Negative Effects of War Essay

In â€Å"How to Tell a True War Story,† Tim O’Brien presents many themes within his story. One major theme is the negative effects of war on a soldier. Many situations arise in the story that bring out the theme to make it easy to understand for the reader. The effects of war can be very harmful to a soldier’s life, and he or she can be scarred forever. When Bob Kiley’s friend, Curt Lemon, dies at the beginning of the story, Kiley takes the time to write Lemon’s sister. He wrote about what a good guy Lemon was and the many adventures that he took. Kiley explained that Lemon was a dare devil and a soldier that loved what he did. Bob Kiley did not have to write to his friend’s sister at all, but he did it out of kindness. He poured his heart out into the letter because he wanted his friend’s sister to understand what a great guy he was. O’Brien’s narrator tells the reader that, â€Å"[h]e says he loved the guy. He says the guy was his best friend in the world. They were like soul mates, he says, like twins or something, they had a whole lot in common† (O’Brien 347). Kiley went into detail about some events, but he wanted this girl to know everything. He sent the letter and he waited for two months for one in return. She never sent Bob Kiley a letter back and he got upset. The negative effects of war made him go into detail about the story and that may have made the sister not write him. When a soldier sends a letter to someone, all they want is one in return. It makes them feel good when they know someone is at home thinking about them too. War can make a soldier feel alone and having someone to write to can make them feel wanted. Kiley felt alone and used when he did not get a letter in return. He wrote the letter out of kindness and all he wanted was a thank you from the girl. If she would have sent Kiley a letter in return he would have felt better about himself. When Curt Lemon died, the story portrays his death three different times. Each time his death is told it is told in different ways. Curt Lemon’s death was caused by a booby-trap buried in the ground. The story portrays him floating into the sunlight through the trees. The negative effects of war can cause soldiers to remember someone’s death in detail. They remember him being blown into pieces as he was killed. Remembering vivid details about someone else’s death can cause disturbing flashbacks in a soldier’s life. The death of Curt Lemon caused Bob Kiley to take out his frustration on a baby water buffalo. When they stopped to rest for the night Kiley takes an unexpected turn and shoots the buffalo in the leg. He continuously tortures the animal, as the others soldiers watch in disbelief. O’Brien’s narrator tells the reader that, â€Å"[t]he whole platoon stood there watching, feeling all kinds of things, but there wasn’t a great deal of pity for the baby water buffalo† (O’Brien 352). The buffalo takes the torture and never reacts. The negative effects of war caused Bob Kiley to do something that no one could ever believe doing. He lost his best friend, so he took his pain out on the water buffalo. Any soldier in their right mind would have enough sense not to kill an animal, but the negative effects of war can change people. Kiley will never be the same because of the things he had to endure during his time of duty. War can change a soldier in many ways. They may go home and never be the same as before they left. Often, soldiers will tell stories, but they will not be entirely true. O’Brien’s narrator tells the reader that, â€Å"[i]n war you lose your sense of the definite, hence your sense of truth itself, and therefore it’s safe to say that in a true war story nothing much is ever very true† (O’Brien 354). The negative effects of war can be very harmful to a soldier’s life.

