How the Greek Revered Their Gods :: Ancient Greece Greek History

How the Greek revered their gods In ancient times, the Greeks had absolute and undeniable respect for their gods. They demonstrated their admiration by putting in place many rituals and celebrations to reverence the gods that they loved and feared in order to ensure harmony with them. In particular, the focus will be on the religious beliefs of the Greeks, including prayer and sacrifice, as well as on festivals and the arts, such as the ancient Olympic games and theatre. These aspects of their culture made a significant contribution to their quality of life. Moreover, these topics will be examined in relation to the twelve Olympian gods and their associates. The ancient Greeks practiced a religion that was in effect, a building block to many ensuing pagan religions. This religion revolved around their reverence to the gods. Essentially, the Greeks worshipped numerous gods, making their religion polytheistic. They believed that exercising the opportunity to choose between a wide array of gods to worship offered them a great sense of freedom that they treasured. After all, the Greeks were known for their intellectual distinction of which their means of worship played a huge part. Each city-state, or polis, thus had an affiliated god who protected and guided its residents. Within a given polis, the belief in common gods unified the people. Ultimately, the Greeks yearned for this unity and order in the universe, which is a characteristic that is not unlike that of people today. It might seem contradictory that they believed in many gods and sought organization at the same time, for larger numbers are inherently unstable. But, to the god-fear ing Greeks, each god represented a different facet of life that together upheld an organized universe if each of these gods was properly appeased. To satisfy these gods, the Greeks participated in activities such as prayer and sacrifice and erected divine temples and centers for oracles in honor of specific gods. There is evidence of this institutionalization early on in the reign of the Olympian gods, thus forming the Olympian religion. The Olympian religion lacked the presence of true sentimentality, and the gods were not seen as forgiving or "flawless" as the Christian God is often portrayed. The Greek gods were portrayed as humans, which meant that they were not perfect. That is, the gods made mistakes, felt pain (e.g. Aphrodite in love with the mortal Adonis), and succumbed to anger and their tempers (e.

Arnold Schoenbergs Musical Influence Essay -- Arnold Schoenberg Music

Arnold Schoenberg's Musical Influence Arnold Schoenberg was one of the greatest musical influences of the mid 20th Century. He was born on September 13, 1874, to a Jewish family in Vienna, Austria (Schoenberg 1). Schoenberg was a young Jewish man during World War I (WWI) living in Berlin. He was directly affected by the invasion of the Nazis. In 1933, he had to leave Berlin and desert his faith for Lutheranism later on taking on the faith of Judaism. At the early age of eight, he began violin lessons and almost immediately started composing music (Schoenberg 1). He was self-taught until the age of 10 when he began formal training (Schoenberg 1). He earned a living by orchestrating operettas, directing a cabaret orchestra, and teaching. Schoenberg influenced the music and art of the western culture in numerous ways. Some of the most successful composers were his students. These students were molded by Schoenberg and directly absorbed his knowledge and style. Schoenberg created different rhythms and tunes that were passed along to his students and other composers. He was able to catch the attention of a multitude through his writings, music, paintings, and post cards. This variety of talent gathered a larger audience and catered to their needs. Being that Schoenberg often traveled and taught at his destination, he was well known throughout the world and influenced many. Schoenberg taught over thousands of students within a fifty-year period including Austrian composers Anton Webern and Alban Berg (Bailey 2). Schoenberg did not view teaching as a job but rather as an inspirational motivation tool. He said: â€Å"I must confess that I was a passionate teacher, and the satisfaction of giving to beginners as much as possible of my own knowledge was probably a greater reward that the actual fee I received (Simms 1).† His passion was passed down to his students encouraging a musical revolution. The more he taught, the more lives he influenced. Students serve as a great preservation of history and culture. They take what they have learned, add their style to it, and it starts the domino effect from there. It is obvious that Schoenberg regarded teaching as more than a job but a way to influence and enhance culture. He felt that he didn’t gain from what he was taught unless he had already discovered it. Schoenberg created a twelve-tone method and many rhythms and tu... ...eavy Metal, Country, and Broadway are based on the concepts of temperament and tonality defined by Schoenberg. He created a twelve-tone method and many wonderful rhythms and tunes. His greatest joy in life was to teach. He wanted to influence students to take chances and to have their own musical styles. He was never afraid to show his own styles and expressions to the world. Works Cited Arnold Schoenberg Center: The Portrait of a Century at http://www.schoenberg.at/1_as/essay/essay_e.htm Arnold Schoenberg – Born: September 13, 1874 Vienna/ Died: July 13, 1951 Los Angeles, California at http://www.wwnorton.com/classical/composers/schnbrg.htm Arnold Schoenberg - The American Works at http://www.schirmer.com/composers/schoenberg_essay.html Arnold Schoenberg: (1874-1951) at http://w3.rz-berlin.mpg.de/cmp/schonberg.html Arnold Schoenberg Center: Schoenberg as a Teacher http://www.schoenberg.at/1_as/schueler/lehrerschueler_e.htm Bailey, Walter B. The Arnold Schoenberg Companion. Greenwood Press, 1998 Simms, Bryan R. The Atonal Music of Arnold Schoenberg, 1908-1923. Oxford US, 2000 Journal of the Arnold Schoenberg Institute IX/1 June 1986. Arnold Schoenberg's Musical Influence Essay -- Arnold Schoenberg Music Arnold Schoenberg's Musical Influence Arnold Schoenberg was one of the greatest musical influences of the mid 20th Century. He was born on September 13, 1874, to a Jewish family in Vienna, Austria (Schoenberg 1). Schoenberg was a young Jewish man during World War I (WWI) living in Berlin. He was directly affected by the invasion of the Nazis. In 1933, he had to leave Berlin and desert his faith for Lutheranism later on taking on the faith of Judaism. At the early age of eight, he began violin lessons and almost immediately started composing music (Schoenberg 1). He was self-taught until the age of 10 when he began formal training (Schoenberg 1). He earned a living by orchestrating operettas, directing a cabaret orchestra, and teaching. Schoenberg influenced the music and art of the western culture in numerous ways. Some of the most successful composers were his students. These students were molded by Schoenberg and directly absorbed his knowledge and style. Schoenberg created different rhythms and tunes that were passed along to his students and other composers. He was able to catch the attention of a multitude through his writings, music, paintings, and post cards. This variety of talent gathered a larger audience and catered to their needs. Being that Schoenberg often traveled and taught at his destination, he was well known throughout the world and influenced many. Schoenberg taught over thousands of students within a fifty-year period including Austrian composers Anton Webern and Alban Berg (Bailey 2). Schoenberg did not view teaching as a job but rather as an inspirational motivation tool. He said: â€Å"I must confess that I was a passionate teacher, and the satisfaction of giving to beginners as much as possible of my own knowledge was probably a greater reward that the actual fee I received (Simms 1).† His passion was passed down to his students encouraging a musical revolution. The more he taught, the more lives he influenced. Students serve as a great preservation of history and culture. They take what they have learned, add their style to it, and it starts the domino effect from there. It is obvious that Schoenberg regarded teaching as more than a job but a way to influence and enhance culture. He felt that he didn’t gain from what he was taught unless he had already discovered it. Schoenberg created a twelve-tone method and many rhythms and tu... ...eavy Metal, Country, and Broadway are based on the concepts of temperament and tonality defined by Schoenberg. He created a twelve-tone method and many wonderful rhythms and tunes. His greatest joy in life was to teach. He wanted to influence students to take chances and to have their own musical styles. He was never afraid to show his own styles and expressions to the world. Works Cited Arnold Schoenberg Center: The Portrait of a Century at http://www.schoenberg.at/1_as/essay/essay_e.htm Arnold Schoenberg – Born: September 13, 1874 Vienna/ Died: July 13, 1951 Los Angeles, California at http://www.wwnorton.com/classical/composers/schnbrg.htm Arnold Schoenberg - The American Works at http://www.schirmer.com/composers/schoenberg_essay.html Arnold Schoenberg: (1874-1951) at http://w3.rz-berlin.mpg.de/cmp/schonberg.html Arnold Schoenberg Center: Schoenberg as a Teacher http://www.schoenberg.at/1_as/schueler/lehrerschueler_e.htm Bailey, Walter B. The Arnold Schoenberg Companion. Greenwood Press, 1998 Simms, Bryan R. The Atonal Music of Arnold Schoenberg, 1908-1923. Oxford US, 2000 Journal of the Arnold Schoenberg Institute IX/1 June 1986.

