Vision, Mission, and Strategy at Starbucks Essay -- Business Analysis

Starbucks was bought out by current CEO Howard Schultz in 1987. Since then, Andrew Harrer (2012) reports the company has grown to operate over â€Å"17,244 stores worldwide† (para. 1). Fortune (n.d.) reports in its yearly 100 Best Companies to Work for that Starbucks employs â€Å"some 95,000 employees†. From only a handful of stores in 1987 to a billion dollar franchise today, the success of Starbucks is due in great deal to their corporate culture, specifically how employees, or as Starbucks calls them, partners are treated. Joseph Michelli (2007) echoes this sentiment, â€Å"A great cup of coffee is only part of the Starbucks success equation† (p. 767). The Starbucks corporate culture is not easily summed up because it is multidimensional. However, Starbucks leadership reiterates several key words regularly; â€Å"everything matters†, â€Å"playful†, â€Å"human connection†, â€Å"respect†, â€Å"dignity†, and â€Å"care†. In fact, many of these words can be found in their mission statement. Starbucks partner mission statement reads: We’re called partners, because it’s not just a job, it’s our passion. Together, we embrace diversity to create a place where each of us can be ourselves. We always treat each other with respect and dignity. And we hold each other to that standard. (Starbucks.com, n.d., para. 2). Starbucks strives to be the place between work and home for its customers, and strives to create a place to work where productivity shines above any differences between colleagues. The hiring process begins with the interview. Online forums often reveal the same types of questions asked at interviews. These questions generally refer to how an individual handles conflict with colleagues, requests for information on how they might have disappointed a customer, why... ...leadership and a fair performance appraisal system. Works Cited Aguins, H. (2009). Performance Management (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. CNN Money (2012). 100 Best Companies to Work For. Fortune Magazine. Retrieved from http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/best-companies/2012/snapshots/73.html Harrer, A (2012, January 26). Starbucks Corporation. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/starbucks_corporation/index.html Michelli, J.A. (2007). The Starbucks Experience: 5 Principles for Turning Ordinary into Extraordinary. New York, NY: McGraw Hill. Kindle Edition. Schultz, H. (2011). Onward. New York, NY: Rodale. Kindle Edition. Weber, G. (2005, February 1). Preserving the Starbucks Counter Culture. Workforce.com. Retrieved from http://www.workforce.com/article/20050201/NEWS02/302019989

Macbeth: Destiny of Each Character is Pre-determined :: Macbeth essays

Macbeth: Destiny of Each Character is Pre-determined In the play Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare, each characters destiny seems to be predetermined. This raises the ultimate question: who, or what, controls fate? Existentialism is the belief that each person defines their future by their decided actions: that the future has not yet been written. Fatalism is the belief that the outcome of all events is preordained, and therefore, unalterable. Throughout Macbeth, the character Macbeth makes many decisions which clearly affect his future, but are they truly decisions? Or, are his decisions examples of fatalism, where another force is guiding his actions to their predetermined conclusion? Many of the characters, events, and much of the imagery in Macbeth indicates that fate plays a prominant role in advancing the plot. The characters most easily identified with having supernatural powers are, obviously, the three witches. The Witches' ability to see into the future is demonstrated when Macbeth becomes thane of Cawdor. The line, "What? Can the devil speak true?" showes Banquo's surprise at the realization of the prophecy. But, would the Witches' prophecy of Macbeth's royal promotion have come true had they not made Macbeth aware of the possibility? There was no reason to warn Macbeth of the fate in store for him, since it is most likely impossible for a person to alter their destiny. It is quite possible that the witches have no real power at all, beyond that of suggestion. They may have only planted the idea within Macbeth, feeding off his already present ambition. Perhaps the only true controlling power comes from Lady Macbeth's uncontrollable greed. Once Lady Macbeth had learned of the witches' prophecy, she immediately concluded that Macbeth would not, with his present persona, be able to attain that which fate had bestowed upon him. "...Hie thee hither, That I may pour my spirits in thine ear And chastise with valor of my tongue All that impedes thee from the golden round Which fate and metaphysical aid doth seem To have thee crowned withal." Lady Macbeth believed that it was her duty to induce Macbeth to carry out the necessary deed (Duncan's murder) to fulfil the prophecy. However, if Lady Macbeth had not influenced him, it is doubtful that Macbeth would have taken any action towards his Royal future. This substantiates the idea that the strength of the witches' words lies in the power of suggestion. Although Lady Macbeth stated her belief in Fate, she felt compelled to help it along. During the banquet, Macbeth realized that the path of his life was coming to a "fork in the road", and