Maya Angelou Essay

In Maya Angelou autobiography ‘I know why the caged bird sings’ many themes and issues are looked at. This autobiography shows the difficulty of a black woman growing up surrounded by discrimination and poverty, but also shows her determination, joy and hope. Maya Angelou describes her relationship with many character, this in it self is a theme of her writing, the way she sees people in her own light. Some characters that may be seen to be good people are changed by Maya’s opinion. A good example of this is the contrast between Maya’s mother and Maya’s father’s girlfriend. If both these characters were described, the father’s girlfriend maybe considers the better person. This is not the case after reading this book, as Maya has a way of making the reader see these characters as she sees them. After the separation of Maya Angelou’s parents she and her brother Bailey were sent away to live with her grandmother when Maya was only three. This must have been a terrible experience for a young child to go through, which some may think would have left Maya with resentment towards her mother. In fact this was quite the opposite. When Maya meet her mother again after she left her, Maya discarded the fact that she sent her away. She describes how as soon as she saw her mother, the nights she spent crying for her was forgotten. ‘I knew immediately why she had sent me away. She was too beautiful to have children. ‘(Maya Angelou, 1984, P58) This was Maya’s way of justifying her mother actions. Even if it maybe considered a bad thing what her mother did, Maya still thought she was wonderful. Later on in this book Maya’s mother did another bad thing. She shot someone twice, which again maybe considered a bad thing to do. ‘Since she had intended to shoot him (notice: shoot, not kill) she had no reason to run away, so she shot him a second time. – He had been shot, true, but in her fairness she had warned him. ‘(Maya Angelou, 1984, pages 202 and 203) The language used when Maya describes this event show she thinks that this is not a major or bad thing that has happened. Maya again shows her mother as not a bad person even though what she has done is wrong. Maya’s mother was also believed to be a prostitute; Maya believes this too but again discards the idea because she knew that if that were true then she wouldn’t be able to live with her, which she wanted to. Even though Maya’s mother could be considered a bad mother, Maya thinks extremely highly of her. This can be seen from the choice of lexis, Maya uses to describe her mother. Maya always used nice words such as ‘beautiful’, ‘warm’, ‘glorious’. Maya is also enthusiastic when talking about her mother. At one point Maya goes to stay with her father and his girlfriend. Maya believed that being her mother was so beautiful, any woman her father was with after her mother would have been just as beautiful if not more. This was the start of Maya’s disappointment when meeting her stepmother. Maya disliked Dolores (her stepmother); you could tell this from the contrast in tones, from the happy tone when see talks about her mother to the dull and spiteful tone used when describing Dolores. ‘If Dolores had been a little less aloof, a little more earthy†¦ – She was mean and petty and full of pretense. ‘(Maya Angelou, 1984, pages 222 and 223) Dolores theoretically was a good, honest person. She was a good, hardworking wife; she took Maya into her home and treated her well. Even though this, she is still seen as the bad one by the end of this part, from the way Maya talks about her. Maya uses mean words to describe Dolores, and is also sarcastic towards her when talking about her and their home. ‘She was on close terms with her washing machine and ironing board. ‘(Maya Angelou, 1984, P221) This shows one of the sarcastic phases used by Maya Angelou. It also shows that Maya was not the innocent party in her conflict with her stepmother. Maya went out of her way to irritate Dolores and to make her jealous of Maya relationship with her father. Dolores still comes of as the bad one at the end, after an argument with Maya. Maya tries to be nice to Dolores, but Dolores ends up calling Maya’s mother a ‘whore’. Even though this is possibly true and Maya questions this, she still defends her mother. It is Maya that makes the first attack on Dolores; Maya justifies her behaviour, which leaves her looking the better person. ‘What did she expect if she called my mother a whore? ‘ (Maya Angelou, 1984, P239) Another character who has an unexpected outcome is the dentist, Dr Lincoln. At one stage Maya, as a child was in a lot of pain with toothache. At the Maya was living with her grandmother in Stamps. The nearest Negro dentist to them was twenty-five miles away, which was too far for Maya to travel in such pain. As a result Maya’s grandmother took her to a dentist near by that owed her a favour. Many would believe a dentist to be a respectable, good, reliable person. This was not the case of Dr Lincoln. He refused to help a child in pain, even though Maya’s grandmother stopped him losing his business by lending him money. When speaking to Maya’s grandmother, Dr Lincoln was very abrupt and rude to her. He did not even acknowledge Maya, or the fact her face was swollen and she was in pain. ‘I’d rather stick my hand in a dog’s mouth than in a nigger’s'(Maya Angelou, 1984, P184) This was the harsh phase that Dr Lincoln used. This also shows discrimination and racism, another major theme in Maya Angelou’s autobiography. After Dr Lincoln refuses to help, Maya’s grandmother follows him in his office. When she later describes what happened she says that Dr Lincoln and the nurse were as ‘thick as thieves’. This is a simile used to accentuate Dr Lincoln characteristics. From the way Maya Angelou has written her autobiography ‘I know why the caged bird sings’ she has managed to successfully express peoples true characters. People that may be considered to have a good character such as Dr Lincoln have been shown for who they really are. This has been done by the choice of lexis and the tones that she has used to create different atmospheres when describing certain characters.

