Mafia Essays - Transnational Organized Crime, Mexican Drug War

Mafia The Mafia is an organized crime organization that has been around for an extremely long time. The honored society developed back in Western Sicily and Palermo (The Mafia Homepage, www.geocities.com). In the ninth century, the Arab forces occupied the small island of Sicily. The Sicilians were oppressed and took refuge in the hills of there homeland. As they spent time in the hills as refugees, these Sicilians took it upon themselves to form a secret society to unite the Sicilian forces against the Norman's and Arab's. This organization was known better as the Mafia (Omerta, users.aol.com). Mafia is a word that has originated from the Arabic language and its meaning is refuge (Mafia History, mafiasite.8m.com). This society had the intent to create a family based on their ancestry and Sicilian heritage. In the 1700's they distributed pictures of black hands to the wealthy people. This was an unspoken request for an amount of money in return for protection of them and there families. If the money wasn't paid the people in that house could expect violence brought upon them and their family (Omerta, users.aol.com). By the end nineteenth century, the Sicilian Mafia had grown larger, more extensive, powerful, and more criminally oriented than in the past. They were coming down from the hillsides and some of them were even getting involved in politics running for office and ocasionally winning. This was greatly adding to the Mafia's power in Sicily (Mafia History, mafiasite.8m.com). In 1876 Mafia leader Don Rafael Palizzolo ran for office in Sicily. He forced some citizens to vote for him under gunpoint. When he won elected fellow member of the Mafia Don Crispi as Prime Minister. These two put Sicily under control of the Mafia and gave much of the governments funds to the Mafia (Omerta, users.aol.com). By 1900 the Mafia controlled most of the Western third of the island. These ?Mafia men? took control of local government offices and took over management positions in fa ctories and and bought out/took over estates (The Mafia Homepage, www.geocities.com). By 1924 the Mafia had become so powerful it attracted Mussolini's attention He wanted to rid Italy and Sicily of this secret society. This led to migration of the Mafia members to the United States. In its first years in the U.S. the Mafia based itself right in the heart of New Orleans, this was the largest site of Mafia ever. (Mafia History, mafiasite.8m.com). With thousands of members of the Mafia migrating to the United States the Mafia would slowly take control of Major U.S. Cities such as New York, Chicago, Nevada, Havana, and much more of the U.S. (The Mafia Homepage, www.geocities.com). The Mafia formed La Cosa Nostra in the U.S. This was an organization of all the new Mafia families in the U.S. La Cosa Nostra united all the families to try to keep peace between them (Mafia History, mafiasite.8m.com). At the turn of the century the American Mafia was much different from the Sicilian Mafia in many ways. First the European Maria was founded on a sense of loyalty and respect for culture, family, and the Sicilian heritage. The Mafia was to protect its members in return for absolute loyalty to the Mafia family. The Sicilian Mafia valued the code of ?omerta?, which is the code of honor and silence. They were strict to the ruling that this was a secret society that was only open to those of Sicilian blood. The American Mafia is much different. They are a conniving, cold-hearted organization. They have a number of glorified thieves such as pickpockets and murderers. It began with much of the Sicilian Mafia's heritage but evolved into an organization that's just out to make some money illegally. The American Mafia uses extortion, bootlegging, prostitution, gambling, kidnapping, and murder to get what they want (Omerta, users.aol.com). The Mafia has been around for a very long time. They started as an organization to just protect their interests and now their using many illegal methods to make money. My grandmother is Antoinette Cuccia; her father was part of the Sicilian Mafia. Bibliography Bibliography Omerta, The History of the American Mafia, http// users.aol.com/whizkid01/hist.html Mafia History, http//mafiasite.8m.com/cgi-bin/framed/2067/history.htm The Mafia Homepage, http//www.geocites.com/Hollywood/Academy/5854/main.htm Legal Issues