“Khalil Gibran poem ‘a lover’s call”

Khalil Gibran a major pioneer of modern Arabic literature, as the best selling American poet of the twentieth century, and as a Middle Eastern modernist whose intellectual life is documented in meticulous detail. He was an Arab who wrote for the most part in Arabic. It was not until his thirties that he ventured to write for publication in English, and even then he seems often to have written first in Arabic and then translated his story or poem into English.Gibran poem ‘A Lover’s Call’, narrates the plight of a lover separated from his beloved. According to him, his lady love posses’ ethereal qualities of an angel. The poet mentions that they have been separated from each other on this earth for earthly reasons. They have parted a long time ago but the lover remembers her as if it was yesterday. He is worn out with his unrequited love for his dear lady. He remembers their time together and craves for her love, affection and companionship.The tone of the po em is sad and serious and above all passionate. The words of the lover in the poem are the cry from his very soul. His words also show the depth of his love for his dear lady. The language is simple, colloquial language and avoided the complex language and metres of traditional Arabic poetry. Gibran is primarily a painter and writes like he is painting. His images have visual qualities and touch the heart at a pre-rational level. He used the flamboyant rhetoric acceptable to Arabic canons of taste, not the cool, detached style of modern American poetry.Many critics think that Gibran’s poetic genius predominantly lies in the use of metaphor. Gibran indeed creates beautiful images that are charged with emotions and that expand the reader’s vision and imagination. There are many vivid images in the poem. The poet uses the image of ‘a mother’, god’s spirit, ‘companion of his soul’, ‘other self’ to compare his belovedHe is also a poet prophet. An emotional strobe designed by him, light momentarily illuminates an aspect of our experience, leaving us with a picture burned onto our emotional retinas. Thereafter, we see that aspect of our experience with different eyes. What we do get from his writings is the extraordinary force of Gibran's moral seriousness turned on various aspects of life.The poem ‘A Lover’s Call’, gives us a glimpse of the love which is above the social bonding. Gibran is an advocate of romantic love against the oppression of society. The lady love of the lover in the poem is separated from him due to earthly barriers and he knows that they may not unite on this earth. But there love is greater than any earthly bonding. Their love is the joining of two souls and after death, together they will reach God.In the poem, ‘A Lover’s Call’, a lover calls his beloved and conveys his love and sorrow through the breeze in the air, through the spirits in the ai r and through the angels. The poem starts with the question: ‘Where are you, my beloved?’This line suggests that the lover is separated from his lover. As the poem proceeds we realize that they have been parted from each other for an indefinite period of time.Next the man wonders where she can be at that hour. In the first eight lines he says, she can be in the garden watering the plants, which look upon her as a mother because by watering the plant and taking care of it she is performing the role of a mother. She can also be in her chamber, her private room. She is the embodiment of virtue but in attaining this position she has sacrificed the lover’s heart and soul. Or she is reading books to gain human knowledge when she is replete with divine wisdom.In the next eight lines he compares her to the companion of his soul. Their love is spiritual love, which is characterized by the union of two souls. He wonders if she is in the temple praying to the gods or she is in the field calling nature which is a refuge of her dreams. May be she is with the poor people in their hut consoling with encouraging words. She has a good heart so she may also give them money so that they can meet their needs. He compares his lady love to God’s spirit. She has the essence of God and so she is everywhere. She is stronger than the ages as she is God’s spirit. She will remain for ever.In the proceeding lines, the lover retrospects the memorable moments in his past. He remembers the day he met his dear lady and the time which he has spend with her. He addresses her and asks if she remembers the day they met for the first time. It is noteworthy that his lady is not physically present in from of him. It can be inferred that the conversation is taking place between their spirits. He remembers that the radiance of her spirit surrounded them. He farther says that the angels of love moved around them and praised the activities of their souls. As if the God wanted them to fall in love.He recollects their sitting in the shade of the branches which hid them from the glances of passer- by.   