Ways in Which the Use of Teams Helps Cadbury Achieve its Strategic Aims and Objectives :: Cadbury Work Ethics Employment Essays

Ways in Which the Use of Teams Helps Cadbury Achieve its Strategic Aims and Objectives 1) Explain the meaning of the â€Å"terms† and â€Å"groups†. Teams ===== A team is a group of people with a common purpose who have complimentary skills. Working as a team has many advantages such as: * Distributing the workload * Reinforcing individual capabilities * Creating partipation and involvement * Improve productivity and pride in what they do * Respond more quickly to change * Reduce middle management level * Draw on expertise of members. There are two types of teams: Formal – a formal team is created for a specific purpose e.g. The employees at Cadbury world work as a formal team because they work together to meet their aim of ‘creating brands that people love’ Informal – an informal team develops in a less structured way e.g. a group of students at Josiah mason college may start a discussion on the way the teachers teach and are not happy with it they might get together and do something about it. Groups and teams are similar, however, teams require coordinated effort while individuals may work independently in groups. Groups A group is when two or more people work together on a certain task E.g. a group of students work together to form a presentation. But a group doesn’t have to work together or achieve something a group can also mean something else for e.g. There can be two different places in a cafà © one for smokers and one for non-smokers 1 Describe the ways in which the use of teams may help the organisation achieve its strategic aims and objectives. Working as a team: advantages of a teamwork and cooperation and to identify and understand the stages of team development. For a team to achieve its goals, its members must do more than just carry their own weight. They must involve, support, and share information with there team mates. And they must commit to the success of the entire team, not simply their own success. Working as a team clearly teaches employees the personal, interpersonal, and organizational advantages of working together whether in teams or work groups. Advantages of working as a team * Distributing the workload * Reinforcing individual capabilities * Creating participation and involvement * Improves motivation * Share knowledge and understanding * Provides opportunity for managers and supervisors * It also encourages innovation I will use Cadbury as an example to describe the ways in which the use of teams may help the organisation achieve its strategic aims and objectives. Cadbury Schweppes aim is: ‘ Work together to create brands that people love’ Objectives. †¢ Promote ethical business practices †¢ Respect the environment and communities in which we operate

High School and District Championship

Holding the ball in my hands, sweat pouring off my forehead into my eyes, I stare confidently at the hoop, ready to shoot my first free throw. My teammates are lined up behind me at the half court line yelling words of encouragement. I shoot my first shot and the ball flies through the air. After what seems like centuries, it sinks in the rim with a loud swoosh, and the crowd roars. My teammates rush up to me, high- fiving and slapping me on the back. The game is tied and I have one more shot. The eferee tosses me the ball and the gym falls silent.Adrenaline coursing through my veins, I shoot the second shot. It rolls around the rim and falls in. The gym is alive with excitement as the final buzzer sounds and all my teammates are on their feet jumping and cheering, some crying with Joy. We won the state championship! In the midst of all this, a strange thought enters my mind. Where would I be if I hadn't been in basketball? My basketball career started in 4th grade. Back then the onl y thing I really wanted to do was run around, dribble a ball, and hang out with friends. Practices were all very basic: plenty of layups and dribbling drills, and not much shooting or running.When our season began, we went into the games Just for fun; however, we started getting better and going into games with a â€Å"NO LOSE† attitude. We ended our fourth grade season undefeated. This is where my love of the game started. This devotion continued throughout later elementary and middle school. We have been extremely lucky to have 5 girls who have remained constant through all of the adversity we have faced together. When I started high school, I had to go hrough a big change that I had never experience before. I was no longer the star. I had girls four years older than me, not to mention much better.I had to earn my spot. Though I didn't play much varsity my freshman year, I learned many ways to improve. The last game of my freshman year was the district championship against our arch-rivals St. Thomas More, which we lost. As I was sitting in the locker room, watching the senior girls cry and listening to them apologizing for not getting us farther, I started setting goals in my head. Our coach came in after the game, gave us piece of paper and told us to write down what we needed to improve, so the seniors the following year wouldn't feel that way.That next summer we pulled those papers out and we started to improve on our flaws. My sophomore year was one that I will never forget. The transition from my freshman year to my sophomore year was a little more drastic. Instead of sitting the bench like I had the previous year, I was now starting varsity as a point guard. Starting the season with this big of a responsibility was very nerve-wracking on me, but my teammates and coaches, gave e a great deal of confidence that carried me through the season.We had two amazing seniors that were great leaders and very effective on the court. The night before the dis trict championship, I was admitted into the hospital for appendicitis. It was the worst feeling I had ever had in my life. The thought of letting my team down tore me apart. I called my head coach at 4 am the morning of the game, letting him know what had happened and that I wouldn't be playing that day. Three hours later I nad my appendix taken out. All I remember is lying in the hospital bed crying, hinking why this had to happen to me when it did.When I woke up after surgery, my coach had come to see how I was doing and to let me know that this had happened for a reason and that we would make it work. He told me that if I wasn't able to go to the game, he would bring me a radio on the way so I could be sure to listen, and that he would stop afterwards to let me know how it went and I could see the team. After all day lying in my hospital bed crying, I was released at 2 pm that day and the first place I went was the gym. When I walked in, my team gathered around me to make ure I w as 0k.As I continued to watch them shoot, I decided I wanted to go to the game, but I didn't want to ride with anyone other than the team. I checked with my mom and she allowed me to ride the bus to the game. Sitting on the sideline, I watched my team win the district championship. My day went from terrible to amazing in less than two hours. It was a great feeling when a few of my teammates came up to me and said, â€Å"This was for you! † The season continued after that, and we won the regional championship, and we made our first trip to the2009 State Tournament, and we placed 3rd.After all that success my sophomore