President Obama and American Civil Rights in the Twenty first Century

Civil rights liberties had been celebrated and established in the Untied States only in recent history. Barack Obama’s ascension to the presidency is the fruition of the long struggle of Black Americans for equal rights in all aspect of American society. From the days of Martin Luther King Jr. , however, civil rights in the USA have taken on various other issues, including the rights of homosexuals, women and the overall issue of racism, which is tangentially connected to the contentions in immigration. Pres.Obama’s leadership in guaranteeing and even expanding civil rights is done in the context of grave economic and political challenges to the United States. Voting Rights. The White House website (2010) states that â€Å"Civil Rights Division to ensure that voting rights are protected and Americans do not suffer from increased discrimination during a time of economic distress. President Obama†¦ believes that our anti-discrimination employment laws should be expa nded to include sexual orientation and gender identity.He supports full civil unions and federal rights for LGBT couples and opposes a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage†¦. [and] that we must ensure adoption rights for all couples and individuals, regardless of their sexual orientation. † The issue of equality is at the heart of civil rights. Equality, on the other hand, is at the heart of American democracy. While the United States’ practice of democracy may not be perfect, it is seen as one of the best working democratic systems in the world.Hence, if any citizen (regardless of class, gender preference or race) fails to vote, their voices shall have been curtailed and their representation may be at stake. Donna Brazile (2010) wrote that the 15th Amendment to the US Constitution was enacted to give voting rights to minorities. But due to Jim Crow laws, various States managed to circumvent the Constitutional amendment in favor of their own prejudices against B lacks and other minorities.Brazile (2010) went on to write that the voting rights of certain minorities are in danger in several states because of certain rules that make it difficult for these minorities to cast their votes. While the civil rights movement in the 1960s was mainly about the rights of Black Americans, the issue now includes other races, particularly Spanish-speaking peoples in the United States. Conservatives, Black Americans and Racism. The Tea Party is supposed to be an answer to the perceived failures of traditional parties in the United States.Ironically, in defense of the Tea Party, even Black conservatives consider the issue of â€Å"race† as a phony category. This tirade was in response to the accusation hurled by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored Peoples (NAACP) that the Tea Party is slow to discipline the racist elements in their party, among them are conservative Tom Tancredo, whose assertion implied that those without enough En glish literacy are responsible for electing America’s enemy—Barack Obama.Tancredo even criticized the â€Å"cult of multiculturalism† as the culprit for the problems of the United States (Travis, 2010, Berger, 2010). While some of elements from Tea Party may deny the category of race as an important issue in American politics, the historical record and events could not be denied. Race has been one of the most contentious issues in American politics and history. By bringing back the issue of literacy in voting, Tancredo is bringing back the Jim Crow laws days when literacy tests were used as a means to disenfranchise minorities and take away their right to vote.Subsequently, this rule became the source of violence in various states. Race and Gender Issues. Another civil rights issue that may appear to have arisen only recently is the issue of same-sex marriages. The most recent controversial matter was California’s Proposition 8, which was meant to re-esta blish the traditional definition of marriage as union between a man and a woman. But the battle for the rights of same-sex is not over. Judge Vaughn Walker, however, declared that this Proposition is unconstitutional.In his ruling, Walker said that â€Å"Proposition 8 fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial of a marriage license. Indeed, the evidence shows Proposition 8 does nothing more than enshrine in the California Constitution the notion that opposite-sex couples are superior to same-sex couples† (CNN, 2010). The issue of same-sex marriage is complicated by tradition and religion. Historically, however, race relations had also been complicated by tradition and religion.Hence, Judge Walker even stated that at some point, race restrictions on marriage were also implemented by many states in the past. Individual States and the Federal Government. There are a number of similarities in the civil rights issues of today and that previ ously faced by the United States. One such parallel that will resolve or further complicate the matter will be the relationship between and among the rules and policies of individual states and that of the federal government.While the federal government is faced with so many challenges from different areas—economy, politics, international relations and immigration among others, individual states will try to circumvent some constitutional rules if the leaders of these states feel that the Federal government is too busy to take notice. Already, some voting rights in Georgia are being threatened and minority votes are being undermined. The issue of same-sex marriage will also be decided upon by individual states, at least at first, before the United States Supreme Court step in to resolve it finally.The 1965 Voting Rights Act was enacted to guarantee equal voting rights. Failure to protect that will be tantamount to undermining America’s legacy of democracy. Reference Ber ger, J. (2010). Tea Party Launches Counter-Revolution. Fox News. Retrieved 8 August 2010 from http://liveshots. blogs. foxnews. com/2010/02/04/tea-party-launches-counter-revolution/. Brazile, D. (2010). Stay Vigilant to Protect Voting Rights. Cable News Network. Retrieved 8 August 2010 from http://edition. cnn. com/2010/OPINION/08/06/brazile. voting. rights. act/index. html. CNN (2010).Opponents of Same-sex Marriage to File Appeal in California Case. Cable News Network. Retrieved 8 August 2010 from http://edition. cnn. com/2010/US/08/05/california. same. sex. ruling/index. html. Travis, S. (2010). Black Conservatives Join Hands to Deny Racism within the Tea Party Movement. CNN Political Ticker. Retrieved 8 August 2010 from http://politicalticker. blogs. cnn. com/2010/08/04/black-conservatives-join-hands-to-deny-racism-within-the-tea-party-movement/? iref=allsearch White House Website (2010). Civil Rights. Retrieved 8 August 2010 from http://www. whitehouse. gov/issues/civil-rights.

