The Teacher as a Hero Essay Example for Free

The Teacher as a Hero Essay T here are heroes and heroes, national and local. Some of them are born, others are made. Many are still living while many others have long been gone. It is to the latter that monuments and museums were built to keep alive their memory in our hearts and mind. Public buildings, parks and plazas, streets and a few provinces have been named after them. Important dates and events are usually marked red in the calendar to remind us of their birth or death anniversary. During the celebration of these events, program speakers take turns extolling to high heavens whatever good they had done for the country. Sad enough the hero who is apparently taken for granted and therefore unsung is the poor teacher. Not having a pedigreed name, she has no influence, no power. She is regarded as belonging to the marginalized sector of society. Tactless people look down on her with contempt saying, â€Å"She’s only a teacher. † After all, unlike OFWs, teachers do not contribute to the national economy. What many do not seem to realize is that a teacher is truly a hero in her own way. For a teacher is not only about her lesson plans, her teaching methods, strategies and techniques. A teacher is also about her personal character, her values and her attitude. And more importantly a teacher is also about her missionary work which entails a great deal of sacrifice on her part and her family. Indeed, the pro-bono services that she renders involve numerous risks to life and limb. We have heard of teachers who were kidnapped for ransom, forced into marriage under pain of bodily harm, physically abused and the unfortunate, even beheaded. I remember a male teacher who reprimanded a student for provoking trouble in class. That afternoon the huffy father with fire in his eyes sought the teacher in school and mercilessly hacked him to death. I had a relative who was summoned to the Comelec office in Manila and made to explain her inadvertence to affix her signature on a pair of election forms. The financially distressed teacher was forced to take a long-term loan which she used to pay for her transportation fare, board and lodging while in Manila. In the meantime her family had to be sparing and frugal in order to tide them over until such period that the loan was fully paid. While other government employees are off after five, the teacher spends long hours of work at home writing lesson plans, checking test papers or preparing visual aids and similar teaching devices. Compared to those who work in the comfort of their office, thousands of our teachers go on long hours of journey to their far-flung stations over hill and dale, many times in harsh weather condition. It is no wonder that many of these teachers become decrepit long before their age or they get pitifully sick before retirement from the service. And yet their take-home pay is a mere pittance. Any increase in their starvation salary comes far apart and in trickles because this is dependent upon the members of Congress who remember the teachers only on election time. Come May of next year teachers will again be called upon to man the electoral ramparts of our democracy. They will be there to help safeguard the sanctity of the ballot, armed only with the nobility and integrity of their profession. Whatever people say to the contrary, the teacher as a hero is ready to lay down her life for the sake of country sans a loud flourish of trumpets. I salute our teachers as heroes, living or dead! ANTONIO A. MORAN of Camalig, Albay is a retired general education supervisor of the Department of Education.

Capital Punishment Essay: Death Penalty Maintains Justice

Death Penalty Maintains Justice It is no triumph that death sentences are routinely carried out, or even that such a device is necessary within our society. Yet the fact remains that society does require a death penalty, and to believe that the topic is one-sided or easily answered would be a fatal mistake. It is best to note the absolutes of the death penalty - first, that once it is carried out, there is no reversing the outcome. It seems an obvious point, but it is worth remembering, as it warns us that state-sanctioned executions must never be taken lightly. Just as firm is the fact that in most cases, the death penalty is a matter of justice and equality. With most crimes, the purposes of the punishment are to rehabilitate the convict and to send a warning to others who would commit similar crimes. In contrast, the death penalty intends neither to rehabilitate nor dissuade others from capital crimes. Certainly, the threat of the ultimate penalty may give pause to a small percentage, but most capital cases involve a defendant who is far from rational enough to weigh the costs and benefits of his action. Still, this misconception of the death penalty as a deterrent is one limp argument constantly trotted out against capital punishment. Many people ask, "If the death penalty is working, why isn't the murder rate falling?" The answer is that the death penalty is a matter of justice and societal preservation. Some crimes so abhorrent, the convict does not deserve to continue living. We do not live completely in the days of Hammurabi's "eye for an eye," but neither have we come close to a crime-free utopia which would allow the end of the death penalty. Instead, we compromise, reserving execution for the m... ...ild, or a merciless killer? Speaking relatively, of which the secular left is so fond, those right-wing zealots do seem to have reason and logic on their side. The fetal child we know is innocent; conversely, we can be certain that death row convicts have done something to get themselves into their current situation. Therefore, if someone has to die, it would seem that we would choose the guiltiest person. While no advocate of the death penalty enjoys the idea or triumphs in the latest execution, simply shrugging at the horror of some crimes makes a mockery of equal protection under the law, and more importantly, the primacy of justice within our community. The death penalty enjoys such strong support - 66 percent even after the recent stumbles in some states (www.gallup.com/poll/indicators/inddeath_pen.asp) - because most people recognize its important role.