year, we hit some adversity starting into my Junior summer. After our trip to state, our head coach got an offer for a different coaching position at a bigger school, and our assistant also got another Job offer teaching. We were left coach-less, and the 5 of us that had been together through everything up to this point didn't know what we were going to do. A few of us started going to open gym in another town, so we could play, because we had no one to open it for us at home. We older girls tried getting everyone together to see what their thoughts on the situation were.Finally, in August of my Junior year, they hired someone. It was such a relief knowing that our season wasn't going to be dropped before it even started. We had a few open gyms with the new guy, and suddenly he quit. He left us a week and a half before our official season started. There we were again, shocked and hopeless, some of us wanting to move to another town, Just so we could play. Then our current coach took the position. He had been the boys head coach for a few years having Just a couple successful seasons.The team had a meeting the Tuesday before practice started and he asked us to make eam goals for the season; we told him, â€Å"A trip to the state tournament, and an undefeated season. † Coach looked at us crazy but wrote them down. We started the season off stronger than ever, winning all of our games until it came to the West River Tournament, which we had been back-to-back champs the previous years. We played Wall and they ended up beating us by 3 in the championship game. It was devastating; we couldn't believe they took our perfect season, Just like that. After that game we came back ready to kill, and that's exactly what we did.We went into the istrict championship 21-1 . That â€Å"NO LOSE† attitude came back into effect and we won the district championship and the region championship for the second year in a row. We went back to state and played our hearts out, with the help of one amazing senior who played a huge role in our team's success. We finished 5th as consolation champions. As I reflect on the many years I have put into this game, I can't help but still wonder where I would be without it. I have learned so much about life, relationships, and hardships through this experience.With the help of basketball I m a ble to be a good leader, can work through adversity, and am a competitor through any obstacles I am torced to tace. As a senior, this year is the beginning ot the end of my high school basketball career, and I want nothing less than a state championship. I want to feel the rush of being on the line, with the game in my hands, and seizing that opportunity to make my teammates proud; to prove that all that hard work and hours in the gym has paid off. I want to leave the Newell Lady Irrigators knowing we accomplished something great, and that we will always be remembered.

Five Pillars of Islam Essay

The First Pillar is the believers’ confession of faith, reduced to a few words that every member of the faithful from every continent and background can understand, from the illiterate nomadic herdsman in the deserts of Northern Kenya to the sophisticated trilingual businessman of Paris or Riyadh. The Second Pillar is the central act of righteous in Islam, the very essence of the life of a Muslim. The Third Pillar Islam is a significant presence in one hundred or more countries all around the world, and the majority religion in over forty. There are almost a billion believers. By the year of 2020, if present trends continue, half the world would be Muslim. Islam is an Arabic word meaning submission or commitment to the God. Islam is the humble recognition of the relationship between man and his divine creator and resonates with the familiar words from Judaism and Christianity. The fourth Pillar is the fasting. A Muslim must fast for the month of Ramadan. During the fasting month, one must refrain from eating, drinking, smoking, and sexual intercourse from dawn until sunset. The fifth and final Pillar is where a Muslim must make a pilgrimage to Mecca. Every adult Muslim who is physically and financially able to do so must make this pilgrimage at least once in his or her lifetime. The history of Islam begins with Muhammad and the Quran. The low level of importance given by Muslims to the events before Muhammad is illustrated by the Arabic term for the preceding century, the Time of Ignorance. Muhammad never claimed to be anything but mortal. For a non-Muslim with no knowledge of Arabic, is an exasperating, punishing read, apparently without order, narrative or conclusion. The magic of classical Arabic, in a modern example, was a strong element in the extraordinary power. In the Commonwealth of Medina, Muhammad was prophet, lawgiver, and prayer leader, commander of the army and head of state. So when he died, leaving only one surviving child, his daughter Fatima, and without providing for a successor or clarifying beyond doubt the method by which successor should be appointed, the ummah fell into dissention. The unity of Islam would never recover from the events that were to follow over the next two decades and no satisfactory answer would ever be found to the question of the legitimacy of subsequent Muslim rulers. There is no mystical ritual in mainstream Islam; there are no human intermediaries of divine interceders between man and God. There are no sacraments to be administered by the ordained few to the supplicant many. If God in the Muslim version forgave Adam for his transgression at the time, then man cannot be inherently evil, or born in original sin. So, like Adam, all men can be forgiven their sins directly by God without the need for intervention by any third party, whether a Redeemer on a cross, a virgin with child, or a priestly delegate operating through the medium of a confession box. The early history of Shia has moulded the character and faith of the sect into a form substantially different from Sunni Islam, even though the two branches both practise the Five Pillas and shares a common belief in the divine nature of the Quran. In order to penetrate the differences between the two, there is a rough parallel to be explored between Shia and Catholicism on the one hand and Sunni and Protestantism on the other. The comparison may be superficial and not always a perfect fit, but for an observer from a post Christian culture, the analysis is revealing nevertheless. Even though America is probably the most religious country in the Western world, with about 85 percent of the population professing belief in a god, religion was not considered a forming part in American culture. Religion in America is considered to be entirely contained within the word freedom the basis of the United States Constitution which does not once mention the word god. Faith for Americans is a free personal choice and therefore, in theory, has no place in the group activities of national politics and culture. Even school prayer is banned by a long-standing Supreme Court interpretation of the Constitution. In practice, of course, US elections are won and lost through religious support, as if the President’s job description included Chaplain-in-Chief. And a low-level battle rages constantly in US courts and legislatures between secularists attempting to uphold the strict separation of church and state, and religious groups intent on government funding for religious schools and faith-based initiatives.