The Lost Symbol Chapter 132-133

CHAPTER 132 Katherine Solomon's heart felt light as she hurried up the hill toward the base of the Washington Monument. She had endured great shock and tragedy tonight, and yet her thoughts were refocused now, if only temporarily, on the wonderful news Peter had shared with her earlier . . . news she had just confirmed with her very own eyes. My research is safe. All of it. Her lab's holographic data drives had been destroyed tonight, but earlier, at the House of the Temple, Peter had informed her that he had been secretly keeping backups of all her Noetic research in the SMSC executive offices. You know I'm utterly fascinated with your work, he had explained, and I wanted to follow your progress without disturbing you. â€Å"Katherine?† a deep voice called out. She looked up. A lone figure stood in silhouette at the base of the illuminated monument. â€Å"Robert!† She hurried over and hugged him. â€Å"I heard the good news,† Langdon whispered. â€Å"You must be relieved.† Her voice cracked with emotion. â€Å"Incredibly.† The research Peter had saved was a scientific tour de force–a massive collection of experiments that proved human thought was a real and measurable force in the world. Katherine's experiments demonstrated the effect of human thought on everything from ice crystals to random-event generators to the movement of subatomic particles. The results were conclusive and irrefutable, with the potential to transform skeptics into believers and affect global consciousness on a massive scale. â€Å"Everything is going to change, Robert. Everything.† â€Å"Peter certainly thinks so.† Katherine glanced around for her brother. â€Å"Hospital,† Langdon said. â€Å"I insisted he go as a favor to me.† Katherine exhaled, relieved. â€Å"Thank you.† â€Å"He told me to wait for you here.† Katherine nodded, her gaze climbing the glowing white obelisk. â€Å"He said he was bringing you here. Something about `Laus Deo'? He didn't elaborate.† Langdon gave a tired chuckle. â€Å"I'm not sure I entirely understand it myself.† He glanced up at the top of the monument. â€Å"Your brother said quite a few things tonight that I couldn't get my mind around.† â€Å"Let me guess,† Katherine said. â€Å"Ancient Mysteries, science, and the Holy Scriptures?† â€Å"Bingo.† â€Å"Welcome to my world.† She winked. â€Å"Peter initiated me into this long ago. It fueled a lot of my research.† â€Å"Intuitively, some of what he said made sense.† Langdon shook his head. â€Å"But intellectually . . .† Katherine smiled and put her arm around him. â€Å"You know, Robert, I may be able to help you with that.† Deep inside the Capitol Building, Architect Warren Bellamy was walking down a deserted hallway. Only one thing left to do tonight, he thought. When he arrived at his office, he retrieved a very old key from his desk drawer. The key was black iron, long and slender, with faded markings. He slid it into his pocket and then prepared himself to welcome his guests. Robert Langdon and Katherine Solomon were on their way to the Capitol. At Peter's request, Bellamy was to provide them with a very rare opportunity–the chance to lay eyes upon this building's most magnificent secret . . . something that could be revealed only by the Architect. CHAPTER 133 High above the floor of the Capitol Rotunda, Robert Langdon inched nervously around the circular catwalk that extended just beneath the ceiling of the dome. He peered tentatively over the railing, dizzied by the height, still unable to believe it had been less than ten hours since Peter's hand had appeared in the middle of the floor below. On that same floor, the Architect of the Capitol was now a tiny speck some hundred and eighty feet below, moving steadily across the Rotunda and then disappearing. Bellamy had escorted Langdon and Katherine up to this balcony, leaving them here with very specific instructions. Peter's instructions. Langdon eyed the old iron key that Bellamy had handed to him. Then he glanced over at a cramped stairwell that ascended from this level . . . climbing higher still. God help me. These narrow stairs, according to the Architect, led up to a small metal door that could be unlocked with the iron key in Langdon's hand. Beyond the door lay something that Peter insisted Langdon and Katherine see. Peter had not elaborated, but rather had left strict instructions regarding the precise hour at which the door was to be opened. We have to wait to open the door? Why? Langdon checked his watch again and groaned. Slipping the key into his pocket, he gazed across the gaping void before him at the far side of the balcony. Katherine had walked fearlessly ahead, apparently unfazed by the height. She was now halfway around the circumference, admiring every inch of Brumidi's The Apotheosis of Washington, which loomed directly over their heads. From this rare vantage point, the fifteen- foot-tall figures that adorned the nearly five thousand square feet of the Capitol Dome were visible in astonishing detail. Langdon turned his back to Katherine, faced the outer wall, and whispered very quietly, â€Å"Katherine, this is your conscience speaking. Why did you abandon Robert?† Katherine was apparently familiar with the dome's startling acoustical properties . . . because the wall whispered back. â€Å"Because Robert is being a chicken. He should come over here with me. We have plenty of time before we're allowed to open that door.† Langdon knew she was right and reluctantly made his way around the balcony, hugging the wall as he went. â€Å"This ceiling is absolutely amazing,† Katherine marveled, her neck craned to take in the enormous splendor of the Apotheosis overhead. â€Å"Mythical gods all mixed in with scientific inventors and their creations? And to think this is the image at the center of our Capitol.† Langdon turned his eyes upward to the sprawling forms of Franklin, Fulton, and Morse with their technological inventions. A shining rainbow arched away from these figures, guiding his eye to George Washington ascending to heaven on a cloud. The great promise of man becoming God. Katherine said, â€Å"It's as if the entire essence of the Ancient Mysteries is hovering over the Rotunda.† Langdon had to admit, not many frescoes in the world fused scientific inventions with mythical gods and human apotheosis. This ceiling's spectacular collection of images was indeed a message of the Ancient Mysteries, and it was here for a reason. The founding fathers had envisioned America as a blank canvas, a fertile field on which the seeds of the mysteries could be sown. Today, this soaring icon–the father of our country ascending to heaven–hung silently above our lawmakers, leaders, and presidents . . . a bold reminder, a map to the future, a promise of a time when man would evolve to complete spiritual maturity. â€Å"Robert,† Katherine whispered, her gaze still fixated on the massive figures of America's great inventors accompanied by Minerva. â€Å"It's prophetic, really. Today, man's most advanced inventions are being used to study man's most ancient ideas. The science of Noetics may be new, but it's actually the oldest science on earth–the study of human thought.† She turned to him now, her eyes filled with wonder. â€Å"And we're learning that the ancients actually understood thought more profoundly than we do today.