Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Essay

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives - Essay Example At that time, agents collected taxes through the Department of Treasury. In 1886, the government established the Revenue laboratory, though at that time it dealt primarily with agricultural issues. The lab has advanced greatly since then, entering its second century with a staff of chemists, document analysts, latent print specialists, and firearms and tool mark examiners. The duties of the office shifted again in 1919 when ratification of the 18th Amendment together with the Volstead Prohibition Enforcement Act outlawed alcohol. Revenue officers, termed "revenoors," were now responsible for investigating "criminal violations of the Internal Revenue law" (ATF online), which included the illegal manufacture of liquors. With the new duties came a new name, the Prohibition Unit. Less than a decade later, on April 1, 1927, the unit became the Bureau of Prohibition. By July 1, 1930, the agency's duties and name changed yet again, when Congress transferred "the penal provisions of the national prohibition Act" (ATF online) to the Department of Justice's new Bureau of Prohibition. This move for the first time put the agency under the Justice Department, and did away with the Treasury Department's Bureau of Prohibition. ... This move for the first time put the agency under the Justice Department, and did away with the Treasury Department's Bureau of Prohibition. However, "tax-related and regulatory activities" (ATF online) stayed at the Treasury Department under the new Bureau of Industrial Alcohol. Three years later, on December 5, 1933, the Twenty-first Amendment to the Constitution repealed prohibition, once again changing the focus and duties of the Bureau. To deal with the sudden boom of legal alcohol production and sales, President Franklin Roosevelt created, through the National Industrial Recovery Act, the Federal Alcohol Control Administration (FACA). "The FACA, in cooperation with the Departments of Agriculture and Treasury, endeavored to guide wineries and distilleries under a system based on brewers' voluntary codes of fair competition (ATF Online)." The bureau was once again in the business of regulating. The FACA was to be short-lived; however, as President Roosevelt replaced it less than two years later in August 1935 by signing the Federal Alcohol Administration Act. This Act is still the basis for the agency's functions today, though the ATF has taken on other duties since the Act took effect. In 1934, the prohibition enforcement duties fell to the newly established Alcohol Tax Unit, a division of the Bureau of Internal Revenue, which was still housed in the Department of Treasury. At the same time the FAA, also housed in the Department of Treasury, was responsible for collecting data, establishing license and permit requirements, and defining "the regulations that ensure an open, fair marketplace for the alcohol industry and the consumer (ATF online)." In 1940, the two units merged. Gun-wielding crime lords led

Public and Private Mental Health Services Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Public and Private Mental Health Services - Essay Example This essay discusses that  more than 10 percent of the American adults experienced noticeable mental health issues because of recession alone due to the economic confusion. The observation was made between early 2006 and early 2009 as the significant periods in the recent history. This number is regardless of the millions of children demanding similar mental concerns and the new developments after that. In essence, there is a greater demand of mental concerns that have also been increasing with time and with significant margins.As the discussion highlights that  there is a significant contrast in quality delivered between the self-sponsored facilities and those financed by the government. The two are in the same industry with a similar specialization and line of operation yet they are never a similar thing albeit. Individuals who are capable of paying for their psychological healthcare services receive better services as compared to those who rely on government sponsored services in Virginia Beach. The government services have proved to have insufficient insurance or funds in a number of occasions. The self-paid services have no financial limitations and the patients can receive full treatment which is contrary to the alternate public services with cut-off points of halting the services.  The number of patients is also a concern in the facilities.

