To many Americans today, the country is a hostage-but not from oversea terrorism as one might expect to think. No today, we live in fear from our own children; and these are the same young people who we are entrusting the future of this great country with. According to the Department of Justice report released in November, thirty-eight percent of those arrested for weapons offenses in 1995 were under the age of eighteen (Curriden). In the same report, the Bureau of Justice Statistics stated that in 1995, 3 out of every 100 eighteen-year-olds were arrested for weapons offenses. A rate three times higher than for males twenty-five to twenty-nine and five times higher than for males thirty to thirty-four (Curriden).
Just weeks later the FBI released a report indicating that arrests for youths under eighteen increased by seven percent in 1996 (Curriden). In light of these disturbing statistics, it may not be surprising that the general public is starting to believe its children are getting meaner and more violent. The media, politicians and the American public want something done, and they want it done now. Right now we are beginning to realize that if the situation looks bleak now, it could deteriorate even more in the future. The U.S. Census projects that the juvenile population reported to be 27.1 million in 1994 will rise to 33.8 million by the year 2004 (Curriden). At the heart of this controversy: the juvenile justice system.
For the past several years the system has been under attack by every one from state legislatures to parent-teen groups. Our solution to the rising juvenile crime problem to get tougher. According to a recent USA Today/CNN/Gallup Poll, 60 percent of Americans believe that a teenager convicted of murder should get the death penalty (Ollson). In response to this “get-tough” mood, more and more states are passing legislation to try youths as adults for more types of crime at younger ages. Colorado for example has a brand new type of tough love for their juvenile threats to society, this new “love,” so it is termed consists of lowering the age so that juveniles as young as fourteen can be sentenced as adults (Hetter). This recently instated law, I feel should be Federal law as opposed to state law. The youth these days have no direction, no ambition, and no feelings. As John Fi...
... middle of paper ...
...ng to have ignore the media and the general publics whining and start making decisions based on fact and merit; not on others opinion. Capitol Punishment, like abortion or gun control, is an emotional issue that often crowds out rational debate. Truckloads of evidence purporting to “prove” the death penalty either works or doesn’t work have been dumped into the public debate, which is not where it belongs. The Supreme Court Judges are the only ones qualified to make the decision to whether or not a younger or older man should be put to death. Of course other issues such as whether or not there is enough money in the federal budget to allow for execution, are still issues that are to be evaluated be the Supreme Court Judges. Furthermore, Juvenile justice clearly stands at a crossroad for many. Particularly, conservative politicians tend to point to escalating crime rates and argue that punishment deters crime (which it does) whether or not they actually believe this or not is another issue. Bottom line, I believe a tougher stance will translate into fewer violent, crime prone juveniles on the streets. At the same time other juveniles will think twice before committing more crimes.
The contributions and achievements of Indigenous role models continue to make substantial impacts upon our history in areas such as the arts, sport, education, science and more increasingly; the world of Politics. Modern Australia is recognising and celebrating the achievements of Aboriginal people more than ever before, where the social landscape is changing (albeit slowly) as a result. The gradual change of peoples ingrained preconceptions, unfounded ideas and prejudiced notions are being challenged and ultimately transformed.
The Australian Aborigines society is relatively well known in Western society. They have been portrayed accurately and inaccurately in media and film. Dr. Langton has attempted to disprove common myths about the infamous Australian society, as has her predecessors, the Berndt’s, and National Geographic author, Michael Finkel; I will attempt to do the same.
'The Australian Legend', in itself is an acurate portrayal and recount of one part of society, from a specific era, ie. the Australian bushman of the 1890s. Its exaggerations, however, such as the romanticism of the bush ethos by Australian writers, the unbalanced use of evidence, and the neglect to acknowledge the contribution to our national identity from certain sections of society, ie. aboriginal people, city-dwellers, women, and non-British immigrants, render this book to be flawed. For these reasons, it cannot be regarded as a complete and balanced account of Australian history.
In the nineteenth century, the “History wars” became the fight between the most prominent historians revolving around the deception of frontier conflict between the labor and coalition. The debate aroused from the different interpretations of the violence that took place during the European colonization and to what degree. It became a crisis in history, emerging from the dispossession of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders (ATSI) that resulted in exclusion of their traditions and culture. The ATSI were the first people of Australia that brought along a different culture, language, kinship structures and a different way of life (Face the Facts, 2012). Post European colonization was a time where the ATSI people experienced disadvantage in the land they called home. With the paramount role as future educators, it demands proficient knowledge on the Australian history and one of the most influential moments in our history started from the first European settlers.
