Thursday, December 26, 2019

For Cause And Comrades By James M. Mcpherson - 1705 Words

James M. McPherson, author of For Cause and Comrades, uses more than 25,000 unaltered letters and closely 250 private journals from Civil War soldiers—both Union and Confederate—in his attempt to explain what possessed these men to endure the roaring, gruesome chaos of war. What better way to express the motivation behind fighting than words straight from the pens of the men who were physically there and experienced the Civil War to its fullest? I personally feel as though McPherson succeeded in his explanation of the different driving forces that kept each man going during these difficult years of battle. The Wall Street Journal describes McPherson’s work as â€Å"an extraordinary book, full of fascinating details and moving self-portraits.† â€Å"Duty and honor were indeed powerful motivating forces.† (p. 5) Honor is defined as â€Å"respect that is given to someone who is admired† by Merriam Webster’s Dictionary. Many of the men who enlisted during the Civil War were driven by the desire to uphold their honor and/or their family honor. Because honor was essentially a masculine concept, the wives and mothers of soldiers did not understand how this desire for bringing honor to one’s name was more important than a man’s duty to his family. A South Carolina planter and thirty-nine year old father of several daughters chose to enlist after the Union capture of the South Carolina sea islands in 1861. He attempted to explain the driving force behind his decision to enlist: â€Å"The honor of ourShow MoreRelatedHow A Soldier Can Fight And Kill People From His Own Country1562 Words   |  7 Pagesdocuments and the book â€Å"For Cause Comrades: Why Men Fought in the Civil War† by Jam es McPherson many factors of their decision arose. Nationalism, duty, honor, and moral obligation were only some of the reasons people joined the war effort. The overarching theme in the letters I read was the inspiration they had due to a feeling of nationalism. Both Union and Confederate soldiers used talk and images of nation, freedom, government in explaining why the decided to fight (McPherson, 21). However, the SouthRead MoreFor Cause and Comrades Essay757 Words   |  4 PagesFor Cause and Comrades For Cause and Comrades by James M. McPherson consists of mostly of soldiers’ diaries and letters home as to why the men were fighting the Civil War. The initial motivation the union and confederacy sustain throughout the story proves that personal honor is valued more than their lives. The opening chapter of the book is mostly a plot overview of the events that had yet to come. Fratricide, Meaning one that murders or kills an individual (as a countryman) havingRead MoreFor Cause and Comrades: an Analysis1538 Words   |  7 PagesFor Cause and Comrades: An Analysis As long as man has had the ability to think for himself, there has been conflict and war. Wars are waged by the rich and powerful, but fought by the poor masses who march, inexorably into the meat grinder. The question of â€Å"why do soldiers fight?† arises when looking at the study of warfare. What compelled the hoplite from Sparta, the foot soldier in Napoleon’s Grand Army, the American Infantryman on Omaha Beach, or the Army Ranger in Baghdad to willingly enlistRead MoreDifferences Between Union And Confederate Motives Within The Civil War Essay1705 Words   |  7 Pagesto themselves or to their home life. Commander Charles Steedman, who confessed his support of the union expresses this passion â€Å" I am as I have always been, a Union man-I know no North or South...all that I know is my duty to flag and country† (McPherson, 15). Duty to serve was imperative within the culture of the north. Union ideals were grounded in the ideals that the Founding Fath ers had laid out. Ideals of federal power and love of their country were paramount. Some soldiers often so passionateRead MoreEssay on Cause of the American Civil War1732 Words   |  7 Pages The cause of the American Civil War has been a politicized subject for the past 152 years. There are many different theories for what the main cause is, however the best answer is an all of the above approach. The cause of the war that divided the nation cannot be narrowly defined into a single issue but each cause is affected and tied together. The main causes that resulted in the Civil War were the issue of nullification, tariffs, but most importantly just an overall difference in their ways

