McKenzie Journey Essays - Zoroastrianism, Religion, Theism, Yazatas

McKenzie Journey World Religions 160 10/26/16 Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism or natively known as, Mazdayasna, is one of the world's oldest monotheistic religions. It stemmed from ancient Asian countries and continued to spread across the nation. With only about 200,000 followers today, and 80% of them living in India, Zoroastrianism is a complex and intellectual religion. The ancient history of Zoroastrianism is very important when trying to understand the religion. Zoroastrianism is believed to of began around 600 to 650 CE. It started in central Asia and began to spread to other colonies and tribes. It next was spread across the Iranian plateau, here it was adopted by two Iranian tribes, the Medes and Persians. This religion was then colonialized and spread to nearby areas for hundreds of years under the Persian dynasties, Achaemenid, Parthian, and Sassanid. During 900 CE the Zoroastrians split off into two groups, the Iranis, who stayed in Iran, and the Parsis, who left and established in India. Here, it began to flourish and be practiced continuously. Religion is much more than just believing in a god or higher power. There is an origin and the start of worship from a single being who believed in a particular deity. The Zoroastrian religion contains both monotheistic and dualism when obtaining to their god. This can be traced back to the prophet Zarathustra. When Zarathustra called Zoroastrianism the good religion. Zarathustra worshiped Ahura Mazda, Ahura Mazda's revelation was recorded in the scared writing of the Avesta. Zoroastrianism is also said to come from an older Aryan tradition that is formed on the foundation of the Vedic religion in India. The people who worship Ahura Mazda are called the Mazdeans or Zoroastrians. Ahura Mazda is called the Wise Lord, and is the ultimate principle of worship in the Zoroastrian religion. The very start of the religion began by Ahura Mazda bringing together two worlds, the menog, world or thought, and the getig, world of bones or living beings. These worlds are often called the spiritual and the physical worlds. Menog is apprehended by thought and getig is apprehended by the senses. Together, these worlds make up the order of the universe. The Wise Lord is said to be the eternal source of light for the two worlds. This is why the Zoroastrians pray in front of a source of light, it activates the connection between the getig and the menog. Getig is where fire exists and menog is where illumination arises. Since Ahura Mazda means Wise Lord, there is a close connection between wisdom, symbolized by light, and worship, centering on light. Fire worship is said to enhance human wisdom, if you are invested with wisdom, you then can freely choose to act by the Good Religion. Meaning, thinking good thoughts, speaking good speech, and doing good deeds. This will help maintain the order in the worlds, it also spreads Wise Lord's illumination. When Ahura Mazda made the two worlds, two forces came into existence, the Holy Entity and the Hostile Entity. These forces are called the cosmic twins: Spenta Mainyu and Angra Mainyu. In Getig, the world of bones, these cosmic twins represent truth and lie. The twins are always in constant battle with one another. Angra Mainyu is the force of darkness in Getig while Spenta Mainyu is the force of illumination, the religious followers of Zoroastrianism are always free to choose which twin they would like to associate themselves with. Spenta Mainyu has helper entities, holy immortals and also called, Amesha Spentas. The Amesha Spentas distribute positive forces through the spiritual world of thought and physical world of the living. Zoroastrians try to develop the qualities of the Amesha Spentas. While Angra Mainyu also has helper entities called Daivas. The Daivas are related with desire, wrath, bad thoughts, idolatry, and pollution. Followers who choose to fight on the side on Angr a Mainyu are pursued as being confused. The Good Religion wants everyone to gain wisdom, and eventually ally themselves with Spenta Mainyu, the life giving twin, instead if Angra. Religion can be practiced and exercised in many different ways. Here are a few ways Zoroastrianism is expressed. There are four Zoroastrian values that are very important to the religion.

Hybrid Wars

Hybrid Wars , economic, and social reasons. For instance, the non-governmental and international organization in states may comprise of civilians who are not only ill-equipped, but are also unable to work in hostile environment. Bond notes that such hostile environment could be regions where both the government authorities and militia organization compete for control. Therefore, the affected population may capture the vested interest of their region and join either of the forces through irregular practices thereby contributing to hybrid warfare. Conclusion In conclusion, neglecting the root causes of hybrid war among the non-states actors or nation-states and the general population will continuously lead to international conflict. There is the need to identify and address the underlying contributing factors to hybrid wars that continue to threaten the global economy, security, and peace. It is important for the international communities to put the interest of the population first at the expense of their national interest or self-interest. This way, the international community would be able to effectively address the un-ending unrest that results into continued hybrid wars.