In today's society juveniles are being tried in adult courts, given the death penalty, and sent to prison. Should fourteen-year olds accused of murder or rape automatically be tried as adults? Should six-teen year olds and seven-teen year olds tried in adult courts be forced to serve time in adult prisons, where they are more likely to be sexually assaulted and to become repeat offenders. How much discretion should a judge have in deciding the fate of a juvenile accused of a crime - serious, violent, or otherwise? The juvenile crime rate that was so alarming a few years ago has begun to fall - juvenile felony arrest rates in California have declined by more than forty percent in the last twenty years. While California's juvenile population rose by a half a million since the middle and late 1970's, juveniles made up less than fifth-teen percent of California's felony arrests in 1998, compared to thirty percent in 1978; according to the Justice Policy Institute. The juvenile arrests have dropped back, even as the population of kids between ages of ten and eight-teen has continued to grow, and the number of kids confined in the California Youth Authority (CYA) has fallen. With all the progress our society has made in cutting back in juvenile crimes there is still a very serious problem. But if locking kids up is the best way to address it, how do we explain a drop in crime when there are more teens in California and fewer in custody? First we must look at the economy around us. With so many job opportunities available more and more teenagers find honest ways to keep busy and make money. Our generation has a brighter future than the generation a decade ago. Next we look at successful crime prevention efforts: after-school programs, mentoring, teen outreach programs, truancy abatement, anti-gang programs, family resource centers. There is evidence that these programs are beginning to pay off. Sending more, and younger teens through the adult court system has been a trend across the country in reaction to crimes, such as school shootings and violent rapes. Yet evidence shows that treating youth as adults does not reduce crime. In Florida, where probability wise more kids are tried as adults then in any other state, studies found that youth sent through the adult court system are twice as likely to commit more crimes when they're release...
Othello, a play by William Shakespeare, tells the tragic tale of the black Venetian general, Othello, and how he is manipulated by his ambitious friend, Iago. Iago becomes angry at Othello when he promotes Michael Cassio rather than Iago to the lieutenancy. Iago then schemes a plot to take down Othello. Iago uses Desdemona, Othello’s new wife, to take down the great general. He leads Othello to considering that his wife is cheating on him with Michael Cassio. This causes Othello to become suspicious and eventually drives Othello into killing Desdemona. In the end, Othello learns that his wife was faithful, and Iago had lied to him. This upsets Othello and causes him to also kill himself. Iago’s many motives are never revealed to the audience or the characters as in the last scene he states, “Demand me nothing. What you know, you know. From this time forth I never will speak word.” (Othello. Act 5 Scene 2: 355-356). In the play Othello, Iago is the master manipulator that formulates devious plots against the characters of Roderigo, Cassio, and Othello by using their desires to his advantage to reveal their underlying weaknesses.
Crime rates across the U.S. for juveniles is at all time high. Juveniles across all demographic have been punished more severely than those of the past. Contributing factors including lower socioeconomic areas such as the Detroit Metropolitan Areas & Chicago. This paper will discuss the apparent issue within the system focusing on juveniles in urban areas.
...ny high profile issue, and in this case we are dealing with the lives of young offenders, many of which claim their age excuses their "mistake." While society must recognize the issues that often fuel adolescent rage, we should be hesitant to withhold punishment. In death row cases, many inmates will reside on death row for more than ten years before being executed. During this time, they undergo many changes, both physically and psychologically and often feel like a different man, and certainly not a violent threat to society. Moreover, we are not executing men (and women) for the people they have become, but for the crime they committed. Their victims did not receive a second chance, so why should we as a society grant convicted killers the chance to live, love, and grow? However, the death penalty must be examined for flaws, including incorporating DNA technology whenever possible. Age has obviously been an important factor in the debate over the death penalty, but we must realize we live in an age of violent school shootings and declining alternatives for misplaced youth. Society should not advocate the death of innocents, but vindicate a willful and deliberate loss of life.
Thoits highlights how inequality results in differences of health outcomes among different groups of people. For example, African Americans and Hispanics generally have higher morbidity than whites. However, Thoits also focuses on the relationship between mental health and stress. Adolescents – who tend to be more stressed than older folks – more often suffer the onset of psychiatric disorders, a factor that becomes curbed with increased age (543). Thus, this shows how stress causes adverse mental health. In addition, Thoits also ties social status to stress levels in a way that is similar to the findings detailed in Stress: Portrait of a Killer. Highlighting previous studies, Thoits notes how there are cumulative stressors that particularly affect females, young adults, and members of racial-ethnic minorities (544). These “cumulative stressors closely paralleled inequalities in rate of physical and/or mental health problems by social status” (544). Once again, this shows how people who are disenfranchised or simply fall lower on social hierarchies are also those who experience more stress and, consequently, worse health outcomes. Finally, Thoits also argues that “stress can proliferate across generations” (545). In other words, the negative effects on health due to stress may be intergenerational.