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

Marxist Theories Of International Relations - 903 Words

Introduction Since the Cold War came to an end and capitalism stood victorious, it was generally accepted that the ideas of Marx could be declared irrelevant. Marx’s theories were excessively concerned with the role of economics in defining social and political relations. These were also exceedingly pessimistic in their approach, offering hardly any viable option to replace the capitalist system. The core principle of Marxism is that the world is divided not into politically determined nations but into economically determined classes. Subsequently, politics does not supersede economics, but rather economics trumps politics. The various Marxist theories of international relations agree that the international state system was constructed by capitalists and therefore serves the interests of wealthy states and corporations, which seek to protect and expand their wealth. Although, Marx during his own time was not widely appreciated and Marxism can be considered outdated, he still remains an iconic figure of the 19th century. Although Marx left several theories around the theme of international relations, Marxism itself has not yet produced a whole paradigm that tackle the broad problem of international relations in both political and economic dimensions. His theories have had a meaningful influence on academic studies, and while he did not address the field of international relations directly, a lot can be derived from his writings on certain phenomena, such as colonialism andShow MoreRelatedWhy Has Marxism Been Neglected For International Relations?977 Words   |  4 PagesWhy has Marxism been neglected in International Relations? One of the major reasons why Marxism has generally been neglected in International Relations is due to the scarcity of Marxist writing that is specifically focused on this subject. However, it can be argued that due to this paucity of material, Marxist theory has nothing of substantial value to offer with regards to international relations. Non- Marxists argue that the concepts in Marx’s analysis of capitalist production; class, labor, exchangeRead MoreSpeech Relations in Constructivism Theory1599 Words   |  6 Pages Analysis of the speech in relation to Constructivism theory The ideas that countries float and advocate for at times of conflict usually lead to intense war or peace. In constructivism, the major idea is how structures put in place are influenced by persuasive ideas and common beliefs that countries bring into play in the international arena. Politics in the international community is a product of social construction emanating from common values and persuasive ideas asRead MoreThe Major Problems That International Relations1639 Words   |  7 Pages Causes of War One of the major problems that International Relations has been trying to explain is the phenomenon of war and what causes it? War is a state of armed conflict between different states or different groups within a country. War can take on many forms including world, inter-state, intra-state or revolutionary. In order to figure what causes wars, a theoretical approach is useful to expand our understanding and perspective on the issue. The three theoretical approaches we will exploreRead MoreMarxism Of The Cold War And The Triumph Of Capitalism1528 Words   |  7 Pagesof the policies of these so-called Marxist states are often dramatically different and conflicting from the basis of Marxism. Since the end of the Cold War and the triumph of capitalism, it became commonplace to assume that the ideas of Marx could be safely consigned to the dustbin of history. They needed an alternative to capitalism after the failed experiment of the Soviet Union, and after two decades of this, there appears to be a renaissance. Marx theories were seen excessively concerned withRead MoreMarxisms Tools for Contemporary International Relations Essay1619 Words   |  7 Pagesneo-liberal ideologies characterizing the various dimensions of the global order, such as international politics and economics. As the world is homogenizing into neo-liberal capitalist orders, the rich substances of the Marxist school on international relations seem rather distanced. However, this essay will argue the contrary. It seeks to justify that, instead of being irrelevant under the contemporary international relations, Marxism offer vital tools to contest the hegemony of capitalism through criticalRead More Inte rnational Organizations1664 Words   |  7 PagesAccording to Pease (2012), an international organization are conceived as formal institutions whose members are states and these are divided into two sub-groups called intergovernmental organizations (IGO) and non-governmental organizations (NGO). An IGO consists of states that voluntarily join, contribute financially, and assist in the decision making process. All of their members’ resolves, structures, and administrative protocols are clearly outlined in the treaty or charter. An example ofRead MoreGlobal Capitalism And Its Impact On The United States895 Words   |  4 PagesIt is not just the arbitrary concepts of capitalism which have a tendency to expand, under the Marxist understanding of the state, capitalist states will make foreign policy decisions for the benefit of global capitalism. The increased intervention by western states in the Marxist view is about the sole purpose of the expansion of capitalism in the s earch of profit for the companies, using the state as a mobiliser for action towards such an end. Mark Rupert brought forward a case study of such â€Å"imperialism†Read MoreKarl Marx And The Communist Manifesto Essay1691 Words   |  7 Pages(1820-1895), founded the Marxist Theory. Both men were philosophers, however were referred to as revolutionaries. ‘The Communist Manifesto’, was written collaboratively by both Marx and Engels, as they explored the argument that â€Å"history and progress can be seen dialectically as societies shift from one mode of production to another†. This will be argued through a contextual account of Marxism, its development, critiques, and both the dependency theory and critical theory. Marx closely analysedRead MoreThe Politics of International Economic Relations Essay1505 Words   |  7 PagesPolitics of International Economic Relations The purpose of the essay is to draw out the conceptual differences of Liberalism, Realism and Marxism. Each author stands for different approach among the three readings. Deundey and Ikenberry are liberals, Gilpin researches for Realism, David Harvey is a typical scholar of Marxism. The perspectives of three authors overlap on three issues but have different view on them. The first issue is what are the main actors involved in economic relations accordingRead MoreIs Democracy Promotion A Mask For Hegemonic Power?1546 Words   |  7 Pagesoccupation or annexation). Many scholars in international relations have tried to find an answer to these questions, but they are still open to a much debate and discussion. Liberals believe that democracy promotion is an essential action from more prosperous states in order to achieve international peace and protect human rights. However, realists claim that democracies promote their values and principles in order to fulfill their national interest s. Marxist thinkers disagree with both and state that