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand Atlas shrugged is a novel written by Ayn Rand and published in 1957. It is one of Rand’s famous novels and the last one which she wrote during her career as an artist. The idea behind writing the novel was to empower the shakers and movers of a nation in fighting for their rights.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The term atlas refer to the pillars of a society, that is the people who put a lot of effort and determination in their work but are exploited and are not rewarded according to their work. Rand recognizes another group in the society, the majority, who work below average and expect to have the same standards of living as the atlas. The novel is to some extent a fiction that explains the exploitation faced by employees in their places of work. This paper explains and gives a wider significance of the words, â€Å"to make money, hold the essen ce of morality†. It also gives the ideas that oppose the maxims â€Å"money is the root of all evil†, and â€Å"money is the root of all good†. Rand novel explores the history of china when people were taught on the real meaning of morality which means to share. People were encouraged to work according to their ability but every citizen would receive equal reward. Distribution of resources was based on needs rather than their potential to work. This high morality in other words referred to as, the altruism, is still held by many Chinese. In the past, no one was allowed to hold private property and everything was owned by the society. Every individual was allowed to enjoy this property as a way of maintaining harmony in the country. Monopolies were seen as areas of exploitation of employees and that’s why private property was discouraged. The essence of morality was viewed as a way of fighting poverty by ensuring that all citizens live equally irrespective of the ability to work or education. However, Rand strongly opposed altruistic view. According to her, altruistic is a way of suppressing the people who work above average ability and hence it would never be a means of maintaining harmony in a country (Younkins, 101). Rand recognized that, the worship of moral codes would result in moral hazard because they do not give incentives to work and no matter the efforts one puts, he is entitled to receive the same reward as his neighbor who spends the whole day in the house. At first, those below the average will become wealthy because they may receive a share of the wealth that belonged to the minority group who happen to be the above average workers. Advertising Looking for essay on american literature? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More However, the minority are not naà ¯ve as to realize the exploitation imposed on them and may refuse to work or to show their intelligence . Instead of a nation living happily thereafter, it will continue experiencing a decline in its economic performance as long as the moral codes are held. Lack of incentive to employees will result in a declining economy as they withhold their ability and intelligent. People with the capability of becoming the pillars of the society will hind their intelligence to prevent themselves from exploitation, and as a result, the incapable will occupy high occupations in the government or industries, not because they have the ability to move them, but because, the minorities (smart people) have refused to be exploited. Production will continue to drop as a result of poor management until the government realizes the importance of incentives to workers. However, if the government continues to hold moral codes (as in the case of Washington), production will continue to drop. In Rand’s book we find that, the pillars of the society (atlas) were not satisfied with the way world was perform ing in the essence of morality (Younkins, 173). They wanted to bring change to the society because they were confident that, they were responsible for bringing converting it. However, they became enemies to the public for trying to divert from moral codes. They still held their position and were confident that a nation would not grow economically if moral codes were valued at the expense of employee recognition. In the story of Atlas shrugged, Rand opposed the maxims that, â€Å"money is the root of all evil†. Many people believe that, the evils that exist in society are a result of money, however this is not true. Rand asserts that, money act as the exchange medium where goods are produced (by men). If no goods were produced, money would just be pieces of paper. To get money, you have to earn it through applying the ability one has. That’s why we have doctors, artists, teachers, farmers, and the list is endless engaging themselves in different activities. Advertisin g We will write a custom essay sample on Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Rand refuted the claim that money is the root of all evil and observed that, for one to survive, he needs money. Money is honestly earned by those who have the ability and are willing to work. It is given out to compensate efforts made by others. Money circulates from one person to another making live bearable for all. For instances, the pieces of paper we hold in our pockets can not be transformed into bread by use of guns. We have to go to the baker and exchange it with some loafs of bread. On the other hand, the baker uses it for other goods as well as for purchasing raw materials for more production (Younkins, 117). Without money (or a medium of exchange) it would be difficult to live since no one would be willing to work. They are things we cannot be able to produce even if we wanted to and therefore we have to respect the peopl e who have the capability of producing them by offering money in exchange for their products or services. In order to access electricity we have to pay some money to go to the people with the knowledge and capability of producing it. In turn this money is used to pay rent, obtain food and other necessities required for survival (Younkins, 118). Therefore, we cannot define money as the root of all evil because it is a measure of value for everything on earth. It becomes evil if it is misused. For, instance, there are people who use money for sexual satisfaction or to obtain favors which they do not deserve for certain services. People do not become wealthy by chance but because of their willingness to put their mind at work for inventions and discoveries. Money is just a tool and a means for satisfaction but can not termed as the root of all good. Money can be used to buy everything one wants but can not buy happiness or love. It is for one to recognize want he wants in life and us e money as a tool to help him reach his dreams. Money cannot be used to purchase intelligent for a person who does not want to be intelligent nor can it be used to buy respect for the hopeless. Younkins, Edward Wayne. Any Rand’s Atlas shrugged: a philosophical and literary companion. New York: Ashgate Publishing, ltd., 2007.Advertising Looking for essay on american literature? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More

