The Ethics of Torture Essay Example for Free

The Ethics of Torture Essay Torture is causing pain and suffering to gain information and confessions. It’s a traditional, historical, well-understood term. Waterboarding is a form of torture in which a bound, gagged prisoner is forced to breathe in water. There are several techniques but all produce the same effects, a physical sensation of drowning and a psychological sensation of panic, fear and loss of control. Calling it anything other than torture is absurd. You wouldn’t call a bank robbery a â€Å"cash gathering technique,† even if the president said it was so. There are no such things as â€Å"enhanced interrogation methods. † That is the euphemism the Bush administration used in 2002 when they were redefining torture so the president could authorize it. There is never an excuse to torture a person, not even during war. It undermines our cause, endangers our soldiers on the battlefield by encouraging reciprocity, and it breeds more enemies of the United States than coercive interrogation methods will ever allow us to capture. As recently as November 12th of this year, Herman Cain and Rep. Michele Bachmann said during a Republican presidential debate in South Carolina that they would approve waterboarding of prisoners to extract information. They denied that waterboarding is torture, even though it’s been classified as such since the Spanish Inquisition. â€Å"Very disappointed by statements at S. C. GOP debate supporting waterboarding,† Senator John McCain wrote on Twitter two days later. â€Å"Waterboarding is torture. † This is a man who was a POW during the Vietnam War. Having been tortured at the hands of the North Vietnamese, he knows first-hand what that kind of treatment can do to a human being. If we truly believe ourselves to be a model for the world and an example for all of history, then why would we practice torture? When you pour water onto someone until he gasps for air and feels as if he’s drowning, you’re not enhancing your interrogation. You’re putting him through a hell as physical as it is psychological. You’re torturing him, by any sane definition of the term. When we deny any sort of justice or due process to individuals in the name of protecting America, we become the ultimate hypocrites. How can we as a nation, hold other nations to standards that we’re not meeting ourselves? In 2009, Dick Cheney told Fox News that, Those interrogations were involved in the arrest of nearly all the Al Qaeda members that we were able to bring to justice. Cheney’s statement begs the question, how many innocent people were imprisoned and tortured in our fanatical hunt for possible terrorists? Well, out of about 775 detainees held at GITMO, 420 were released without being charged. Less than 10 were ever convicted of terrorist activities. The abuse of prisoners can occasionally produce good intelligence but more often produces bad intelligence, Under torture a person will say anything he thinks his captors want to hear — true or false — if he believes it will relieve his suffering. Often, information provided to stop the torture is deliberately misleading. Senator McCain has said that while being tortured, he was asked for the names of all the men in his regiment. He gave his captors the names of the Green Bay Packers offensive line instead. The most obvious thing we can do is stand as an example of a nation that holds an individual’s human rights as superior to the will of the majority. Write your congressmen and tell them that the sanctioned use of torture by the government is wrong. If we as a nation build a wall of fear with the rest of the world, it’s a decision with far-reaching negative consequences. Through the violence, chaos and heartache of war, through deprivation and cruelty and loss, we are always Americans, and different, stronger and better than those who would destroy us.

Welcome To The Underground :: essays research papers

While America sleeps safely at night, safe and secure in their world there is another world taking place, a more dangerous and wild world. A world going on right beneath their noses. Its taking place in their super markets, in empty whare houses, forgotten buildings, parks, and yes friends even there roller skating rinks. Many will never know hear about this world that usually takes place every Friday and Saturday. For it may be safer to not know, for if one knows one may be tempted to want to experience this world. Experiencing this world has been know to alter many lives. For once going underground theres no turning back, this ladies and gentleman this is the world of the Rave...We walked towards the castle drawn like magnets, already sensing the hum of activity that lay inside. Already overly excited from the many energy drinks we had consumed for â€Å"ultimate performance.† My friend explained to me that a man named John Bishop started building this castle single handily along with some help of his family in 1963 and every year he would add something new. It is nestled in the foothills of Pueblo, Colorado and safe from any civilized towns. As my companions and I drew closer the butterflies in my stomach flapped louder and louder. The moon was shining brightly right over our heads the time about midnight I estimated and still our journey had not begun. There were people frolicking everywhere mostly teenagers, but people of all ages. They were dancing and hugging and running around energetically. Mostly dressed in baggy jeans and trippy outfits I saw one girl wearing a see-through plastic skirt with her underwear showing plainly. Others had on doctors masks, carried glow sticks, and some had pacifiers in their mouth, I didn’t know why. Everyone seemed to now everyone else. Except for me of course I knew no one. I looked at myself, jeans and a T-shirt. â€Å"I don’t think Im dressed right,† I whispered to my friend, a so-called Rave expert. â€Å"Don’t worry man nobodies going to care,† he replied. We were now nearing the entrance to the castle, each grabbing our tickets tightly holding them as if they were the golden ticket in Willy Wonka. I handed my ticket to the door man, got a half hearted pat down by the security guard and stepped into the world of the rave.My first thought was, â€Å"What did I get myself into!† People were moving everywhere at a high speed pace flying around like bee’s in a hive.

