Food Essay Essay Example for Free

Food Essay Essay Food. When people see or hear that word, many of them think of food as something that just keeps us healthy and alive. In my perspective that is true. But there is so much more to it than many people see. It is cultural, a tradition, and can have many different meanings. It can also be seen as edible art and a way to express yourself. To me, it is a way to get away from everything. As a child, I didn’t enjoy eating what my parents wanted me to. I was obsessed with sugary treat and that is almost the only thing I’d enjoy eating. Going to the dentist was always a pain because I was always scared of the dentist which till this day I don’t like going to the dentists. My mother would always think I would have a lot of cavities but to her surprise I never had any cavities as a child. But the bad side was, I would always get stomach aches because of the amounts of sugar I would eat. Even that wouldn’t stop my sweet tooth. As I got older I slowly realized that there are so many other foods that taste amazing! I would begin eating more and more foods that were different. And nowadays I love food! I eat everything that my mother will cook; I am not the same picky child as I was before. I not only love to eat food, but I love to cook as well. I’m definitely not an amazing cook but I still love it and it means a lot to me. Just give me a recipe and the ingredients and I will be fine. Just like anyone my age, I started off cooking small and easy foods. I would begin with cooking eggs, omelets, brownies and pancakes. And I would slowly make more and more types of food. For example I love cooking pasta and making sushi with my mother. It doesn’t seem like very high end kind of foods to make but it does the job well and tastes great and is healthy at the same time. Now that I am an adult, more is more expected from me from both my parents and my boyfriend. All three of them are making me learn to cook more and more because it’s something everyone my age should know how to do. Food is not only great tasting, but also is a stress reliever; a mood changer. Whenever I am feeling down, sad or maybe even bored I can always count on my kitchen because it isn’t going anywhere and is always there when I need it. Especially when I have an anxiety attack and I just want to be alone, I plug in my earphones, turn up my music and eat of course. It really helps me at home and helps me cope with being away from my boyfriend who is stationed on the other side of America and who just got home from Afghanistan. Just something about food that helps me feel better all the time. As a child I remember always watching my mother cooking and all. And just like every other child I always wanted to help because it would make me feel more grown up. So as awesome as my mother is, she would let me help her. Of course she gave me the easiest things to help her with. For example, if she was baking a cake she would let me crack the eggs, put in the butter, use the measuring cup to put in the right amount of flour. And she would even let me mix the batter too sometimes. When my mother would let me do all those things it made me feel so empowered and I felt like a responsible adult. As I got older, cooking had a special place in my heart. She would slowly let me make on my own, with her by my side of course. Making sure I’m doing it right. Till this day I remember always sneaking into the kitchen and steal some batter from the cake she was making and run off giggling. I would also sneak the chocolate she was using. Every time my mother bakes, I always have these memories. The house would always smell so good when she would cook. Food isn’t just plain and simple. It is unique and is almost fragile. While cooking even the smallest change in the recipe can change the taste of the dish dramatically. With spices especially it can change the food because if you put too little it won’t taste good, same if you out too much. You have to put in the perfect amount for it to taste good. Not only is the taste of the food good, but also the smell of the food while cooking is amazing. While cooking the smell of the food cooking just makes you want to eat it a lot more. When it comes to cooking, my mother is my biggest inspiration because no matter what is going on at home, when my mom fixes us some food; it of course doesn’t fix any of the problems but it does lighten the mood and helps us feel a little better. I’ve noticed that many arguments are when people are hungry or have an empty stomach. She absolutely loves cooking and it makes her happy and it’s the same for me as well. As I was younger, I would love to watch cooking shows where they compete over who can cook the best, also I would love watching the shows where they show a lot of cooking gadgets. Those shows always caught my attentions. Watching those shows just amazes me because of the things people can create with food, it’s just breath taking and makes me so happy! As for being Ukrainian and Polish, we h ave many different types of food that we make. In my culture we eat a lot of potatoes. Many people think it’s funny and weird that we eat a lot of potatoes but to me it tastes good and it is very healthy. We also make many different salads. Being Ukrainian and Polish and coming from a fairly large family, we eat a lot so it opens my eyes to many different types of food and makes me interested in trying everything. If I had to describe food in my perspective in the least amount of words I’d have to say that food to me is not just food, it’s a way I live my day to day life and what I create with food is not just to keep me stress free but is also a hobby and a way I keep people I know happy. Food isn’t just something we can just describe as a culture or what goes in our stomachs.