† â€Å"Makes sense,† Langdon replied. â€Å"The human mind was the only technology the ancients had at their disposal. The early philosophers studied it relentlessly.† â€Å"Yes! The ancient texts are obsessed with the power of the human mind. The Vedas describe the flow of mind energy. The Pistis Sophia describes universal consciousness. The Zohar explores the nature of mind spirit. The Shamanic texts predict Einstein's `remote influence' in terms of healing at a distance. It's all there! And don't even get me started about the Bible.† â€Å"You, too?† Langdon said, chuckling. â€Å"Your brother tried to convince me that the Bible is encoded with scientific information.† â€Å"It certainly is,† she said. â€Å"And if you don't believe Peter, read some of Newton's esoteric texts on the Bible. When you start to understand the cryptic parables in the Bible, Robert, you realize it's a study of the human mind.† Langdon shrugged. â€Å"I guess I'd better go back and read it again.† â€Å"Let me ask you something,† she said, clearly not appreciating his skepticism. â€Å"When the Bible tells us to `go build our temple' . . . a temple that we must `build with no tools and making no noise,' what temple do you think it's talking about?† â€Å"Well, the text does say your body is a temple.† â€Å"Yes, Corinthians 3:16. You are the temple of God.† She smiled at him. â€Å"And the Gospel of John says the exact same thing. Robert, the Scriptures are well aware of the power latent within us, and they are urging us to harness that power . . . urging us to build the temples of our minds.† â€Å"Unfortunately, I think much of the religious world is waiting for a real temple to be rebuilt. It's part of the Messianic Prophecy.† â€Å"Yes, but that overlooks an important point. The Second Coming is the coming of man–the moment when mankind finally builds the temple of his mind.† â€Å"I don't know,† Langdon said, rubbing his chin. â€Å"I'm no Bible scholar, but I'm pretty sure the Scriptures describe in detail a physical temple that needs to be built. The structure is described as being in two parts–an outer temple called the Holy Place and an inner sanctuary called the Holy of Holies. The two parts are separated from each other by a thin veil.† Katherine grinned. â€Å"Pretty good recall for a Bible skeptic. By the way, have you ever seen an actual human brain? It's built in two parts–an outer part called the dura mater and an inner part called the pia mater. These two parts are separated by the arachnoid–a veil of weblike tissue.† Langdon cocked his head in surprise. Gently, she reached up and touched Langdon's temple. â€Å"There's a reason they call this your temple, Robert.† As Langdon tried to process what Katherine had said, he flashed unexpectedly on the gnostic Gospel of Mary: Where the mind is, there is the treasure. â€Å"Perhaps you've heard,† Katherine said, softly now, â€Å"about the brain scans taken of yogis while they meditate? The human brain, in advanced states of focus, will physically create a waxlike substance from the pineal gland. This brain secretion is unlike anything else in the body. It has an incredible healing effect, can literally regenerate cells, and may be one of the reasons yogis live so long. This is real science, Robert. This substance has inconceivable properties and can be created only by a mind that is highly tuned to a deeply focused state.† â€Å"I remember reading about that a few years back.† â€Å"Yes, and on that topic, you're familiar with the Bible's account of `manna from heaven'?† Langdon saw no connection. â€Å"You mean the magical substance that fell from heaven to nourish the hungry?† â€Å"Exactly. The substance was said to heal the sick, provide everlasting life, and, strangely, cause no waste in those who consumed it.† Katherine paused, as if waiting for him to understand. â€Å"Robert?† she prodded. â€Å"A kind of nourishment that fell from heaven?† She tapped her temple. â€Å"Magically heals the body? Creates no waste? Don't you see? These are code words, Robert! Temple is code for `body.' Heaven is code for `mind.' Jacob's ladder is your spine. And manna is this rare brain secretion. When you see these code words in Scripture, pay attention. They are often markers for a more profound meaning concealed beneath the surface.† Katherine's words were coming out in rapid-fire succession now, explaining how this same magical substance appeared throughout the Ancient Mysteries: Nectar of the Gods, Elixir of Life, Fountain of Youth, Philosopher's Stone, ambrosia, dew, ojas, soma. Then she launched into an explanation about the brain's pineal gland representing the all-seeing eye of God. â€Å"According to Matthew 6:22,† she said excitedly, † `when your eye is single, your body fills with light.' This concept is also represented by the Ajna chakra and the dot on a Hindu's forehead, which–â€Å" Katherine stopped short, looking sheepish. â€Å"Sorry . . . I know I'm rambling. I just find this all so exhilarating. For years I've studied the ancients' claims of man's awesome mental power, and now science is showing us that accessing that power is an actual physical process. Our brains, if used correctly, can call forth powers that are quite literally superhuman. The Bible, like many ancient texts, is a detailed exposition of the most sophisticated machine ever created . . . the human mind.† She sighed. â€Å"Incredibly, science has yet to scratch the surface of the mind's full promise.† â€Å"It sounds like your work in Noetics will be a quantum leap forward.† â€Å"Or backward,† she said. â€Å"The ancients already knew many of the scientific truths we're now rediscovering. Within a matter of years, modern man will be forced to accept what is now unthinkable: our minds can generate energy capable of transforming physical matter.† She paused. â€Å"Particles react to our thoughts . . . which means our thoughts have the power to change the world.† Langdon smiled softly. â€Å"What my research has brought me to believe is this,† Katherine said. â€Å"God is very real–a mental energy that pervades everything. And we, as human beings, have been created in that image–â€Å" â€Å"I'm sorry?† Langdon interrupted. â€Å"Created in the image of . . . mental energy?† â€Å"Exactly. Our physical bodies have evolved over the ages, but it was our minds that were created in the image of God. We've been reading the Bible too literally. We learn that God created us in his image, but it's not our physical bodies that resemble God, it's our minds.† Langdon was silent now, fully engrossed. â€Å"This is the great gift, Robert, and God is waiting for us to understand it. All around the world, we are gazing skyward, waiting for God . . . never realizing that God is waiting for us.† Katherine paused, letting her words soak in. â€Å"We are creators, and yet we naively play the role of `the created.' We see ourselves as helpless sheep buffeted around by the God who made us. We kneel like frightened children, begging for help, for forgiveness, for good luck. But once we realize that we are truly created in the Creator's image, we will start to understand that we, too, must be Creators. When we understand this fact, the doors will burst wide open for human potential.