Newton Lab Report

I. Introduction: The purpose of this lab report is to differentiate between of Newton’s Third Law and Newton’s Second Law. Newton’s Third Law states that all forces come in pairs and that the two forces in a pair act on different objects and are equal in strength and opposite in direction. Newton’s Second Law states that the acceleration of an object is proportional to the net force and inversely proportional to the mass of the object being accelerated. Using calculation equations for acceleration, force, and percent error one will be able to distinguish and evaluate the relationship between the two laws. II. Procedures of experiment: All groups had to complete two types of labs. The first lab our group had to complete was completed like so: using a car one had to tie a piece of string approximately 80 centimeters in length to a toy car on a ramp. This string was then feed one top of a super frictionless wheel. The end of the rope that had the end nearest to the ground was tied off with a 0. 2kilogram weight. The car was then pulled back by a participant until it reached 0. 8 meters and was let go. A second participant would then record the time it took for the car to reach the end of the ramp. This was repeated a few times. One would add 0. 5 kilogram weight to the car and the time was then recorded in a similar fashion. These times would be recorded into a table and would be used as raw data. The second part of the lab was different in that: a group had to tie a small scale to opposite end of the rope where the weight was located. Immediately following that scale, one would then tie a toy car. After the toy car another scale would be attached; likewise another car would follow. One student would then pull the whole system back before the back end of the second car would touch the wall provided by the ramp. Immediately after that student would release the system he and a second student would read the scales. Essentially, one student would have to read one scale and the other releasing would have to read one too. These force readings would be recorded in a table and would be used as raw data too. III. Summary of data: Each group had to determine the mass of each car before beginning each lab. Our group had found that both of our cars were 0. 261 kilograms. Additionally, group had to record the trail times for the first lab report like the following. | Car times (s)| Car times (s) +500g| trail 1| 0. 79| 1. 39| trail 2| 1. 0| 1. 40| trail 3| 1. 06| 1. 56| trail 4| 0. 82| 1. 58| trail 5| 0. 98| 1. 69| average| 0. 93| 1. 49| | | | | Force on System 1 (Newtons)| Force on System 2 (Newtons)| trail 1| 0. 50| 1. 50| trail 2| 0. 45| 1. 50| trail 3| 0. 50| 1. 50| trail 4| 0. 49| 1. 40| Each group had to read and record the force measurements in Newtons with the two car pulley system. Additionally, our group had used the same mass for the cars from the previous lab: 0. 261 kilograms. The magnitudes of the cars are relatively constant. IV. Analysis of Data: Before calculating many equations, one had to understand Newton’s Third Law. The calculations for the second part of the lab would have been nearly impossible unless one understood that FT= -Fg=F1+F2. With this in mind, it was possible to ascertain that understand thatF2=-F1+Fg. Knowing this, one would be able to understand that the acceleration on the system is the same throughout. Also, it is extremely important that one must correctly change units into for the needed equations. Otherwise, almost all of the equations will be void. mass of the car | acceleration of car (m/s2)| F=(m1+m2)a (Newtons)| Fnet= (m2)(9. 80m/s2) (Newtons)| Percent error/difference| 0. 261kg (x1 car)| 1. 84999| 0. 57534689| 0. 49| 17. 177| 0. 763kg (x1 car + 500g)| 0. 720688| 1. 50404187| 1. 47| 2. 3157734| This is the first table representing the acceleration of the car, the force of the car as well as the percent error. The percent error for this particular section of the lab seems relatively low. One should see that the acceleration of the second car is significantly slower than th e first car; this is because car one weighted les s than the second. It should also be seen that the force of the car with the extra mass is nearly three times that of the car without the extra mass. mass of the car | acceleration of car (m/s2)| F=(m1+m2)a (Newtons)| Fnet= (m2)(9. 0m/s2) (Newtons)| Percent error/difference| 0. 261kg (red car)| 1. 858237548| 0. 856647509| 1. 96| 56. 2934| 0. 261 kg (blue car)| 1. 858237548| 0. 856647509| 1. 96| 56. 2934| This is the second table representing the acceleration, force, and percent error of both of the cars tied together. The percent error for this particular section of the lab seems relatively high. One should see that the acceleration and forces are exactly indistinguishable. This is because they are tied together forcing the cars and scales to have the same acceleration and force etc; moreover, it is because of Newton’s Third Law. Additionally here are some sample equations I utilized during the lab report and calculations. Manipulating some of the equations was tricky especially for percent error. Substituting the accepted value with an equation is very smart thinking. percent error=(m2(9. 80m/s2))-experimental value(m2(9. 80m/s2)) (100) 56. 2934944%=1. 96-(0. 856647509)(1. 96) (100) ForceMass=acceleration 0. 485N0. 261kg=1. 858237548 m/s2 Distance= 12(acceleration)(time in seconds)2 2(Distance)(t)2= acceleration 2(. 8)(0. 93)2= 1. 849924847m/s2 V. Conclusion: There are several errors that could have occurred during this lab. One of them might have been that I could have corrupted my calculations. I am not to entirely sure with how I calculated my percent error and therefore I might have a lower percent error yet I would not even know it or vise versa. A way to correct this problem for the future is by asking for more assistance from others in the class. I am more than sure that others who grasp the concept easier than me would be more than willing to aid me. Another error that could have occurred was that of miss reading the scales for the force in the second lab. Although important to read the scales as accurately and as quickly as possible, one could only do so much. There was only less than a split second to read the correct or desired reading from the scale. One way to correct this error in the future is to have a larger group work on the same lab. Therefore all the students in the group could work together to figure out a solution as a team rather than an individual effort. The group would learn better as a result because there would be hands to complete the work and more brains to understand that work that is being recorded. All thought the margin of error was higher for this lab, it is understandable because it was nearly impossible to record the force of Newtons desired in the split seconds one had. With all the information above, it is clear that there is a tie between Newton’s Third Law and his Second Law. It is possible to understand that Newton’s Second Law deals with changes in state of motion while Newton’s Third Law deals with the relation between forces On my honor, I have neither given nor received unauthorized aid on this assignment.