Women And Personal Status Law In Iraq Politics Essay

Women And Personal Status Law In Iraq Politics Essay Personal Status law is the term applied to those provisions in a states constitution that refer to the areas of marriage, divorce, custody, and inheritance. In many countries these laws are constructed as part of a secular, civil code, with independent courts adjudicating disputes. Historically women have been much more sensitive to personal status laws, also referred to as family law, because of their position in the household as caregivers and matriarchs. The laws that pertain to personal status in Iraq have undergone three main periods of transformation; in pre-Gulf War Iraq, the original law of personal status was set in place on December 30, 1959; several of the provisions (articles) were then amended, a few dropped, and several more added throughout the 1970s; post-Gulf War Iraq was a crucial turning point in the transformation of the code when women began to see a decline in their personal status rights; the laws were altered yet again as a consequence of the U.S. led invasion in 2003 and the drafting of a new Iraqi Constitution. By looking at these three time periods and the prevailing political atmospheres, we can then see the negative transformation and state manipulation of the personal status law. The future of the status of women in Iraq and their rights as recognized in a personal status code will also be discussed. It will be clear from this examination that while women have been successful in exerting some influence on laws of personal status in Iraq, more often than not the laws have been manipulated as a political tool by those in power, irreverent of the needs or wants of the countrys female population. It is important to consider the development of international human rights perceptions in relation to the current debate in the Middle East. The purpose of this framework is to provide a foundation from which we can understand the source of significant tension between Sharia Law and Personal Status Law. Human rights formed in the West during the European Enlightenment. The idea that the rights of the individual should be of paramount importance in a political system emerged and the emphasis on individualism, humanism, and rationalism (Mayer, 44) is the basis for contemporary international human rights principles. These Western foundations do well to explain the cause of tension between the West and Islam over human rights but to understand where the source of tension lies, we must look at Islam as an institution. Islam is the cornerstone of Middle East culture and tradition. Regardless of modernization efforts, Islamic primacy still remains. The dominance of religion affects all aspects of life including the human rights discourse and, as a result, the Muslim position on human rights is complex. Muslims do not have a common belief about what the Islamic position on human rights is or the relationship of their cultural tradition to international human rights norms (Mayer, 11). The Middle East, by nature, is a deeply penetrated region dealing with the impact of Western persuasion throughout its history. Human rights concepts are just another standard that the Middle East has had to assimilate and apply to their countries. However, these concepts are also part of accepted international law and by acknowledging international law as the law of nations (Mayer, 12), Muslims are bound to these norms. Thus, Muslim rejection to international human rights on the basis of Islam is contradictory. Historically, there is no human rights tradition in Islamic civilization (Mayer, 73) and no existing criteria as to how Islamic institutions limit international human rights or is there any detail of what these restrictions would be. International law recognizes many rights protections are not absolute and may be suspended or qualified in exception circumstance such as wars or public emergencies or even in normal circumstances in the interests of certain overriding considerations  [1]  However, there are certain kinds of rights that cannot be limited. These include freedom and equality, equality before law, equal protection, fair and public hearing, freedom of religion, and equal rights in marriage, all of which are listed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). In addition to these absolute rights, the UDHR also includes definite standards regarding what constitutes permissible reasons for curbing human rights protections (Mayer, 76). For example, Article 29.2 states: In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society.  [2]   A similar stipulation is also expressed in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) in Article 4: The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize that, in the enjoyment of those rights provided by the State in conformity with the present Covenant, the State may subject such rights only to such limitations as are determined by law only in so far as this may be compatible with the nature of these rights and solely for the purpose of promoting the general welfare in a democratic society.  [3]   It is clear that there are specific guidelines to restricting limits put on human rights exist; so then how does Islam seem to infringe upon these principles? Under international law, Muslims and non-Muslims cannot be deprived of their rights. However, there is no regulation that states that fundamental human rights may be curtailedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦by reference to the requirements of a particular religion (Mayer, 76). Nevertheless, human rights in the Middle East are being controlled under Sharia law and as a result, the rights that are established under international law are being qualified by standards that are not recognized in international law as legitimate bases for curtailing rights (Mayer, 77). Thus, it can be concluded that Sharia law is in direct conflict with democracy and human rights. More importantly, the overall conflict lies in the relationship between culture and human rights (An-Naim, 142). Sharia law is an integral part of Muslim society as it is the personal law of Islamic society. Most of the human rights violations related to Islam are inflicted on women especially regarding Personal Status law. Women in Pre-Gulf War Iraq CONDITIONS IN 1959 The late 1950s were a time of great change for Iraq. After years of living under the British mandate system and the subsequent rule of a pro-British monarch, a revolutionary new regime came to power on July 14, 1958. Led by Colonel Abd al-Salam Arif and Brigadier Abd al-Karim Qasim, the forces that overthrew the monarchy were united more by their distaste of the ruling regime, rather than by ideological means (Tripp, 149). Qasim quickly took advantage of his new position, consolidating power at the top of the state, and appointing himself Prime Minister, Minister of Defence, and Commander in Chief (Tripp, 152). The Iraq he took over was poor and underdeveloped, but under Qasim progressive laws were passed and early on groups were allowed to organize (including the Communist Party) to address the concerns and needs of what had previously been neglected aspects of society. These organizations, though allowed to operate openly were nevertheless still beholden to the state. One such grou p was the League for the Defense of Womens