what she's saying, just the same: Here you go, you railroading son of a bitch Thorny says hello. She empties the remaining five bullets into Jack Sawyer's chest and throat. No one hears the insignificant popping sounds made by Wanda's bulldog .32, not over all that clapping and cheering, but Wendell Green has got his camera tilted up, and when the detective jerks backward, our favorite reporter's finger punches the Nikon's shutter-release button in simple reflex. It snaps off eight shots. The third is the picture, the one that will eventually become as well known as the photo of the Marines raising the flag on Iwo Jima and that of Lee Harvey Oswald clutching his belly in the parking garage of the Dallas police station. In Wendell's photo, Jack Sawyer looks calmly down toward the shooter (who is just a blur at the very bottom of the frame). The expression on his face might be one of forgiveness. Daylight is clearly visible through the hole in the palm of his outstretched hand. Droplets of blood, as red as rubies, hang frozen in the air beside his throat, which has been torn open. The cheering and the applause stop as if amputated. There is a moment of awful, uncomprehending silence. Jack Sawyer, shot twice in the lungs and once in the heart, as well as in the hand and the throat, stands where he is, gazing at the hole below his spread fingers and above his wrist. Wanda Kinderling peers up at him with her dingy teeth bared. Speedy Parker is looking at Jack with an expression of naked horror that his wraparound sunglasses cannot conceal. To his left, up on one of four media towers surrounding the platform, a young cameraman faints and falls to the ground. Then, suddenly, the freeze-frame that Wendell has captured without even knowing it bursts open and everything is in motion. Wanda Kinderling screams â€Å"See you in hell, Hollywood† several people will later verify this and then puts the muzzle of her .32 to her temple. Her look of vicious satisfaction gives way to a more typical one of dazed incomprehension when the twitch of her finger produces nothing but a dry click. The bulldog .32 is empty. A moment later she is pretty much obliterated broken neck, broken left shoulder, four broken ribs as Doc stage-dives onto her and drives her to the ground. His left shoe strikes the side of Wendell Green's head, but this time Wendell sustains no more than a bloody ear. Well, he was due to catch a break, wasn't he? On the platform, Jack Sawyer looks unbelievingly at Dale, tries to speak, and cannot. He staggers, remains upright a moment longer, then collapses. Dale's face has gone from bemused delight to utter shock and dismay in a heartbeat. He seizes the microphone and screams, â€Å"HE'S SHOT! WE NEED A DOCTOR!† The P.A. horns shriek with more feedback. No doctor comes forward. Many in the crowd panic and begin to run. The panic spreads. Beezer is down on one knee, turning Jack over. Jack looks up at him, still trying to speak. Blood pours from the corners of his mouth. â€Å"Ah fuck, it's bad, Dale, it's really bad,† Beezer cries, and then he is knocked sprawling. One wouldn't expect that the scrawny old black man who's vaulted up onto the stage could knock around a bruiser like Beezer, but this is no ordinary old man. As we well know. There is a thin but perfectly visible envelope of white light surrounding him. Beezer sees it. His eyes widen. The crowd, meanwhile, flees to the four points of the compass. Panic infects some of the ladies and gentlemen of the press, as well. Not Wen-dell Green; he holds his ground like a hero, snapping pictures until his Nikon is as empty as Wanda Kinderling's gun. He snaps the black man as he stands with Jack Sawyer in his arms; snaps Dale Gilbertson putting a hand on the black man's shoulder; snaps the black man turning and speaking to Dale. When Wendell later asks French Landing's chief of police what the old fellow said, Dale tells him he doesn't remember besides, in all that pandemonium, he could hardly make it out, anyway. All bullshit, of course, but we may be sure that if Jack Sawyer had heard Dale's response, he would have been proud. When in doubt, tell 'em you can't remember. Wendell's last picture shows Dale and Beezer watching with identical dazed expressions as the old fellow mounts the steps to the Winnebago with Jack Sawyer still in his arms. Wendell has no idea how such an old party can carry such a big man Sawyer is six-two and must go a hundred and ninety at least but he supposes it's the same sort of deal that allows a distraught mother to lift up the car or truck beneath which her kid is pinned. And it doesn't matter. It's small beans compared to what happens next. Because when a group of men led by Dale, Beez, and Doc burst into the Winnebago (Wendell is at the rear of this group), they find nothing but a single overturned chair and several splashes of Jack Sawyer's blood in the kitchenette where Jack gave his little gang their final instructions. The trail of blood leads toward the rear, where there's a foldout bed and a toilet cubicle. And there the drops and splashes simply stop. Jack and the old