Innocence of Liesel Meminger Essay

Innocence is something that all of us know and relish. It is something sweet and peaceful that we all deem precious. In the novel ‘The Book Thief’, one little girl possesses this trait, in a very surprisingly place. In the heart of Nazi Germany, Liesel Meminger’s innocence is easily distinguished. In the story, Liesel Meminger is forced to adapt to a new family and environment due to her past traumatic experiences. Throughout part one of the book, Liesel shows her juvenility on numerous occasions shown by her interactions with others, in what she says, and through her attitudes. Rosa Hubermann was walking around their neighborhood to show Liesel her job, collecting clothes from the wealthy to iron. Upon arrival at a house, Rosa Hubermann told Liesel, â€Å"‘You go.’ Liesel was horrified. A giant brown door with a brass knocker stood atop a small flight of steps. ‘What?’ Mama shoved her ‘Don’t you ‘What’ me, saumensch. Move it.’† (The Book Thief, Hardcover Pg.42) This shows that Liesel is juvenile because she is terrified at her mama’s orders even though the job is simply to collect clothing. Also, she was in such disbelief at her mama’s decision when she was forced to retrieve the clothing because she never thought her new mama would put her in a position to bring her tremendous discomfort. Liesel is performing her usual routine, cleaning the spat saliva off the front porch from the mouth of Frau Holtzapfel. â€Å"†¦once in a while some stars had the nerve to rise and float, if only for a few minutes. On those nights, she would stay a little longer and wait. ‘Hello, stars.’† (The Book Thief, Hardcover Pg.45) Due to Liesel’s young imagination, she takes the time to converse with the stars. Any adult would not even regard the stars let alone talk to them because they have lost the innocence found in childhood, but Liesel is different and takes the time to do such things. Still in disbelief of her brother’s recent death, she is on her knees at her brother’s icy cold grave, digging in denial. â€Å"Somewhere in all the snow, she could see her broken heart, in two pieces.† (The Book Thief Hardcover Pg.24) This shows how Liesel is innocent because when all she loves is seized in that graveyard she is lost and does not know what to do. It was the cold graveyard, the thought of her mom leaving her forever in the midst of her younger brother’s death that overwhelmed Liesel to a broken heart. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is important to read because it reveals something special in an very unexpected place. Germans who lived in Nazi Germany are still to this day commonly stereotyped as being ruthless and hate filled. Liesel has given a previously unseen perspective of these times, a look through the eyes of an innocent child that knows nothing of bitter hatred and antagonism. This is all easily perceived through her interactions with other characters , her own dialogue, and attitudes.