Technology and Ethics

While there is a robust debate in American society over the relation between technology and such ethical issues as democracy, localism and the environment, the introduction of technologies admits of no debate. Jerry Mander writes, â€Å"It is a melancholy fact that in our society the first waves of descriptions about new technologies invariably come from the corporations and scientists who invent and market these technologies and who have much to gain by our accepting a positive view† (Mander, 1996, 345). This is a central point: the basic issue is that the introduction of new technologies is far removed from any real democratic discussion. Such discussion always occurs in a sterile environment, always after the fact.For example, the development and mass production of the automobile was hailed almost universally as a revolutionary development. It was supposed to provide freedom of movement and make our world smaller. Such slogans also met the development of air travel, televis ion and the internet. Such things were accepted in society almost without discussion, save for a few marginalized traditionalists and agrarians who were speaking into the wind. Nevertheless, the automobile has recreated the American landscape, demanded thousands of miles of paved roads, brought civilization to small towns whether they wanted it or not, killed many millions in traffic accidents worldwide, massively increased the dependence on oil and created a massive oligarchy of corporate capital who benefits from all this.It [industrialism] also led, and leads. . . to social and political consequences: the squeezing of farm populations and the uncontrollable growth of cities, the evisceration of self-reliant communities, the enlargement of central governments, the enthronement of science as ruling ideology, a wide and increasing gap between rich and poor, and ruling values of profit, growth, property, and consumption. (Sale, 1996)Now, the general point is had all of this been know n (or theorized) in 1920, and a national discussion had taken place, would we have the mass production of automobiles?Has it, ultimately, been a good thing? Often, the common response is that â€Å"you can’t stop progress.† Such a slogan is saturated with cynicism and amorality, as if technologies were some seismic phenomenon as natural as photosynthesis. Progress is something that is, as Mander says, dictated by a handful of major corporate and government agencies who decide what shape progress will take.In addition, Mander also holds that technologies, such as nuclear power and air travel, are inherently biased politically. He writes, â€Å"To build and operate nuclear power plants requires a large, highly technical and very well-financed infrastructure. . . It can only be done by huge, centralized institutions. Without such institutions, nuclear power could not exist† (Mander, 2006, 347). Mander sees the same problems in the development of the internet.Such s peed in communications and access to information does little but assist the continued centralization of political and economic power. â€Å"In fact, it is my opinion that computer technology may be the single most important instrument ever invented for the acceleration of centralized power. While we sit at our PCs. . . .transnational corporations are using their global networks, fed by far greater resources. . . .they operate on a scale and at a speed that makes our own level of cyber-empowerment seem pathetic by comparison† (Mander, 2006, 355).Even more, such global interconnectedness, long lauded as a path to freedom and unity, brings instead, cultural leveling and a destruction of diversity. The computer revolution is a revolution that permits a handful of major cultural centers such as Hollywood to impose their view of the world into every corner of the world, and the results of this are just beginning to be seen. The issue of Hollywood and New York imposing its view of t he world to the plant is a given: the facts speak for themselves. But one then must grapple with the issue of whether or not this is a good thing? What gives Hollywood the right?The general point is that the mega-technologies have brought the world closer together and sped up the speed at which we receive information. But what are the concrete results? Could any of these results have been foreseen in the late 1970s when this technology was being developed? And if not, what does this say about democratic governance? After all, computers and automobiles have revolutionized our society with far more direct results than who gets elected president. But again, there is no democratic control over these intimate invasions of our lives and the technologies themselves not only assume centralized control, but provide the agencies of centralization with greater and greater resources.Mander’s thesis is that technology is already biased in terms of centralization and statism. In other word s, the technological revolution, which clothed itself in the mantle of freedom and progress, in fact needs a huge centralized apparatus of physical, technical, educational, political and economic forms. The technologies that have revolutionized our society have both created and in fact, assumed the existence of a radically altered landscape that touches every element of human life.The technical apparatus that must be in place to electrify an entire continent must be huge, not to mention the standing armies that must be in place to defend the corridors of energy transmission such as oil pipelines. Technology is political, and most certainly, is not isolated from the remainder of life. Technology has, in the20th century â€Å"second industrial revolution,† touched every aspect of human life without a vote taken.All technologies have consequences, inevitable and built in, and imperatives, just as inevitable, essentially separate from human dictates and desires. Norbert Wiener, t he mathematician who was the founder of modern cybernetics, has written about â€Å"technical determinants† dictated by â€Å"the very nature† of machines, and of the steam engine he noted that it automatically leads to large and ever larger scales because it can power so many separate machines at once, to ever increasing production because it must pay back its high investment and operating costs, and to centralization and specialization because factors of efficiency and economy supersede those of, say, craftsmanship or esthetic expression. (Sale, 1996).Nevertheless, there can be no discussion of these topics without that of ideology. Technology does have its own ideology, and it needs to be â€Å"unpacked.† One might summarize this point of view this way: First, that technology has its own trajectory that is independent of the will of mankind. This can be challenged by the simple fact that all technological innovations of recent memory have been developed in a corporate setting under corporate rules for profit. Men have financed and created these things. But they have not financed or created these things blindly, as part of some â€Å"natural and inevitable process.† They have been created according to a scheme of thought.Second, this scheme of thought is that happiness is a matter of technological progress and the accumulation of capital. In other words, the person that has the better car, high tech stereos and I-Pods, must, in general, be happier than one that does not, or has older, outdated equipment. Yet, there is no evidence for this, one would have a tough time pointing to research that says people are happier or less stressed now than they were 1,000 years ago.Third,   the â€Å"market† is in control over whether or not technology is accepted and hence, democratically justifiable is often heard. In other words, the â€Å"democracy† problem is solved by the market itself. If new technologies are invented and marketed, people can choose to buy or not to buy. But is it that simple? One who buys the latest inventions is progressive, while the other is regressive. To have an 8-track player in one’s car is an occasion for mockery, regardless of the satisfaction one gets from having such â€Å"vintage† equipment. Advertising and marketing campaigns are not projected to one’s reason, but to one’s base passions, to be considered acceptable, lovable and intelligent, rather than boorish and ignorant. The acceptance or rejection of technology also partakes of these components as well.I think that in general, these arguments are universally seen as undergirding and justifying the immense power of technology in modern societies, and in fact, even defining what â€Å"modern† actually is. While technology is taken for granted, the beginnings of a serious discussion can only begin when the basic assumptions of a technological life are unpacked. What are the assumption s and promises, and to what extent has the high-tech society succeeded in meeting these expectations? It might be unreflectively held that people who lived 1,000 years ago were uniformly miserable and ignorant, yet serious research into that field has succeeded in smashing that silly myth, but it still remains the domain of eccentric specialists.Yet such a view undergirds much discussion on the question of technology and its role in society. Technology and its thought-apparatus have succeeded even in rewriting history to suit itself: people were miserable and ignorant up until the 19th century. It is difficult to see how the high-tech society can justify itself in any other way. But the nature of any â€Å"discussion† must have teeth. In other words, it must be attached to the ability of communities and families to break away from the grid and being living different, wholesome lives. Sterile academic â€Å"discussions† do nothing but justify faculty salaries. Such talk must have a revolutionary purpose, to shift the movement of progress as Bookchin sees it: from technological gigantism to miniaturism, starting with the means by which the machines are powered.Given the above arguments, Kirkpatrick Sale has written substantially on the rebellion, both historical and modern, of the land versus the machine, the ultimate bi-modality in this discussion. His argument nicely dovetails with Mander in many respects. The first question is the difference between technology and a system of production. Mander holds that there is no difference, that machinery depends on a huge, centralized system of life and thought, the â€Å"bureaucratic man.