What Are The Hazards Of Pollution Environmental Sciences Essay

What Are The Hazards Of Pollution Environmental Sciences Essay Pollution refers to adverse alteration of the natural phenomena by human beings, animals or natural disasters which may affect life in one way or another negatively. Pollution is a health hazard that can cause detrimental effects to the natural environment we live in. It occurs in different forms like: Air pollution (atmospheric), land pollution, water pollution, light pollution and noise pollution Air (atmospheric) pollution This refers to a situation whereby the atmosphere surrounding us is contaminated by foreign materials of gaseous nature or particulate matter. These particles or gases may be in form of dust, excess carbon-dfioxide, excess sulphur-dioxide, and smoke among many others. All these materials can alter the natural state of atmosphere making it polluted. Dust for instance can cause diseases like asthma and tuber-closis to humans as well a affecting the transportation activities like the volcanic eruptions. A lot of dust in the air makes the rain water that could have been for domestic benefits useless. Diseases like the ones mention above caused by excess dust in the atmosphere makes increases expenses on our budgets and can lead to poverty to many countries in the world. Excess smoke in the atmosphere can cause choking and some lung problems leading to health complications. Smoke from industries has led to depletion of the ozone layer that shields ultra violet rays from reaching the earth. Ultra violet rays from the sun can cause dangerous diseases like skin cancer to human beings and also affect plants which the primary producers on earth. Gases such as carbon-dioxide and sulphur in excess will not allow the light hits the ground to be reflected back into the atmosphere. This will lead to global warming that has completely altered the way of life on earth at this century. Global warming has caused extreme weather conditions like too much rain leading to floods and also extreme temperatures which have led to desertification. Floods are dangerous to our lives and causes loss of life as it has been witnessed in so many parts of the world. Desertification on the other hand has caused hunger because of lack of rainfall to facilitate plant growth. All the se factors are the end results of excess gases in the atmosphere that brings about global warming that causes extreme weather conditions. Recently a volcanic eruption in Iceland in southern Europe caused major economic losses to so many countries in the world. The eruption paralyzed air transportation which in turn affected many businesses. Tourism activities in and out of Europe were negatively affected because many tourists could not travel. The dust particles that were ejected out of the volcano were believed to affect the planes engines and were likely to cause some mechanical problems that can make the plane to crush leading to loss of life. The particles also reduced visibility to pilots and made navigation quite cumbersome to them. Too much gases like sulphur in the atmosphere has resulted into acidic rainfall which has corroded so many buildings and also destroying plants. When rainfall (water) combines with sulphur it forms a weak acid known as sulphuric acid that accompanies rain water when it rains. The acid will attack buildings by corroding them.Alot of economic losses are realized when this occurs. Plants will not grow to maturity because of acid rain and will lead to hunger and starvation due to lack of food. Land pollution This form of pollution mainly comes as a result of human activities like, uncontrolled waste disposal and industrialization. Disposing of waste in uncontrolled manner leads to a polluted environment. Disposing raw sewage in an open area for example can cause diseases like cholera, typhoid, dysentery and others because it will allow flies to access the sewage and food that we eat at the same time. From an economic perspective, this is also a big blow to the sector because a lot of money will be used in trying to treat the patients. Consequently the outcome is a poor economic growth. A high increase in population is also indirectly or directly contributing to land pollution in the sense that the pressure exerted on the limited land leads to degredation.Also human activities like over grazing causes land pollution because the number of animals kept in a small space will highly degrade the same piece of land by overexploiting it. The result of these is the soil erosion and desertificatio n. Some big industries in big towns may carelessly dispose dangerous waste like mercury on the environment. The chemicals can affect people indirectly because plants growing in the same area take in the same