† Langdon recalled a passage that had always stuck with him from the work of the philosopher Manly P. Hall: If the infinite had not desired man to be wise, he would not have bestowed upon him the faculty of knowing. Langdon gazed up again at the image of The Apotheosis of Washington–the symbolic ascent of man to deity. The created . . . becoming the Creator. â€Å"The most amazing part,† Katherine said, â€Å"is that as soon as we humans begin to harness our true power, we will have enormous control over our world. We will be able to design reality rather than merely react to it.† Langdon lowered his gaze. â€Å"That sounds . . . dangerous.† Katherine looked startled . . . and impressed. â€Å"Yes, exactly! If thoughts affect the world, then we must be very careful how we think. Destructive thoughts have influence, too, and we all know it's far easier to destroy than it is to create.† Langdon thought of all the lore about needing to protect the ancient wisdom from the unworthy and share it only with the enlightened. He thought of the Invisible College, and the great scientist Isaac Newton's request to Robert Boyle to keep â€Å"high silence† about their secret research. It cannot be communicated, Newton wrote in 1676, without immense damage to the world. â€Å"There's an interesting twist here,† Katherine said. â€Å"The great irony is that all the religions of the world, for centuries, have been urging their followers to embrace the concepts of faith and belief. Now science, which for centuries has derided religion as superstition, must admit that its next big frontier is quite literally the science of faith and belief . . . the power of focused conviction and intention. The same science that eroded our faith in the miraculous is now building a bridge back across the chasm it created.† Langdon considered her words for a long time. Slowly he raised his eyes again to the Apotheosis. â€Å"I have a question,† he said, looking back at Katherine. â€Å"Even if I could accept, just for an instant, that I have the power to change physical matter with my mind, and literally manifest all that I desire . . . I'm afraid I see nothing in my life to make me believe I have such power.† She shrugged. â€Å"Then you're not looking hard enough.† â€Å"Come on, I want a real answer. That's the answer of a priest. I want the answer of a scientist.† â€Å"You want a real answer? Here it is. If I hand you a violin and say you have the capability to use it to make incredible music, I am not lying. You do have the capability, but you'll need enormous amounts of practice to manifest it. This is no different from learning to use your mind, Robert. Well-directed thought is a learned skill. To manifest an intention requires laserlike focus, full sensory visualization, and a profound belief. We have proven this in a lab. And just like playing a violin, there are people who exhibit greater natural ability than others. Look to history. Look to the stories of those enlightened minds who performed miraculous feats.† â€Å"Katherine, please don't tell me you actually believe in the miracles. I mean, seriously . . . turning water into wine, healing the sick with the touch of a hand?† Katherine took a long breath and blew it out slowly. â€Å"I have witnessed people transform cancer cells into healthy cells simply by thinking about them. I have witnessed human minds affecting the physical world in myriad ways. And once you see that happen, Robert, once this becomes part of your reality, then some of the miracles you read about become simply a matter of degree.† Langdon was pensive. â€Å"It's an inspiring way to see the world, Katherine, but for me, it just feels like an impossible leap of faith. And as you know, faith has never come easily for me.† â€Å"Then don't think of it as faith. Think of it simply as changing your perspective, accepting that the world is not precisely as you imagine. Historically, every major scientific breakthrough began with a simple idea that threatened to overturn all of our beliefs. The simple statement `the earth is round' was mocked as utterly impossible because most people believed the oceans would flow off the planet. Heliocentricity was called heresy. Small minds have always lashed out at what they don't understand. There are those who create . . . and those who tear down. That dynamic has existed for all time. But eventually the creators find believers, and the number of believers reaches a critical mass, and suddenly the world becomes round, or the solar system becomes heliocentric. Perception is transformed, and a new reality is born.† Langdon nodded, his thoughts drifting now. â€Å"You have a funny look on your face,† she said. â€Å"Oh, I don't know. For some reason I was just remembering how I used to canoe out into the middle of the lake late at night, lie down under the stars, and think about stuff like this.† She nodded knowingly. â€Å"I think we all have a similar memory. Something about lying on our backs staring up at the heavens . . . opens the mind.† She glanced up at the ceiling and then said, â€Å"Give me your jacket.† â€Å"What?† He took it off and gave it to her. She folded it twice and laid it down on the catwalk like a long pillow. â€Å"Lie down.† Langdon lay on his back, and Katherine positioned his head on half of the folded jacket. Then she lay down beside him–two kids, shoulder to shoulder on the narrow catwalk, staring up at Brumidi's enormous fresco. â€Å"Okay,† she whispered. â€Å"Put yourself in that same mind-set . . . a kid lying out in a canoe . . . looking up at the stars . . . his mind open and full of wonder.† Langdon tried to obey, although at the moment, prone and comfortable, he was feeling a sudden wave of exhaustion. As his vision blurred, he perceived a muted shape overhead that immediately woke him. Is that possible? He could not believe he hadn't noticed it before, but the figures in The Apotheosis of Washington were clearly arranged in two concentric rings–a circle within a circle. The Apotheosis is also a circumpunct? Langdon wondered what else he had missed tonight. â€Å"There's something important I want to tell you, Robert. There's another piece to all this . . . a piece that I believe is the single most astonishing aspect of my research.† There's more? Katherine propped herself on her elbow. â€Å"And I promise . . . if we as humans can honestly grasp this one simple truth . . . the world will change overnight.† She now had his full attention. â€Å"I should preface this,† she said, â€Å"by reminding you of the Masonic mantras to `gather what is scattered' . . . to bring `order from chaos' . . . to find `at-one-ment.' â€Å" â€Å"Go on.† Langdon was intrigued. Katherine smiled down at him. â€Å"We have scientifically proven that the power of human thought grows exponentially with the number of minds that share that thought.† Langdon remained silent, wondering where she was going with this idea. â€Å"What I'm saying is this . . . two heads are better than one . . . and yet two heads are not twice better, they are many, many times better. Multiple minds working in unison magnify a thought's effect . . . exponentially. This is the inherent power of prayer groups, healing circles, singing in unison, and worshipping en masse. The idea of universal consciousness is no ethereal New Age concept. It's a hard-core scientific reality . . . and harnessing it has the potential to transform our world. This is the underlying discovery of Noetic Science. What's more, it's happening right now. You can feel it all around you. Technology is linking us in ways we never imagined possible: Twitter, Google, Wikipedia, and others–all blend to create a web of interconnected minds.