† On the other hand, Sale holds that the real revolution was in the development of the steam engine.For him, this was the first time that an invention came into existence completely independent of nature, rather than actually using it. Just as importantly, this invention also made the quantum jump from the world of local machines to an entire system of production and life. Steam created the modern factory and its discipline that derive from it (Sale, 1996). In other words, the development of steam took the organic community and plugged it into a world of production dominated by a handful of elites. But this should be noted: that it has been the issue of how machines are powered that led to the creation of the first â€Å"grid.†Again, the issue comes back to that of energy. With this, the more optimistic view of Bookchin makes more sense, since it is really not machinery per se, but the means by which they are powered that is non-liberatory in its tendency. Bookchin seems to say that the reduction of power to solar and wind sources (among other natural sources) is both inevitable (as oil runs out and coal is too dirty) and morally demanded if decentralization and true local democracy are to become a reality.In his â€Å"Five Facets of a Myth† Sale asks the simple question: has th e 400 years since the Industrial revolution produces more or less happiness for humanity (as a whole)? Has it produced more equality, more justice, less work, less stress, more mental stability, for humanity as a whole? What were the promises of the technological revolution? These arguments, from Bacon to Compte have been nothing less than plenty, peace, less work and stress, a veritable utopia of production where drudgery would disappear. Diseases would be cured, wars ended and mental illness a thing of the past. But has industrialism and technology carried through on these promises? And what has been the cost of the convenience that industry has created?It seems that Mander, Bookchin and Sale would all agree that the promises of industrialism and the technological revolution have not been fulfilled. As one sort of knowledge is brought forward, some others are left behind. All that does not conform to the English model of industrialization (or industrialization in general), is dism issively called â€Å"backward† and â€Å"primitive,† as terms of abuse.II. Society, Churches and the Technological RevolutionAs a matter of course, society seems to be a passive victim of the propaganda of the industrialists. Technology has invaded every corner of human life, altering landscapes of entire continents. All of this has been done long before any kind of debate has been engaged. This is the central problem. On the whole, churches have accepted the technological revolution with little protest. There are small exceptions: the Russian Old Believers, the Amish, some traditional Roman Catholic and Orthodox writers have detailed the problems, both moral and social, of technology and its dominance over life.One promising area of research has been developed by the green anarchists, who have taken at least some of their material from the erstwhile Murray Bookchin, who advocated a humanized technology detached from centralized structures. Solar power is the perennia l example, since it is relatively easy to install and is off a grid, in other words, it need not be connected into any larger structures of power. Bookchin, in his 1970 Post Scarcity Anarchism, contains a powerful essay called â€Å"Toward a Liberatory Technology.†The early date of this publication makes it of great interest in modern writings against the technological revolution. Bookchin is far more optimistic than Mander, and holds that the movement in this revolution is toward the small scale: computers and machinery in general are getting physically smaller and using less and less energy. This movement is a good thing and can assist in the building of a new, decentralized society (Bookchin, 1970, 59).A liberated society, I believe, will not want to negate technology precisely because it has liberated and can strike a balance. It may well want to assimilate the machine to artistic craftsmanship. By this I mean that the machine will remove the toil from the productive proc ess, leaving its artistic completion to man. The machine, in effect, will participate in human creativity. . . In a liberated community the combination of industrial machines and craftsmans tools could reach a degree of sophistication and of creative interdependence unparalleled in any period of human history (Bookchin, 1970, 80).The distinction between Mander and Bookchin in clear: For the former, technology is inherently biased, at least in its present manifestation. Mander, like Bookchin, holds that solar and wind power is the wave of the future, and, in general, can mean that life â€Å"off the grid† is quite possible, enhancing independence and local control over events. The central issue here is democracy and local control: off-grid means local control, and cultural and economic lives are not necessarily dictated by distant banks, the Federal Reserve or the global economy, none of which the average community has any control over. But in Bookchin’s case, the indus trial revolution already contains the seeds of its decentralization and hence, sees in the industrial revolution seeds of a new, liberated society. In general, by the term â€Å"liberated† Bookchin means independent of centralized sources of control.One interesting source of Christian radicalism has been the monastery. Here, especially in its Orthodox foundations, the technological revolution has been held at bay. For example, the Platina, California monastery of St. Herman is completely off grid. They have no running water or electricity, and grow most of their own food (Damascene, 2002). Their grounds are beautiful and spacious, and since they are vegetarians, hunting is prohibited (as is the case for all Orthodox monasteries). Their diet is very simple yet extremely healthy, and the community is growing. They run a major publishing house on generator power run by solar panels. The Platina experience has become central for giving an example of how to live a happy, healthy l ife without dependence on the system of interlocking systems of control which is meant by the term â€Å"grid.†Another example might be the St. Mary’s community in St. Mary’s Kansas. This is a Roman Catholic community that only partially controls the small town of St. Mary’s. They seek to live their lives simply and peacefully in prayer and honest labor. It is not a monastery and families thrive there, but they have already received several visits from the FBI, paranoid that a â€Å"cult† was at work there. If anything, such communities have an uphill climb from the state as well as the media, whose coverage of the community has been uniformly hostile and uncomprehending. (cf. http://www.smac.edu, St. Mary’s Academy page, with some information on the community as a whole).One can surmise with a great deal of justification that the average American family has embraced technology as â€Å"inevitable,† without fully understanding the com plex consequences of such technologies. Slowly but surely however, the rather marginalized monastics, anarchists and greens have made somewhat of an impact. But if Bookchin is correct, the smaller scale of newer technologies will make a freer life possible with rather small changes in social consciousness. What seems to be at the center is the nature of power. If power can be locally created through bio-mass or solar energy, then technology can become liberatory. The grid seems to be based on power, i.e. energy, more than anything else though it cannot be limited to that.Every community would approximate local or regional autarky. It would seek to achieve wholeness, because wholeness produces complete, rounded men who live in a symbiotic relationship with their environment. Even if a substantial portion of the economy fell within the sphere of a national division of labor, the overall economic weight of a society would still rest with the community (Bookchin, 1970, 83).The central g ood here is independence. But it is difficult to square the American interest in â€Å"environmental politics† with anything other than a fashionable political cause. It is hard to see how such a superficial commitment can be brought to bear on the rather humane anarchism and communitarianism of Bookchin. It seems that for the moment, the experiments such as Platina will remain