The branches sheltered them from humanity ‘as the ribs in the body protect the secret of the heart from injury‘. He also remembers the long stretch of time they have spend together walking along side each other in the forest. They walked hand in hand on the trails of the forest and they heads leaning towards each other. Probably their head was leaning against each other as they were engrossed in conversation or they were totally involved in looking at each other. They were totally lost in each other and were unaware of the world around them.The lover in the consecutive lines of the poem tells not only of spiritual love but also of physical love. He wants his beloved to remember the hour he said goodbye to her and the maritime kiss she placed on his lips. By ‘maritime kiss’, he may mean that probably he was taking a voyage to sea for a certain period of time and his beloved kissed him goodbye. Her kiss taught him that union of the lips is also a manifestation of love. Her kiss showed him a glimpse of heaven and all the wonders in it.The act of kissing revealed to him the heavenly secrets which tongue cannot express. He farther says that the kiss perpetuated a great sigh of relief and fulfillment. He journeyed to the spiritual world because his soul was glorified with her love which she has showered on him. He felt heavenly bliss. Their love was not only physical union but also union of the soul. He adds that her kiss made him continue feeling this heavenly love until they meet again. In other words he remained in the state of heavenly joy till the time he see his dear love again.In the proceeding lines, he recollects their parting and also accepts the same. He remembers the day when she kissed him again and again while tears rolled down her cheeks.   He could see that she was very sad as she was parti ng from him for ever. They had to separate for earthly reasons. She explained to him that many human beings have to part for earthly reasons, they part because the world wants it.   The lover consoles him that though they are physically separated from each other, they are spiritually together.No worldly force could separate their souls. And after death, the joined soul will reach God. The lover accepts his love’s departure. He says that love has chooses his beloved as her delegate. She will spread the message of universal love and they will remain united in love even in separation. He says to his dear love that her love shall always remain with as his comforting groom, in his memory and also as an eternal wedding. It is noteworthy that the lovers are married for ever even if their love has not been accepted by this world.In the following lines, he again laments the loss of his love. He asks: â€Å"Where are you, my beloved?† He wonders if she is awake at this hour of night when all around everything is silent. He wants the clean breeze to convey his every heart beat and his affection to his beloved. He wants the breeze to be his messenger of love for his dear lady. Next he expresses his miserable condition due to his disconnection from his love. He asks his love whether she is fondling his face in her memory.He says to his dear love that he is not the same person he was before they parted. Sorrow has dropped its veil on his happy face of the past. He is not a happy man anymore because he has lost his love. He farther says that his eyes which reflected her beauty, now has shrunken with crying and his lips has been dried which his beloved used to sweeten with kisses. Again the lover calls for his beloved. He asks her whether she can hear his weeping from beyond the ocean. The lover means to say that his dear love is far away, there is a distance of a ocean between them but still he has not forgotten her.His love for her has not decreased with pas sage of time and space. He still needs her love and affection and wants to convey this longing to her. He also wants to ask her whether she can understand the greatness of his patience. Through this .line, he means to say that he has endured lot of pain and suffering because of the loss of his love. In the next few lines it will be clear to the readers that he is complaining to his beloved about his pitiable condition. He becomes desperate as he thinks that some spirit of the air may be able to communicate to his love that