Rights, or al-Rabita, officially recognized by the government in 1958 though it had been active underground since 1952 (Efrati, 2). Al-Rabita was funded by the Communist Party, but established by professional Iraqi women to create widespread access to the kinds of opportunities which their own more privileged backgrounds had granted them (Tripp, 154). In this spirit the group focused on educational opportunities and political participation. They were also active in helping to draft and pass the Personal Status Code of 1959. Before 1959, Iraq had no civil code that addressed matters of personal status, which are of particular concern to women. The 1940s saw the first wave of educated women in Iraq, as female doctors and lawyers graduated from state universities (Tripp, 155). The women who had started organizing in 1952 were committed to combating issues of child marriages, polygamy, and the difficulty of divorce for women compared to the relative ease of divorce for men. These women were active in helping to draft the 1959 law and their president, Naziha al-Dulaymi, used her position as the Minister of Municipalit ies (and the first woman cabinet member in Iraq) to sit on the panel of specialists who prepared the law. Resistance was strong among the Sunni and Shia ulama; the Sunni were afraid that the income and prestige of the ulama would suffer, while the Shia clerics saw possible codification of a civil personal law as an encroachment on the realm of their mujtahids (Efrati, 3). It is unclear why Qasims government pushed through with the groundbreaking Personal Status Law No. 188 on December 30, 1959 (Efrati, 3). A possible reason for the ruling could have been Qasims was interest in unifying Iraq, not because he was necessarily an egalitarian, but because consolidation of the state made control easier, thereby increasing and protecting his power base. THE LAW OF 1959 The Personal Status Law was issued by decree in 1959 and contained two distinct innovations: It unified personal status law for Sunnis and Shia. Personal status law was now codified and written into law. Judges could no longer determine the law according to their own religious training; they simply had to apply the new code (Brown, 5). The new law had its basis in Sharia but made expert religious opinion unnecessary, taking control over personal status and the fate of women out of the hands of the religious leaders and putting it into the hands of the state. Underscoring how important a rift this caused among the emerging secular state and the religious clerics, author Michael Eppel writes that Shiite religious leaders opposition to this law was a catalyst in the Shiite awakening in Iraq (158). This uniform law was enacted to erase sectarian divisions and subject everyone to the same rules of the state. Important provisions of the law included: A marriage age of 18 (article 8). In special cases this could be lowered to 16. Required a womans consent to her marriage (articles 4 and 6). Set forth sanity and puberty as essential to the capacity to marry (article 7). Prohibited arbitrary divorce. Set strict limitations on polygamy, requiring the permission of a judge which could only be granted on two conditions: 1) the husband was financially able to support more than one wife (article 4a) or 2) that there was some lawful benefit involved (article 4b). Stipulated that mothers had the preferential right to custody of their children. Custody was granted until the age of seven, with an opportunity for the court to extend the age if necessary (article 57). Required that men and women be treated equally in matters of inheritance. Considered talaq to be invalid if spoken by a man whose mental capabilities were lacking (i.e. in cases of intoxication or anger). Allowed women to seek divorce through judicial means on grounds of injury or familial discord (Efrati and Coleman). The law was not perfect and did in fact contain many loopholes. Women activists wanted tougher punishments for forcing women to marry, a ban on polygamy and temporary marriages, as well as protection against marriage by proxy, which could undermine a womans right to consent by substituting a male guardian. Activists were also upset that men retained the right of no-fault divorce, where women had to prove injury, and that a womans consent was not necessary to resume a marriage after a talaq divorce. At the same time, however, the law contained many provisions considered extremely liberal and progressive. The inheritance law was considered a radical departure from Islamic teachings. Womens groups argued that differentiating between men and women in the issue of inheritance was not suitable for a progressive society (Efrati, 12). Women were now entering the workforce and helping to provide for the family; therefore they should be allowed an equal opportunity to support their income with inheritances. When clerics decried this move, Qasim defended the provision by saying that the verse in the Koran calling for a daughters inheritance to be half that of a sons was a recommendation, and not a requirement (Coleman, 3). Whatever the reason for the creation of the 1959 uniform personal status law, its creation gave Iraqi women a vast amount of secular rights, and gave them the most progressive rights for their sex in the Arab world. CHANGES OVER TIME 1963-80 The decades of the 1960s and 1970s were characterized by coup detats and political unrest in Iraq, as well as by fluctuating economic wealth and development, all of which contributed to a redefinition of womens rights. On February 8, 1963 Abd al-Salam Arif lead a coalition of nationalist Nasserite army officers and Bath party members in a successful coup against the Qasim government, bringing a new regime into power (Eppel 202). The Arif government, comprised of Bathist and Arab nationalists, was not united on ideological grounds, and factions within the parties were quickly at odds with each other. In March of 1963 they fought to amend the personal status law, instituting slight changes regarding polygamy and repealing the provisions applicable to inheritance, replacing them with rules more consonant with the Sharia (Efrati, 4). Both Arif and Prime Minister Ahmad Hasan al-Bakr wanted to repeal the law completely which they saw as irreconcilable with Islamic law, but were prevented f rom doing so due to infighting (Eppel, 216). These changes to the law proved to be temporary and were later amended in the 1970s. In 1968 yet another coup was launched, this time by the Bath party against Arifs brother, who had gained control of Iraq upon his brothers death. The Bath party stood for the power and unity of the Arab nation, and they rejected the Sunni/Shiite rift as an obstacle to this unity (Eppel, 232). In this vein they did not move to repeal the 1959 status law, in part because of its secular nature and also because they needed women to contribute to a stronger Iraq. The idea was that by empowering women personally it would encourage them to participate economically and politically. To facilitate their agenda the Bath introduced many state funded organizations aimed at redevelopment. Much like al-Rabita was created as a state controlled channel for womens participation in society, so too was the General Federation of Iraqi Women (GFIW) created when the Bath regime came to power in 1968 (Joseph, 182). The womens