chemicals. Research has shown that tubers like Cassavas can store these very dangerous chemicals. Other factories can also release chemicals that can cause dangerous diseases like cancer to people nearby if not controlled. Mining activities also contribute to land pollution. Some miners can dig huge holes and fail to fill them up after the activity. The same holes can be dangerous to people around the mining area. Also some minerals like Uranium are of adverse effect to the surrounding community if not carefully handled. Other human activities like cutting down of trees to create room for settlement has led to pollution through degradation. Due to ever increasing population, natural forests have been destroyed by human beings to give space to rapidly increasing population. Also uncontrolled recreational activities like tourism have led to land pollution especially in parks and reserves where wild animals call home. Tourists may throw plastic bags or polythene backs to the environment hence making the natural habitat for animals uncomfortable for them. Water pollution Water pollution is the most dangerous form of pollution. As the saying goes that water is life, then pollution of water means that the entire life on earth is threatened. Water pollution occur in a variety of forms like releasing chemicals into the water from nearby industries or polluting by machines like ships and motor-boats that use water as a means of transport. Water supports different life forms which also supports human life apart from providing us with drinking water. Some animals that live in water like fish is the main aquatic source of food to human beings. When the water is polluted by chemicals like mercury for example, human beings risk the consumption of such chemicals because the fish that we eat contains such chemicals in their bodies. Also when the industries release raw sewage to a nearby water source people in that area risk getting diseases like cholera that threatens life of most people. Noise pollution Noise pollution is the kind of pollution that affect entirely humans and other animals that are sensitive to hearing. This type of pollution cause disturbance to victims and makes them very uncomfortable. Human beings for instance may not like loud music at night during the time of sleep. Persistent loud music in the surrounding especially at night or any time that silence is paramount is considered to be noise pollution. Noisy industries or factories should be located far away from residential areas to avoid noise pollution. Also in national parks animals may not like noise made by tourists visiting such places and that is why one can sometimes see posters in the entrance to such places that noise is prohibited. Noise in an environmental hazard that can cause health problems to people. Too much noise can make people deaf because of the destruction of eardrums. Light pollution This is brought about by too much light. This type of pollution affects both humans and animals. One can be rendered blind if he or she is exposed to too much light.Ligth is very important in our life but in excess one can be rendered blind. Many of us are able to see because of light but if we do not limit the amount of light we are exposed to, we can be affected negatively in our ability to see. There are varieties of light sources like the sun, electricity mirror reflection and flash lights that help us to see. We need therefore to control the amount of light that we are exposed to in order to avoid light pollution. The most dangerous type of pollution is water pollution because water is the basis for life. Water provides life to almost every living creature on earth. Even scientific researches show that our bodies are seventy five percent water, and then if water is polluted then we risk the danger of perishing. Plants that manufacture food that we eat depend on water for their growth. This initiates a series of interdependency among life forms that ultimately ends up in humans. Work cited Cairn.J.(1997), Biological methods of assessing water quality.ASTM International. Sell.N. (1992) Pollution control.SAGE Kryza.K.(2007). Inspiring middle and secondary learners.Corwin Express. Clarence.D.(1970).The politics of pollution.Pegasus. Clarkson J.(1988).Acid rain.Duke University Press.

A Respectable Trade and Amistad Essay -- Slavery Slaves History Papers