Battle of Montgisard during the Crusades

Battle of Montgisard during the Crusades The Battle of Montgisard took place November 25, 1177, and was part of the Ayyubid-Crusader War (1177-1187) which was fought between the Second and Third Crusades. Background In 1177, the Kingdom of Jerusalem faced two major crises, one from within and one from without. Internally, the issue involved who would succeed sixteen year-old King Baldwin IV, who, as a leper, would not produce any heirs. The most likely candidate was the child of his pregnant, widowed sister Sibylla. While the nobles of the kingdom sought a new husband for Sibylla, the situation was complicated by the arrival of Philip of Alsace who demanded that she be married to one of his vassals. Evading Philips request, Baldwin sought to form an alliance with the Byzantine Empire with the goal of striking at Egypt. While Baldwin and Philip schemed over Egypt, the leader of the Ayyubids, Saladin, began preparing to attack Jerusalem from his base in Egypt. Moving with 27,000 men, Saladin marched into Palestine. Though he lacked Saladins numbers, Baldwin mobilized his forces with the goal of mounting a defense at Ascalon. As he was young and weakened by his disease, Baldwin gave effective command of his forces to Raynald of Chatillon. Marching with 375 knights, 80 Templars under Odo de St Amand, and several thousand infantry, Baldwin arrived at the town and was quickly blockaded by a detachment of Saladins army. Baldwin Triumphant Confident that Baldwin, with his smaller force, would not attempt to interfere, Saladin moved slowly and looted the villages of Ramla, Lydda and Arsuf. In doing so, he allowed his army to become dispersed over a large area. At Ascalon, Baldwin and Raynald managed to escape by moving along the coast and marched on Saladin with the goal of intercepting him before he reached Jerusalem. On November 25, they encountered Saladin at Montgisard, near Ramla. Caught by total surprise, Saladin raced to reconcentrate his army for battle. Anchoring his line on a nearby hill, Saladins options were limited as his cavalry was spent by the march from Egypt and subsequent looting. As his army looked upon Saladins, Baldwin summoned the Bishop of Bethlehem to ride forward and raise aloft a piece of the True Cross. Prostrating himself before the sacred relic, Baldwin asked God for success. Forming for battle, Baldwin and Raynalds men charged the center of the Saladins line. Breaking through, they put the Ayyubids to rout, driving them from the field. The victory was so complete that the Crusaders succeeded in capturing Saladins entire baggage train. Aftermath While exact casualties for the Battle of Montgisard are not known, reports indicate that only ten percent of Saladins army returned safely to Egypt. Among the dead was the son of Saladins nephew, Taqi ad-Din. Saladin only escaped the slaughter by riding a racing camel to safety. For the Crusaders, approximately 1,100 were killed and 750 wounded. While Montgisard proved a dramatic victory for the Crusaders, it was the last of their successes. Over the next ten years, Saladin would renew his efforts to take Jerusalem, finally succeeding in 1187. Selected Sources William of Tyre: History of Deeds Done Beyond the SeaMedieval SourcebookBaldwin IV