† She laughed. â€Å"And I guarantee you, as soon as I publish my work, the Twitterati will all be sending tweets that say, `learning about Noetics,' and interest in this science will explode exponentially. † Langdon's eyelids felt impossibly heavy. â€Å"You know, I still haven't learned how to send a twitter.† â€Å"A tweet,† she corrected, laughing. â€Å"I'm sorry?† â€Å"Never mind. Close your eyes. I'll wake you when it's time.† Langdon realized he had all but forgotten the old key the Architect had given them . . . and why they had come up here. As a new wave of exhaustion engulfed him, Langdon shut his eyes. In the darkness of his mind, he found himself thinking about universal consciousness . . . about Plato's writings on â€Å"the mind of the world† and â€Å"gathering God† . . . Jung's â€Å"collective unconscious.† The notion was as simple as it was startling. God is found in the collection of Many . . . rather than in the One. â€Å"Elohim,† Langdon said suddenly, his eyes flying open again as he made an unexpected connection. â€Å"I'm sorry?† Katherine was still gazing down at him. â€Å"Elohim,† he repeated. â€Å"The Hebrew word for God in the Old Testament! I've always wondered about it.† Katherine gave a knowing smile. â€Å"Yes. The word is plural.† Exactly! Langdon had never understood why the very first passages of the Bible referred to God as a plural being. Elohim. The Almighty God in Genesis was described not as One . . . but as Many. â€Å"God is plural,† Katherine whispered, â€Å"because the minds of man are plural.† Langdon's thoughts were spiraling now . . . dreams, memories, hopes, fears, revelations . . . all swirling above him in the Rotunda dome. As his eyes began to close again, he found himself staring at three words in Latin, painted within the Apotheosis. E PLURIBUS UNUM. â€Å"Out of many, one,† he thought, slipping off into sleep.

Feminism in Doll’s House Essay

One of the primary tenets of Marxism is the belief that human thought is a product of the individual’s social and economic conditions, their relationships with others are often undermined by those conditions (Letterbie 1259), and that the weak or less-fortunate are always exploited by the richer bourgeoisie. A common theme found in Henrik Ibsen’s play, â€Å"A Dolls House,† is the exploitation of the weak and the poor by the strong and the rich, and an obsession with material possession. The characters in â€Å"A Dolls House† are all affected by the lack or acquisition of money, and their entire lives and way of thinking are based upon it. Therefore, a Marxist theme pervades throughout much of the play and can be seen from each of the main character’s perspectives. Nora’s way of thinking and her outlook on life are both completely dominated by her material wealth and financial conditions. For example, when the play begins Nora is just returning home from a shopping trip. She enters the apartment with an â€Å"armload of packages† (43) and is followed by a boy carrying a Christmas tree. Nora then tells Helene, one of their maids, to hide the tree so the kids won’t see it until it’s been decorated. When Torvald enters, she asks him for money so she can â€Å"hang the bills in gilt paper† as Christmas tree decorations (45). The tree symbolizes her obsession with money because she didn’t want anyone to see it until it had been decorated to show off their newfound wealth. Previously, she made the decorations by hand, spending an entire day on the project. Doing the same now would be â€Å"thinking poor† in her mind, so she spends excessive amounts of money on presents and decorates the tree with it because now they can afford to â€Å"let themselves go a bit† (44). Now that Nora belongs to a higher social class she practically throws money away. She tells the tree delivery boy to keep the change from the crown she gave him, paying him twice what he asks. Despite the fact that Torvald’s raise won’t come into effect for another three months, she insists that â€Å"we can borrow until then† (44) when previously she and Torvald saved every penny they could in order to get by, and they both worked odd jobs in order to supplement their income. She becomes more selfish as well, claiming that if something were to happen to Torvald after they had borrowed money, â€Å"it just wouldn’t matter† (44) because the people they borrowed from are strangers. Now that they belong to a higher social class, her responsibility has flown out the door and she cares only for her own interests. She doesn’t care what would happen to the â€Å"strangers† she borrowed from, because she concentrates only on what she can extract from other people. Also, when her friend Kristine comes over, the first thing she mentions is her husband’s new job, claiming that she feels â€Å"so light and happy† (49) because they now â€Å"have stacks of money and not a care in the world† (49). When the wiser Kristine answers that it would be nice â€Å"to have enough for the necessities† (50) Nora insists that that is not enough-she repeats that she wants â€Å"stacks and stacks of money† (50). After she tells Kristine she borrowed the money for the trip to Italy, and tells her about all the â€Å"hard work† she did in order to pay it off, she says her worries â€Å"don’t matter anymore because now I’m free! † (56). She equates freedom with the acquisition of wealth, saying that having money is the only way she can be â€Å"carefree and happy† (56). By the end of the play, however, she realizes that even if she is able to be free of her debts, she is still financially enslaved to her husband, because as a woman she is completely dependant on him. She refers to leaving him as â€Å"closing out their accounts,† (108) and in doing so â€Å"she renounces not only her marital vows but also her financial dependence because she has discovered that personal and human freedom are not measured in economic terms,† (Letterbie 1260). Nora’s entire outlook on life changes with a change in her economic conditions, thereby demonstrating the Marxist belief that people’s thoughts are a product of their financial situations. Torvald is much more careful with money, but he too bases his outlook on life and relationships solely on money and the status it earns him. When he hears Nora return from shopping, he asks if â€Å"his little spendthrift has been out throwing money around again,† (44) saying that they â€Å"really can’t go squandering† (44). Nora claims that since Torvald will be making â€Å"piles and piles of money† (44) from now on they can borrow until his raise comes through, but he is adamant in his reply that they should â€Å"never borrow† and have no debt because â€Å"something of freedom is lost from a home that’s founded on borrowing and debt† (44). Torvald, too, equates money with freedom, and refuses to give up that freedom by borrowing money. He too then mentions that it is â€Å"a