A Respectable Trade and Amistad An unfortunate part of history and labor involves European, American, and African slave traders engaging in the lucrative trade in humans. The movies, A Respectable Trade and Amistad show two slightly different slants to the same evil side of the concept of slavery. They point to an all too realistically gruesome picture of this despicable economic system. Although slavery contains some similarities to capitalism, it contains in it many differences as well, making it a distinct system from others that have existed. Slavery. The term and all that it embodies inspires revulsion, anger, and sadness. The history of this nation is intertwined with slavery-as many things are the result of African-American sweat and blood-(brought to these shores in slave ships). The institution of slavery had a significant impact on this society's institutions, such as the family, and on its social thought, law, and economy. Slavery was a form of dependent labor that can be differentiated from other forms by the fact that in any society the general consensus is that it was considered to be the most degrading and most sever. It can be characterized by a relationship that was founded on the notion of dominance and power. To mention briefly, humans have created other forms of dependent labor as well: serfdom, indentured labor, and peonage. However these are not the same as slavery. A "serf" was usually subject to the law, and thus had some rights of his or her own. A serf was also usually bound to the land in comparison to the slave who was usually bound to his master and thus had to live where the master told him to and could be sold whenever the master wanted to sell them for money. The serf als... ...clopedia Britannica. "Slavery." Wysiwyg://35http://www.britannica.com/b†¦16,117527+1+109538,00.html?query= slavery G, Brianne. B, Scott. M, Lindsay. "The Three Passages into Slavery." http://www.benjaminschool.com/hagy1/webpages/three_passages_into_slavery.htm McCormick, Erin. Zamora, Jim Herron. "Slave Trade Still Alive in U.S." San Francisco Examiner. February 14, 2000. http://www.trafficked-women.org/examiner.html Robinson, B. A. "A Brief History of the 'Peculiar Institution:' Slavery in North America." 2000. http://www.religioustolerance.org/slavery.htm "Slavery." http://www.usbol.com/ctjournal/Slavery2.html S. Trey. "Treatment of Slaves." http://www.benjaminschool.com/hagy/webpages/life_on_a_plantation.htm "Understanding Slavery: The Lives of Eighteenth Century African-Americans." http://www.sciway.net/hist/chicora/slavery18-1.html

The Voice You Hear Within

Oden 1 Jessica Oden Dr. Willis English Comp II February 20th 2013 â€Å"The Voice You Hear When You Read Silently† There are many works or art and literature that deal with one of the most intriguing and mysterious phenomenons in the world, the human mind. Like death, and the content of the heavens, it is a secret that can not be unlocked, and possibly the most personal and valuable secret. The mystery lies in the uniqueness of the individual brain with specific dreams and ideas that can not be copied or compared. This constant inconsistency makes stunning the mind basically impossible. There could be rooms filled with charts, diagrams, studies, and experiments to due with the human mind, and probably are, but there is no control group and therefore no definite answer can be reached. Even if an answer could be found, what is the question? The human mind is infinitely and simultaneously complex and simple, much like the poems of Thomas Lux (â€Å"Thomas Lux†). In Lux's poem â€Å"The Voice You Hear When You Read silently† he attempts to corner and identify one aspect of the ever mysterious mind. That voice heard only in the mind. The voice that remembers everything, that reflects integrity or lack there of, and finally that explains the world to one person only, forever. The conversation between the mind's voice and mind's eye is an intimate one that can not be overheard. Perception is the transfer of information from the senses to the brain, and that ever present inner voice is narrating the whole process. Everything seen, smelled, tasted, etc†¦ is recorded into the brain, and this information provides the basis for the connotation of everything perceived from that point on, Oden 2 so that the perception of the world changes constantly and in direct relation to how much exposure there is to new and unfamiliar things. Therefore the voice of the mind is constantly growing and expanding and developing a character all of its own. This character of the mind is what Lux is harping on in his poem, by explaining that no voices can be the same. He explains that this internal monologuer has the ability to see situations in jaded way and therefore the person will see them that way also. Chelsea Craig defined this phenomenon in a very accurate and descriptive manner: â€Å"This powerful and moving voice is enriched by my past, declares my present, and may even foretell what is to come. †(Craig 3) She gave this comment after reading Lux's work and ignoring it for some time (Craig 3). When she revisited the poem, she found that it contained an inherent truth about herself and every