man who carried him in here have vanished. Doc and Beezer are babbling, almost in hysterics. They bounce between questions of where Jack might have gone to distraught recollections of the final few moments on the platform before the shooting started. They can't seem to let that go, and Dale has an idea it will be quite a while before he can let go of it himself. He realizes now that Jack saw the woman coming, that he was trying to get his hand free of Dale's so he could respond. Dale thinks it may be time to quite the chief's job after all, find some other line of work. Not right now, though. Right now he wants to get Beezer and Doc away from the Color Posse, get them calmed down. He has something to tell them that may help with that. Tom Lund and Bobby Dulac join him, and the three of them escort Beez and Doc away from the Winnebago, where Special Agent Redding and WSP Detective Black are already establishing a CIP (crime investigation perimeter). Once they're behind the platform, Dale looks into the stunned faces of the two burly bikers. â€Å"Listen to me,† Dale says. â€Å"I should have stepped in front of him,† Doc says. â€Å"I saw her coming, why didn't I step in front â€Å" â€Å"Shut up and listen!† Doc shuts up. Tom and Bobby are also listening, their eyes wide. â€Å"That black man said something to me.† â€Å"What?† Beezer asks. â€Å"He said, ? ®Let me take him there may still be a chance.' â€Å" Doc, who has treated his share of gunshot wounds, gives a forlorn little chuckle. â€Å"And you believed him?† â€Å"Not then, not exactly,† Dale says. â€Å"But when we went in there and the place was empty â€Å" â€Å"No back door, either,† Beezer adds. Doc's skepticism has faded a little. â€Å"You really think . . . ?† â€Å"I do,† Dale Gilbertson says, and wipes his eyes. â€Å"I have to hope. And you guys have to help me.† â€Å"All right,† Beezer says. â€Å"Then we will.† And we think that here we must leave them for good, standing under a blue summer sky close to the Father of Waters, standing beside a platform with blood on the boards. Soon life will catch them up again and pull them back into its furious current, but for a few moments they are together, joined in hope for our mutual friend. Let us leave them so, shall we? Let us leave them hoping. ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE TERRITORIES . . . ONCE UPON A TIME (as all the best old stories used to begin when we all lived in the forest and nobody lived anywhere else), a scarred Captain of the Outer Guards named Farren led a frightened little boy named Jack Sawyer through the Queen's Pavilion. That small boy did not see the Queen's court, however; no, he was taken through a maze of corridors behind the scenes, secret and seldom-visited places where spiders spun in the high corners and the warm drafts were heavy with the smells of cooking from the kitchen. Finally, Farren placed his hands in the boy's armpits and lifted him up. There's a panel in front of you now, he whispered do you remember? I think you were there. I think we both were, although we were younger then, weren't we? Slide it to the left. Jack did as he was bidden, and found himself peeking into the Queen's chamber; the room in which almost everyone expected her to die . . . just as Jack expected his mother to die in her room at the Alhambra Inn and Gardens in New Hampshire. It was a bright, airy room filled with bustling nurses who had assumed a busy and purposeful manner because they had no real idea of how to help their patient. The boy looked through the peephole into this room, at a woman he at first thought was his own mother somehow magically transported to this place, and we looked with him, none of us guessing that years later, grown to a man, Jack Sawyer would be lying in the same bed where he first saw his mother's Twinner. Parkus, who has brought him from French Landing to the Inner Baronies, now stands at the panel through which Jack, hoisted by Captain Farren, once looked. Beside him is Sophie of Canna, now known in the Territories as both the Young Queen and Sophie the Good. There are no nurses in the sleeping chamber today; Jack lies silent beneath a slowly turning fan. Where he is not wrapped in bandages, his skin is pale. His closed eyelids are hazed with a delicate purple bruise-blush. The rise and fall of the fine linen sheet drawn up to his chin can hardly be seen . . . but it's there. He breathes. For now, at least, he lives. Speaking quietly, Sophie says, â€Å"If he'd never touched the Talisman â€Å" â€Å"If he'd never touched the Talisman, actually held it in his arms, he would have been dead there on that platform before I could even get close to him,† Parkus says. â€Å"But of course, if not for the Talisman, he never would have been there in the first place.† â€Å"What chance has he?† She looks at him. Somewhere, in another world, Judy Marshall has already begun to subside back into her ordinary suburban life. There will be no such life for her Twinner, however hard times have come again in this part of the universe and her eyes gleam with an imperious, regal light. â€Å"Tell me the truth, sir; I would not have a lie.