A Biographical Sketch of William Morris Davis

A Biographical Sketch of William Morris Davis William Morris Davis is often called the Father of American Geography for his work in not only helping to establish geography as an academic discipline but also for his advancement of physical geography and the development of geomorphology. Life and Career Davis was born in Philadelphia in 1850. At the age of 19, he earned his bachelors degree from Harvard University and one year later earned his Masters degree in engineering. Davis then spent three years working at Argentinas meteorological observatory and subsequently returned to Harvard to study geology and physical geography. In 1878, Davis was appointed an instructor in physical geography at Harvard and by 1885 became a full professor. Davis continued to teach at Harvard until his retirement in 1912. Following his retirement, he occupied several visiting scholar positions at universities across the United States. Davis died in Pasadena, California in 1934. Geography William Morris Davis was very excited about the discipline of geography; he worked hard to increase its recognition. In the 1890s, Davis was an influential member of a committee that helped to establish geography standards in the public schools. Davis and the committee felt that geography needed to be treated as a general science in primary and secondary schools and these ideas were adopted. Unfortunately, after a decade of the new geography, it slipped back to being rote knowledge of place names and eventually disappeared into the bowels of social studies. Davis also helped to build geography up at the university level. In addition to training some of Americas foremost geographers of the twentieth century (such as Mark Jefferson, Isaiah Bowman, and Ellsworth Huntington), Davis helped to found the Association of American Geographers (AAG). Recognizing the need for an academic organization composed of academics trained in geography, Davis met with other geographers and formed the AAG in 1904. Davis served as the AAGs first president in 1904 and was reelected in 1905, and ultimately served a third term in 1909. Though Davis was very influential in the development of geography as a whole, he is probably best known for his work in geomorphology. Geomorphology Geomorphology is the study of the earths landforms. William Morris Davis founded this subfield of geography. Though at his time the traditional idea of the development of landforms was through the great biblical flood, Davis and others began to believe that other factors were responsible for shaping the earth. Davis developed a theory of landform creation and erosion, which he called the geographical cycle. This theory is more commonly known as the cycle of erosion, or more properly, the geomorphic cycle. His theory explained that mountains and landforms are created, mature, and then become old. He explained that the cycle begins with the uplift of mountains. Rivers and streams begin to create V-shaped valleys among the mountains (the stage called youth). During this first stage, the relief is steepest and most irregular. Over time, the streams are able to carve wider valleys (maturity) and then begin to meander, leaving only gently rolling hills (old age). Finally, all that is left is a flat, level plain at the lowest elevation possible (called the base level.) This plain was called by Davis a peneplain, which means almost a plain for a plain is actually a completely flat surface). Then, rejuvenation occurs and there is another uplift of mountains and the cycle continues. Though Davis theory is not entirely accurate, it was quite revolutionary and outstanding at its time and helped to modernize physical geography and create the field of geomorphology. The real world is not quite as orderly as Davis cycles and,  certainly, erosion occurs during the uplift process. However, Davis message was communicated quite well to other scientists through the excellent sketches and illustrations that were included in Davis publications. In all, Davis published over 500 works though he never earned his Ph.D. Davis was certainly one of the greatest academic geographers of the century. He is not only responsible for that which he accomplished during his lifetime, but also for the outstanding work done across geography by his disciples.