other human (Craig 3). Where does this voice of the mind reside? It seems to be rooted in the subconscious, which is the area of the brain that processes our perceptions and makes them real ideas that we can call upon and that sometime reveal themselves randomly to us in flashes and dreams. When these ideas cross over from the sub- to the consciene, there is a voice there to explain it all to the perceive. Lux refers to this part of the mind as a ‘dark cathedral† seeming to compare the human subconscious to a holy vessel of information that must be valued and cared for, and so out of this cathedral comes knowledge of a world that is difficult to understand even still. Reading is on of the best ways to stimulate the mind and feed your subconscious with the images and feelings revealed from the book. The feelings invoked my the writer, the images portrayed by the poet, are all decipher by a private, bias critical voice inside the mind. This voice is very selective and controlling. It will take the information provided and run it through many filters before opening it up to the rest of your mind, which is does with bias and judgment and opinion. This may seem unfair, but a person directly controls what their subconscious observes by controlling how much Oden 3 of the world they are willing to be exposed to. The example that Lux gives in his poem to illustrate the differences in the mind from over person to the next. The barn to one person could be a symbol of free time from kids running around an empty field with an abandoned building, that brings feelings of curiosity and intrigue from the children who saw it, to the parents of the children who see the barn as dangerous and ugly. The dreamers and seniors will have yet another idea of what a barn is. The expression Lux uses, â€Å"a sensory constellation is lit† explains how that voice takes in everything that is perceive by all the senses and makes since of them, like the figurative lighting of a light bulb above the head when an epiphany is reached or an idea is conceived (Lux). The sound of the voice of the mind, though a figurative idea, is also important and directly related to the person who owns that voice. In the first part of the poem, Lux repeats the word ‘say' in different forms, emphasizing with repetition that the mind can actually ‘hear' this voice and that the tone of it reflects and illustrates the connotation of the words being ‘said' (Lux). Each inner voice has its very own unique timbre, with its own unique accent derived from the experiences and actions of the person who conceived it. The poet used a noun to explain this idea, but alluded to the effect of ‘stronger' words of a sentence such as the verb or the subject. To take this part of the equations deeper, consider that the subject and verb makes the sentence. So to expand, if just the word ‘barn' can mean so many different things to different people, look at the entire sentence. Such as, for example, â€Å"She was taken into the barn. † This is a very simple sentence with neutral words, but the inner voice can interpret it as the actions of a hero or a villain. On the one hand, a farmer could be carrying a pregnant goat into the barn to be warm while she gives birth, on the other a stranger could be carrying a young girl into the barn with evil intentions. None of this is given to the reader in the sentence and so this inner voice uses Oden 4 what it knows to guess at the meaning of the sentence. The point of this poem is to uncover some of the mystery of the human mind, but seems to only illustrate that fact that it is infinitely mysterious. There is no way to ‘hear' another person's inner voice or understand the conceptions of another entirely. There are phrases such as â€Å"I know how you feel†, or â€Å"I can relate† that seem to imply otherwise, however these phrases are generalizations, and in and of themselves subject to the connotation given them by the inner voice. Does the person really understand or are they being sarcastic? Do they really have a clue what the other person is feeling? No, it is impossible to completely put their thinking cap on and hear the voice that whispers to them, interpreting the world and everything in it, individually for that person. Oden 5 1.Works Cited Lux, Thomas â€Å"the Voice you hear when you read silently†. ed. Vivian Garcia Edgar V. 2.Roberts Lehman cCollege The City University of New York Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing, fifth compact edition, Longman 2012 Print. 3.â€Å"Thomas Lux†. Poetry Foundation. Chicago, IL 2012 http://www. poetryfoundation. org/bio/thomas-lux Web. Craig, Chelsea. 4.â€Å"Slow Down to Hear Your Inner Voice† University of Wisconsin. 2012 Http://liberaleducation. uswa. edu/scholarship/2ndAnnual/Chelsea_Craig. pdf Web.