Should our ethical commitment be determined by the state boundaries Assignment

Should our ethical commitment be determined by the state boundaries - Assignment Example However, there are certain general aspects of ethics which are accepted everywhere in the world. This paper briefly analyses the question; â€Å"Should our ethical commitment be determined by the state boundaries?†. Should our ethical commitment be determined by the state boundaries? â€Å"Values are the rules by which we make decisions about right and wrong, should and shouldn't, good and bad. They also tell us which are more or less important, which is useful when we have to trade off meeting one value over another† (Values, morals and ethics, 2002). Values are different in different societies. For example, Muslims are allowed to keep more than one wife at a time whereas most of the other religions consider such things as sin or unethical behaviour. In other words, values related to sexual activities or marriage is defined differently by different religions. Under such circumstances, the question; whether a Muslim person living in a Christian country should be allowed to keep more than one wife at a time, is relevant. It should be noted that plenty of Muslims are staying in America and Britain like Christian countries. If such Muslims try to follow their customs and traits related to sexual activities while living in overseas countries, the chances of social problems are immense. Same way, same sex marriage is allowed in Canada. â€Å"All same-sex marriages declared legal and valid by Canadian justice minister Rob  Nicholson†(Post media news, 2012). If Canadians try to follow same sex marriage customs while living in another country, social problems may definitely arise. Imagine a situation in which a Canadian male living in Saudi Arabia tries to marry another male while living in Saudi Arabia. â€Å"As per utilitarianism, utility is measured in terms of pleasure and pain† (Crane &Matten, 2007, p.95).. Another argument is that â€Å"Actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness† (Mill, 2004, p.6). It is a fact that same sex marriage provides pleasure to the Canadian, but it provides pain to the society in which these things are unacceptable. In short, it is better to keep ethics and morals within the state boundaries. At the same time, in certain cases, ethics and morals should be allowed to travel beyond the boundaries of states. According to Maccarelli, (2006) â€Å"what a person should do and what a person wants to do are often not compatible† (Maccarelli, 2006). For example, Middle East is a place in which people from all parts of the world are working together. These diverse people have their own beliefs in morals and ethics. Christian workers consider Sundays as sacred days and they always like to have weekly off on that day. On the other hand, Muslims like to have weekly off on Fridays. If a Christian employee asks weekly offs on Sundays, his authorities should consider that demand favorably if possible. Social contract theory says that â€Å"Majority of the humans are self-interested and they will work for preserving their interest. But the law of nature ask commands that each man be willing to pursue peace when others are willing to do the same† (Social Contract Theory, 2004). In other words, the ultimate aim or objective of ethics and morality is to promote peace and harmony across the world. In that sense, it is better to keep unacceptable ethical behaviours within the boundaries of

Business Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Business - Research Paper Example the major scholarly concern, and employees must realize that the success of their work heavily depends on how well they recognize, understand, analyze, and apply their knowledge of orality and literacy in practice. It is essential to determine how the first language acquisition and orality set the stage for the successful transition children from preschool to school environments; to understand and evaluate the changes that occur to literacy and orality in children in school environments; the impact of literate communities on the development of orality and literacy in individuals, including children; to evaluate the impact of family and social surrounding on how children treat language (Minami, 2002). That the first language acquisition and the development of orality in children sets the stage for the subsequent development of written language is difficult to deny, and the students in this module should be able to assess and discuss the changes that occur to orality and literacy in children’s transition from home to preschool. Here, the role of family is determining and even crucial, for it is in families that cultural socialization of preschool children takes place. Thus, students must realize that as soon as the child is sent to school, the emphasis of cultural socialization shifts from family to school environments and the latter become the major sources of language development and make children reshape their experiences and language patterns (Minami, 2002). Few employees possess knowledge and skills necessary to distinguish between orality and literacy and to explain conditions necessary for literacy to develop and sustain. Obviously, â€Å"whenever human beings exist they have a language, and in every instance a language that exists basically as spoken and heard, in the world of sound† (Ong, 2002), but even the richness of gesture cannot disrupt the link between literacy and oral speech language – even sign languages used by the deaf heavily rely on