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

Market Research Plan Bulla Dairy Foods

Question: Discuss about theMarket Research Planfor Bulla Dairy Foods. Answer: Introduction: Bulla Dairy Foods is a dairy company from Australia which manufactures various dairy products for the domestic and international markets. The company was established in the year 1910 and later became a partnership among three families which are interrelated. As stated by Collis and Hussey (2013), the purpose of the report is to develop a market research plan for the organization as the organization is planning to introduce a low calorie chocolate ice cream, in the existing market, thus the research focuses on the consumers of ice cream (Bulla 2016). Statement of Market Research: Chocolate is widely popular among the young generation. The organization is planning to expand its customer domain by introducing low calorie chocolate ice cream in the market. The research is thus aimed to see whether the consumers of Australia will prefer low calorie chocolate ice cream over the regular chocolate ice cream. Research Objectives: To identify the potential consumers. To identify changes in attitudes and behaviour patterns of the consumers To create detailed consumer profiles. Project Scope: This project incorporates creating a dairy product which will address the people of Australia of all ages. According to Kotler et al. (2015), it will give the consumers their preferred taste without compromising their health. It will open a new horizon for the ice cream and dairy industry in Australia. Required Data: The required data are: Number of people who have usually opts for regular chocolate ice cream. Number of monthly chocolate ice cream sells. Age limits of the consumer domain. Health consciousness among the regular chocolate ice cream eaters. Data Collection: As stated by Oliveira et al. (2015), both primary and secondary data will be collected for the research. Primary data will be collected from a survey conducted by the Bulla Dairy Foods from a random sample group of the consumers. The secondary data will be collected from the researches done by the food department of Australia and private researches (Australia 2014). Data Process: The data will be used for statistical measurements which will reveal the market situation where the product will be introduced. Statistical tools like econometrics and correlation will be used for this purpose. Estimates of Time Lines and Costs: To estimate the time lines a Gantt-chart has been produced: Week 1 - 2 Week 3 - 4 Week 5 - 6 Week 7 - 8 Week 9 - 10 Creating project plan and objectives for the research Conduct a literature survey Collecting fund for data gathering purpose Collecting data and operations Interpretation of the results and creating plans for production accordingly Collection of funds for investing on the new product Production trial Table 1: Gantt chart for estimating the time line and costs. Source: As created by the author. Expected Outcomes: Due to less health risks, the low calorie chocolate ice cream will meet a huge market demand from all the age groups. According to Zikmund et al. (2013), this will have a significant impact on the demand for regular chocolate ice creams. Conclusion: The research will show the pattern of demand for low calorie chocolate ice cream. The research will open horizon for this type of products. Health conscious people of Australia with a taste preference for chocolate will opt for this new product. The whole research will take ten weeks to finish. The full fledged production can be started after the trail run. References: Australia, D., 2014. Australian Dairy Industry. Dairy Australia. Available online: www. dairyaustralia. com. au/Industry-information/About-the-industry. aspx. Bulla, (2016). Cream, Ice Cream, Yoghurt, Cheese in Australia | Bulla Family Dairy. [online] Bulla.com.au. Available at: https://www.bulla.com.au/#/ [Accessed 15 Nov. 2016]. Collis, J. and Hussey, R., 2013. Business research: A practical guide for undergraduate and postgraduate students. Palgrave macmillan. Kotler, P., Burton, S., Deans, K., Brown, L. and Armstrong, G., 2015. Marketing. Pearson Higher Education AU. Oliveira, J.D.S., Azevedo, G.M.D.C., Santos, C.D.S.A. and Vasconcelos, S.C.S., 2015. Fair value: model proposal for the dairy sector. Agricultural Finance Review, 75(2), pp.230-252. Zikmund, W.G., Babin, B.J., Carr, J.C. and Griffin, M., 2013. Business research methods. Cengage Learning.