Small Change

At the end of September, Malcolm Gladwell, a staff writer for the New Yorker magazine and author of The Tipping Point and Blink, published a piece, Small Change: Why the Revolution Will not be Tweeted, in that magazine making the argument that social media tools like Facebook and Twitter were overhyped as agents of social change at best and at worst, completely useless in helping move the kind of high-risk actions that are strong enough to bring down governments and change cultures. Using the wave of sit-ins that swept the South in 1960 during the Civil Rights Movement as his prime example, Gladwell rests his thesis upon two points.First, movements and high-risk socio-political actions are carried out by people who have strong ties to each other or a strong level of commitment to the movement itself and the actions they undertake serve to reinforce those ties. Second, the momentum and strategic direction of movements requires some level of hierarchy and organization so the energy has a chance of winning the kinds of change the participants want to see. Given these two requisites for large-scale social change, he says, there is no way that social networks will actually be able to play a role in amplifying or directing social change.This essay engendered a firestorm of criticism from activists who use Facebook and Twitter as part of their daily work in organizing for progressive social change in the America. Some of it was the usual triumphalism of the tech geek. Some of it was an interesting mix of â€Å"old guys don’t get it† and â€Å"it's not the 60’s anymore so don’t expect change to look like it did 50 years ago†. None of these responses dealt at all with the main points of his thesis, strong-ties and the primacy of closed, hierarchical organizations.However, an increasing number of responses have tackled those issues and done it from the point of view of activists and organizers working hard to change the public policy cl imate of the United States. These responses range from top-level examination of how Gladwell positions his understanding of Twitter and Facebook within his own thesis on ties and hierarchy to nuts-and-bolts examinations of how modern progressive organizations are fighting for and winning progressive change using organizing methodologies that deploy Twitter and Facebook as tools in a tactical arsenal that increasingly includes a dizzying array of options.