Images and Imagery in Shakespeares Macbeth :: GCSE English Literature Coursework

Imagery consists of the use of symbols to convey an idea or to create a specific atmosphere. Shakespeare uses imagery in Macbeth often; pathetic fallacy, blood, tailoring and sleep are examples of this. His use of these tools in the play is to demonstrate the sadness of Scotland at what has been done, the guilt of the characters and to symbolises premonition of events. Pathetic fallacy is a tool of imagery that is used in Macbeth to convey nature's response to the unnatural events that occur. Most of the scenes in which some kind of ill-doing is taking place is set at night or in darkness of some kind. Macbeth's murder of Duncan happens at night, and it triggers a response of outrage and grief in the land. Nature's troubled actions show us this; as Lennox tells Macbeth just before Duncan is found dead, "The night has been unruly; where we lay, or chimneys were blown down ... lamentings head i' the air ... some say the ear was feverous and did shake." (II (iii) L59) Another good example of imagery used is blood. It is used to convey guilt, murder, betrayal, treachery and evil. Macbeth, directly after his murder of Duncan, is concerned about the blood on his hands , and states that no amount of water will wash the blood away, signifying the guilt in his heart. Lady Macbeth, however, states "A little water cleans us of this deed" (II (ii) L97). It is ironic that later on in the play Lady Macbeth sleepwalks and dry-washes her hands, ands says "What! Will these hands ne'er be clean?" (V (i) L38) -- guilt at what she has done surfaces in her sleep where none was felt before, and the reverse is true for Macbeth. The use of tailoring to convey the idea that something is not suited or not belonging to someone that has been acquired by them is used often in Macbeth. Macbeth himself uses the tailoring image in saying "The Thane of Cawdor lives: why do you dress me in borrow'd robes?" (I (ii) L109) when told by Ross that Duncan has given him the title Thane of Cawdor. This gives the impression that his newly acquired title does not fit him -- much like a garment belonging to another person. Angus states, "Now does he feel his title Hang loose about him, like a giant's robe

Party influence in Congress Essay

The decline of party strength and influence began in the 19th century, partly due to the growth of the federal government under FDR whose ‘New Deal’ establishment served to undermine traditional social functions once carried out by party machines, thus weakening party loyalty. In the 1960’s and 1970s new issues such as civil rights, feminism, environmentalism and consumer rights arose to challenge traditional voting habits. These issues did not divide neatly along party lines and more voters indulged in â€Å"ticket-splitting† (voting for different parties in different elections). Partly in response to these trends, the parties themselves began to question their own policies and challenge their leaders. In Congress, reforms democratized or ‘opened up’ selection procedures to broader participation. Senior members found themselves surrendering committee chairmanships to unknown newcomers. Whips found it harder to enforce party discipline and junior members increasingly pursued their own personal projects to gain media attention and impress their constituency voters. Congress members have much to gain, in publicity and in tangible rewards (grants for their constituencies) from unpredictable behavior. The effect upon presidential influence in Congress has been destructive. President Carter struggled to pass bills through a House and Senate controlled by his own party. President Reagan’s early successes were largely due to Democrat ‘Boll Weevil’ defections. President Clinton has likewise been unable to rely upon solid party support, particularly for his anti-crime legislation and Healthcare Reform bill. Congress has been split by the new individualism of its members. The rise of the primary in presidential selection was another method used to ‘open up’ the political system and weaken party influence. Primaries allow voters a direct say in the choice of the party’s standard bearer in the presidential election. However, they enable candidates to hijack the party nomination for president by assembling teams of consultants, lawyers, financiers and media advisers, many of whom have no party affiliation and no loyalty or goal beyond the victory of their chosen leader. The victorious candidates sometimes lack any experience of government at the national  level. Modern presidents, facing a fragmented Congress, aggressive pressure groups and a skeptical media, cannot afford the luxury of limited experience. Unfortunately, the modern election system tends to favor those candidates who are effective campaigners rather than those who may be effective administrators. Given these difficulties, it is not surprising that recent Presidents have appeared to struggle. The cement of practical experience, party loyalty and common cause is too often thin or nonexistent at both ends.