Monday, December 2, 2019

Superstition in Vietnam free essay sample

Each individual will be responsible for writing their own research paper on a specific issue discussed in class. The topic will be the same as the one presented on. It is imperative that students write their own research paper. The minimum length for the paper is 8-10 pages (double spaced, Times New Roman, 12-point font with 1-inch on all sides), not including bibliography. Specific requirements of both the paper and the presentations will be disscused further during class. Each student will also present this paper (approximately 5-10 minutes) and their findings to the class at the end of the semester. After the oral presentation, it is encouraged for all to participate in an active disscusion. Answer: Since a long time ago, people had always been living with the belief in the supernatural force. Needless to say, there have been many stories and cases with the mysterious air around them occuring all over the world, some are pretty hard to believe, while many others happened very close to our lives, it is just so familiar to us that actually scares us the most. We will write a custom essay sample on Superstition in Vietnam or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Believing in this kind of force, for me to say, it is neither good or bad as everything in this world always has two sides depending on the viewer’s perspectives, just like a mirror. However, if the people become too obsessed to the supernatural world , it will bring out many negative affects which surely lead to tragedies, that is what we call â€Å"superstition†. Basically, superstition is the belief in supernatural causality: that one event leads to the cause of another without any physical process linking the two events, such as astrology, omens, witchcraft, etc. , that contradicts natural science. It makes people believe that when certain events happened, which cannot be explained by reason or science, might bring good or bad karma, affect them in positive or negative ways. For short, superstition means blind belief. Superstition is the fear of what is unknown and mysterious, we cannot possibly explain it by science laws and researchs. When it comes to superstition, people have no idea of who or what they are dealing with, superstition has always been there, the invisible existence of this term had appeared since ancient time, then by generations, the seed of superstition is passed down from people to people, from grandparents to parents, then rom parent to their child, etc. Because people at that time couldnot understand the causes of physical changes taking place around them, they were ignorant of the science, which leads to they believing in the supernatural force, for example: respecting and worshipping the force of nature like the sun, the moon, fire, wind, water, storms, etc. Also, they believed that diseases were caused by the wrath of gods as well as evil spirits. They tried to satisfy the gods with offerings, prayers, sacrifices, etc. They tried to ward off evil spirits by offering sacrifices. Sacrifice of birds and animals to please the gods and goddesses and to atone for ones sins in a common practice. We can also see this in the way of definition of social norms influecing behavior, they are unspoken but shared rules of conduct in a formal or informal group, in this case, it is the superstition that is passed and ruled in the social. People generally adhere to social norms, however at times they make errors in perceiving these norms and in interpreting the social world by norm misperception –pluralistic ignorance, just like the superstition rumour with harmless intention but by receiving the message wrong, people misunderstand it and thus, it become dangerous. That is to say, even nowaday, at the era of science blooming, many countries, including developed countries like United State, or China, etc, still have many kind of superstition behaviors. Almost all of the superstition are just old stoies or traditions or rumours passed from mouth to mouth, which we do not actually see or feel them, they are just neither true or false, depending on the viewer’s perspectives. They are kinda harmless if we just ignore or just don’t know them yet. Here are some of the superstition in Vietnam: One of the most interesting superstitions of Vietnam is the belief in the wandering soul. Wandering Souls Day Vu Lan Day is the second largest festival of the year (Tet is the first). It is held on the 15th day of the seventh lunar month every year at the Hoi An pagodas. It is believed to bring absolution of the soul. This is especially true in the case of parents; it allows their wandering souls to return home safely. The Vietnamese celebrate this holiday with many ceremonies including the floating of lights down the rivers at night to guide the lost souls to Nirvana. Another superstition is the burning of spirit money. When it comes the specific days like fullmoon or a family member’s death ceremony there will be the altars and the $100 bills being peeled off individually and