groups of the 1970s and early 80s had a reciprocal relationship with the Bath leadership. GFIW members were taught that they must serve and be loyal to the party and the state, and were encouraged to participate in a expanding public domain of social, cultural, political, and economic activities, helping to build a more solid and economically viable state (Joseph, 183). Joseph also writes that GFIW staff spent considerable time encouraging, among the membership, affection and loyalty to the head of the party and state, Saddam Hussein (183). In exchange for their loyalty to the state, the GFIW was given the role of implementing the changes in the laws of personal status, were allowed to host conferences of activist women, and were elevated in the public eye by Saddam Husseins frequent pronouncements and public appearances lauding the work and leaders of their organization (183). The Bath never let the GFIW go unchecked; women leaders were appointed by their party and its bu dget was derived from the state (Joseph, 182). What is most interesting is that it was men at the top of the Bath partys power structure that set forth the goals of the GFIW. One of these goals was to ensure the equality of Iraqi women with men in rights, in the economy and in the state (182). While other womens groups still operated, the GFIW took over as the main catalyst for the expression of female goals. With the creation of this group, women activists again channeled their energy into rectifying the changes made in 1963 to the personal status law, and to closing the loopholes resulting from the 1959 version. THE NEW PROVISIONAL CONSTITUTION In 1970, members of the General Federation of Iraqi Women decided the time was right to push for a new personal status law to replace the 1959 code and more importantly the restrictive amendments introduced in 1963. They pushed for greater reforms, and formulated a draft for a new family law that was presented to the regime in 1975 (Efrati, 4). While not all of their demands were met, several amendments to the personal status code were included in Iraqs Provisional Constitution in 1970 and 1978. Among the important changes: Article 19 declared all citizens equal before the law (regardless of sex). Divorce was permitted by judicial proceedings if the marriage took place before 18 years of age or without a judges approval. Forced marriages were nullified if not consummated, and divorce was allowed where the marriage was not consummated. New punishments were set for forcing marriage and for preventing marriage. Punishments were set for marriages contracted outside of the court A man who contracted a second marriage (without judicial permission) could be imprisoned for 3-5 years. A wife now had legal grounds for demanding a divorce if her husband took a second wife without permission by a judge. A woman could now have a no-fault divorce if the marriage was not yet consummated and the marriage expenses were returned to the husband. Situations under which a woman could obtain a judicial divorce were clarified and expanded, ex) adultery. Maternal custody was extended to the age of 10. At age 15 the child could choose whom to live with (Efrati, HRW and Joseph). The law still registered several shortcomings. It did not forbid marriages by proxy, did not go far enough with the maternal age of custody, and lowered the possible marriage age to 15 (from 16) if a judge saw that special circumstances prevailed. Another major blow to the hopes of womens groups was that no ban on polygamy was included. Activists still opposed article 3(5) which allowed a judge to decide whether wives could be treated equally (Efrati, 7). They contended that judges were ill-equipped to make such a decision, and that equal treatment was an impossibility, citing as reinforcement the Quranic verse which states Ye will not be able to deal equally between [your] wives, however much you wish [to do so]' (7). Other articles that remained unchanged from the 1959 version included articles 34, 38, and 39, which allowed for divorce outside of the court, and ensured that equal rights to divorce were not granted to women (9). Still the changes in the 1970s, though slight, did enc ourage the womens movement. Also, in January of 1971, Iraq ratified the International Covenants on Civil and Political rights (ICCPR) and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), both of which provided equal protection to women under international law (HWR, 2). The central question here is why did the Bath party pay attention to womens demands for greater opportunities and rights? Women activists had been vocal about instituting change since the 1920s, and though successful in seeing the 1959 law passed, they had not encountered many reforms since. Womens groups were partly responsible for the additions, but their activities alone do not explain the shifts in policy put into place by the Bath government. Among the new initiatives were Labor and Employment laws which passed, allowing women opportunities to participate in the civil service sector, maternity benefits that were introduced, as well as other legislation (HRW, 2). According to Human Rights Watch, the Iraqi Bureau of Statistics reported that in 1976, women represented about 38.5 percent of those in the education sector, 31 percent in the medical field, 15 percent of civil servants and 25 percent of lab technicians. Women were also accorded the right to vote in 1980. When one consid ers that the first female graduates of educational institutions didnt emerge until the 1940s, this participation is highly accelerated. This increased economic participation then paved the way for slight changes to the personal status law. As Joseph writes, In so far as freeing women from familial controls to participate in the labour force and the polity was needed for the state-building programme, some revision of the personal status laws became necessary and useful (184). Thus, during this time period, due to the economic expansion of the state, the regime saw fit to expand womens participation and facilitated this through political means, by amending the personal status law. WAR YEARS The 1980s and 90s were a hard time for all Iraqis, and women were no exception. Two wars and a decade of U.N. sanctions ensured that womens groups had other more pressing concerns than the continued fight to amend the personal status code. In 1972, with the nationalization of Iraqs main commodity, oil, the states wealth increased and an economic boom contributed to advancement in education and the workforce for women. By the 1980s and 90s a slow-down occurred as these resources were diverted to pay for the Iran-Iraq war and later to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait and the Gulf war that followed. Throughout these decades women again became a tool of the state. Whereas before they had been co-opted with political reforms, now women, under threat of personal or familial harm, were urged in the 1980s and 1990s to put the state first and family second. Loyalty to the state was absolute. Divorce was now used as a weapon of the regime. Noga Efrati writes, women were encouraged to seek judicial divorce if their husbands evaded or deserted military service, defected to the enemy side, were convicted of treason, or held foreign citizenship and refrained from returning to Iraq for more than three