King Oedipus By Sophocles Essays - Oedipus, Sophocles, Tiresias

King Oedipus by Sophocles Blindness is the downfall of the hero Oedipus in the play ?King Oedipus? by Sophocles. Not only does the blindness appear physically, but also egotistically as he refuses to acknowledge the possibility of him actually being the murderer of Laius, the former King of Thebes. Coincidentally, he is also Oedipus's biological father. The use of light and dark in the play is strategically applied in order to better understand the emotion that lies within the characters. As blame is placed upon Oedipus for the murder of Laius, he blinds himself from the possible reality that he may be the killer. The people of Thebes are informed that there is an impending curse upon them as a result of the murder mystery of their previous king, Laius. In order to quicken the cure, Oedipus calls on Teiresias, the blind prophet to aide them. Excessive pride fuels his inability to believe the prophecy of Teiresias stating Oedipus is the killer, and that he has married his mother. ?Until I came ? I, ignorant Oedipus, came ? and stopped the riddler's mouth, guessing the truth by mother-wit, not bird-love.? Because he continually boasts about how he has saved Thebes from the Sphinx, he believes that no one could know more than he, especially if he is the one to be accused of a crime he ?knows? he didn't commit. In response Teiresias argues, ?You are please to mock my blindness. Have you eyes, and do not see your own damnation? Eyes and cannot see what company you keep.? T his is a pivotal component to the irony behind the idea of blindness throughout the play. Although Teiresias is physically blind, he is able to accept and ?see? the truth, while Oedipus physically being able to see is left in the dark rejecting truth. The blindness of Oedipus leads to the darkness of Thebes also known as The City of Light. ?We cannot believe, we cannot deny; all's dark. We fear, but we cannot see, what is before us? worry the townspeople. Dark, here, symbolizes the confusion that is placed upon the people of Thebes. They are in a chasm trying to decipher what is to be determined as true, the prophecy of Teiresias, or the good word of Oedipus. After several testimonies, Oedipus opens his eyes and accepts the blame. In order to deliver justice for his wrongs in killing his father and marrying his mother, Oedipus chooses to blind himself physically. The Attendant explains the people regarding the Oedipus's self-inflicted injury. ?And thrust, from full arm's length, into his eyes-- eyes that should see no longer his shame, his guilt, no longer see those they should have never seen, nor see, unseeing, those he had longed to see, henceforth seeing nothing but night.? The use of night is similar to that of the use of dark throughout the play. Night is in reference to lies. Everything that he, or his eye, has seen has all resulted in the discovery of a lie. From the parents he thinks he has, to the family that he has, the world he has created centers around a lie. Until the moment he discovers that he has really killed his father, ironically, Oedipus has never known truth. When he finally deduces that he is behind the killing of his biological father, Laius, he cries, ?O Light! May I never look on you again, revealed as I am, sinful in my begetting, sinful in marriage, sinful in shedding of blood.? In this instance his call to ?light? refers to truth. In this, he discovers that lies and sins are the basis lie at the core of his entire life. For this very reason Oedipus blinds himself. His experience with truth is too painful and he no longer wants to ?see? it again. To him there is nothing left for him to see. He explains to his people, ?What should I do with eyes where all is ugliness? ? Where is there any beauty for me to see? Where loveliness of sight or sound? Away!? At one point he believes that he has seen everything, when actually has seen nothing for everything around him has been no more then just

Milton the Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce Essay Example

Milton the Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce Essay Example Milton the Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce Paper Milton the Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce Paper The Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce by John Milton led to a great stir in society during his time. Milton used his ideas and made many deferent Biblical names, even Christ, sound Like they agreed with him. In his prose, he took words from the Bible and changed the meaning to make the Bible sound as If It preached the same Idea he tried to convey. The prose argues that the main purpose of marriage Is not to procreate, but to share a deeper, meaningful relationship with your significant other. Milton wanted to propose irreconcilable differences as grounds for divorce. That indisposition, unfitness, or contrariety of mind, rising from a cause in nature unchangeable, hindering and ever likely to hinder the main benefit of conjugal society, which are solace and peace, is a greater reason of divorce then natural frigidity, especially if there be no children and that there be mutual consent. (IPPP) Milton tries to say that if the nature of two people will