Double Entry Journal Example

â€Å"Moushumi wonders how long she will live her life in trappings of student hood in spite of the fact that she is a married woman that she’s as far along in her studies as she is that Nikhil has a respectable if not terribly lucrative job. It would have been different with Graham-he’d made more than enough for both of them† (Lahiri 254)| One of the main themes in this story is pressure. Throughout the story Gogol feels pressured by his parents to follow the Bengali culture, to marry a Bengali girl, to eat Bengali food and to live the Bengali lifestyle. Myself being of the South Asian decent, I can relate to Gogol as well. My parents expect me to marry a Sri Lankan boy because they believe a Sri Lankan boy can make me happy. They also want to continue to pass down our culture to newer generations. This quote foreshadows the breakup that is going to happen between Gogol and Moushumi because you can tell Moushumi isn’t happy with the life she lives with Gogol. Gogol is pressured by his mother to ask out Moushumi a Bengali girl. They end up getting married but as they spend more and more days together through individuation Moushumi realises that she is not happy and this is because she was pressured into marrying a Bengali. She made herself believe her and Gogol had a lot in common and that they had a good time with each other, but deep down inside she only married him because it was what her parents wished for (her to marry a Bengali man). It develops the plot because as she begins to compare Gogol to Graham she realises she isn’t satisfied and starts to cheat on her husband. Bengali parents ideology is that culture guides you in life, it helps find your place. Throughout the story Moushumi puts on a persona of being a happy wife, who is loyal to her husband. But she is really sad about her relationship with Gogol and she transgresses by cheating on him with a former friend. Cheating on Gogol was a good move for Moushumi because this is what helps her realise that she is not happy and in love with Gogol. Gogol is a proletariat who worked hard to become an architect but Moushumi seems to be more interested in men in the bourgeoisie class. She cheated on Gogol with a very rich man (Dimitri) who inherited his wealth through his grandma. Moushumi cheating on Gogol was good for Gogol because he becomes aware of his life and what he believes in. He slowly begins to realise that his parents had gone through the trouble of learning different customs such as Christmas dinners and other celebrations all for him. This relates to peoples everyday life because a lot of people come to Canada as immigrants but they slowly adapt to the country and it’s traditions such as Canada Day. Gogol realises that all the events that happened in his life have shaped him and determined who he is. Moushumi and Gogol lived in patriarchy because Gogol had more power over Moushumi. She turned down a grant offer that she had applied for even before she met Gogol. She knew that Gogol wouldn’t like her going to another country for a few months so she declined the offer. The other reason she dropped the offer was because she needed to take care of the house now that she was a wife. The story follows the stereotype of women cleaning the house and looking after the husband. Moushumi is portrayed as an object who listens to what Gogol says, but she slowly gains power as she begins to cheat and at the end she becomes the subject because she has the power and ends the relationship. | â€Å"†¦read the book he had once forsaken, has abandoned until now. Until moments ago it was destined to disappear from his life altogether, but he salvaged it by chance, as his father was pulled from a crushed train forty years agoâ€Å" (Lahiri 290)| Another main theme is identities. Throughout the story Gogol only wants an American life, he decides to rebel against his culture by changing is name from Gogol to Nikhil. This quote develops the plot because it shows that by the end of the story Gogol gains more knowledge about his culture and slowly begins to accept it. When Gogol finally decides to read the book he is in the setting of his home specifically his room. This shows that throughout his journey (highschool/university) Gogol rebelled against his culture and it did nothing but brought him back to his own bed. The book Gogol`s father gives him is an anima symbol because it represents the feminine side of both Gogol and his father. Books are known to give information and to express ones feelings, this is also what females are known to do. By giving his son this book Gogol`s father is sharing his life story and how he felt about the train crash with his son. The train crash is a metaphor for life and death because the train represents how quick life really is and the crash represents the end of it. The symbol of the book developed the plot because without the book there wouldn’t be anything to symbolise Gogol`s fathers journey. After Gogol`s fathers passing Gogol becomes the subject in his house. Ashima and Sonia live under patriarchy because Gogol tells them what to do and what not to do. The story also follows the universal unconscious of men being the one to protect their families. As soon as Mr. Ganguli a hard working proletariat passes away everyone expects the son to step up and protect the family. Ashima doesn’t mind this because she is use to having a man protect her. This follows the stereotype of men leading the household and women just being objects and following. Women are represented as weak people in this story because they cannot do things for themselves and they always rely on men. In my household both my mom and dad have an equal say in everything that goes on, they both contribute there ideas. Also in the world today you definitely don’t always find men leading. Women are becoming leaders and filling many positions that are usually occupied by men. For example many women today are working in construction sites and are accountants or doctors. If I was Ashima I would learn to become more independent and not rely on men to do everything, this would give me a sense of pride because I would realise I can live my life without a husband. Ashima`s persona throughout the story is a caring mother who tries her very best to make her family happy. One key ideology in this story is education makes you a better person because it instils positive values. Gogol studied hard throughout university and finally became an architect. Throughout his education he gained positive values such as being very hardworking and intelligent and this helps him throughout his journey.