† â€Å"Nor would I give you one, my lady,† he tells her. â€Å"I believe that, thanks to the residual protection of the Talisman, he will recover. You'll be sitting next to him one morning or evening and his eyes will open. Not today, and probably not this week, but soon.† â€Å"And as for returning to his world? The world of his friends?† Parkus has brought her to this place because the spirit of the boy Jack was still lingers, ghostly and child-sweet. He was here before the road of trials opened ahead of him, and in some ways hardened him. He was here with his innocence still intact. What has surprised him about Jack as a grown man and touched him in a way Parkus never expected to be touched again is how much of that innocence still remained in the man the boy has become. That too is the Talisman's doing, of course. â€Å"Parkus? Your mind wanders.† â€Å"Not far, my lady; not far. You ask if he may return to his world after being mortally wounded three, perhaps even four times after being heart-pierced, in fact. I brought him here because all the magic that has touched and changed his life is stronger here; for good or ill, the Territories have been Jack Sawyer's wellspring since he was a child. And it worked. He lives. But he will wake different. He'll be like . . .† Parkus pauses, thinking hard. Sophie waits quietly beside him. Distantly, from the kitchen, comes the bellow of a cook lacing into one of the ‘prentices. â€Å"There are animals that live in the sea, breathing with gills,† Parkus says at last. â€Å"And over time's long course, some of them develop lungs. Such creatures can live both under the water and on the land. Yes?† â€Å"So I was taught as a girl,† Sophie agrees patiently. â€Å"But some of these latter creatures lose their gills and can live only on the land. Jack Sawyer is that sort of creature now, I think. You or I could dive into the water and swim beneath the surface for a little while, and he may be able to go back and visit his own world for short periods . . . in time, of course. But if either you or I were to try living beneath the water â€Å" â€Å"We'd drown.† â€Å"Indeed we would. And if Jack were to try living in his own world again, returning to his little house in Norway Valley, for instance, his wounds would return in a space of days or weeks. Perhaps in different forms his death certificate might specify heart failure, for instance but it would be Wanda Kinderling's bullet that killed him, all the same. Wanda Kinderling's heart shot.† Parkus bares his teeth. â€Å"Hateful woman! I believe the abbalah was aware of her no more than I was, but look at the damage she's caused!† Sophie ignores this. She is looking at the silent, sleeping man in the other room. â€Å"Condemned to live in such a pleasant land as this . . .† She turns to him. â€Å"It is a pleasant land, isn't it, sirrah? Still a pleasant land, in spite of all?† Parkus smiles and bows. Around his neck, a shark's tooth swings at the end of a fine gold necklace. â€Å"Indeed it is.† She nods briskly. â€Å"So living here might not be so terrible.† He says nothing. After a moment or two, her assumed briskness departs, and her shoulders sag. â€Å"I'd hate it,† she says in a small voice. â€Å"To be barred from my own world except for occasional brief visits . . . paroles . . . to have to leave at the first cough or twinge in my chest . . . I'd hate it.† Parkus shrugs. â€Å"He'll have to accept what is. Like it or not, his gills are gone. He's a creature of the Territories now. And God the Carpenter knows there's work for him over here. The business of the Tower is moving toward its climax. I believe Jack Sawyer may have a part to play in that, although I can't say for sure. In any case, when he heals, he won't want for work. He's a coppiceman, and there's always work for such.† She looks through the slit in the wall, her lovely face troubled. â€Å"You must help him, dear,† Parkus says. â€Å"I love him,† she says, speaking very low. â€Å"And he loves you. But what's coming will be difficult.† â€Å"Why must that be, Parkus? Why must life always demand so much and give so little?† He draws her into his arms and she goes willingly, her face pressed against his chest. In the dark behind the chamber in which Jack Sawyer sleeps, Parkus answers her question with a single word: Ka. Epilogue SHE SITS BY his bed on the first night of Full-Earth Moon, ten days after her conversation with Parkus in the secret passageway. Outside the pavilion, she can hear children singing â€Å"The Green Corn A-Dayo.† On her lap is a scrap of embroidery. It is summer, still summer, and the air is sweet with summer's mystery. And in this billowing room where his mother's Twinner once lay, Jack Sawyer opens his eyes. Sophie lays aside her embroidery, leans forward, and puts her lips soft against the shell of his ear. â€Å"Welcome back,† she says. â€Å"My heart, my life, and my love: welcome back.† April 14, 2001

Current Ethical Issues in Managerial Accounting Essay