marginalized and unappealing to the masses. The debate might continue, but, for better or worse, that does not stop the â€Å"inevitable wheel of progress† from spinning.A recent study from Cornell University suggests that most of Americans are strongly beginning to question the issue of genetically engineered foods. This technology was gradually introduced into food production largely unbeknownst to the American public. Hence, since about two-thirds of American food is so processed, the â€Å"debate† is largely a moot one. Nevertheless, Cornell claims that there has been a â€Å"slight but significant shift over time towards a little less support [for genetically engineered foods] and more risk perception† (Bio-Medicine, 2005).What are the conclusions we can reach here? The first might be that the more practical questions of the ethic of technology must be brought under a more general heading: this heading has been dealt with above and is the relationship of technology to liberty and democracy. All other goods flow from this. If one can show that technology has led to a stressed, mentally unbalanced and mechanized society, then one must be able to reform the system and bring to bear new insights. If machinery is harmful to democracy and local control, then it needs to be eliminated, or at least, highly modified in the way that Bookchin proposes. Hiding behind arguments about the   â€Å"inevitable† nature of â€Å"technical progress† will not do, but these only beg the question.Second, the question of technology and ethics is central to moder n societies, and needs to be taken out of the classroom and into the Congress and the public square. These issues are not about the â€Å"environment† per se, but the environment is just an appendage of the more important questions concerning the nature of centralized economic control (whether from the state or corporate America, or an alliance of both) and its intimate relation to the history of technological progress. This is the bedrock issue of technology and its relation to ethics, that is, to freedom and autonomy. Freedom and autonomy, therefore, must also be the bedrock of a democratic order.A Model Syllabus: A Brief IntroductionThis seminar is entitled Technology and Democracy, and will meet five times. It will incorporate film, written work and discussion. All points of view are welcome and encouraged. Nevertheless, it should be made clear that the basic issues are defined as the relationship of technology and the sources of its creation and marketing with democracy, equality and safety. The issues below are meant to illustrate these basic themes from varying fields of study. This syllabus is meant to take the basic insights above, that is, the relationship of democracy to technology (as the center of technological ethics) and bring it to bear on more practical pursuits such as medicine or computer science.Day IThe question of technology and childrenReadings to have prepared beforehand:Parens, Eric (2006) Surgically Shaping Children: Technology, Ethics and the Pursuit of Noramality. Johns Hopkins University PressThis work will be the main topic of the first meeting. Discussion and workshops will follow concerning the impact of technology on raising children. Topics will include, sex selection and abortion, genetic engineering and, importantly, the medicating of children, especially boys. Basic issues of sexism (especially anti-male bias) will be discussedDay IIEthics and Health Care TechnologyReadings to have prepared beforehandAnderson, James (2002) Ethics and Information Technology: A Care Based Approach to a Health Care System in Transition. Springer Books.The discussion will center upon the nature of genetic engineering in the realm of medicine and ethics. But what needs to be stressed is the connection between the corporate or state control of medicine and the nature of ethics and centralized power.A video will also be shown:Sulmasy, Daniel (2004) Dignity, Vulnerability and Care of the Patient. St. Vincent’s Medical Center. 55 min (available at http://www.providence.org/oregon/programs_and_services/ethics/e15clips.htm)Day IIIReadings to have prepared beforehandEthics and Weapons TechnologyBrigetedy, Ruben (2007) Ethics, Technology and the American Way of War. Routledge.This component will concern technology and the development of weapons. There is no separate between the industrial revolution and the development of mass warfare and extremely high-casualty wars. Technology must face this element of itself, its promises to bring humanity peace and plenty are belied by the fact that technology has all of the most deadly weapons known to man. Science, in other words, is not intrinsically liberating, it can also enslave.Day IVEthics and Information TechnologyReadings to have prepared beforehandStamatellos, Giannis (2007) Computer Ethics: A Global Perspective. Jones and BartlettThis part of the seminar will deal with the issues involved in computer technology and privacy. This is a central issue in today’s economy and must be dealt with. Issues such as Pay-Pal and Ebay will be discussed, as well as the potential for fraud and abuse.Day VEthics and mental HealthReadings to have prepared beforehandDyer, Allen (1988) Ethics and Psychiatry. American Psychiatric Association PublicationsMental health and pharmaceuticals are important areas of ethics today. Tens of millions throughout the world are currently on legal, pharmaceuticals for mental illness. Hence, the issue goes right to the heart of this course: the intimacy of technology to the average person. In this case, the technology goes straight to the brain and manipulates the chemistry, altering the personality for better or worse. But at the same time, these medications are marketed for profit, hence creating a moral quandary: is the prescription of these medications medically necessary or even proper? Is the profit motive center stage here, or the science of medicine, and even more, to what extent has this science been controlled by the profit motive itself?Students will end the seminar with a brief presentation concerning one of the these five topics relative to the main topic: the relation of technology to democracy and liberty.Bibliography:â€Å"American Opinions are Split on Genetically Engineered Food.† Bio Medicine News. 2005. (Bio-medicine.org)Bookchin, Murray (1970) Post Scarcity Anarchism. AK Press.Damascene, Fr. (2003). Fr. Seraphim Rose: His Life and Works. St. Herman’s Press (Fr. Seraph im founded the settlement at Platina, CA)Mander, Jerry (2006). â€Å"Technologies of Globalization.† in Mander, ed. The Case Against the Global Economy. Sierra Club Books. 344-359Sale, Kirkpatrick (1996) Rebels Against the Future. Basic Books(nd) â€Å"Five Facets of a Myth.† Primitivism Online Journal. (Primitivism.org)

Community Assessment Essay

A community assessment gives emphasis on evaluating agencies, community members and systems so as to learn more about circumstances within such community. The goal of community assessment is to gather pertinent information from a personal walk or drive through the community, from different people and groups within the community as well. This paper will focus on a community in the state of New Jersey called Parsippany Troy Hills aka Troy Hill Parsippany, Parsippany. The goal of this paper is to assess the Parsippany Troy Hills community and the assessment will focus on aspects of the community including health and safety. Parsippany Troy Hills lies in the Newark piedmont basin in a county called Morris county. The community was first formed by European settlers in the 18th century which before was occupied by Native Americans. The name Parsippany came from a Native American word â€Å"parispanong†, which means â€Å"the place where the river winds through the valley. Parsippan y-Troy Hills township is located at 40 °51†²35†³N 74 °25†²24†³W40.859636 °N 74.423348 °W (40.859636,-74.423348). According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 25.394 square miles (65.771 km2), of which, 23.563 square miles (61.029 km2) of it is land of which is covered with city streets, restaurants, parks, shopping centers, schools, houses that range from old and condemned to new and expensive and 1.831 square miles (4.742 km2) of it (7.21%) is water. As of 2010, the population of the community was 53,238 reflecting an increase of 2,589 from the 50,649 counted in the year 2000 census which had in turn increased by 2,171 from 48,478 counted in the 1990 census. As of the year 2000 which marked the total population mentioned above, 19,624 households and 13,167 families were residing in the community. The population density was 2,115 people per square mile. There were also 20,066 housing units with the density of about 838.1 per square mile. The Township usually has a humid climate with cold winters and very warm hot summers. It is usually cooler compared to other communities in the state of New Jersey at night and early in the morning with record lowest temperature recorded at -29 Í ¦ F and record high of 104 Í ¦ F. The township of Parsippany has everything a community needs to survive so most people do not even travel outside the community. Most of the businesses in the community are independently owned and run by the members of the community. Troy hills have been a very quiet and peaceful community according to community members apart from the issue of domestic violence among a focused group in the community. My overall impression about the community