not produce harmony then they should not have to stay together. If they both agree that the differences they share cause too much negativity then a divorce would be the best resolution, especially with no children Involved cause then they have not followed the basis for the marriage. The first passage Milton uses comes from Deuteron 24:1-4. Deuteron uses the word uncleanness, which Milton puts his own meaning to. The passage follows: When a man hath taken a wife, and married her, and it come to pass that she find no favor in his eyes, because he hath found some uncleanness in her: then let him write her a bill of divorcement, and give it in her hand, and send her out of his house. And when she is departed out of his house, she may go and be another mans wife. And if the latter husband hate her, and write her a bill of divorcement, and give it in her hand, and senders her out of his house; or if the latter husband die, which took her to be his wife; her former husband, which sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife, after that she is defiled; for that is an abomination before the Lord: and thou shall not cause the land to sin, which the Lord thy God give thee for an Inheritance. L] Milton says that when translated by the Hebrew the terms some uncleanness means any real nakedness. The notion of any real nakedness refers to that of the mind or the body. The cause of divorce mentioned in the Law is translated some uncleanness, but in Hebrew it sounds nakedness of ought, or any real nakedness: which by all of the learned interpreters is referred to the mind, as well as to the body. And what greater nakedness or unfitness then that which hinders ever the solace and peaceful society of the marled couple, and what hinders that more then the unfitness and defectiveness of an uncongenial mind. IPPP) Milton attempts to change the mind of the Parliament by making a suggestion that the Hebrew interpret the passage differently. Although it mess Like a logical way to persuade, the Parliament did not care for the Hebrew, thus not acknowledging Millions attempt to change their minds. The next passage Milton mentions taken from 1 Corinthians 7:8, 9 leads him Into the usage of the word burn. I say therefore to the unmarried and widows, It Is good for them if they abide even as l. But if they cannot contain, let the marry: for it is netter to marry than to Turn. Ill] Milton takes ten word Turn to mean a easels Tort conversation. The burn suggests that the marriage will not survive without the communication between the husband and wife. Milton agues that without the mental connection, the physical part of the relationship will not exist. Without the physical attraction the marriage could not keep up with the standards set to have children. Milton shows his belief in conversation and mental connection creates the feeling of love not the desire of physical attraction. As for that other burning, which is but as it were the venom of a lusty and over-abounding concoction, strict life and labor, with an abatement of a full diet may keep that low and obedient enough: but this pure and more inbreed desire of Joining to it self in conjugal fellowship a fit inversion soul(which desire is properly called love) is stronger then death, as the spouse of Christ thought, many waters cannot quench it, neither can the floods drown it. IPPP) In another piece of Millions prose he states that the burn could also constitute the need for another person. Milton centers his argument for the basis of marriage on the prevention of loneliness. Marriage therefore was giving as a remedy of that trouble: but what might this burning mean? Certainly not the mere motion of carnal lust, not the mere goad of a sensitive desire; God does not ironically take care for such chattel. What is it then but that desire which God put into Adam in Paradise before he knew the sin of incontinence; that desire which God saw it was not good that man should be left alone to burn in; the desire and longingly to put off an unkindly solitariness by united another body, but not to without a fit souls to his in the cheerful society of wedlock. (IPPP) Milton says that the remedy for such burning can only come from the presence of another person. When Milton states to put off the unkindly solitariness, it shows God made both Adam and Eve to revert solitude. The final piece in the prose where Milton attempts to sway the audience into believing his argument happens with Christ. Milton tries to say that Christ made a harsh statement, not because he meant it, but only to instill strict rules where the Pharisees did not. Where the Pharisees were strict, there Christ seems remises; where they were too remises, he saw it needful to seem most severe: in one place he censures an enchant look to be adultery already committed: another time he passes over actual adultery with lessee reproof then for an unchaste look; not so heavily modeling secret weakness, as open malice: So here he may be Justly thought to have giving this rigid sentence against divorce, not to cut off all remedy from a good man who finds himself consuming away in disconsolate and uninjured matrimony, but to lay bridle upon the bold abuses of those over-weaning Rabies; IPPP) Milton went out on a limb trying to take what Chrisms word and Just say that Christ did not mean what he said. Now the argument Just revolves around the idea that Christ only said that marriage could take place if the partner committed adultery because the Pharisees had become too lenient. Milton tried hard too push this idea into the minds of those in the Parliament. The Parliament did not accept the prose and wanted all of the copies burned. Although Milton did not get what he wanted accomplished he still found a way to keep his ideas. Millions ideas and beliefs became realities far after he passed away. Even though the rational behind his ides sometimes lacked in a following, Milton still Delved In teem strongly Ana wangle-nearly. [I] Baryons. Net/milestone/divorce. HTML Baryons. Net/milestone/divorce. HTML