Kite Runner Essay Essay

â€Å"There are only really a few stories to tell in the end, and betrayal and the failure of love is one of those good stories to tell†- Sean Lennon. Khaled Hosseini’s ‘The Kite Runner’ is a story that really is quite relevant to this quote. People might say that it isn’t, but there betrayal in almost every nook and cranny of the story. Betrayal is simply defined as being disloyal to someone, yet it is so much more than that. Betrayal can cause the greatest sadness in life. It can cripple a man’s heart and could be the cause of one’s death. Amir’s betrayal towards Hassan; Baba’s betrayal towards Amir, Hassan and Ali; Rahim Khan’s betrayal towards Amir when he told him to get Sohrab and send him to John and Betty Caldwell. All of them terrible betrayals, but in the end, the reason for each and every person’s weaknesses, but more importantly, their strengths. These are probably what makes the book so interesting. â€Å"†¦The failure of love†¦Ã¢â‚¬  is also a main topic throughout the book, how characters repeatedly disappoint each other, creating hatred, anger, sadness, and eventually even loss. In this book betrayal is the main action, the dominant style and the prevalent idea. I suppose it makes it a lot like real life. The first betrayal mentioned in the book, and possibly the most important one is Amir’s betrayal towards Hassan when he silently watches as Hassan is raped. Throughout the book, Amir remembers, and reminds us of this betrayal towards Hassan and how it was his fault that Hassan was raped and eventually, how it was his fault Hassan was killed. In his letter, Rahim Khan says, â€Å"What you did was wrong, Amir jan, but do not forget that you were a boy when it happened. A troubled little boy. † He was right, it didn’t excuse the mistake Amir had made but it gave him a reason to feel just a tiny bit better about himself. But he didn’t, Amir blamed himself for Hassan’s death, and over time in helped him grow as a person and even become a lot like Baba. He regrets the deed he did and tried to make things right by adopting Hassan’s son and giving him a better life after Hassan was killed. Even then, he goes back on his promise to Sohrab, Hassan’s son, that he would never put him back in an orphanage, causing Sohrab to attempt committing suicide, probably the darkest scene in the entire story. After being discharged from the hospital, Sohrab and Amir go back to San Francisco and from then on Sohrab lives on the periphery of Amir and Soraya’s life. Then finally, Amir is given a chance at redemption at the afghan gathering at the Lake Elizabeth Park in Fremont, when he started flying a kite and Sohrab decides to join him. After cutting down the last kite, Amir asks Sohrab whether or not he wants him to run that kite for him, and Sohrab nods. Then Amir says,’ For you a thousand times over’, the last Hassan had said to Amir before he was raped. The second most important betrayal mentioned in the book, which we find out about near the end of the book is Baba’s betrayal towards Amir, Hassan and Ali. After learning about this Amir’s entire viewpoint of Baba changed. He no longer saw him as a towering figure of Pashtun might and began to see him as a thief, the very thing Baba had said to be the worst sin in the world. Baba’s betrayal had been that he was Hassan’s actual father, because Ali was actually sterile. Amir and Hassan had both grown up unaware of this and Hassan had even died unaware of this. This betrayal caused many unfortunate events. If Amir had known about them being brothers, he might not have let him get raped. If Hassan had known he might not have left with Ali and might not have died. And most importantly Sohrab wouldn’t have to be an orphan. This betrayal caused Amir to travel to Afghanistan and get beaten up greatly by Assef. It was probably the betrayal that caused the most pain to the characters in the book. But it was a necessary act. In Afghan society, honor was and important factor to one’s reputation, and if people had learnt that Hassan, the child of a Hazara woman, was the son of Baba, a greatly respected and highly reputed man, then he would most likely have lost all credibility in his community. Unfortunately the solution he had found for to let Ali think that he was the child’s father. This act took all of Ali’s nang and namoos, his pride and honor, without his even realizing it. The third and of the listed, probably the least important betrayal in the book was Rahim Khan’s betrayal towards Amir when he lied about John and Betty Caldwell saying that Sohrab would be in a safe place with them. After the trauma both Amir and Sohrab go through, it turns out that the Caldwell’s don’t even exist. This was the start of problems for Amir. After he no longer could send Sohrab to the Caldwell’s due to their lack of existence, he had no choice but to adopt him. When he asked, Sohrab didn’t answer just cried into Amir’s shirt. Later when Sohrab has to go to an orphanage so that Amir can complete the adoption process, Sohrab attempts suicide. Finally they make it back to San Francisco where Sohrab is always silent and eventually people begin thinking he is mute. Amir near-death experience and Sohrab’s attempt at suicide could both have been avoided had Rahim Khan not called Amir, but then Amir would never have solved his emotional crisis. So even though it was a betrayal, it was a betrayal that benefitted the people it betrayed. Betrayal and love are two factors that affect almost every emotional decision we make. The decision might benefit one while putting others at a disadvantage. Amir, Baba and Rahim Khan, three of the most influential characters in the story are the ones to tell the biggest lies and cause the most pain. Baba and Amir cause emotional and psychological pain while Rahim Khan’s lie causes Amir a great deal of physical pain as well. But in the end Amir’s lie hurt the people he loved, while Baba and Rahim Khan told lies that benefitted someone in one way or another. In Baba’s lie, Hassan had to make his identity into that of a hazara, causing him to face taunts all the time, but it made it easier for him to be accepted, as much as a hazara is accepted in Afghan society, and saved his own reputation. If he had accepted Hassan as his second son, he would have been ridiculed and they would have to face shame together. Rahim Khan’s lie, while it physically caused Amir a great deal of pain, eventually ended his psychological turmoil and gave Sohrab a new home in which he would be loved. But Amir’s lie only caused pain and suffering for both him and Hassan. Hassan eventually had to leave the house as Amir could no longer tolerate the consequences of what he had done and therefore tried to frame Hassan. After their leaving, every time Baba brought up the topic of Hassan, Amir felt a pang of jealousy and began to have trouble breathing. All in all, all the betrayals in the book, make it better in one way or another because after there are only a few good stories to tell, and the ones of betrayal and the failure of love are the best ones.