Compare and Contrast the Three Categories of Scope

Question 1: Compare and contrast the three categories of scope of charge to income tax A modern form of income tax was introduced into Federation of Malaya in 1947 by using the derived and remittance basis. Income Tax Act (ITA) 1967 came into effect has imposed world income basis on the resident company involved in specialized industries. Malaysia adopted a territorial and remittance. With effect of year of assessment of 2004, taxation basis amended to exempt income remitted into Malaysia from oversea.Until now, Malaysia income tax imposed on territorial basis that tax on income accrued in or derived from Malaysia. The revolution of these three taxation basis has different scope of charge to resident person and non-resident person. The individual and company residence status and also the sources of income are examined under three basis to determine which kind of income received by taxable person should be taxed. Resident status is determined by the number of day physically presence w ithin the country where generally individual stay in Malaysia total 182 days or more will be a resident.Territorial basis: Under territorial basis which Malaysia is applying currently, taxable person such as individual, company or bodies of person is chargeable only on income accruing in or derived from Malaysia. Income arising within Malaysia borders means the territories of the Federation of Malaysia, the territorial waters of Malaysia and the sea-bed and sub-soil of territorial waters and any area extending beyond the limits of the territorial waters of Malaysia are subjected to tax.In this scope of charge, resident and non resident individual and company are all taxable on its income derived from Malaysia only. Non resident company taxed on income accrued or derived from Malaysia if it has permanent establishment in Malaysia. Derived and Remittance Basis: This scope of charge provided that resident person is chargeable on income accruing in or derived from Malaysia and also inco me received in Malaysia from oversea.Prior to year of assessment of 2004, only non-resident are exempted from tax on foreign source income received in Malaysia. Income remitted into Malaysia from oversea by resident person is taxable before 2004 until the effective year of assessment in 2004, a revised paragraph 28 Schedule 6 ITA exempts the income of any person including resident person received in Malaysia except those resident company carrying business on specialized industry that will be discussed later in world income basis.World income basis Resident company and non-resident company are taxed on territorial basis except for resident company carrying on business in specialized industries such as banking, insurance, sea and air transport. Under Section 60C of ITA, 1967, business sources income from these industries are taxed on world income basis. This means that business income of resident company will be imposed on tax regardless of wherever the income derived even if income a rises outside the country where individual resides.Question 2: Discuss the relevance of the three categories on the types of income received by a taxable person. These three categories of taxation basis imposed on different kind of income received by taxable person. Territorial or derived Basis In the scope of territorial basis, taxable person such as resident and non-resident individual and company excluded company carrying in specialized industry such as banking, insurance, sea and air transporter are taxed on income derived in Malaysia.Non-resident individual and company do not taxed on income received in Malaysia from oversea. Under section 4(a) ITA, income tax is imposed on gains and profit of a business. Resident and non-resident company that earn profit from their normal business activity in Malaysia are liable to tax as in accordance to the territorial basis stated that any income accrued and derived in Malaysia must be taxed. Business income for resident company are general ly taxable but non-resident company only taxable provided they has permanent establishment in Malaysia.For example, business profit gained from Hwa Tai Industries Berhad, local biscuit manufacturer company that does not fall under special industry is taxable based on resident company tax rate of 25%. Another example for non-resident company cases such as company Seesaw ltd carrying business of clothing manufacturer, it will be taxed only on business source income from clothing in Malaysia. Besides, this basis provided that employment income derived from Malaysia for resident and non-resident individual under section 4(b) of ITA 1967 is hargeable to tax. For examples, Mr. Erick Lund from Sweden who is a non-resident works in Shell company is liable to tax for his employment income. However for non-resident individual, they are also subjected to tax on the income of employment exercised in Malaysia but they are exempted if they satisfied the 60 day rule under paragraph 21 and 22 Sched ule 6. Although tax liability arise when income accrued in or derived from Malaysia in territorial basis, there are numerous types of income are exempted from tax in the hand of resident individual.Resident individual can enjoy the benefit of tax exemption such as pension income paid for Malaysian employment for approved scheme (paragraph 30, Schedule 6 of ITA) , royalties for literary and artistic (paragraph 32, 32A, 32B), income for cultural performance approved by minister (paragraph 32C), income for musical composition (paragraph 32D) and also interest income from financial institution with effect from 30 August 2008.Other types of investment income that did not listed fall in Section 4 (c), (d), (e), (f) are generally taxable for resident individual. Revenue income that is assessable to tax includes interest received for Islamic securities, other than convertible loan stock, approved by securities commission and rental income. For examples, Mrs Lim who works as a clerk in accou nting firm also received income from renting her apartment to few people.Apart from employment income as clerk is taxable under section 4 ( b), her rental income also liable to tax under section 4 ( d). For non-resident individual, they are subjected to tax on the income of employment exercised in Malaysia as mentioned above and also exempted for pension income paid for Malaysian employment for approved scheme, interest received Islamic securities and also interest from financial institution.However, they are taxable on royalties, income for cultural performance, income for musical composition. royalties for literary and artistic, income for cultural performance approved by minister, income for musical composition and also interest income from financial institution in paragraph 33, Schedule 6. References: 1. Inland Revenue Board Malaysia, 2011. Residence Status of Companies and Bodies of Persons. [online] Inland Revenue Board Malaysia. Available at:<