Socrates Defense of Athenian Law and C.S. Lewis' critique of Research Paper

Socrates Defense of Athenian Law and C.S. Lewis' critique of subjectivism - Research Paper Example Why would Lewis insist that we interpret Plato’s Socrates in this way? Socrates was an Athenian who firmly believed that the system of the law under which the jury was acting was fair. The city of Athen’s tribunal sat to bestow justice in accordance with the city’s regulations. From the outset of his trial, Socrates declared that, â€Å"I must observe the law and make my defense† (Plato 35c). Owing to the fact that he openly admitted the purpose and nature of his lifetime activities, Socrates' case would appear to be based on a matter of interpretation instead of fact. Socrates stated that his teaching, contrary to corrupting the morals of the youth, had actually made Athens become a better state. He would assert in the faces of his accusers that, â€Å"My teaching is the bidding of the gods; and I believe that the city has actually benefitted from my service to the gods† (Plato 30a). Even after being pronounced guilty, Socrates made it clear that h e respected the views of the legitimate city authorities and would obey their sentence. He said this even though he was aware that he had been unjustly accused. This shows just how much he believed that the Athenian legal system was the foundation of the Athenian city state and had to be valued. The Athenian legal system had a distinct method of trying accused persons. ... The Euthyphro provides evidence that Meletus was a young Athenian who did not know Socrates on a personal level (Euthyphr 2b). After hearing both the defense and the charges, it was decided that there was need for an initial hearing. In Athenian trials, citizen volunteers would function as the jurors. They were usually paid for their services after being chosen by lot. To ensure that there was no possibility of bribery or jury tampering, the juries were usually quite large. Socrates’ case, for example, was presented before 500 jurors. Socrates felt that if he had actually been found guilty of crossing the laws, then he deserved the sentence that would be meted out. Socrates' greatest argument against ignoring the court’s decision and fleeing Athens lay in the fact that his existence in the jurisdiction of Athens was an admission of a contract between Athenian authorities and him to observe its laws. Owing to this fact, fleeing from Athens without permission or notificat ion to the authorities would actually be violating the laws of the land and participating in ‘wrong’ actions- which was the direct opposite of the ‘goodness’ that he believed in. Socrates had always been a forthright advocate for the Athenian political and legal system. Owing to the agreement between him and the city authorities, he was also the beneficiary of an unknown quantity of benefits. Moreover, for him to fully enjoy the benefits of what was provided to him by the city of Athens, he had to in return give up something. In this case, it was his freedom of choice and action where there was a clash between his personal views and the stipulations of Athenian law. The Athenian legal system had a modicum of fairness in its dealings with citizens. Given that the

Public finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Public finance - Essay Example This paper analyzes the possible impact of welfare reform over labor supply incentives. For so many years, the US has been involved in welfare reforms that any dating of the beginning of welfare reforms is irrational. In many ways, the welfare reforms in the past two decades have given rise to labor supply. The life of the people relying on welfare reforms has become more difficult due to the work requirements for welfare recipients, the decline in the real value of welfare benefits, and the sanctions for not complying with the requirements imposed by the state for welfare recipients, such like the work related participation activities held mandatory for the welfare recipients. Due to which, people would be encouraged to opt for being in or entering in to the labor force rather than leaving or applying for the social welfare programs. Such decisions or choices are based on the perceived toughness of the state’s welfare program and thereby, are influenced by the state’s rhetoric in relation to the welfare reform and not just enforced by the requirements of the law of the state. However, the sanctions imposed on the welfare recipients may simply