Tips to Connect Your Essay ideas and Sentences

Tips to Connect Your Essay ideas and Sentences How to Connect Ideas Properly in Essay Writing? Each paper should feature a logical connection between paragraphs and sentences. This is to establish a comprehensive coherence and guide your reader from one section to another preventing from getting lost in author’s thoughts. While research papers and simple types of essay do not require such connection, it appears to be vital for such academic assignments as an argumentative essay. Follow our useful writing tips and boost your academic progress. Tips on connecting sentences The only way to establish a proper sentence connection is to use special words. They typically include: And – the word can be transformed into more complicated links like furthermore, additionally, as well as and other constructions; But – the main mission here is to provide an alternative in a logical way. You may use such transformations as although, despite, in contrast, nonetheless, etc.; So – this word, as well as its alternative forms, is to provide a result or effect. For this reason, the water starts boiling. Therefore, greenhouse effect causes air pollution; Because – the word highlights the effect or the cause. It stresses the reason. The result of 1005 degrees is boiling water. Make sure you follow necessary grammar and punctuation rules when using those words to link sentences in your paper. Tips on connecting ideas This one is probably the toughest challenge for immature and amateur writers. Using the write sentence formation is vital. At the same time, each part of the paper should have logical links to guide readers from one thought to another. Here are some useful tips not to get lost: Simplify the issue – do not be afraid to explain your thought in a simpler manner using â€Å"in other words† or other forms; Stress Similarities – compare a complicated thought with a simple analog. â€Å"In the same way as†, â€Å"equally† and other collocations would come in handy; Provide the Examples – give simpler examples to more complicated issues; Display Emphasis – use words that will stress your emphasis. They may include such collocations as â€Å"more importantly†, â€Å"indeed† and others. Tips on connecting paragraphs After we have provided a proper link to sentences and ideas, it is high time we connected our paragraphs to make the paper look complete. Signal and pointing words appear to be extremely useful for this purpose: Use Signal Words – use collocations to signalize a reader about the end of the beginning of the paragraph. â€Å"Besides†, â€Å"even though† and other signal phrases are necessary; Time Signals – they have proved to be rather effective. They include strong words and phrases like â€Å"finally†, â€Å"meanwhile† and others. Final word Writing a good paper means not just expressing your knowledge of the topic. It is also about great writing style and skills. For this reason, you need to establish strong connections between thoughts and ideas, paragraphs and sentences. Never leave your reader lost in thoughts. You should guide him or her using signal words and other phrases to spread light on your major paper.