is a positive one because my family owns a house there and I visit there often and from my experience, it is very peaceful and quiet compared to my other community in New York. Most people have lived in the community for years without travelling outside their township. When I asked some â€Å"why†, the response I got was there is everything in Parsippany so why go outside the community to get something. There is pretty much every store and restaurant that one can think of in the township, lining up along the towns major street (route 46). Driving along route 46 I came across supermarkets like Shoprite, Wall mart, Costco, Bravo and a couple of other small supermarket s. There is also a long stretch of department stores like TJ max, marshals, Sims, Burlington coat factory and many others. There is also a mall (Morris Hills Mall) which is 10 minutes drive that has other shops like clothing stores, and movie theaters. Also along route 46 and Beverwyck road which are the 2 main roads of the community, I came across some Laundromat’s and dry cleaners where some members of the community do their laundry. There weren’t many people in these Laundromat’s because most people in the community own washers and dryers in their homes so they do their laundry at their homes which I think was very good because it prevents overcrowding in the Laundromats. I also came across some beauty salons and barber shops in the community where some people were getting their hair cut and done and others were getting their nails and feet done (manicure and pedicure). Parsippany also has multiple parks where people go exercise, play sports, host picnics and barbeques and also hung out. At one of the parks that I visited, I saw a group of Indian residents playing volley ball and another mixed race group of blacks, Latino and Chinese young adults playing basket ball which I joined to play with them. There were other people also exercising, some running others doing push and pull ups. Parsippany also has a lot of organizations whose leaders are stakeholders in the community. Most of these organizations are there to offer help and support to community members in need. Three out of the many organizations that really gained my interest were the Women’s Club of Troy hills, Puzzle Pieces – A divorce and separated support group and the Panic and Anxiety club. I became very interested in these three organizations because they hosted a joint meeting at the united Methodist Church which is located at 903 S Beverwyck road, to talk about issues on domestic violence. I found it very shocking that host of the leaders and members were actual victims of domestic violence. I had the opportunity to attend that joint meeting and was very shocking to hear some of the stuff these women actually go through. They were very supportive of each other. In terms of religion, Roman Catholicism is the largest faith followed by Anglican Church and other Christian faiths including Baptist, Church of God and Pentecostal. Other religions include Islam, Hinduism, Jewish, Buddhism, and some Eastern religions. The community has incorporated all these different faiths and has helped provide places of worship for these various religious groups. When it comes to the issue on transportation, the main means to get around is by driving so therefore most residents own a car. The community also has a free transit system for residents which operates Monday to Friday from 9am to 4pm. Two buses run on the hour starting from the main shopping center (Morris Hills Mall) to Brookside senior center. The buses run both East and West routes respectively. Troy Hills Parsippany host educational facilities starting from elementary level to college level. These are some of the schools I came across in the community: Troy Hills elementary school, Rockaway Meadow elementary school, North Vail elementary school, Mt Tabor elementary school, Mt Tabor elementary school, Lake Parsippany elementary school, Littleton elementary school, Knollwood elementary school, Lake Hiawatha elementary school, Intervale elementary school, Central middle school, Brook lawn middle school, Parsippany High school, Parsippany Hills high school and Morris County Community college. Also the community has an adult learning center which provides adult and community. In Parsippany, health authorities see to it that they provide quality service to ensure quality life among the residents. Parsippany benefits from an extensive medical area, world class medical institutions and research facilities. The objective of Parsippany healthcare system is to ensure the health of its residents. Parsippany public health system conducts different programs and activities to integrate relevant health indicators. Parsippany has two major healthcare facilities which are the Hillside Medical center and the Morris Town medical center. Hillside medical center provides great care in cardiac services that includes heart stat, an interactive heart center and arrhythmia treatment center. They also have an emergency department that handles level 2 trauma cases. The Morris town medical center is a facility that provides urgent care, workers compensation and a board range of occupational health and preventative services. They also specialize in burns, wound healing, animal bites and dermatological problems. The community also has other healthcare centers which focus on specific areas of health. I came across health centers like Immediate Care Psychiatric Center and Greystone Park psychiatric center which focuses only on issues related to mental health. The community also has agencies both private and government run who provides care for the elderly and sick in home settings and nursing homes. As mentioned earlier, the community covers about 29.394 square miles of city streets, shopping centers, parks, schools, healthcare facilities and houses. Parsippany is a unique area because of the diversity of land usage. Most of the houses have large yards and are neatly kept by landscaping companies. Going west, the houses reduce in size but still appear well kept. In the northwest area which is along route 46, the houses turn into stores and fast food restaurants. Almost every street I came across or drove on in the community was tarred and the sidewalks were neat and well maintained. Sanitation in the community was a big problem 5 years back according to one local resident due to the increase in restaurants along N Beverwyck road which is occupied mostly by the Indian population in the community. According to a resident who lives among the Indian population, â€Å"there has been a rapid increase of the Indian population which led to increase in businesses being opened, most of which are restaurants†. This led to increase in roaches and rats around that vicinity due to left over foods form the restaurant not being properly disposed and less garbage pickups. The usual trash pickup in the community used to be twice a week (Mondays and Fridays). This problem was brought to the mayors (Mayor Barberio) office and a meeting was conducted with restaurant owners and policy makers which led to a decision being made to increase pickups. The community was the divided into 6 districts and a schedule for pickup was developed. The schedule changes month to month. Below is the actual schedule for garbage pickup for the month of December; The Parsippany police department is a civic service organization consisting of over 100 sworn in police officers. The department is divided into four main divisions: Patrol, investigative, support services and professional standards. Each division is led by a captain and supported by the following chain of commands: lieutenants, sergeants, patrol officers and civilian personnel. According to one police officer I spoke to, most calls the department receives were linked to domestic violence which he mentioned is high among the Indian population in the community. The Parsippany fire department is also working 24/7 to protect the lives and properties of the people of Parsippany and surrounding communities as well. The primary responsibility of the Fire Prevention Bureau is to enforce the New Jersey State Fire Code, ensuring that the residents and firefighters of Parsippany are given the proper level of protection. The Bureau, through public education, code enforcement and emergency respo nse, provides the public with protection of life property and the environment. Troy Hills Parsippany is a multiracial and very cosmopolitan in many ways. The racial makeup of the community is about 74% white, 4% African Americans, 0.5% Native Americans, 18% Asians (mostly Indians), 2% pacific Islanders and about 3% Hispanic. Herein English is the official and most common language and other languages spoken include Hindi, Bengali, Chinese, Spanish, French and Akan. The most people I men in the community were adults between the ages of 22 to about 45. I also met some teenagers who were between the ages of 13 to 18 and also children ages 3 to about 8.Most of these people were among the group of people I met on the playground. I walked to one of the community’s playgrounds and I met a large group of adults (mostly Indians) playing volley ball. I also saw a group of African American and Hispanic teenagers and adults playing basket ball which I joined to play with them. In Parsippany the difference in economic status lies in a wide range of educational levels income and occupation. About 68% of the population is employed