compel them to seek work by throwing them off the welfare rolls. Also, the time limitations of the number of years for which a particular welfare recipient can benefit from the social welfare program may subsequently lift some welfare recipients off the welfare program. ... nalysis, which are: the precise evaluation of response elasticities, comprehensive specification of the distribution of income, as well as some perspective of the social welfare weights. The former two elements are positive and can be determined through thoughtful evidence based analysis. On the other hand, the last element mentioned above is normative and thus, something at which perspectives may differ. Now, we will discuss that how these elements will operate in the structure of earnings and taxation. In relation to labor supply responses, an important distinction lies between the intensive and extensive margins of labor supply. The studies on optimal taxation investigate the outcomes for tax design (Diamond 1980; Saez 2002; Laroque 2005). When the people are permitted to respond to the variations in the tax schedule by selecting to work or not, and how hard to work, then the schedule of optimal tax can vary to a great extent. Particularly, when this choice of employment becomes c omparatively more significant, then the rates of optimal marginal tax can reduce dramatically, even to a negative value, for the people with low earnings capacity. According to Brewer, Saez, and Shephard (2010), an impelling inference is that if the state government commends redistribution then the workers having low income should be given an earnings subsidy since the participation tax rate for low earnings would be negative. Therefore, the extensive model signifies that work contingent credits or earnings subsides, such like the working tax credit or the earned income tax credit, should be the constituent of an optimal tax system, which is in acute contrast to the intensive model. This is among the vital lessons from the new optimal tax design. Due to the large extensive elasticity, the

Build Employee Loyalty with Alternative HR Benefits Essay

Build Employee Loyalty with Alternative HR Benefits - Essay Example ed in prioritizing the employees and the members of the workforce is more essential than the operational and maintenance costs that can be saved in having people work in short terms or in laying employees off, which can be considered as the main trend in the current business world due to the different crisis experienced both in the national and the international community (Reichheld & Teal 96). There are different advantages that can be derived from the maintenance and improvement of employee loyalty. One is the improvement in terms of the quality of work delivered by the employees on the basis of different reasons that can be considered as the management techniques of the company. The employees that are satisfied and motivated in the responsibilities held can be considered to positively contribute to the uplifting of the whole organization (Reichheld & Teal 96). Another is the achievement of the important contribution of the employees in the process of maintaining customer loyalty. It had been considered that the loyalty of the clientele of a particular company can significantly be related to the loyalty of the employees. In addition, the importance that is given to the loyalty of the clients should be the same for the loyalty of the employee to be able to achieve the success that the organization is aiming for (Reichheld & Teal 96). In the trade and business, the loyalty of the employees is promoted on the basis of the need to maintain the trade secrets and techniques of a particular company. This is important specifically due to the fact that the clients along with the different methods within an organization are entrusted to an employee. Due to this reason, employees have the responsibility to keep the trust of the company. This can be considered a duty but the quality of work as well as the dedication of the employees can be related to the loyalty which can be incurred through different methods within the administration and management of the company

The Obstacles Between Israel And Palestine

The Obstacles Between Israel And Palestine The Israeli Palestinian conflict is the longest running contemporary conflict, still ongoing, to date. The origins of the conflict and its history provide the context necessary to understanding the obstacles to a to a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. The obstacles to a peace agreement are both numerous and complex. Some of the more major obstacles, recent and still current today include: (1) land issues over the West Bank and Gaza strip, (2) status of Jerusalem (3) security concerns, (4) Palestinian refugee problems, and (5) issues over water resources. The purpose of this academic essay is to provide a brief overview of the origins and history of the Israeli Palestinian conflict, placing a primary focus on providing a detailed account of the aforementioned major obstacles to a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. The origins and particularly the history of Israeli Palestinian conflict can become mindboggling as the conflict has gone on for so long; a simple, selective and brief