E-Government Literature Review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 17000 words

E-Government Literature Review - Essay Example g political combine, but the government has to take care of the interest of its citizens in other countries or regions, undertake infrastructure developmental activities and frame policies for effective control on the affairs. One understanding of government is a notion of public social control, logically related to responsiveness in handling the affairs of the state (McGarrell et al. 1997). Indeed, government exits in different forms depending upon the acceptability within the territory. In establishing a working definition, the research contained herein takes on a pragmatic understanding of government; in the contextual frame of working government definitions, this understanding is a broad reaching approach. Influenced by Drapeau (2009), government is ultimately understood in five different ways: iii. Government as a Partner: Government is supposed to work towards developing the municipality, the state or the country by soliciting active support and cooperation of its citizens, organizations and like-minded political affiliations As government is composed of citizens, it is necessary to consider the nature of citizenship. Someone who is an authorized resident of a territory, state or country is termed as the citizen of that particular region. Respective government makes efforts to ensure distinctive rights and privileges for their citizens in order to make them happy and seek their active cooperation in nation building. For example, the UK government came out with the attempts to propose an â€Å"entitlement card† for its authorized citizens in order to relate the rights and entitlements of their citizenship. This is being done with the help of standard biometric identification cards for British citizens (Beynon-Davies, 2007). This indicates the kind of importance attached with being a citizen of the country. Today, we are living in the era of globalization, which is marked by freer movement of people across boundaries, in different states and countries.

Namaste solar case study Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 9250 words

Namaste solar case study - Dissertation Example If the current scenario continues the oil reserves will soon be exhausted. Moreover use of oil leads to flow of precious foreign reserves from the developing countries and sheds a negative impact on the balance of payments of an economy apart from causing environmental hazards. With increasing awareness the use of bio-fuel is increasing. Environmentalists opine that use of bio-fuel sheds less effect on the climate and decision makers reveal use of bio-fuel can lessen the pressure on balance of payments. The primary and major emission gas for Greenhouse Gases is carbon dioxide (CO2). When the carbon dioxide goes into atmosphere and changes the weather conditions, the bio-diversity will decrease through increase in temperature. 1.2 Types of energy 1.2.1 Renewable energy The introduction of bio-fuels will increase the prices of foods and also reduces the availability of food. The shortage of supply of food can be countered by increasing the productivity of agriculture. The bio-fuels obt ained from food crops are economically viable when the food prices are low and the prices of fuel are high. The globe witnessed high energy prices in 2000. The bio-fuel was made profitable with high energy prices coupled with low prices of food. The rise in prices of corn can lead to big losses for the processors of corn bio-fuels. The emerging markets of bio-fuels will provide new markets for forest resources and the net benefits will get accrued the local economies. The industries selling forest products are also likely to get benefitted. The negative effects will vary across regions. Bio-fuels can be utilized in electricity generation in the decades to come. The global industry of bio-power will bring enhanced prospects to the economy filled with natural resources. China, India, Latin America and Africa are the major gainers from the energy saved by improved cook stoves. China has saved 40 to 59 percent of its energy consumption by bringing 20 to 30 percent improvements in fuel e fficiency. Energy is needed for poverty alleviation in the developing countries. However, with the rise in income levels, a shift in trend of preferences has been noticed. Modernization of agriculture will provide spaces for biomass energy production (Zilberman, Rajagopal, Sexton, Hochman, 2008). 1.2.2 Non renewable energy The total green house emitted by some individual, product or organizations is termed as carbon footprint. It is difficult to calculate the total amount of carbon footprint due to unavailability of data. Carbon accounting is used to assess the GHG emissions of a nation or organization. Population, carbon intensity in the economy and economic output are the main influences behind carbon footprint. In order to decrease the level of carbon footprints, these agents are the target of individuals. If the size of the carbon footprints is known, strategies can be taken with the aim to reduce it with