years (10). During these years the GFIW did manage to convince President Saddam Hussein to pass a few resolutions, in special cases, but to the advantage of only a small number of women. Women in Post-Gulf War Iraq Beginning in the 1990s women started to see a dramatic reversal in their personal status rights. Joseph writes that the modest legal advances for women would be precariously balanced against the costs the Bath would incur by antagonizing other constituencies (184). The constituencies he speaks of are those of the religious leaders and the tribal chiefs, the same people whose support Saddam needed to court in order to retain power throughout the wars. Saddam made a decision to embrace Islamic and tribal traditions as a political tool in order to consolidate power (HWR, 3). In this vein Saddam manipulated and created law wherever it served his political purposes. In 1988 he legalized honour killings in Iraq, permitting men to kill their wives or female relatives if they were judged to have dishonoured the family name by committing adultery, which resulted in the deaths of an estimated 4,000 Iraqi women and girls (Tripp, 227, HWR). This reversal was a concession to Shia clerics. Womens access to the public and private sectors (including education) were also cut in order to ensure jobs for men during wartime and to help appease conservative religious and tribal groups (HWR). A combination of depressed economic and political factors in the late 1980s and early 1990s led to a regression of womens status and rights in Iraq, taking them back to traditional roles in the family. The 2003 Invasion and the New Iraqi Constitution With the U.S. led invasion in 2003, many activists both in and outside of Iraq expected a positive change in the status of women and hoped for the restoration of a progressive personal status code. The hope was that after removing Saddam from power, a new government, guided by an egalitarian Western power (the United States) would be able to resurrect and strengthen the original personal status law of 1959, ensuring more equal rights for women. Unfortunately it has been a bumpy road for female activists. The war and its aftermath have greatly reduced personal freedoms for all Iraqis, and attempts at preserving the personal status code have taken a back seat to preservation and personal safety. Progressives and women activists initially suffered a setback when in December 2003 the Iraqi Governing Council (IGC), under the control of Abd al-Aziz al-Hakim, the Shia cleric who leads the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI), passed Order 137 which seemed to set aside the 1959 personal status law (Brown, 6). Hakim had long been in opposition to the progressive personal status code, and used his opportunity as head of the rotating governing council to pass a measure that instilled Sharia and nullified the old code. According to Noga Efrati, women moved aggressively to fight Order 137, organizing a series of protests (1). One such protest drew activists representing 80 womens organizations, who carried placards that with slogans such as We Reject Decree 137 Which Sanctifies Sectarianism and Division in Iraqi Society and Family (1). Womens groups also held press conferences and high-level meetings with American provisional authorities to voice their concerns ov er the law, which in addition to nullifying an important code, was ambiguous and dangerous in its wording (Coleman, 3). Paul Bremer, leader of the Coalitional Provisional Authority, ended up vetoing Order 137, but the move by the Shia cleric foreshadowed the uphill fight women would have to face in a new, sectarian Iraq. In the final draft of the Constitution womens status in the new Iraq has not been clarified. In the October 2005 document, article 14 states that Iraqis are equal before the law without discrimination because of sex, but it also states that no law can be passed that contradicts the undisputed rules of Islam (Pollitt, 1). Whose version of Islam will govern is still up for debate. The law seems to indicate that Sunnis and Shia would be free to follow their own doctrine, and because it does not explicitly repeal or reference the 1959 law, scholars say the Constitution would appear to allow the continuation of the 1959 code of personal status for those who wanted to use it (Brown, 5). Sharia law could mean the return of unrestricted polygamy, divorce by talaq, honour killings, and a public death for perpetrators of adultery (Weinberg, 1). The picture becomes even more unclear when one looks at the Supreme Federal Court, also established by the Constitution. This Court will be made up of a number of judges and experts in Sharia and law (Pollitt, 1). It is unclear at this stage where there would be room for a civil court system. While the women of Iraq and the National Assembly managed to be successful in keeping the 1959 law intact, it seems that the country is destined to be divided along religious lines. Even if Iraq remains a unified country, the religious and sectarian splits in law could make adjudicating disputes incredibly difficult. What would happen in the case of a Sunni woman who is married to a Shia man? Would she have the right to visit a Sunni or secular court, or if the country reverts back to its patrimonial past, will she be forced to go to a Shia court. Perhaps she could pick whichever court is most advantageous to her cause. A Supreme Federal Court adjudicating on the basis of Sharia is also problematic for non-Muslims residing in Iraq. If Sharia is the law of the land, will non-Muslims also be subjected to it even though the constitution guarantees freedom of religion? The two main sects of Islam will most likely interpret family law differently, and women have gone from an even footing under secular law, to an unknown system that could test their resilience and forfeit their accustomed rights. Possible Transformations The fact is that the new Iraqi government has laid out a constitution which gives Islam a central role and which names the religion as a basic source of legislation (Pollitt, 1). Sharia has been recognized as a legitimizing factor, and therefore if women and moderates hope to advance the cause of womens rights in the new Iraq, they will probably have to do so within an Islamic framework. In the recent past women in other nations have also faced a change in their status, with different outcomes. One fear is the possibility of Iraq following in Irans footsteps, which would be a disastrous blow to the womens movement and to the hopes of those that wish to see Iraq modernize. With the coming of Irans revolution in 1979 and the attainment of power by religious clerics, the countrys progressive family law was suspended and within a few months new Sharia rulings lowered the marriage age to nine, permitted polygamy, gave fathers the right to decide who their daughters could marry, permitted unilateral divorce for men but not women, and gave fathers sole custody of children in the case of divorce (Coleman, 5). While a distinct possibility, this seems to be a fate Iraq has avoided with clauses in their Constitution that guarantee women an equal footing with men. Hopefully, Iraq will follow the letter of the law and will not suffer the same fate as Irans family law codes. Fortunately, there is precedent for a successful path to a change in womens status. Morocco