overview would best facilitate an understanding of this epic saga like conflict. Starting from the very beginning; in ancient times Judea was originally the home of the Jews until it was conquered by the Romans, renamed Palestine, and later reconquered and inhabited by Arabs for over a thousand years. Zionism, a movement of national liberation to achieve a homeland for Jews (Heywood, A. 2007) later came about and it aimed to restore the Jews to Israel, largely ignoring the existing Arab population. In 1917, Britain was granted Palestine as a League of Nations mandate under the Balfour Declaration, in which Britain committed itself to the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people. Arab resentment over the loss of their land to the Jews fostered repeated riots and a revolt that later prompted Br itain to cease Jewish immigration to Palestine. Jewish immigration to Palestine resumed due to the pressure created by the Holocaust and murder of 6 million Jews at the hands of the Nazis and in 1947 the UN partitioned Palestine into Arab and Jewish states. This would cause Arab tempers to flare, they could not accept the partition and as a result a war broke out. Israel would win a decisive victory and expand as a state, and in doing so create Palestinian refugees in the hundreds of thousands. This was only the beginning of the conflict. The Arab states would refuse Israel both recognition and peace; wars would break out in 1956, 1967, 1973 and 1982. There were also many terror raids and Israeli reprisals. Each side blames the other entirely for the conflict and expects an apology. The intensity of the Israeli Palestinian conflict has varied over the years, but with the continued involvement of the international community, the calls for peace are growing ever louder. The Peace proc ess began in 1993 with The Oslo Declaration of Principles. In this document, both sides recognized the rights of the other to exist as a people within the borders of Palestine/Israel, and committed themselves to negotiating a permanent settlement and to improving relations between the two peoples. (MidEastWeb, 2008) Since then, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), currently led by Mahmoud Abbas, and the Israeli government, currently led by Benjamin Netanyahu, has been committed to an eventual two-state solution. The two parties have taken part in direct and official negotiations mediated by the Quartet on the Middle East, represented by and consisting of the United Nations, United States, Russia, and the European Union. Since 2003, however, the Palestinian side has become divided between its two major factions, that of Fatah, traditionally the dominant party, and that of Hamas, its later electoral challenger. Hamas seizure of power over the Gaza Strip in June 2007, caused a division of governance over the territory formerly controlled by the Palestinian National Authority (the Palestinian interim government) between the Fatah in the West Bank, and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The Annapolis Conference of 2007, would set out the central issues, and therefore the major obstacles needed to be ov ercome, in order for a peace agreement to be reached. Land issues over the West bank and (until 2005) the Gaza Strip is just one of the major obstacles to a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. The 2,200 square miles of land was occupied in the 6 day war of 1967, and since then Israel re-established old communities (destroyed in 1929 and 1948) and built new settlements for its people in the Gaza Strip and West Bank, the majority of which reside in the West Bank. Israel expanded these settlements throughout the peace process that began in 1993 with the Oslo Declaration of Principles. The United States, United Kingdom, European Union along with the International Court of Justice have declared these settlements illegal under international law. In 2005, Israel enacted its unilateral disengagement plan, evacuating all residents of Jewish settlements located in the Gaza strip, as well as four settlements in the northern West Bank, and demolishing all residential buildings. The West Bank, however, still remains in dispute. The Palestinians demand a complete hand over of the West Bank in its entirety. Israel on other hand maintains that it needs to retain some land and settlements in the West Bank to act as a buffer against future acts of aggression. This issue remains unresolved and as such is one of the major obstacles to a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. The status of Jerusalem is another major obstacle to a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians because of its significant religious importance to the three largest Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. Both Israel and Palestinians assert claims over the eastern part of Jerusalem. For Israel, Jerusalem was the capital of Judea in ancient times and the site of the Jewish holy temple, of which only the Western Wall remains. For Palestinians, Jerusalem is also the site of the Al-Aqsa mosque, regarded by many as the third holiest Islamic site. Both sides also have grave concerns regarding the welfare of their respective holy sites being under the control of the other. Israel asserts that