Review on the readings below Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Review on the readings below - Essay Example At full capacity of its pipeline, Azerbaijan’s revenues rose to $20 billion, growing by a third every year (De Waal 171). In 1994, the government signed a $10 billion contract with nine foreign companies, which created the Azerbaijan International Operating Company (AIOC). From these contracts, Azerbaijan used oil to become a politically visible country. Until present times, Caspian energy remains a strategic tool in the political decisions and foreign affairs of the U.S. in the region. Thomas de Waal is a British journalist and a writer on the Caucasus. He is a valid source on the Caspian issues because he has written several books and articles on them. What is most interesting in the chapter is how oil has become the center of political battlefield in Azerbaijan. The familiarity with such issues is only in the Middle East, but it is clear that the South Caucasus also presented the same political-economic nexus. The chapter is relevant to the course because it shows how widespread the oil war is, both economically and politically. Chapter 7 narrates the rise of modern Georgia, its Rose Revolution and other internal and regional conflicts. The Rose Revolution of November 2003 aimed to establish a democratic society and to enhance human rights and living conditions. At the same time, it wanted to decrease corruption and improve the national economy. Corruption was most prominent in 1999, under President Eduard Shevardnadze. Dismal economic conditions lasted until 2003. The Rose Revolution was initiated by the military to generate political and economic changes. However, conflicts continued afterwards because of the failure of the new government in addressing reforms and the remaining tension between Georgia and Russia. Chapter 7 provides a good example of a government that was changed from within through military intervention and not through any other popular

Analysis and critique of an lecture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Analysis and critique of an lecture - Essay Example He claims that 8/10 people worldwide have a religious affiliation with which they identify. He contends that even 68% atheists have a religion aspect that they follow in their life. He attributes the growth to Religion as having an effect on growth on people who have a following in any particular faith. He claims that on average, atheists are more than a decade older in comparison with those religiously affiliated. He supports this argument by offering an example of the Muslim community, which worldwide, has many women who are in the childbearing age. His argument on age in relation to religion, which he bases on findings that he has looked at, tries to show the importance of religion to an economic growth. Even so, that claim remains largely contestable. He observes that religious freedom is under threat in nearly all parts of the world. Such a threat comes mostly from government and social organization. He notes that 43% of countries are in threat of religious freedom. To support his assertions, he gives examples of government restrictions that exist in different countries. Brian is right to note that animosity arises when social religious groups then endeavor to free themselves from these restrictions. Professor Brian is trying to show the increasing religious intolerance even with increased activity to quell it by international agencies. By this, he also brings out the problem of international business interaction that is growing by day as connected with religious feuds being witnessed particular where resources are unfairly distributed based on religion and sects. He points out how social hostility is advanced mostly by sectarian groups. They exist in countries that have government restrictions. That way, Professor Brian tries to show the connection between government restriction and the current increase in sectarian war. He points out that when he goes out to give talks on the