and Indonesia have both seen extensive dialogue concerning their personal status codes, and each has discussed changes using Islam as a large part of their rationale. Morocco benefits from a large network of progressive nongovernmental organizations, which pushed to raise the marriage age from 15 to 18, abolish polygamy, equalize the right to divorce, and give women the right to retain custody of their children (Coleman, 5). As with Iraq, these progressive organizations were opposed by a large and vocal religious block within the country. In this case, the changes in the Sharia-based personal status laws were facilitated by a modernizing monarch, King Muhammad IV. He backed the reformers and in October 2003 presented Moroccos parliament with revisions to the law, defending his changes with references to the Koran and thereby placing the new law above reproach from religious leaders (Weitzman, 394). Iraq may not have the NGO strength of Morocco, but with the emergence of a charismatic, forward-thinking leader, as well as pressure from womens organizations and others from below, a reform along the lines of Moroccos experience could be achieved. In the case of Indonesia, grass-roots groups have started schooling women on Islamic jurisprudence so that they may hold their own religious debates. In 2004, Musdah Mulia, the chief researcher at Indonesias Ministry of Religious Affairs, proposed changes to the existing Sharia in the areas of marriage, polygamy, and the wearing of the hijab (Coleman, 5). She defended these changes in much the same way that King Muhammad of Morocco did, through references to

Gender Roles in Children’s Books: An Examination of Little House in the

People use several different classification systems to help organize a complex society. For example, scientists use a system composed of hierarchies in order to place animals in their proper kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, and species. By creating this classification system, people of society are better able to understand the relationships that these animals have with each other. Just as scientists use this hierarchy to organize animals, people use the concept of gender to classify their own kind. However, many people fail to realize that gender, unlike the system of hierarchies used by scientists to classify animals, is not biologically based. While sex is a biological concept, gender can be defined as the sociological, psychological, and cultural attributes that society associates with sex. Thus, society creates gender roles, and, accordingly, â€Å"does gender.† In other words, people require that others act out the gender roles set by society if they want to be part of the social norm. The purpose of this paper, then, is to first examine literature which discusses ways in which society â€Å"does gender†, and then examine the manner in which authors of children’s books promote these gender roles that society has assigned. Judith Lorber’s article entitled, â€Å"Night to His Day: The Social Construction of Gender† (Lorber, 1994) is one example of a piece of literature that examines â€Å"doing gender.† In this article, she argues that the concept of gender exists because of socialization; that is, society teaches that certain characteristics should be associated with boys while other characteristics should be associated with girls. As aforementioned, in order to demonstrate why society uses gender classifications from birth, Lorber says that people must look at gender as a social institution in that â€Å"gender is one of the major ways that human beings organize their lives† (Lorber, 1994). One of the ways that people allocate others for performing tasks in society, then, is through gender classification. After discussing socialization theory, Lorber goes on to give several examples of how people â€Å"do gender† in today’s society. For example, she discusses how men with baby carriers are stared at approvingly on the bus because these men are seen as changing the role of fathers more towards the domestic end of the spectrum, a role that was previously played only... ...ly. While Wilder’s characters exhibit traits that help to reinforce the gender norms created by society, Rowling seems to suggest that life is more interesting when these traditional gender roles are bent, just as life is more exciting at Hogwart’s than at the Dursley household. Therefore, in order for males and females to feel comfortable taking advantage of the plethora of opportunities that are available to them, members of society must strive to bend the gender roles that they have assigned. Works Cited Lorber, Judith. â€Å"Night to His Day: The Social Construction of Gender† Excerpts from: Paradoxes of Gender (Chapter 1) by Judith Lorber, 1994 Yale University Press. Web. http://faculty.ucc.edu/english-chewning/SocialConstructionOfGender.pdf Messner, Michael. â€Å"Boyhood, Organized Sports, and the Construction of Masculinities† Journal of Contemporary Ethnography January 1990 vol. 18 no. 4 416-444 http://www.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/upm-binaries/18602_Chapter_5.pdf Rowling, J. K. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. New York City: Scholastic, 1997. Print. Wilder, Laura Ingalls. Little House in the Big Woods. New York: HarperCollins Publishers. 1953.

The Drug Ecstacy :: essays research papers

Ecstasy is a slang or short word for Methylenedioxymethamphetamines (MDMA). It is a very serious mind-altering, psychoactive drug that can kill you. This drug can cause confusion, paranoia, sleep problems, anxiety and depression even after weeks of not taking it. Ecstasy was first developed in 1914 as a diet pill or appetite suppressant and it was a legal substance until 1985. In the mid-1980s, ecstasy burst out in the streets becoming the most popular drug used in Raves (wild all night parties) because it helps you keep dancing and mood enhancement. Ecstasy can be taken orally, sometimes snorted and rarely injected. The price for one capsule can range from $25 to $40 and the effect can last 3 to 6 hours. Ecstasy pills may come in a lot of different colors shapes and usually have small cartoons or logos branded on top (such as play boy bunnies, CK, love symbols, etc.). There are also a lot of names by which ecstasy can be found, for example, XTC, M&M, Love drug, Love trip, Adam, Rollin, etc. MDMA immediate effects are sweating, heart rate and blood pressure rising, dehydration, jaw clenching, teeth grinding, etc. Ecstasy can make you feel like you trust someone and it can break down barriers (that is why people call it in the brain which are critical to the memory and thought. Studies show that a drunken person has more memory than a person who smoked ecstasy heavily in the past. Ecstasy has been becoming dangerously popular in the last couple of years but due to the hard work of the Partnership For A Drug Free America the usage of Ecstasy has been lowering dramatically. They make public service announcements warning teens of the dangers and downsides to using ecstasy and helping to understanding the dangers of using drugs. There are places such as Greenbriar Treatment Center which offer help for people suffering from chemical dependency such as ecstasy. It is located in Washington, PA and their approach is to respect the people who they treat and reassure them that addiction is a curable disease.