How To Say Might or May in Spanish

How To Say Might or May in Spanish Translating the English auxiliary verbs might and may to Spanish cant be done directly because Spanish doesnt have auxiliary verbs with those meanings. Instead, expressing those concepts in Spanish requires translating for meaning, and both of those auxiliary verbs, whose meanings overlap, have multiple meanings. In other words, you cant take a simple sentence such as I might leave and stick a word between yo (the pronoun for I) and salir (the verb for leave) to say what you want. In this case, you need to figure out that the sentence means something like Maybe I will leave and then translate that. When ‘May’ or ‘Might’ Suggests Possibility Often, maybe and might can be used more or less interchangeably to suggest that maybe something will happen. In these cases you can provide the meaning of maybe using words such as quizs (sometimes quiz), posiblemente, acaso, or talvez (sometimes tal vez); or phrases such as puede ser que, es posible que, or a lo mejor. The words and phrases are sometimes used with a verb in the subjunctive mood. Tal vez (yo) lea un libro. (I might read a book. I may read a book.)Posiblemente vamos a necesitar hogares temporales. (We may need temporary homes. We might need temporary homes.)Hoy posiblemente vaya a comprar mi celular. (Today I might buy my cellphone. Today I may buy my cellphone.)Acaso nieve en la segunda mitad del mes. (It might rain in the second half of the month. It may rain in the second half of the month.)Tal vez la luz sea un poco ms intensa. (The light might be a little more intense. The light may be a little more intense.)A lo mejor, resulta bien. (It may turn out fine. It might turn out fine.)Creo que es posible que Considerando lo anterior podrà ­amos concluir que la justicia es imposible. (Considering what just happened, we might as well conclude that justice is impossible.)en 10 aà ±os haya humanos en Marte. (I believe that in 10 years there may be humans on Mars. I believe that in 10 years there might be humans on Mars.)Es posible que lo leyera. (She may have re ad it. She might have read it.) Tal vez sea verdad. (It may be true. It might be true.)Es posible que se haya perdido.  (He might have got lost.) When ‘May’ Is Used for Asking Permission May (and, less commonly, might) is sometimes used to ask for approval or permission. Common ways of asking for permission are to use poder or permitir, although other ways are possible. Podrà ­a asistir a la escuela? Puedo asistir a la escuela? (May I attend the school?) ¿Me permites ver a tus padres hoy? (May I see your parents today?) ¿Podrà ­a beber una cerveza?  ¿Puedo beber una cerveza? (May I drink a beer?)Se prohibe fumar aquà ­. (You may not smoke here.)Pidià ³ permiso para comer. (He asked if he might eat.) You can translate might similarly when it is being used to offer a suggestion: Podrà ­as tomar una pastilla de dormir. (You might take a sleeping pill.Podrà ­as pensar en una mejor opcià ³n. (You might think of a better option.)Podrà ­amos caminar a la playa. (We might walk to the beach. Note that the English sentence standing alone is ambiguous. If the person is using might to suggest possibility, a different translation would be used.) Translating ‘May’ in Wishes Sentences beginning with may to express desires or wishes can be translated by starting a sentence with que and using the subjunctive mood.  ¡Que Dios te bendiga! (May God bless you!) Que todo el mundo vaya a votar. (May everyone go to vote.) Que encuentres felicidad en todo lo que hagas. (May you find happiness in everything you do.) Translating ‘Might As Well’ Theres no single translation that always works for might as well or the less common may as well. Check the context to see what nuance of meaning might work best. Me convendrà ­a estudiar. (I might as well study. Literally, it would suit me fine to study.)Serà ­a mejor si vinieras conmigo. (You might as well come with me. Literally, it would be better if you came with me.)Considerando lo anterior podrà ­amos concluir que la justicia es imposible. (Considering what just happened, we might as well conclude that justice is impossible. Literally, considering the previous, we could conclude that justice is impossible.) Key Takeaways Spanish does not have any auxiliary verbs that are the equivalent of may or might.When may or might suggest possibility, you can translate using words or phrases that mean maybe.Verbs of permission can be used for translating may or might when they are being used for seeking approval.

MOHG2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

MOHG2 - Essay Example These analysis form an integral part of the financial statement analysis, especially from the investors point of view, who always strive to invest in countries having strengthen and stabilizing financial ratios and representing an upward trend. It is of great significance that the ratios must be benchmarked against a standard in order for them to possess a meaning. Keeping that into account, the comparison is usually conducted between companies portraying same business and financial risks, between industries and between different time periods of the same company. The company under consideration is Mandarin Oriental International Limited and in this report analysis of the financial performance of the company for the financial year 2011 with the financial year 2010 has been conducted in order to draw attention to various financial trends and significant changes over the period. The analysis is divided into three main categorize namely Profitability, Liquidity and Gearing. Profitability ratios identify how efficiently and effectively a company is utilizing its resources and how successful it has been in generating a desired rate of return for its shareholders and investors. Liquidity ratios measure the ability of the company to quickly convert its asset into liquid cash to settle its short term liabilities. Whereas, the Gearing ratios identifies the extent to which the company is financed through debt and to what degree the operations are being conducted from the finance raised through raising equity capital or otherwise. Mandarin Oriental International Limited is regarded as one of the prominent when it comes to luxurious hotels. As quoted from the annual report of Mandarin for the financial year 2011, â€Å"Mandarin Oriental International Limited is an international hotel investment and management group with deluxe and first class hotels, resorts and residences in sought-after destinations around the world. The group now operates, or under