wonderful feeling† (47) to know that â€Å"one’s got a safe secure job with a comfortable salary,† (47) similar to Nora’s claim that she’s now â€Å"carefree and happy† because of it. Torvald cares not only about money, but about his social status as well. When he finds out that Nora borrowed money from Krogstad with a forged signature, his â€Å"love† for her is completely erased, and he says she’s â€Å"ruined all his happiness† (106). He cares only about his reputation, because â€Å"it’s got to seem like everything is the same between us-to the outside world, at least† (106). All that matters to him is â€Å"saving the bits and pieces, the appearance† (106). However, once Krogstad gives them the note and says he won’t tell anyone about it, he is suddenly, magically able to love her again, because no one will know. He still cares only about himself, however, claiming â€Å"I’m saved, I’m saved! Oh, and you too† (107). Nora is only an afterthought when it comes to his reputation. Their relationship is ruined because he continues to believe in money and social status as the source of happiness, while Nora comes to realize that money is not that important. The Marxist theme can be seen in both Kristine and Krogstad as well. Kristine sacrificed her love for Krogstad and married another man because â€Å"his prospects seemed hopeless back then,† (95) and she had to be able to take care of her mother and brothers. Although their relationship was revived in the end, it almost failed â€Å"simply for money† (95). Once she comes back to Krogstad, she still won’t even give up the job she took from him, because she has to look out for herself-she tells Nora that in her position â€Å"you have to live, and so you grow selfish† (52). This is a Marxist attitude because her entire life and mind-set are a result of her economic situation at the time of her decisions. Krogstad committed a crime in order to support his family, and when his job was threatened he tried to save it by every means possible-even blackmail-saying he would fight for it â€Å"like life itself† (64) if need be. Krogstad tells Nora that â€Å"it was your husband who forced me to revert to my old ways,† (88) but from a deeper perspective it was really his financial situation that forced his hand and made him blackmail Nora, just as it was the reason he committed a crime years before. The Helmer’s maid, Anna-Marie, also has a Marxist perspective on life. She had to leave her home and her child in order to get by. When Nora asks how she was able to give her child up to the care of strangers she just replies that â€Å"a girl who’s poor and who’s gotten in trouble† (73) has no other choice, and that her daughter â€Å"has written to me both when she was confirmed and when she was married† (73). Anna-Marie’s entire life as well as her way of thinking has been determined by her financial situation. Her relationship with her daughter is â€Å"interrupted and practically destroyed† yet she â€Å"accepts her alienation from her child as if it were natural, given the circumstances of class and money† (Letturbie 1260). She can’t afford to be upset about leaving her only child, because she had no other choice. She had to give up a relationship with someone she loved, just as Kristine had to give up her love for Krogstad. Anna-Marie’s situation exemplifies that â€Å"in the marketplace [women] were a labor force expecting subsistence wages† (Letturbie 1260). Marxism includes the belief â€Å"that capitalism is based on the exploitation of workers by the owners of capital. † Anna-Marie may not have been exploited directly by the rich, but she is forced to live a substandard life because she is poor, and unlike Nora, she does not challenge the laws of class and society but accepts her situation. She does not realize that social class and society’s laws were created by other people â€Å"and thus are capable of imperfection and susceptible to change,† (Letturbie 1260). So all she can expect is to be poor her entire life, and for her financial conditions to remain stagnant. The problems that Nora, Anna-Marie and Kristine face are compounded by their gender. Ibsen’s play is considered by many to be a feminist work, illustrating the erroneous treatment of â€Å"the woman issue,† as Ibsen called it. Though he said in a speech once that Nora was supposed to represent the Everyman, and that he hadn’t been trying to address the issue of women’s rights, critics argue that the presence of feminism in the play is inherent and â€Å"justifiable whatever Ibsen’s intention and in spite of his speech,† (Templeton 111). Nora is depicted until the end of the play as a helpless, dimwitted fool who wastes her husband’s hard earned money. She is Torvald’s plaything, his burden and responsibility. Templeton describes their marriage as â€Å"a pan-cultural ideal†¦a relation of superior and inferior in which the wife is a creature of little intellectual and moral capacity, whose right and proper station is subordination to her husband† (Templeton 138). Her â€Å"womanly helplessness† was attractive to Torvald, because he had to be in control. When they get the Bond back from Krogstad and Torvald â€Å"forgives her,† he says that â€Å"to a man there is something sweet and satisfying in forgiving his wife,† because it seems as if his forgiveness â€Å"had made her doubly his own; he has given her a new life, and she has in a way become both wife and child to him† (65). She was an object, his property, to whom he deigned to give life; but only for his own pleasure. During the first act, he never calls her by name; he calls her his â€Å"squirrel,† a â€Å"spendthrift,† and a â€Å"featherbrain,† among other things. Her entire identity is determined by these nicknames; while she is â€Å"his squirrel† she is innocent, childish, obedient, and completely dependant on him. When he finally addresses her by name, in Act Three, her behavior is entirely different—she becomes serious, determined, and willful. She is his â€Å"doll-wife,† playing the game of marriage. She tells Torvald in the end, â€Å"You arranged everything according to your own taste, and so I got the same tastes as you, or pretended to† (67). All of it is a role that Nora has been taught to play by society, the behavior expected of all women of the time. This role was merely a mask, one that she couldn’t live with in the end. On the outside, she is entirely obedient to her husband; but on the inside, she yearns for recognition and a love that Torvald wasn’t willing to give. She was expected to be content with the life she had, though it wasn’t in any way fair or equal. When she expresses her hope that Torvald would have taken the blame for her crime upon himself, Torvald says that â€Å"no man would ever forsake his honor for the one he loves,† and Nora replies that â€Å"millions of women have done just that† (70). Her rebellion was so shocking to the audience that Ibsen â€Å"was accused of a kind of godless androgyny; women, in refusing to be compliant, were refusing to be women† (Templeton 114). Ibsen was even forced to change this ending in order for it to be performed. Obedience was the main trait that defined women; it was what separated them from men. When she decides to leave, Torvald claims that she is insane, because her