Red Faction :: essays research papers

*************************** 29. Refuse Disposal Plant *************************** Open the elevator door by hitting the button to the right. Head forward, and Gryphon will run up ahead to the incinerator controls. ======================================================================= = Hendrix: This is Ultor's main trash disposal facility. = ======================================================================= ======================================================================= = Hendrix: That's an Ultor Personnel Suppression combot. I didn't = = know they had any on Mars! = ======================================================================= ======================================================================= = Hendrix: I can't see Orion's group on my monitors anymore. = ======================================================================= While Gryphon takes the first left, go forward up the ramp and through the door. Climb the ladder up ahead, then climb a second ladder to get to the roof. You'll be shot at by the combat as you climb, but just ignore it and get up there. He'll have a tough time hurting you while you're up here. Follow the instructions and you shouldn't lose a single point of health, despite the holes he might create with his rockets. As you look around the outer edge of the massive roof, you'll see several groups of ammo crates. Make your way around the outer edge as you make your way to each one to find ammo, medkits, armor, and a rocket launcher. Make sure to snuggle up to each crate and jump on top of it to make sure you get every last piece of ammo and equipment that you can. Once you're done, equip the rocket launcher and climb back down using a ladder away from the one you climbed up. The combot should be shooting at you, so begin making your way to the lower level door. Most importantly, keep moving and take some shots at the combot with the rocket launcher while you can. Keep taking shots at the combot and luring him out the large door on the ground floor until Hendrix cuts in. ======================================================================= = Hendrix: There's a disposal pit at the lowest point of this level. = ======================================================================= ======================================================================= = Hendrix: Try to lure the bot out onto the pit's covering, then open = = the doors from the control room. = ======================================================================= At this point, you've damaged the combot enough and he's really ticked off. Now just turn around and run back to the disposal pit. Once the combot approaches the last corridor leading to the pit's covering, run to the right and climb the ladder to the control room (where Gryphon is cowering in fear). The combot will be unloading everything he's got at you, but ignore it and quickly hit the right button to open the pit, then hit the left button to turn on the ceiling fan to blow the combot down into it. Rather than waiting and watching to make sure it happens,

Leadership qualities of Odysseus throughout the book Essay

Throughout the Odyssey, the lead character, Odysseus, is presented as the ideal Greek leader. He demonstrates this through the treatment of his men and how he deals with problems that are presented to him. Because the Odyssey was first a spoken myth, it took on the shape of the society in which it was told. Including that society’s moral and ethical values, as well as its desires in the traits of a leader. A leader must first be defined, then set apart from other potential leaders, then the leader must be tested through his actions, only then can a definite leader be defined. First, one must define the ideal Greek leader. An ideal Greek leader commands the respect of those being led, but also gives respect. He must be intelligent and cunning, and able to think logically with the intentions of keeping the well being of those under him. Reverence to the gods is mandatory, as they are viewed as the supreme leaders. An ideal leader must have an ability to lead a military victoriously, but also know when military action is not necessary. There are many other traits that the ideal Greek leader must possess, but none are as important as those that have been listed. Another way of proving Odysseus as the ideal leader is by contrasting him with other leaders. Two other characters in the book that could be considered character foils are Antinoos and Alkinoos, two very different leaders. Alkinoos, King of the Phaeacians, is presented as leader who is open to outsiders, another trait that is revered in ancient Greek culture. When he provides the hospitality to Odysseus, he shows his welcoming manner by not only allowing Odysseus to stay as his guest, but also taking him back to Ithaca. â€Å"When you came here to my strong home, Odysseus, under my tall roof, headwinds were left behind you. Clear sailing shall you have now, homeward now†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (XIII, 4-7) Alkinoos can be considered a foil that shows  what Homer viewed as a good leader. Antinoos, on the other hand, was almost the opposite. The suitor spent his time unsuccessfully enticing Penelope, one of many things that Homer could have considered to be a bad trait, especially when possess ed by a leader, which is something that Antinoos could be considered in his relationship with the other suitors. He was also the suitor who came up with the scheme to kill Telemachus. Furthermore, Antinoos being the first to die when Odysseus returns, could be presented as Homer’s punishment of the iniquitous suitor of the hero’s wife. These two characters can be considered the two extremes in Homer’s view of a leader. Odysseus’s actions throughout the book demonstrate the traits that make him a good leader. Through his decisions in these specific events, he proves that he is a good, but not perfect, leader. First, his decision to send men to scout out Kirke’s house was one of pleasure, not conquest. Odysseus did not need to send his men probing the unfamiliar island, but still felt it necessary. This decision is one that had to be made, but given past experiences, the reader would expect Odysseus to choose otherwise, especially when his men felt hesitant. â€Å"They were all silent, but their hearts contracted, remembering Antiphates the Laistrygon and that prodigious cannibal, the Kyklopes†¦ But seeing our time for action lost in weeping, I mustered those Akhaians under arms, counting them off in two platoons, myself and my godlike Eurylokhos commanding.† (X, 217-224) It wasn’t until after the first party fell prey to Kirke’s elixir that Odysseus shows his true leadership. With the aid of the gods, he is able to free his men from living as swine. Although he stays long after he has freed his men, nearly a year, he felt the obligation towards his men by undoing Kirke’s acts and freed them from her hold. Another instance when Odysseus demonstrates his leadership ability is when he is faced with the escape from Polyphemus’s cave. His quick thinking and strategic approach gave him victory over the giant, two traits Homer emphasizes in Odysseus. Odysseus is able to lead his men to blind the Kyklops, but shows how no mortal man can be perfect, no matter how heroic, by shouting back at Polyphemus and telling him who had truly blinded him. Finally, Odysseus’s similarity to some of the known leaders of ancient Greece  can be used to express how Odysseus was presented as the ideal Greek leader. The first of whom being the democratic leader of Athens, Pericles, and second being Alexander the Great. Pericles was much like Odysseus in a sense of his ability to manipulate and influence those under him, a necessary skill in any democratic society. He was able to influence the other elected officials into believing what he wanted, and stemmed his success from that ability. Although not an especially admirable trait, the ability to influence men into what is needed to be done in the eyes of the leader is most certainly necessary, especially when it involves military authority. Alexander the Great’s decisiveness is paralleled only by Odysseus, which is another trait that all strong leaders must possess. Another element to a leader that is often present is that of arrogance, as Alexander the Great believed himself to be half immortal, and held himself in comparison with Hercules. Alexander was even known to sleep with copies of Homer’s books under his pillow, and drew heavy influence from Homer’s characters, including Odysseus. Odysseus is considered to be one of the greatest mythological heroic leaders. Not only is he presented as the model for the ideal Greek leader, but has influenced many other leaders throughout history, including Alexander the Great. Odysseus was a model for ancient Greek leaders, and still influences our views of leadership today, although we may not even notice it.