his spirit is dying and that also in his youth. He speculates that there must be secret communication angels which will communicate to his love his grievance.In the last seven lines of the poem, the lover tells us what can cure his terrible plight. He calls his love again and again. He calls his beloved as beautiful star and says that obscurity of life has cast him upon its bosom. Life has become unintelligible to him; it has no meaning for him. He says that grief has dominated him i.e., he is totally grieve- stricken. He continues that if his love’s smile sails through the air to him, it will imbibe him with life. If he can breathe her fragrance in the air, it will nourish him. Lastly he addresses his dear love says how great is love and how small is he. He understands that he is much smaller in status that ‘love’ which is universal, eternal and all encompassing. He is a human being so he will die sometime but love will remain for ever.The poem is the contrast between the happy state of being of the lover when he and his lady love was together and the painful condition of the lover after he was detached from   her because of some earthly reason. The tone is of fulfillment and happiness when the lover praises her as God’s spirit. When he remembers the time they have spend together and the contentment they have felt in their company. The contentment was both physical and spiritual: â€Å"Recall you the hour I bad e you farewell, /And the Maritime kiss you placed on my lips? /That kiss taught me that joining of lips in Love/Reveals heavenly secrets which the tongue cannot utter!† (Lines 26-29).The tone is sad when he recollects the day his love departed from his life for ever with tears in her eyes. Near the end of the poem, the lover reveals his pathetic condition and here the tone is poignant: â€Å"Are you fondling my face in your memory? That image/Is no longer my own, for Sorrow has dropped his/Shadow on my happy countenance of the past./Sobs have withered my eyes which reflected your beauty/And dried my lips which you sweetened with kisses†, (Lines 49-51).The tone is desperate when he wants his beloved’s smile and fragrance to sail through air to revive him: â€Å"Where are you, my beautiful star? The obscurity of life/Has cast me upon its bosom; sorrow has conquered me. /Sail your smile into the air; it will reach and enliven me!/Breathe your fragrance into the air ; it will sustain me!†, (Lines 59-62). In the last three lines, the tone is of realization: â€Å"Where are you, me beloved? /Oh, how great is Love! /And how little am I!† (Lines 63-65).As with Gibran’s writings, the language is simple and colloquial. The poet uses day-to-day words to give a picture of the sadness of a lover in his separation from his dear love.   He uses simple words like ‘hut’, ‘Temple’, ‘poor’, ‘broken-hearted’, ‘field’, ‘night’, ‘forest’, ‘breeze’ and so on. He uses vivid images to give us a picture of the inner turmoil of the lover. We can visualize the lovers sitting in the shade of the tree, hidden from humanity. We get a glimpse of the forest and find the lovers walking hand in hand and totally engrossed in each other. We find the lover bidding goodbye to his beloved and the maritime kiss she places on his lips.We see her bidding good bye to her soul mate with tears rolling from her eyes. The lover disintegrates physically and mentally because of the loss of his love. We see his eyes shrunken with pain and suffering and his lips dry without the love of his beloved. It is a very emotional poem. We can actually feel the desperation of the lover in the following lines: â€Å"Is there any spirit in the air capable of conveying/To you the breath of this dying youth? Is there any/Secret communication between angels that will carry to/You my complaint?† (Lines 55-58).The poet has used figures of speech like similes and metaphors to heighten the state of being. In the beginning of the poem, the poet uses the metaphor of ‘little paradise’ to mean garden. The lover imagines that his beloved is in the garden watering the flowers that is looking upon her as their mother. The sentence: â€Å"†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦the flowers who look upon you/As infants look upon the breast of their mothers?†, (Lines 2-3), is a simile. Here the flowers are compared to infants and the lover’s beloved to a mother. In the lines: â€Å"Or amongst the books, seeking human knowledge, /While you are replete with heavenly wisdom?† (Lines 7-8), ‘among the books’ means library.The lover thinks that his lady love is abounding with heavenly wisdom; here there is an image of heaven because he compares her to a heavenly spirit. He also compares his beloved as a woman with goodness of soul who consoles the poor people with kind words and also with money. The poet uses the metaphor ‘bounty’, to mean money.   