In the late eighteenth century prior to the arrival of the first European settlers, Australia was once believed to be a terra nullius, an uninhabited “nothing land.” The European colonizers of Australia sought to make something of this land they believed they had discovered. Operating under this false notion, colonizers systematically invaded and conquered Australia, imposing their own ways onto the land and its original custodians, the Aboriginal people. The introduction of western settlements disrupted much of Aboriginal life. In a publication titled, Is it in the Blood? Australian Aboriginal Identity, author Myrna Ewart Tonkinson discusses Western imperialism and its implications on Aboriginal identity.
As early as the first scene of the play Iago shows us strong motives for his actions. In this first scene we see Othello, a general of Venice, has made Cassio his new lieutant. Iago feels he truly deserves his promotion as he says "I know my price, I am worth more no worse a place."(l.i.12) Iago over here is confused why Othello has made such a stupid decision. Iago is a man with a tremendous ego who knows, sometimes overestimates, his worth. Roderigo, a Venetian gentleman, understands Iago when Iago said that he is "affined to love the Moor."(l.i.41-42) What Iago really means is "I follow him to serve my term upon him."(l.i.45) Iago wants to use Othello for his personal goals. We also must put ourselves into Iago's shoes. He is a man whose self-esteem and professional carrier have just been torn apart. Iago makes his actions of revenge toward Othello almost immediately by informing Brabantio, a Venetian senator and father of Desdemona, that "an old black ram (Othello) is tupping (his) white ewe (Desdemona)."(l.i.97)
Shakespearian tales always leave us with a plethora to ponder about the Elizabethan age and Shakespeare himself. “Othello” is no break in this mold, leaving us to ponder the roll of Iago within the harsh tale of love and murder. Iago is the one to tell Othello of his wife’s betrayal with Cassio, hence making up a story that will work to his favor yet betray those around him. Iago betrays his wife, Emilia, but not only her as he drags Othello, Desdemona, and Cassio into the mix of lies and the hatred he is spreading to improve his rank with Othello. But were Iago’s acts unjust and done for the sake of it? Is he a heartless man who’s only happiness is to bring sorrow upon others? No, Iago has a just reason for what he does, even though he causes the deaths of Cassio, Emilia, and Desdemona in his search for revenge; Iago is not a heartless fiend, just a man wronged.
Thus, the shifting perceptions of the justice system has transformed what it means to be a child and an adult due to their pervasive, and punitive approaches to crime and delinquency. Although adolescents today enjoy many new freedoms and greater time to experiment, those that don’t conform to “normative behaviors” and engage in socially constructed definitions of delinquency, often end up under the firm hands of the juvenile justice system. Despite the creation of this phase in an adolescent’s life, the injustices within the adult justice system have breached into the juvenile system, thus, blurring the lines of what it means to be an adolescent in modern times. Thereby, the adolescent stage is constantly being manipulated to conform and match the social construction of crime and delinquency, and the rise in the practice of trying juveniles as adults within the court system and mandating life sentences is evidence of this
In Shakespeare’s Othello, Iago is the antagonist and villain who causes all the trouble and disorder. Othello is the protagonist, and is the main person Iago’s destruction and revenge is aimed towards. Othello is naïve and gives everybody his trust even though he may not know them or they haven’t earned his trust yet. He often refers to Iago has “Honest” Iago, which is a direct showing of irony because Iago is not honest at all (Shakespeare, I, iii. 289). Iago is so angry that Othello didn’t give him the promotion that was given to Cassio that he plans to seek revenge against Othello. He seeks his revenge against Othello by manipulating and lying to all of the people around him including his closest friend Roderigo, Cassio, Othello’s wife Desdemona and even his own wife Emilia. In the end, Iago’s lies and manipulation led to the deaths of Roderigo, Emilia, Othello and Desdemona. This isn’t the first time many of these individual characteristics have shown up in one of Shakespeare’s plays.
Australia has always been portrayed as masculine, heterosexual, and white. For example, the national image that Australians portray are stereotyped as the ‘frontier explorer’, the ‘bushman’, the ‘larrikin’, the ‘digger’, the ‘workingman’, the ‘breadwinner’, or the ‘globetrotting business tycoon’ (Carter 14). Men represent Australia, whereas women are seen in an inferior and domestic light, for example, they are seen as mothers and housewives (Carter