No company can nowadays afford to function alone. Partnerships are increasingly getting important and the effective exchange of information can determine profit or loss. An important method to cope with the increasing complexity is called supply chain management (SCM). It is enterprise-wide planning, management and control of all logistics tasks in the value chain. I decided to choose this topic because I had the chance to work with the system in practice in the Automotive Lighting plant in Jihlava. I want to explain the origins of this technology and take a closer look at its major features. I will also try to show how this system increases business value and where its limitations are. Last but not least I show some example of practical use in small and medium companies and I will try to determine the latest trends in the industry of this technology. My chosen company is SAP which produces software in the fields of ERP, CRM and SCM. The term supply chain management was named by Keith Oliver in 1992, economists called this the creation era. In the so-called integration era, SCM got developed along with Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems with the internet-based collaborative systems. SCM is starting to get widely used in the globalization era in the late 1980s. In the 1990s companies began to outsource manufacturing and distribution. This new step created need for manufacturing and distribution networks with many supply chains. (Haag, Cummings, McCubbrey, Pinsonneault, Donovan 2006) One of the major features of the SCM Software from SAP is that it can quickly help a company to adapt in changes in supply and demand. There are newly developed tools to measure and report data and to provide a framework for good decision making in managerial accounting. One of the tools I find very attractive is the Manufacturing and Supply Planning. This feature can forecast demand and accelerate production planning and the scheduling process. What company stakeholders typically provide input? What is the role of the financial staff? The Braskem Company, with headquarters in Sao Paulo, Brazil is producing Chemicals, with 6750 employees and $27. 7 billion revenue. The SAP software for SCM managed to optimize the supply chain processes and also increased sales forecast accuracy. The result was a 90% reduction of inefficiency-related logistics costs and $3 million value enerated in the first year after implementation of the software. (SAP, 2013) Because there are many factors in a supply chain a problem in one of them could negatively influence the whole chain. If there is an unexpected event, it can have negative effects on the company. A new trend suddenly appearing in the demand can delay production and produce extra costs. One solution is to get information from more sources and paste them to the software. (Kallrath, Maindl 2006) There is software for smaller business called sap business one. This software is scaled to Enterprise Resources planning, analytics and databases for small businesses. SAP Enterprise on the other hand, provides all the complex and flexible solutions for large companies. sap business one comes with significantly lowers costs to introduce and to educate staff in a company. The total cost of ownership is significantly lower than the corresponding implementation of SAP Enterprise. (SAP, 2013) The company danisco, from Denmark and the industry of consumer products improved their supply chain efficiency across the organization. They managed to increase forecast accuracy with the SAP CRM software. On a 6-month timescale, the implementation of the software across 69 sites in 21 countries increased supply chain efficiency resulting in cost optimization and enhancing customer service. (SAP, 2013) The global brand Ferrero Group from Italia also used SAP software to enhance and reduce the cost of planning improvements. The company managed to shorten the job chains for demand and supply network planning. The benefits of these solutions are clearly stated. The need of purchasing additional hardware was eliminated, while the system performance was improved by 200%. SAP, 2013) Mibelle AG Cosmetics is a medium-sized company from Switzerland which produces consumer cosmetics. The greatest benefit was the improvement of planning and warehouse transparence and precision while new partners from Switzerland and abroad emerged. The SAP software was chosen because of the easy implementation to the existing ERP application. (SAP, 2013) The future of the global companies is depending on a well processed SCM. Companies like SAP provide outstanding software and research in this field. As I know from my experience from Automotive Lighting s. . o. in Jihlava, a plant producing the head-lights for the Volkswagen Group TM and Japanese car producers, well implemented SCM management is the key factor in the success of such a company. The industry is constantly developing and new technologies are emerging but software products like that from SAP is being produced and updated constantly. Although crisis is decreasing our business opportunities, in my opinion the constant research and development in the field of SCM is a key factor for success in our time coined by the term of hyper-competition.