Importance of School Paper

Importance of our School Newspaper Have you ever wondered? What is the importance of a school newspaper. Some may think, it is our way of being updated with what is happening in the school. Some may think it is just a paper for entertainment purposes. And some might think it’s nothing. But the truth is, a school paper is the one that answers our questions, one that keeps us updated, and the one that keeps us interested in our school surroundings. It is made in a logical and comprehensive way, in way such as that the reader can easily understand the newspaper. A school paper is also made through rigorous editing, processing and writing.A school paper gives that answers to the questions that we have in our school. Whatever that question maybe? The question may be about student achievements, school activities, new people such as teachers and staff etc. This shows how our newspaper can be very useful to us, as students. And we are not the only ones being given this information. Th e staff and other people are also informed of our school through our school’s newspaper. This chain of information that is being made makes it possible for the people inside and outside our school be more vigilant and active in our school surroundings.A quote by David Bryne â€Å"People hear about stuff from their friends or a magazine or a newspaper. † . This quote is a statement of how information passes from one person to another. But not all the time this information that is being passed is true. That is why there are some people who say that a newspaper is the disgusting of all media. Because as much as people want to make a really good newspaper. The Bias of the persons making it is sometimes still there. That’s why you can never really tell if an newspaper is fair in its job to give fair and correct news to everyone.The newspaper that we have now also updates us with the most recent and important news. Without it we will be ignorant in judging our surroun dings, and that makes us not good. And because we have this common norm that people who are updated are the people who are what they say â€Å"IN in our society†. That is depends upon you if it’s true. But it is of course much better to be updated in the happenings and the events in our own school. And because we are updated with our school, we become interested in our own school. Interest makes sure that our curiosity is always there.That is why when we receive a copy of the Forum, we become excited. The school newspaper is also made with essays. And those essays have their own structures and functions. For example an essay has three main parts. The introduction, which contains the Hook and the Thesis Statement. The body, which is the very soul of the essay. And the conclusion. Which ends and sums up your ideas for the essay . There are also types of essays. Some of these are descriptive, research, contrast, comparison, literary, persuasive, argumentative and such. Th ese are not all used in an newspaper but still is useful to know some of them.A school newspaper is made by a team that rigorouly edits, processes, and approves the essays that are used for the newspaper. These are all headed by the EIC(Editor in Chief), which gives directives to the editing chief of each section. And then the editing chief of each section gives a writer a certain assignment for them. This is also the hierarchy of how the people who make the newspaper make them. First a writer will pass it to his or her chief. Then the chief checks it for grammar, annotations and such. If he or she finds some corrections he will not accept it and will return it to the writer.After he returns it to the writer, he will check it again and make sure that it is reviewed again and good material already. Then the chief will pass it to his EIC which will also check and review it for grammar and capitalization and such. He makes sure that there is nothing that was overlooked by the section c hief for he is liable for anything that is in that paper. He also compiles all the work done by the writer and reviews all those thoroughly. He or she also has the most highest position in the office. Here now we see how a newspaper is made. Here now we see how hard it is to make.The hard work and the time that was used for the creation of the newspaper was important. Because we know that the newspaper is not just a piece of paper lying around waiting for some to read. It is something that allows us to learn. It is a paper that gives all that we need. The people who made this newspaper made sure that it is made clearly and intently, with it’s own purpose. We see here what are the types and the structure of an essay. Because this information is crucial to the formation of person . Now we learn that a newspaper influence almost everything in our daily lives.For it is our lives, it is the one that contains what are lives are meant for. Here now we learn that it is important to m ake sure that we take care of our newspapers. That we make sure that it is used according to how it must be used. We learned this that it answers our questions, updates us, keeps us interested. We know also that it is made in a logical and comprehensive way. And lastly we know that it is made by people who made sure it is the best newspaper. That’s why we can only say one thing. A newspaper is indeed important in our life