arefully offered into the burning embers of a clay pot outside the family home. This money is offered to the deceased ones to use to pay down the remainder of his or her debt and to be able to obtain a body and fate to pursue their karmic journey, etc. So these are the samples of superstition with deep belief. I personally think that there is absolutely nothing wrong with believe in traditions like that, in fact, I think this is a good way of paying respect and homage to our ancestors, since the ancestors are the ones having brought us into this world. As a way to thank them nourishing us and having prepared the conditions under which we grew up, it is like a way to pay back them by looking after their afterlives and spiritual body. Basically, this is the kind of tradition suprstition we should keep and follow. But just like the water reflecting everything, there are always two side of this matter. Even without any evidence and science explaination, many people blindly believe and follow these rumour without knowing they are right or wrong. For example, don’t express lavish admiration for a new baby, because the devils might hear you and steal the child because of his desirability. When going somewhere on business, avoid seeing a woman first, if you do see a woman first as you go out your door or on the way, postpone the trip. Mirrors are often placed on front doors, if a dragon tries to get in, he will see his reflection and think that there is already a dragon there and go away. Single bowls of rice and chopsticks should not be served, always place at least two on a table, one bowl is for the dead. Never let chopsticks touch others or make unnecessary noise with them, do not place chopsticks in food and leave them there. Do not hand someone a toothpick. Never buy one pillow or mattress pad, always buy two. Do not use relative’s towels. Do not overturn musical instruments, or beat both sides of a drum simultaneously. Do not cut finger and toenails at night. Going dutch with a Vietnamese is not appreciated. If you run into someone at a restaurant and you join his table, let him pay the whole bill or pay it all yourself. The senior person usually pays. Gifts for brides and grooms are usually given in pairs, including blankets, a single item indicates the marriage is not expected to last long, two less expensive items are more desired than one nicer one. Educated people and others who are not in the peasant class do not work with their hands, to do so would appear to try to beat a poor peasant out of his job. In addition, it is considered beneath the dignity of refined people. Hats are not usually worn inside churches, even Catholic ones. And don’t take photo of three people posing, otherwise the middle one will die, etc. As we can see, most of these superstition belief is kind of like made-up rumours, without any of the believers actually experiences it, though they just blindly accept it as a part of their daily lives, trying their best to avoid it. What I am trying to say here is that we are all being influenced by the social without realizing it. Essentially, it is what we call â€Å"mass hysteria†. To definite â€Å"mass hysteria† in psychologic term, it is a form of groupthink, in which several people with something in common begin to think in the same way. In mass hysteria, the group members all develop a common fear that often spirals into a panic. The group members feed off each others emotional reactions, causing the panic to escalate. A popular case involving mass hysteria had happened for the last few month and become a hot issue, that is the case of some man in Tiringoulou Town, Africa lost their penis because of a handshake. The rumour is about two local mans, when shaking hand with a certain strange foreign traveller after he buying a cup of tea, they suddenly felt a ray of electric shock run across their body. They realized that their bottom parts were becoming smaller and smaller till it totally disappeared. They screamed in pain which drew attention of other people around. As a result, this rumour became a seed of anxiety, which scare around 2000 mans in the local area, made them afraid of greeting others by shaking hands. This is surely an unique case, however it is not the only one. Like in 1967, there was this Koro incident, many mens experieced the belief that their genitals were getting smaller or dissapearing entirely. For the lat two century, there were many reports involving this rumour had been seen around the world. â€Å"Losing penis† has become a disease that makes the Western and the Africa and the Asian mans afraid most. The real cause of this superstition is never revealed, though just because of rumour spreading like that had made the people in chaos and riots all over the world. From this case we can see how easily people are influence by the social, when many people speak of one thing, wether it is true or false, we will also start to believe in it too. And because of that, many religions and organizations takes advantage of superstition to spread their power and influent, doing bad