â€Å"most sacred duties were to her husband and her children,† and â€Å"before all else she was a wife and mother† (68). So in leaving, she was in a sense denying the purpose of her existence. Women had no other role or function in society. Kristine broke free from this traditional role by chance, because her husband died. Had he lived, she would have been stuck in the same situation as Nora for the rest of her life. Even so, she is still dependant on men in order to live. When her father died, she was forced to marry a man she didn’t love in order to provide for her mother and younger brothers. She wasn’t able to get a job at that point, because she was young and unmarried; so the only option she had was marriage. After her husband died and she went to visit Nora, she says â€Å"I feel my life unspeakably empty. No one to live for anymore† (11). Her entire life up until that point revolved around men; the purpose of her existence was to please her husband and take care of her brothers. When that was no longer necessary, her life lost its meaning. She came to Nora because she was looking for work, and that could only be obtained through Torvald. When he gives her a job, he feels in control of her even outside the office. When Torvald and Nora return from the party in Act III and Kristine is there waiting, he says â€Å"you really ought to embroider, it’s much more becoming. Let me show you†¦in the case of knitting, that can never be anything but ungraceful† (57). He presumes to instruct her on something that is traditionally women’s work, and a hobby, as if she were doing it for him. He insults her taste and her work as if it is his right and his duty to correct not only his own wife but any woman that he sees doing something â€Å"wrong. † When Nora shut the door behind her, she wasn’t just a woman leaving her family. She was a woman seeking independence from the strictures of society and the rule of men which was placed upon her because of gender. She was the representation of Everyman, illustrating the need of everyone, no matter their background, for freedom. And she was the representation of the unnoticed, underappreciated workers of the world overthrowing the capitalists who took them for granted. Ibsen’s play was one of the greatest of its time, reaching all the way to our own with a relevance that will always be valid and true.

7 Things You Should Be Doing For Every Image On Your WordPress Site

7 Things You Should Be Doing For Every Image On Your WordPress Site Adding an image to your website is not as simple as just uploading and clicking the publish button. Of course, that is an option – you can do it the lazy way – but if you want a perfectly optimized website and favored search results, there are a few things you need to do to make sure that the images are optimized before you publish them. You may find it tedious and annoying, and time consuming, but taking the time to do this right will be worth it when you see your A+ grade on Google and Bing Webmaster Tools and are rewarded with stellar search rankings. Editing Your Images: If you don’t own an Adobe Photoshop license, don’t worry, there are plenty of free online photo editing tools that can help you get the job done. Using high quality photos on your website is as important as using proper grammar.  These websites offer free tools that make it easy to crop, resize, and edit your images:  Ã‚  PicMonkey https://www.picmonkey.comFotor http://www.fotor.comPixlr https://pixlr.com Optimise and Compress Your Images: Large image files take up a lot of valuable space on your website and will slow down your site speed and hinder its performance considerably. Before you upload any image to your site, compress it or at as a minimum, make sure you have the Ewww Image Optimizer Plugin installed as advised by Kyle in the lessons.  In Adobe Photoshop, select â€Å"compress for web† before saving the file. You can also achieve similar results using some of the free image compression tools available online. Site speed is a ranking factor so the faster the better.  TinyPNG -https://tinypng.comPNGGaunlet http://pnggauntlet.comPunyPNG http://www.punypng.comResults vary, but in one test, Adobe Photoshop reduced a 236 KB image to 108.1KB, while TinyPNG reduced the same file from 236KB to 110.4KB. So, Adobe Photoshop does perform slightly better, but you can get pretty close using other programs. Consider Your File Names:  Once you have readied the image for uploading, make sure to name it properly. Search engines use file names to identify and index results so this is a really important step. If you name a file with a bunch of letters and numbers that doesn’t give search engines any information about what the image portrays. However, if the file has a specific name such as, â€Å"New York at Dawn† then it can be categorized and indexed, whereas naming the file something like, â€Å"New York† doesn’t describe the image very well. Use keywords in the file name to boost your search results. Be sure to use hyphens in the file name to separate words.    Image URLs: When you upload your edited, compressed, properly named image to your website, WordPress will show the attachment details in a box on the right side of the Insert Media page showing the automatically generated permalink URL based on the file name, this is essentially the web address of the image. You can’t change this once it’s uploaded so if you forgot to change the file name before uploading your file, you’ll have to delete the image and re-upload the newly named image. Image Title Attributes:  The image title box is right below the URL box. Here, you can name the image whatever you like. This title should complement the Alt Text Attribute, but not repeat it. Though, Google primarily uses the Alt Text Attribute to determine information about an image file, it’s helpful to add additional relevant information about the image in the Title box. Something short and specific will do. Your Image Captions:  Ã‚  Adding a caption is not necessary for SEO purposes, but may be helpful for user experience. The content in this box will display on the front end of the site while the Alt and Title Attributes will not.  The Alt Text Attribute  The â€Å"Alt† is short for alternative. Search engines refer to the alt text when trying to determine information about the image – a textual representation of the image content. The best use of an Alt Text box is to provide a word pairing for the image. Specificity helps here, too. This is a very important element for SEO because it provides a description that lends to search results. Don’t use the same content for the Alt Text and Title Text or Description fields. They each need to be unique. This is the content that will appear if a browser is unable to display the image. Your Image Descriptions:  The description information will be displayed on the attachment page of your image. In this field, you can be as descriptive as you like, such as telling the story behind the image or what kind of camera you used to take the photograph. You can add links in the description field. Again, don’t just copy and paste the information from the Title or Alt Attributes. Hopefully this gives you an idea of best practice when adding images to your website.