The lover calls his lady love as ‘God’s spirit’; it is an image of God. The poet give love the shape of a heavenly being when he: â€Å"Do you have memory of the day we met, when the halo of/You spirit surrounded us, and the Angels of Love/Floated about, singing the praise of the soul's deed?†, (lines 17-19).He compares the branches of the tree with ribs of our body. There is a simile in the following lines: â€Å"Do you recollect our sitting in the shade of the/Branches, sheltering ourselves from Humanity, as the ribs/Protect the divine secret of the heart from injury?† (Lines 20-22), where the lover says the branches protected them from humanity as the ribs protect the heart. The lover compares his beloved’s kiss to ‘maritime kiss’, which is an image of farewell kiss.There is a simile in the following lines: â€Å"That kiss was introduction to a great sigh, Like the Almighty's breath that turned earth into man†, (Lines 30-31), the lover’s sign is compared to Almighty’s breath. His lady love is love’s delegate. The love of his lady is his ’comforting groom’ and his ’Eternal wedding’. ‘Sorrow’ has been personified in the poem: â€Å"Sorrow has dropped his/Shadow on my happy countenance of the past†, (Lines 50-51).There is the image of ‘dying youth’, which express the horrible condition of the lover. Life is also personified in the following sentence: â€Å"The obscurity of life/Has cast me upon its bosom; sorrow has conquered me†, (Lines 59-60), lover says that life has lost its meaning for him without his lady love. There are many interrogative sentences in the poem which shows the inner conflict of the lover. The lover in the poem compares his dear lady ‘my beautiful star’, ‘my beloved’, ‘my other self’, ‘God’s Spirit’ and ‘companion of my soul’.Gibran often wrote about the oppressive of society in respect of the love of men and women. He was a romantic and so always favored country against city. In the poem, ‘A Lover’s Call’, the two lovers had to part from each other because of some ‘earthly purpose’. Their love for each other was true and they were soul partners but his l ady love walked away from him because human society wanted it. In the poem, we find that nature has sustained their love. They have sat under the tree away from humanity and walked in the forest hand in hand. Again, the love wants to complain to his beloved through the breeze and wants the smile and the fragrance of her lady to sail through the air to enliven him.Gibran is first a painter and he uses language to explicate his images. So his images have a visual quality. English speaking critiques do not think Gibran as particularly good or important. This critical condescension is not shared by the Arabic speaking world, where he is universally recognized as one of the key figures of modern Arabic literature. He was criticized because he was very serious in everything he wrote without any sense of humor. There is also limitation on the Arabic side of his work. He was unable to master the complex techniques of classical Arabic Literatures.He wrote almost nothing in the traditional po etic form.   Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬ËœA Lover’s Call’, is a romantic love poem. It is a call from a lover from his soul to the soul of another lover. The simple language and the beautiful images used by the poet charm our senses. It has a universal appeal because lovers of any age will fell the same passion for their beloved. We journey with the poet and the plight of the lover touches our heart. This poem is one of the many poems written by Gibran and remains a treasure of this talented writer.Citation:Khalil Gibran on : A Lover’s Call12 April 2007 ;http://www.poetseers.org/the-great-poets/arabic-poets//gibran-poems/;Using English. Com on: Figure of Speech12 April 2007 ;https://www.usingenglish.com/glossary/figure-of-speech.html;John Walbridge on: Gibran, his Aesthetic and his Moral Universe.

Puma’s Ag Case

PUMA’s AG Case Adalbert and Rudolf Dassler founded puma in 1924 in Germany. The company was called Gebruder Dassler OHG, and was internationally well known. However, the two brothers separated creating Adidas and Puma, respectively. Puma had sponsored some of the worlds most famous soccer players, positioning itself as one of the most important company in soccer shoes and accessories. In spite of that, the son of the founder, Armin Dassler, take Puma to a point where all product were sold â€Å"dirt-cheap†, ruining the brand image. The high society was not willing to wear the brand.In 1993, Jochen Zeitz, became the CEO of the company, and together with Martin Gaensler, the supply chain management chief, applied 3 significant phases into the Comeback of Puma: * Aimed at making Puma profitable in order to build a strong financial foundation. * Restructuring the whole company * Focusing in core competencies: marketing, brand management, and product management. * Transform Puma into an attractive sports brand. (High- value brand in sport and lifestyle sales categories). * Sponsoring and advertisement. Puma’s major competitors 1. Adidas –Salomon AG * Headquarters in Bavaria, Germany. Production was in every continent, except in Australia, with administration, design, and marketing in Germany and France. * Production outsourced in Asia. * Only supplier covered all sports. * Main strength soccer line, sky and tennis market. * Known as a brand for the family, satisfying customer’s needs. * Sponsoring activities on huge sports events, famous teams, and athletes like FIFA World Cup and UEFA Champions League. 