things to the social. Which leads to many people have been commiting crimes based on the superstition they now, as well as many others taking advantage of this to control blind believing and illiteracy people. That is truly unforgiven. Unaccountable serious cases involving superstition are happening around people without us aware of that. For example, here is a serious case of superstition happened in Vietnam that leads to the deaths of a member in the family. The case began with this family in Binh Dinh province, wit hin one week, two members of the family suddenly passed away, due to this incident, the other members started to fell unsafe and anxious of evil spirit. After knowing about the family situation, a women named Huynh Thi Huu Duyen (born in 1986, Quy Nhon city) approached them and took advantage of them. The family included Mr. No Ngoc Duy (born in 1948, Binh Dinh province), with his wife (also the victim) Tran Thi Lieu, and his daughter Ngo Thi Thom. When Miss. Thom was working in Ho Chi Minh City, she met Duyen and became friend with her. The relationship between them was really deep, to the point Duyen was even considered as another member of Mr. Duy’s family. The tragedy started when Mrs. Lieu’s mother passed away at the end of the year 2008. After the ceremony, just a few days later, Mrs. Lieu’s older sister also suddenly died, although she had no sign of illness or any other disease, she was a really strong women. From that that onward, Mr. Duy’s family started living in fear, this double death made quite a riot over the local area. And so, Mr. Duy’s family went to a famous shaman’s house in hope of clear the spiritual force that haunt them. But after looking at the case, the shaman said that these all happened due to Mrs. Lieu’s mother passing away at such a bad time, leading to the death of her daughter and would continue to bring bad karma to the famiy. Duyen heard and saw everyhing in the story because all the time, she was there with the family. But instead of comforting the pain of the family and ease the anxiety of supersition, Duyen took advantage of the situation and talked to Mr. Duy’s family that someone else was telling her because they were living with bad virtue, they now had to take bad luck. If they hadn’t worship the God carefully, Mrs. Duyen will be next in line. And because of that, Mr. Duy had to spend a lot of money to ask Duyen doing the worship, he even sold everything in the house to continue the worship. The case became really serious at the start of 2009 new year, Duyen said that the God had told her in dream that Mrs. Lieu would get the bad karma and die, thus, she also said that she can worship to overcome the situation. Blindly believe in Duyen, at month 9 of the year 2009, Mrs. Duyen went to Ho Chi Minh city to meet Duyen at her house. Duyen helped her buy many sacrifices like fruits, chickens, etc, to give to the God. But not only bringing sacrifices, Duyen also said that she had to make Mrs. Lieu feel pain by hitting and kicking her, so that the God would forsaken her. The serious crime happened at 14/8/2010, when Duyen was kicking Mrs. Duyen continuously, made her unable to breath. Seeing that Miss Thom and other family member stopped her and took Mrs. Lieu to hospital, but it was too late, Mrs. Lieu passed away while being taken to the hospital. Mr. Duy after that sued Duyen, asked her for a compensation of 65 million dongs for the loss in mental and physical. For Duyen, she was then sentenced for 4 years in jaw and give back every assets Mr. Duy gave her along with 65 million dongs compensation. What is need to consider in here is about both Duyen and Mr. Duy’s family, it’s true that Duyen is the one with the biggest responsibility, but we also cannot ignore the stupidity and blindly belief of Mr. Duy’s family. They knew about this all along, yet, when Mrs. Lieu was being violenced brutally, no one intercept and stop it, they were just watching there with the blind belief that was the right thing to do. This case is just one of many supersition cases happening around the world. In my opinion, superstition is not a thing we should judge blindly, there is no such thing as good or bad in this matter, to determine it, we have to question both the people with blind belief and the people takig advantage of it. Superstition has and always been a part of our life, we cannot just throw it away, but if a person believing too much in superstitions he will always be haunted by unknown fears and anxieties, he loses self-confidence. We have to learn how to co-exist with it, not blindly become its slve. In order to do that, we have to choose carefully what kind of superstition that need to be keep and what kind of ignorance superstition should be forgotten forever. Thus, gradually as the light of knowledge grows brighter, born of darkness, as the superstitions are, they cannot stand the light. I believe that one day, superstition will remain with importance traditions and good lifestyle, with eventually bad superstitions and bad people taking advantage of it will vanish forever.