Does knowledge affect attitudes and perceived risks of HIV infection Essay

Does knowledge affect attitudes and perceived risks of HIV infection among young adults influencing consistent condom use - Essay Example ost of these adolescents were typical of those all over the world, having a mixture of correct and incorrect knowledge about HIV transmission and sexually transmitted infections. It was seen that more males than females accounted that they have had sex, having used condoms. They also exhibited an inconsistent use of condoms. Some of the sexual attitudes definitely conformed to machismo ideology; but there were others that provises a scope for interventions and preventions. In many cases it was seen that the stigma attached to HIV was high and it was also seen that many of the adolescents disapproved of same sex relations. Intervention is particularly vital that some intercession is sought against homosexuality-related stigma because it may result in a concentrated HIV epidemic. The surveys showed that personal religious thoughts and beliefs were not a barrier to use of condoms. The multivariate model showed that, being out of school could be significantly correlated to having had sex as well as of insufficient HIV/AIDS-related knowledge. This necessitates that HIV prevention interventions must not be limited to only school going adolescents. For a successful result what is needed is a multi-component approach to prevention. This must include community-based programmes as well as programmes in schools, the mass media and health facilities. HIV infection is a disease that is caused by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). This virus slowly destroys the immune system and as a result, the antibodies within the body find it harder to fight off the infections. There is no cure for HIV infection, precaution being the only way of keeping away from this fatal disease. There has been a rising concern regarding HIV/AIDS infection among young adults globally. The most common way this virus is transmitted from one person to the other is through unprotected sexual intercourse. The statistics on the impact made by HIV/AIDS is overwhelming. According to the estimates made by

The Management of Green and Ethical Issues Essay

The Management of Green and Ethical Issues - Essay Example The Stern report points out that it is necessary for the energy sector to cut down the use of fossil fuels by 60% to retain the atmospheric balance. So, in the energy sector, there is the threat of water pollution, air pollution, and depletion of fossil fuel that is non-replaceable (Stern Review final report, HM Treasury). So, evidently, it is high time for businesses to look for alternative energy sources. Some other important environmental issues caused by businesses are the huge production of waste, water pollution, air pollution, and the loss of land and biodiversity. Probably because of this understanding, more and more consumers are going green. It is probably this realisation that made many companies to think about environmentally sustainable ways of operation. In other words, many companies presently think it is important to have an impressive range of environment protection measures as a part of their corporate social responsibility. A study by Hurst (2004) identified that a considerable proportion of leadership companies presently identify the value of taking care of environmental issues and the value of assessing their own performance on a regular basis. Corporate reputation Evidently, the first benefit associated with going green is the improvement in a company’s corporate reputation. It is seen that large high profile companies are effectively utilising an attractive CSR that helps the company enjoy a considerably greater reputation that it cannot normally achieve. A perfect example for this is the beauty and cosmetics giant The Body Shop (Values Report, 2009). The company, from its very inception, stood firm on certain ethical and environmental principles. For example, it is against animal testing, artificial ingredients, environmental degradation, and forced labour. The company claims itself to be carbon-free, and it advocates fair trade and fair price, along with the concept of community trade which ensures that the company procures its ingredients from marginalised producers (ibid). If someone thinks that all these cost the company a lot as this would make the company’s products expensive, the exact opposite is true. The companyâ€⠄¢s surveys show that 89% of its customers value the company’s ethical activities highly (ibid). Financial benefits According to USA Today reports, many companies have realised how to make money or save money through environmentally sustainable practices. For example, the Sun Microsystems saved hundreds of millions of dollars through the introduction of telecommuting (Sun’s open work energy measurement project, 2009). However, the industry that is benefiting the most from the green revolution is the hotel business. For example, the Holiday Inn on King in Toronto saved nearly $ 14,852 in a year by introducing low-flow

Poverty and Child Abuse Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Poverty and Child Abuse - Term Paper Example The poverty problem is a dilemma which gives rise to child sexual abuse since the families are not concerned about child protection. The way children are maltreated, misuse, and neglect have many times escorted them to the vulnerability of child abuse. However in the United States, child abuse is not a new issue, since children have been the subject of various types of abuse for decades, therefore concern for abused children now demands action from private citizens as well as the government. Despite the existence and active participation of child welfare programs, child abuse is a common problem confronted by the United States. One reason for the widespread of this quandary is the fact that economic resources and political structure varies according to the social determinants for people who live in urban and rural regions (Kenney et al, 2001, p. xv). Child abuse some decades ago was seen as a problem of physical battering and the deliberate intention to harm the child, mainly by parents. It was in the 1970s that the meaning of the term child abuse expanded to include not only physical harm of the child, but also sexual or emotional maltreatment by parents or caretakers since abuse does not have to be deliberate infliction, but can also take the form of omission to act resulting in neglect of the child's needs. The main concern pertains to what our communities consider as child abuse, for example in many community cases in the professional consensus in the United States it was a concern as to what constitutes abuse or neglect of a child. When analyzed on the basis of community research it was found that all agreed to consider a child with fractured bones from repeated beatings as 'abused', while a child who is not given the minimum amount of food, clothing, or attention necessary for survival or a young child left unfed in a room as neglected. There were various class perspectives on maltreatment which exist between the extreme cases of child abuse and neglect, however there is a wide range of situations on which there is often disagreement about what constitutes emotional or physical abuse. These vary according to class as poor class more moderately defines what is entailed in sexual or physical abuse. Child abuse possesses three main types and has been so deeply embedded in our society that most of us are not even aware of how it disrupts our social determinants of living standards. Traditional child rearing practices and inappropriate child maltreatment with lack of monetary, organizational and informational resources addresses the problem with greater cause. Verbal Child abuse Based on cruelty or unjustified punishment, verbal abuse entails direct enforcement of exposure to punishment or permitting of a child to suffer resulting in an unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering. Often called as emotional or psychological child abuse is the most common found in almost every class. Families usually neglect such mental or emotional suffering of their children and do not intend to report or view it as a serious issue, verbal abuse is not considered to be reported, but may be reported. Many families consider it