Jerusalem should not be divided, rather it should remain unified under Israels control. Palestinians claim the parts of Jerusalem that were not a part of Israel prior to June 1967. As of 2005, of the 719,000 people that lived in Jerusalem, 465,000 were Jews, most of which live d in West Jerusalem, and 232,000 were Arabs, most of which lived in East Jerusalem. At the Camp David in 2000 and Taba Summits in 2001, the United States proposed that the Arab parts of Jerusalem should be given to the Palestinians while the Jewish parts of Jerusalem should be retained by Israel. Both sides accepted the proposal in principle, but the summits ultimately failed. No concrete action has been taken on this matter as of yet and it remains a major obstacle to an Israeli Palestinian conflict resolution. Israeli security concerns are also a major obstacle in the resolution of the Israeli Palestinian conflict. Throughout the Israeli Palestinian conflict, Palestinian political violence has been of particular concern to the Israelis. The Palestinian political violence against Israel, its civilians and military are considered acts of terrorism. Although violent Palestinian groups may disagree with each other on specific issues, they are united and motivated by a common goal; to eliminate the state of Israel, replacing it with a Palestinian Arab state. Another concern is the close proximity of Israeli cities to Palestinian territories. Many of Israels cities such as Tel Aviv and Jerusalem are within the Palestinians artillery range and the threat of Qassam rockets fired from the Palestinian territories is of great concern to Israeli defence. The Israeli government recorded 1,726 such rocket launches in 2006 alone. It is because of this Israel insists that the Palestinian state should be d emilitarized. These are not the only security concerns Israel has. The West Bank is of enormous strategic importance to any country intent on invading Israel. Israel insists that the Palestinian state provide guarantees that foreign armies will not be permitted to enter its borders; to ensure this Israel insists on the establishment of bases within the West Bank as a safeguard. Another major obstacle in the resolution of the Israeli Palestinian conflict is how to deal with the Palestinian refugee problem. In 1948, about 726,000 Palestinians fled or were expelled from their homes in the war that followed shortly after the creation of Israel. Additional Palestinians fled from their homes in the 6 day war of 1967. Today there are about 4.6 million Palestinian refugees. Many of them live in poor conditions in crowded refugee camps in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq. Palestinians demand that these refugees should have the right to return to their homes in Israel under the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 194 of 1948 which states that: the refugees wishing to return to their homes and live at peace with their neighbours should be permitted to do so at the earliest practicable date, and that compensation should be paid for the property of those choosing not to return and for loss of or damage to property which, under principles of international law or in equity, should be made good by the Governments or authorities responsible. Israelis refute this right arguing that in 1948 Jews fled Arab lands to Israel in almost equal numbers. One of the main reasons Israelis oppose the return of the Palestinian refugees is because that would create an Arab Palestinian majority and thus would put an end to Israel as a Jewish state. Most Palestinian groups agree with and support this outcome wanting to see a resolution to the refugee problem and the end of Israel; killing two birds with one stone, as it were. The Israeli government also asserts that the Palestinian refugee problem is largely due to the refusal of all Arab governments, with the exception of Jordan, to grant citizenship to Palestinian Arabs who reside within those countries borders. Water resources and their management is another major obstacle peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians as it is a scarce commodity. The Israel National Water Carrier, however, has made a high population density and standard of living possible. The carrier works by pumping water from the Sea of Galilee and carrying it to areas in the centre and to the south of Israel and the Palestinian areas as well. Up to 1.7 million cubic meters of water can flow through the carrier in just one day; but this is not enough. Israel receives a great deal of its water supply from two large underground aquifers that continue under the Green Line. The use of this underground water has been contentious as some of the wells used to draw the water reside within Palestinian Authority areas. Even though Israel withdraws some water from these areas, it also supplies the West Bank with approximately 40 million cubic meters annually, contributing to 77% of the Palestinians water supply in the West Ba nk, which is to be shared among a population of about 2.3 million. Both sides need water for survival and development and want to ensure an adequate water supply from the limited resources available. Israel has reserved for its own use a large percentage of the water in West Bank aquifers. One of the