Paper on engineering failure with guidelines Essay

Paper on engineering failure with guidelines - Essay Example One of the most epic sea engineering failures was seen in the 1912 during the Titanic accident that saw many lives and property perish in helpless circumstances. In 1912, the world ever largest ship sunk deep into the ocean leading to over 1500 deaths due to poor safety designs by the engineers during its construction (Lisbon 36). The impact with the iceberg in the middle of the ocean. The expert expressed their concern that the engineer’s key failure was allowing aesthetic value to take the center of the construction while disregarding safety designs. Research has found that the engineers were the primary cause of the inability to have adequate security infrastructure. In fact, the initial design had included two rows of lifeboats under the deck; however, the designers removed one row in order to create ample space for passengers views. The nature of the error was largely technological and reverse priority. During the accident, the iceberg buckled the popped plates leading to gushing of water into the transverse bulkheads that were reduced to allow for spacious first-class rooms (Lisbon 67). Probably the ship would have withstood the iceberg had the original design been executed. The fundamental principle of the security had been catered for in the original design. Following a disaster, there were changes in policy to increase the heights of the double hulls transverse bulkheads that will reach the sides of ships in the future. The engineers most important lesson was the importance of enhancing security measures in ship designs as number one priority (Lisbon 125). Macdonald & Jones (2006) article on Sustainable Drainage System (SUDs) presents a case study at Glasgow introduces an engineering design of drainage systems in cities and urban centers. The authors use Glasgow as one of the cities in the world with a classical SUDs

An ethical dilemma for the new CEO of Cheryl Tobin Essay

An ethical dilemma for the new CEO of Cheryl Tobin - Essay Example The CEO should lead this team that would be handpicked by her in order to ensure that the internal employees cannot hamper the investigations. This is because it should be remembered that the CEO has no concrete evidence of a fraud in the company and the basis of the CEO’s thoughts are largely based on reports reported from external sources that can be largely dubbed as rumors. Acting on rumors and engaging an external agency would not only harm the company’s reputation but would also take the CEO on a collision course with the other senior management members. Only if the initial inquiry reflects frauds, then an external agency can be hired so as to ensure minimal damage to the reputation of the organization. It would also ensure that the employees and the senior management would not vary of the fact that the CEO who has been hired from an external organization is not hell-bent on finding flaws and imposing her individual style of working in the organization. Moreover, the findings of the internal audit committee can be very well concealed within the organization so that remedial measures can be initiated and that there is no harm in the reputation of the organization. A hasty decision of conducting an external inquiry can only aggravate matters and can have disastrous implication on the business prospects of the organization. It would also reflect an autocratic leadership style of the CEO that would eventually not help in improving the situation and would make matters worse in the long run.... Since all the financial documents are to be signed by the directors any frauds reported within the company makes them personally liable to criminal prosecution (Ashcroft & Ashcroft, p.412). Moreover, with the CEO being appointed by the board of directors makes the CEO answerable to them. It also questions the ethical dimensions of the CEO as it is the duty of the same to report matters to the board. The powers vested to the CEO are largely for the purpose of acting on the behalf of the board and to make the CEO answerable for the day to day affairs of the organization. Hence the CEO was very correct in initiating a probe into the matter. Examples from real life also suggest unfair and corrupt practices should not be encouraged in any organization. These malpractices may give short term gains but it is clear from the history of companies like Enron that unethical practice if not checked can lead to a complete downfall of the organization (BBC News, â€Å"Enron Scandal at a Glanceâ₠¬ ). Issues like negative sentiments coming in the wake of an enquiry into the scandals should not pose as a hindrance or an obstacle to the enquiry process as it ignorance in the long term can have very serious implications. This can also be inferred from the manner in which Boeing had to pay huge amounts as a fine towards fraudulent transactions and activities of the company. However rather than suddenly taking a decision to hire an external agency for the investigation, first the CEO can carry out an internal monitoring and supervision of the books of accounts of the company. The CEO should lead this team that would be handpicked by her in order to ensure that the