Patriarchy And Violence Against Women Essay Example for Free

Patriarchy And Violence Against Women Essay Author Charlotte Perkins Gilman in her The Man-made World or Our Androcentric Culture (1911) presents the most comprehensive statement of her overall theory. In it she argues that we live in a patriarchy or what she calls an androcentric, male-centered society and that our culture in all its aspects reflects this androcentric bias. Gilman sees this bias as destructive because the male sensitivity is destructive. A woman-centered, or better a mother-centered, world would be very different, because it would express the positive, benign character pf women’s sensitivities. In this work, and in His Religion and Hers, Gilman presents her most extreme statement of the radical differences between men and women. These differences she attributes to prehistoric roles assigned the two sexes. The male naturally fights, and naturally crows, triumphs over his rival and takes the prize—therefore, he was made male. Maleness means â€Å"war† (92) while the basic feminine impulse is to gather, to put together, to construct; the basic masculine impulse to scatter, to disseminate, to destroy† (114). A male-centered culture reflects these negative masculine concerns in nearly every area of expression. Some of Gilman’s most original contributions to feminist theory are contained in her discussion of the ideological warp impressed upon language, art, literature, sports, education, government and religion by the androcentric perspective. While public society is organized as a democracy, the man-made home remainsâ€Å"despotism. † â€Å"The male is esteemed the ‘head of the family’; it belongs to him; he maintains it; and the rest of the world is a wide hunting ground and battlefield wherein he competes with other males as of old† (41). In the â€Å"proprietary family† of the patriarchate, women remain men’s property in the household; they are little more than objects whose purpose is â€Å"first and foremost†¦ a means of pleasure to him† (32). Every law and custom† of the â€Å"family relation† is arranged from the masculine viewpoint (35). â€Å"From this same viewpoint†¦ comes the requirement that the woman shall serve the man. † (35). A greater challenge occurs when campaigns to improve gender equality by promoting the well-being of the marginalized are conducted in sync with trade and development policies that favor the economically strong multinationals and compromise the welfare of the lowly locals, particularly the helpless women and children. We ought to remember that sexism and patriarchy are all manifestations of a power struggle between the strong and the weak, the same kind of struggle linked to globalization and trade liberalization today. Patriarchy involves an imbalance of power between man and woman leading to unequal roles and benefits, a situation that can be seen in a larger context between the developing and the industrialized economies, as the latter’s efforts to spread globalization and to weaken the former’s trade laws also leads to unequal gains. Globalization’s capitalistic intent, although beneficial in several ways since it brings development to poorer states, may be cultural imperialism dressed in new clothes when the more powerful party uses its stronger bargaining authority to manipulate or exploit. (Gilman) â€Å"In no developing region do women experience equality with men. † This clear-cut statement from the World Bank, the reputed international monetary institution, relays one of the most apparent yet often overlooked realities of our time—gender inequality. Gender inequality is a significant social concern that deserves to be analyzed with the utmost diligence using both empirical and scholastic evidences. This inequality is deeply entangled in the fabric of the everyday lives of many men and women, and it has been in existence since time immemorial. Gender inequality, from its very name, implies an uneven treatment based on one’s gender. Essentially, gender inequality is the prejudice that one gender, usually the female, is secondary and subordinate to the more capable and hence superior male gender. Many societies practice gender inequality, with the men reinforcing it and the women passively receiving it, because it is considered part of an enduring patriarchal culture. Deviating from this norm means that one runs the risk of being branded a weak husband or a bad, undeserving wife. Both cases are an embarrassment to the individual and the family. The causes and effects of gender inequality are part of a larger network of social problems that compound the difficulties people face everyday. It is deeply related to other social problems, such as poverty, economic growth and development, and globalization. The World Bank (2001) underscored the notion that gender issues are now more prominent in debates related to development, though the relevance of a gendered perspective in policy-making is yet to be widely understood. Thus, based from its report, gender inequality ought to be considered when drafting developmental policies for poor and developing states because failing to take into account gender roles and relations as well as disparities lead to policies that â€Å"have limited effectiveness† (p. 5). Although gender disparity is characteristic of developing and poor states, it is not restricted to them. This phenomenon is also observed in wealthier and developed regions where both men and women are relatively affluent and do not experience scarcity of resources. In these rich societies, minor but noticeable gender-based discrimination remains. â€Å"Gender discrimination crosses races, classes and ethnicity†¦Ã¢â‚¬  remarks Lucy Bednarek (1998, p. 60) in her article, â€Å"Searching for Equality in a Global Economy. Compared to the gender gap in these wealthier states, gender inequality in poor states poses graver consequences to its citizens. The devalued women and their children feel the pangs of poverty and bear the heavier brunt of economic unproductivity with greater intensity, compared with the men who possess greater freedom, privilege, and economic and political control. As stated by the UN (2004) in Trade and Gender, â€Å"A gendered perspective of development is seen as a difficult enough task,† so that extending the gendered approach to the â€Å"realm of trade† is considered to be an even bigger challenge (55). Yet the organization believes that international trade must assume a gendered approach wherein accelerated economic growth and sustainable development will take place without endangering the well-being of the women and children in the community. The issue of trade has become so important in the consideration of gender equality because the current multilateral trade negotiation and regional trade agreements (RTAs) have pervaded state development policies. Because of these ubiquitous bi- and multilateral negotiations and agreements, governments do not just make decisions solely for the state but also according to the dictates of the global and regional environment or the overall plan of their affiliated economic groups. This environment therefore affects policies on gender; for the UN (2004, 56), â€Å"Every major move in the trading system can have direct or indirect implications for a country’s gender welfare, equity and development goals. † The crime of rape and other forms of violence against women have come into increasing focus in recent years, due in part to the rising prominence of the feminist movement. Rape has come to be widely perceived not only as a means of obtaining sexual gratification but rather as an extreme manner of expressing hostility to women. This broader definition of the term is related to the heightened awareness that far more often than not sexual aggression occurs within the context of courtship or friendship relationships (called â€Å"acquaintance rape† or â€Å"date rape†) or even that of marriage. The recognition that the forms of coercion used by men over women can go beyond direct and overt use of force brings legal theory closer to reality. However, some scholars fear that expanding conceptualization of rape and the imprecise definition of sexual harassment serve to blur the distinction between the sexes, especially between the expanded conceptualization of rape and male initiated seduction. These problems in defining behavior can exacerbate the difficulty in obtaining rape convictions from male jurors who may perceive an uncomfortable similarity between some of their own past actions and those of a defendant in such cases. Clearly, there is heightened sensitivity to the problems of rape and sexual harassment that will lead to accelerated efforts in legal and legislative policy formation. Reflecting this heightened sensitivity is the $1. 6 billion in the 1994 Crime Bill to fund Violence against Women Act. The challenge is to fight rape and harassment in all their forms while protecting the rights of women.