Palestinians most central concerns is obtaining land and resources that have enough contiguity to provide them with a viable society, and not be forced to give up too many resources to Israel, as this may lead to economic collapse. The purpose of this academic essay was to provide a brief overview of the origins and history of the Israeli Palestinian conflict, placing a primary focus on providing a detailed account of the aforementioned major obstacles to a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. There are 5 major obstacles to a to a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. (1) Land issues over the West Bank and Gaza strip consisting of the Palestinians demanding a complete hand over of the West Bank in its entirety and Israel wanting to retain some land and settlements to act as a buffer against future acts of aggression. (2) The status of Jerusalem with both sides asserting claims over the eastern part of Jerusalem and fearing for the welfare of their respective holy sites being under the control of the other. (3) Israeli security concerns regarding: the Palestinian political violence and terrorism, Israeli cities being within the Palestinians artillery range, with the threat of Qassa m rocket attacks; and the defence of the West Bank from foreign invasion. (4) Palestinian refugee problems and finding a proper home for 4.6 million refugees living in poor conditions in crowded refugee camps in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq. (5) Issues over water resources, with both sides needing water for survival and development and wanting to ensure an adequate water supply from the limited resources available.

Information and communications technology (ICT) Essay -- Essays Papers

Information and communications technology (ICT)? To illustrate the importance of Information and Communications technology (ICT) for the smooth running of a multi-site business. Information and communications technology is a system used to control, manage, process and create information through telecommunications technology and computers. (Otherwise known as ICT). Although information and communications technology describes a large range of systems there are still some underlining common features. An information system incorporates a group of people, equipment and procedures. It is there to collect, record, process, store, retrieve and present information. The importance of ICT for the smooth running of a multi-site business is paramount, the following are a number of ways in which ICT can improve your company’s performance; - Increased Efficiency: If programmed correctly, computers can monitor the data collection processes very efficiently, whilst also checking for human errors and providing help and guidance to the user. Most large scale organisations are using computer-assisted interviewing as standard in many of their surveys simply because of the remarkable achievements good data collection programs can make to reduce human error and speed processing in the collection of important information. - Speed and Processing Power: Modern computers are fast. They are able to complete tasks 100’s of times faster then we would be able to. Most computers are now so powerful, that computer users rarely come even close to utilising their full potential. - Cost Containment: ICT technology is an expensive thing to incorporate within your business however it will eventually create substantial cost savings through less time being wasted on laborious tasks and on recuperating human error. - Versatility: As computers become more powerful and efficient, you are able to make them do more varied and creative tasks. The average PC can already perform most multimedia functions such as reproducing photographic pictures as sharp as any film. The advantages can range from being able to create advertisements for your company to monitoring stock controls. - Departmental co-operation: With open and shared databases, it enables a company to remove barriers between departments giving staff more accurate information and greater competency to serve cus... ...aotic. The process companies, management and business, in general, are going through, are creating major opportunities and challenges for the business world. Companies are becoming adept at using information systems and technology because their potential is becoming apparent to them. ICT should be thought of as an investment that will deliver the benefits today and in the future. These benefits are of two main types: Improvements in infrastructural efficiency, as information systems replace old ones with systems that are more flexible, have greater reach and cost less to run, and new business opportunities made possible by new information systems. These opportunities include improvements in external and internal processes, tapping employees’ and external knowledge, and the creation of networked communities of customers and staff. ICT should be able to streamline your business, produce measurable improvements, but most importantly managers need to use the resource to be on the lookout for new business opportunities. BIBLIOGRAPGHY: 1. Heathcote.M .P, (1998) ‘A’ Level Computing 2. Cushings.S. (1997) GCSE Information Technology 3. Bastin.C. (1997) Access 97 Basics Unveiled