with about 2 1,000 males and 12,000 females holding some form of employment status. The most popular profession if the community is in management of professional occupations. Second largest career field is in sales and secretarial work. Other occupations include maintenance, healthcare, transportation e.t.c. The median household income is about $107,144. According to the residents, living in the community makes them feel safe and secure. In addition to the financial stability of the community, the residents are enjoying a state of the art with regards to their healthcare facility needs. Each service offered is given efficiently and responsible healthcare workers see to it that patients or healthcare seekers are satisfied with service offered. According to one senior citizen I came across, living here has given him the security when it comes to assuring health and quality living. Most of the local business owners (restaurant owners) were also happy with living in the community because business is good as most of the m responded due to the increase in the population a long the location of their businesses. Troy Hills Parsippany offers numerous service organizations in the community. Mew Directions in an organizations that helps with providing housing and career developments for the unemployed and needy to find jobs whiles Partners in placement another organization helps everyone over 18 years in finding employment. The Upper room Empowerment helps senior citizens with low income, nursing home residents and orphanage children by providing financial assistance, food and clothing. The Parsippany Troy hills women’s club offers assistance to women in the community especially victims of domestic violence or abusive relationships. Puzzle Pieces – A divorce/ separated support group also helps people faced with divorce and separations in their marriages who were mostly victims of abusive relationships. Other organizations consist of Lifeblood, Lupus foundation of America, National alliance of the mentally ill (NAMI), YMCA and YWCA. Not only are these service organizations but most of these organizations are also allowing community volunteer. For example, vo lunteers can be counselors to help guide the YMCA and YWCA, The Upper room for Empowerment and the New Directions. These organizations bring to the attention issues in the community and make change by involving the community. One organization that has a large impact not only on the Parsippany community but communities all over is Lifeblood. Lifeblood is a nonprofit blood center with objectives to reduce dependency on paid donors, establish a pre deposit blood assurance program, work toward a more even flow of donations and develop roster of donors with rare types of blood. The two main healthcare facilities which are The Hillside Medical center and Morristown Medical center are being operated by the state government. So is the Graystone park Psychiatric center. There are also a large variety of privately owned and operated clinics and agencies that also provide care for the community. The Song Medical clinic owned and run by an Asian physician Dr Song who also is a resident of Troy hills. The mobile diagnostic testing of NJ LLC is also a private organization whose main focus is diagnostic testing . There is also a private rehabilitation center called the Morris rehabilitation and physical therapy center which specializes in chiropractic, physical, speech and occupational therapy, automobile accident care. They also provide treatments for lower back pain, neck pain, headaches, motor vehicle accident injuries, sports related injuries etc. The Morris Pediatric Care LLC is another healthcare agency found in the community which is committed to providing excellent medical care for infants, children and adolescents. This healthcare facility is privately owned and run by Dr Aradhana Rajkumar. The facility although is privately run, has affiliations with other hospitals. There are also homecare agencies that help provide assisted living and total care for older adults both in nursing homes and patient homes. Some of these agencies are A Place for mom and dad, Synergy home care, Brookside senior center, Cheshire home etc. There is also a door to door and fixed route transportation offered by the Morris area paratransit system (MAPS) to senior citizens and the sick for them to go up and down, to doctor’s appointments and so on. There is also Access a Link transportation system offered by the NJ transit which operates in the same manner. Being able to live in a community which is considered to be a quality and stable community not only in the state if NJ but the country as a whole is a great honor for its members. With great healthcare system which sees to it that the community members and neighboring communities receive quality care. Even though the residents are happy in their community, there is one big problem which causes a strain on the community and that is the rise in domestic violence among a specific focused group which happens to be the Indian population in the community. Domestic violence in short has been part and fabric of many societies and culture worldwide. It is so commonplace, in fact, that is has often gone unnoticed and failed to receive the level of attention it deserves in light of the devastating effects it can have on children and families. It is normally hard to get a clear picture when it comes to issues on domestic violence since most cases go unreported in the community with common reason relating to issues like immigration status and cultural beliefs. According to the Parsippany police department, the number one crime in the community is domestic violence. Between 06/12/0212 and 10/28/2012 there has been 12 reported cases leading to three deaths which were linked to domestic violence. Domestic violence is rising so rapidly to the extent that the next lines of businesses are law firms focusing on cases of domestic violence. Just by walking through the community, I came across about 15 different law firms with their banners stating almost the same thing â€Å"We specialize in domestic violence and abuse cases†. Most of the cases in the community have to do with physical forms of abuse but domestic violence in general can be psychological, emotional and sexual as well. As a nurse in this community, working with victims of domestic violence to resolve and eradicate this strain will be my number one priority and this can be done using the different levels of population health care (primary, secondary and tertiary prevention) and health promotion. Primary Prevention: The goal of primary prevention is to intervene before domestic violence occurs by removing the cause and preventing the development of risk factors. This is mostly done through teaching. My main focus will be introducing the Indian population in the community to new thinking processes, coping mechanisms (since stress is a causative factor), and relationship skills that does not incorporate violence and that’s will promote healthy non violent, trust and supportive growth of relationships. Also using the media and hosting forums in schools, churches and community centers to create awareness and the effects of domestic violence and also to show community how to respond to domestic violence situation if they should face it. Secondary Prevention: This level of prevention is very beneficial because as a nurse in the community I would arrange home visitations high risk families and provide support for family members identified as being at high risk of preparing or becoming victims of domestic violence. Also offering crisis support and individual counseling to individuals exposed. Also identifying exposed individuals at earliest possible level and providing appropriate services essential. Provision of services for children exposed to domestic violence, including age-appropriate counseling, supportive services, and services for the nonabusing parent that support that parent’s role as a caregiver, which may, as appropriate, include services that work with the non-abusing parent and child together. Also providing assistance in developing safety plans, and supporting efforts of victims of domestic violence, to make decisions related to their ongoing safety and well-being is very essential. Tertiary Prevention: At this level, special services will be offered for those identified with domestic violence example home visitations with abuse victims and their children, and also providing temporary housing for victims and protection orders against abuser because they need some time off from those abusive relationships to heal emotionally. Children who bear witness to domestic violence often show emotional and behavioral problems and it is my responsibility as a community nurse to provide mental health services to address underlying trauma. Also involving the community is very relevant to addressing issues on domestic violence. Intensive police, court and community collaboration to address situations on domestic violence is very beneficial. Also referring victims to support groups in the community such as the Women’s Club Troy Hills, Puzzle pieces and The Panic and Anxiety groups which provides support for domestic violence victims. I strongly believe that with these measures in place, domestic violence which it the biggest strain of the people of Troy Hills Parsippany will be a thing of the past just like the sanitation issues on the community has become.