Parallel Journeys essays

Parallel Journeys essays Often reading the blurb on the back cover of a novel is a good indication of whether or not you will enjoy the book. This is very much the case when I picked up Parallel Journeys by Eleanor Ayer. The front cover features Adolf Hitler with thousands of his young supporters hailing him during World War Two. Books about the war usually depress me so usually I wouldnt read them, but this book appealed to me because of the faces of two teenagers on the front cover. The lead me to read the back cover which simply said- He was an ardent member of the Hitler Youth. This is their story of their parallel journey through World War II. What a great idea for a book! To compare two people who had completely different experiences of the war and to let them tell their stories side by side. When I first started reading this book I noticed how different it was to some of the other novels I have read. Firstly, it is very chilling to realize that while this is in the form of a novel, it is also non-fiction. It isnt based on a true story, it is a true story. The Second World War took the lives of fifteen million soldiers around the world, thirty nine million civilians and 12 million Jewish people. These figures shock me when I remember that the population of Australia today is around 20 million, so this means that over three times the population of Australia died in this sad period from 1939-1945. The First chapter of the book introduces us to Alfons Heck, a young German boy who grew up in the Rhineland region of Germany. Alfons never knew a Germany without Nazis. In schools they were taught by Nazis and never did they question what they were taught. Alfons was taught to hate Jewish people, communists, gypsies, and Jehovahs witnesses. He was also taught that his own race were to one day rule the world. When you are a child you learn from what adults are teaching you, so if they are teaching you to hate o...

Analysis of India

This is a 8-page paper that analyzes the business climate of India with relations to neighboring countries. As the title says, this essay is a very factual and informative summary of a large list of national statistics. It covers population, religion, trade, politics, labor force, transport and even which fish they catch. It covers some modern internal/external political history and international trade history. A very useful essay for anyone wishing to learn about India especially regarding trade.From the Paper: Situated in the South East Asia bordering with the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal, the country India is a country that is linked with Burma, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Belonging to one of the oldest civilizations the Indus Civilizations, its historical setting could be traced up to 5000 years. India has also been subject to a series of conquests like the invasion of Aryans, the Dutch, Portuguese, Turkish and Arabs. They were also subjected to a series of political strife when the country was endeavoring for its independence in the 20th century. Today it has a federal republic government established on 15th August, the country has a President as the head of state, while the head of the government is the Prime Minister. The legal system is ruled by a cabinet of council of ministers who are appointed by the president at the recommendation of the Prime Minister.

Wilkins.A Zurn company about DEMAN FORECASTING Case Study

Wilkins.A Zurn company about DEMAN FORECASTING - Case Study Example the cyclical nature of US commercial and industrial construction market that affect the revenues generated, the company has experienced sales growth that exceeds the industry. Their positive growth is due to their favorable pricing strategies, product innovations and targeted marketing programs. The current demand forecasting process of the company includes a forecast master and a planning bill. The forecast master is a spreadsheet that lists the average weekly sales history for each product family by quarter and year since 1999. For each product family, the total quarter’s actual sales are divided by 13 weeks per quarter to determine the average weekly sales per quarter. The expected demand for the next five or six quarters is then estimated for the quarters. Each product family had its own planning bill. It contains the sales history for each product within the family. It calculates the average number of units sold within that product family each day within each quarter. It also contains projection on the average daily sales for that family that will sell in the next 12 months. Furthermore, the planning bill disaggregates the family forecast into each product based on the per cent of sales of the product family. Lastly, the planning bill calculates the annual sales forecast for each product within the family. The current forecasting performance utilized by the company is inaccurate. According to sales records, there are variances in the forecasted sales value with respect to the actual sales of the company. This paper will center on the utilization of statistical forecasting methods in order to improve the performance of the business. The current method of forecasting that is utilized by the company does not take into account the seasonality of the sales generated. The forecast is based on the forecast master and the planning bill of each product family. The method of using two forecasting tools to estimate future demand is applicable to the