US and Canada Essay -- Economic Relations

Economic relations between Canada and the United States In January 1989, Canada and the US implemented the USA-Canada free trade agreement that marked a major increase in trade among them. Their commerce forms the largest bilateral trading relationship in the world. As a result of the free trade agreement, the economic relationship between them has succeeded and the two economies have become highly interconnected. In 1994, this agreement was partially altered and broadened to include Mexico in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) (McKinney 2010). Canada’s economy is geographically divided into economic clusters that have deeper relations with the USA than the rest of Canada. For instance, eight of the ten biggest Canadians cities are within 100 miles of the US border. After the free trade agreement, Canadian economy emerged as more dependent on international trade, and US-Canada trade was in part responsible for that. Canada’s exports of goods and services increased from 25 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 1989 to 43 percent in 2002, and exports to the USA augmented from 18.6 percent to 37.6 percent of GDP during the same period. Canada’s imports of goods and services grew from 25.8 percent to 38.1 percent of GDP. The US share slightly increased from 63.8 to 71.1 percent (McKinney 2010). As an indicator of provinces’ lack of commerce among them, between 1989 and 2002, inter-provincial exports in Canada fell from 22.5 percent to 19.7 percent of GDP. In 2001, 90 percent of Canadian provinces exported more to the USA than to other provinces – only two provinces did so in 1989. Therefore, Canadian economy has been more intertwined with parts of the USA and relatively less linked across provinces (McKinney 2010)... ...nd investment in its oil sands. In fact, the rise in the guaranteed production of oil sands, as the US intends to do, will allow Canada to invest in new technologies to reduce the extraction cost of oil sands. Second, Canada would amend NAFTA to include a privilege treatment with regards to the US board control/access, and solution and/or extinction trade of disputes with the US, such as softwood lumber, agricultural policies and intellectual property rights. Finally, the US would have to reimburse all the energy contracts signed among Canada and China. Clearly the relationship between China and Canada would be seriously deteriorated. As a rising power, China would soon become the greater economy in the world and retaliation would be likely to happen. Although as risky as the first option, this one seems to be worse in the long-run, rather than in the short-run.