2. Nike * American company founded by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight in 1964. * Outsourced part of the production to China and concentrated its skills on product design, marketing, and distribution. Located in Oregon. * Administrative activities concentrated in United States. * Europe, Africa, and Asia worked only in sales strategies . * Target group young people with the slogan â€Å"Just do it† * Marketing strategy: sponsoring events, popular teams, and athletes. * Introduction to specialized brands * Web-based Nike ID (customizing Nike products) 3. Reebok * Founded in 1895 in USA by Joseph William. * Key market: footwear industry (aerobics industry, women’s sportswear, and design street & casual footwear). * Located in 140 countries. R & D in China, Korea, and Taiwan. Distribution finished goods via traditional retailers. * Sales in Gym club trainers. * Reebok female sports shoes were the most famous. * 1992, change of strategy to American football, basketball, and soccer. * Sponsoring sport events and popular athletes. * Nevertheless, Reebok was often regarded as a fitness and exercise equipment manufacturer. 4. Fila * 1911, Italy. * Distribution in 50 countries. * Portfolio of sportswear and athletic footwear. * Focus on running, basketball, and fitness. 5. Prada * Italian brand focused on lux ury leather goods. * Founded by Mario Prada. 2003 Sportive line called Prada Sport. 6. Diesel * 1970. Casualwear or sportswear company that became a luxury brand. PUMA’s Value Chain * R&D: sourcing, production, and logistics * 80% of all production move to Asia due to raw materials and MOD * Manufactured in Turkey and Mexico * It reduces its working capital and inventory to 21% * The raw material sourcing allowing shortening the production and enabling full quality control of input factors. (Inditex’s Zara strategy) * Production partners according to quality, price, and environmental/social factors. Logistics was not a core competence. * Brand management * Turnaround new positioning of the brand itself. * 1980’s unpopular image due to heavy price decline. * Jochen Zeitz (CEO), repositioned the brand * Making PUMA desirable again * 2003, the brand was already positioned and well-known and considered as a luxury * Ensuring success, PUMA hired charismatic personali ties who could represent and understand the desired brand perception, recognition, and awareness even further. * Sponsoring several teams such as the Jamaican running team, Cameroon soccer team, and Italian national soccer team. Sponsoring Formula One, entering by the official supply of sportswear for the FIA World Rally Championship, the Ford Rally division, and freestyle motocross champion Travis Pastrana. * Quality over quantity and rely on innovation. * Following upcoming trends quickly and creating trends. * The Puma classic King was reintroduced creating a new market segment of lifestyle sportswear, having in consequence to it a significant competitive advantage over competitors from the fashion industry. * CEO understood the fashion as â€Å"the new combination of elements of the past†. * Right time for launching a new product line. Puma entered in the cricket market in Australia and Africa. * Advertising in MTV and in Hollywood movies. * Puma was perceived as rebellio us and stylish. * Distribution * Outsourcing 70% in distribution logistics. * Building up a system to develop its own network in Europe. * Retail activities * Selected partners according to the corporate message of Puma. * Sport retailer did not operated globally; only foot Locker and Intersport, Decathlon, and JJB Sports. * There was no price discrimination due to low transportation costs in Europe. * Collaboration with strategic partners and allies Acquired the Swedish company Tretorn (manufacturer of tennis balls), because of the sophisticated and broad distribution system in the Scandinavian market and a very skilled management team. Corporative Strategy: R&D and design (functionality and stylish appearance products). Launching the New Collection: sport, lifestyle, and fashion. * Trying to be innovative in every part of the process * Marketing strategy Innovation * Modernizing latest collections and re-launch them Bibliography. Kaufmann, Lutz. â€Å"Puma AG†. The WHU Otto Beisheim Graduate School of Management.

Sex and Religion

Sexual origin and conduct morals differentiate between cultures and have evolved gradually over time to what we now know today. The conflict between sexuality (sex) and religion has been ever present in every cultures history. This conflict, however, comes in two parts: sex as in the action and sexuality. The action of sex, or conduct, has many different views that can sway easily from polar to polar. From the belief that sex is immoral and dirty, to the belief that sex is the highest expression of the divine, this an example on how the view of each religion differ greatly from each other. Some religious faiths believe that only sex as a means of biological reproduction between a formal marital couple is acceptable and even promoted; while on the other hand, sex for the basis of pleasure is considered sinful and looked down upon. There seems to be little middle ground in any of the world’s major and minor religions. But while there may be little middle ground in the direct interpretations of religious texts and values, the middle ground is made up by society that as a whole is very laid back on such matters with only a few high profile individuals who happen to talk more than they walk. Most people tend to such matters with privacy and discretion. The second of the two conflicts is of sexuality and preference, and this is one that grips our nation and many others when really it should not. Religious institutions have such a problem with gay-marriage that through years of successful lobbying against such marital status resulted in many states banning or suspending this right. This is a clear indicator that the seperation between church and state has become a bit of a fallacy. Out of all the major faiths and sects in the world, the Anglican church is the only branch that even allows homosexuals to hold any leadership and pastorship position. Being Anglican, I have been taught that God just wants everyone to be happy and live a good life. If two same-sex people love each other and are happy, then why limit their possibilities to extend that happiness? At the same time, homosexual couples seem to be the only ones not affected by the hellish situation that is a divorce. To be honest, it is unfair that they get rarely encounter any of the pain that a divorce brings. Plus, it allows divorce attorneys a new frontier to cast their loveless shadow over, and add extra impetus in their reservations in hell. Anyways, it’s none of our or any religion’s business to influence the happiness and lives of generally good people who contribute immensly in our world. In Judaism, sex and reproduction are the holiest of acts that one can do, they believe this act is the only one where one can imitate God and bring life to the world. Of course, like many religions, they sanction monogamous and committed heterosexual relationships with marriage. Though, the Jewish Hebrew Bible prohibits adultery and heterosexual intercourse during when the wife in her menstrual period, or known as the Niddah. Orthodox Judaism strongly oppose homosexual sexual acts, while the Traditional division of Judaism views just male homosexuality as a grave sin. With that in mind, female homosexuality is apparently fine with them – I guess they are fans of girl-on-girl action. Contradictions like this just make the view and morality of sex to religious faiths a huge joke. But there is hope as the tolerant attitudes ofReform and Reconstructionist Judaism in relation to both sexual diversity and interfaith marriage have contributed to the rise in popularity to eventually making it the largest Jewish denomination in the United States. For centuries

Bertrand Russell Essay

I should like to say two things, one intellectual and one moral. The intellectual thing I should want to say is this: When you are studying any matter, or considering any philosophy, ask yourself only what the facts are and what the truth that the facts bear out is. Never let yourself be diverted either by what you wish to believe, or by what you think would have beneficent social effects if it were believed. But look only, and solely, at what are the facts. That is the intellectual thing that I should wish to say. The moral thing I should wish to say†¦I should say love is wise, hatred is foolish. In this world which is getting more closely and closely interconnected we have to learn to tolerate each other, we have to learn to put up with the fact that some people say things that we don’t like. We can only live together in that way and if we are to live together and not die together we must learn a kind of charity and a kind of tolerance which is absolutely vital to the continuation of human life on this planet.

Candide by Voltaire Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Candide by Voltaire - Essay Example These events are highlighted in the as the author tries to depict the evil in the society. Voltaire needed to highlight that Candide’s society needed critical reforms. This paper will highlight the significance of the battlefield and the earthquake in terms of social identity. In chapter three, Voltaire describes the battlefield in Bulgars. Candide witnessed the adverse effects caused by war. He was there when two armies harmoniously arranged themselves with music that Voltaire describes, as â€Å"hell itself had never heard† (Voltaire 10). The satirical manner in which Voltaire describes the war speaks volumes about the attitudes of the society. The men in the army used cannons and bayonets to slay the people. In a few seconds, Candide witnessed over 30,000 people killed in the war. Both the kings of the armies were desperate to win the war. Therefore, they expected the soldiers to murder more people. Candide was unable to bear with the reality of the situation. He sought to move away from the battlefield and be able to reflect on both the causes and the effects of the war. He highlights that he saw many dead bodies as well as other people on the verge of death. He witnessed the desperation with which men saw their wives and children die. Even in death, women held firmly to their children. It is unfortunate that the Bulgarian heroes also raped the women. The scene was devastating and Candide had never witnessed such evil. Without a doubt, there were no justifiable reasons for the war. The two kings needed to enjoy the glory of winning a war without any noble causes. Unfortunately, the war led to the death of over 30,000 innocent people. Evidently, the society of the Bulgars needed redemption, so that they can restore peace. The society needed reforms if it were to maintain peace and avoid war (9). Candide reflection on the causes and effects of the war demonstrates that the society had to calculate the cost of the war and face the