The Secret of Ella and Micha Chapter 18

Ella Micha won't text me back and it's eating away at my mind. I need to find out where he is, but Caroline's making it difficult. She's a photographer and wants to take pictures of the different views of our town. I take her to the lake first because it's the sunnier side of town, and pull over in a few different turnouts that give her various views. When we reach the bridge, she gets really enthusiastic and wants pictures of it too. â€Å"It has so much history to it,† she says. â€Å"And it probably carries a lot of memories for people.† I wonder if Caroline is a mind reader on top of a photographer. A thin cloud of dust surrounds us as I tap the brakes and park the car just at the brink of the bridge and she hops out with her camera bag on her shoulder. Lila and I trek after her, taking our sweet time, but I halt at the line that splits the road from the bridge. â€Å"So is this the bridge?† Lila asks, watching me through her sunglasses. I stare at the spot on the ground where Micha and I stood kissing in the rain. â€Å"Yeah, this is the bridge.† With a quiver in my heart, I step onto the concrete and walk up to the railing. Gripping the bar, I gaze out at the lake, glistening in the sunlight, so much brighter than that rainy night. Caroline clicks her camera, getting the lake at every angle while Lila roams to the other side. The wind blows through my hair and I shut my eyes, going back to that night. I'd been cleaning out my mom's medicine cabinet earlier that morning and had come across the bottle of pills she'd taken to keep her delusions under control. I'd wondered if they'd worked for her and how they made her mind see life. So I took one to see for myself and then headed off with Micha to a party. As soon as I'd climbed in his car, he'd sensed something was off with me. â€Å"You look out of it,† he said. â€Å"Maybe we should just stay in tonight.† I shook my head and motioned for him to drive. Frowning, he drove us to the party, but he kept a close eye on me almost the entire night, following me like a puppy. Usually, I didn't mind, but I grew restless with the desire to figure out what the hell my mother was thinking. So when Micha got preoccupied by a girl, I cornered Grantford and asked him to drive me to the bridge. He had happily obliged, thinking he was going to get some. When we arrived at the bridge it was raining buckets of water. I thanked him politely and told him he could go. He was pissed and started yammering something about why the hell did he drive me out here. I shrugged and slammed the door shut, stepping out into the rain. He spun away from the bridge, the tires of his pickup kicking up gravel and mud all over my boots. I walked over to the railing and stepped up onto the curb, observing the water through the veil of rain. But it wasn't close enough, so I stepped up onto the beam just like I remembered her doing. It still didn't make sense why she did it – why she thought she could fly and I don't think it ever will. I jerk away from my reminiscing and concentrate on Caroline, who's still snapping pictures, with the long lens of her camera close to my face. â€Å"You're a deep thinker,† she remarks and clicks her camera again. â€Å"And you photograph well.† I shake my head. â€Å"No, I'm not. Not really.† She snaps another picture and moves the camera away. â€Å"As a photographer I get to see through a totally different eye. I think it makes me see people differently – more clearly.† â€Å"Like a mirror?† â€Å"Yeah, kind of.† She turns the lens toward the lake and starts snapping pictures of it. I recline against the railing and scroll through my messages. I only have one, Micha's voicemail from a few weeks ago. I decide maybe it's time. I press dial and put it up to my ear. â€Å"Hey Ella, it's Micha,† he says nervously, unlike himself, and sighs â€Å"Well, that was a stupid opening line, so pretend you didn't hear that.† A smile tugs at the corners of my lips. That sounds more like him. â€Å"Anyway, I'm kind of irritated that you just took off and haven't called.† He pauses and I can hear Ethan in the background. â€Å"Actually, I'm fucking pissed off. I don't even know what to say. You just bail after everything we've been through. Do you know how crazy I've been wondering where you were or if you were even alive? My heart compresses in my chest. I've never heard him so upset. â€Å"You just bailed out on everyone and people need you, even if you don't think so. Grady's sick – he has cancer and†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He inhales a shaky breath. â€Å"I still love you†¦ I don't know what else to say and there's probably not even a point of saying anymore†¦ you won't call me back.† It clicks and the message ends. It's not what I was imagining. I'd never once looked at it from his side – how worried he must have been. I send him another text, but again, he doesn't respond. *** One week passes and I still don't hear from Micha. He won't call me or answer my texts, and his phone is going straight to voicemail. His mom has no idea where he is either and she's starting to get really worried. Ever since I returned from the bridge, little images of what happened when Micha picked me up that night have been flickering through my head. Something infinite happened that night, not with Micha, but with me. I arrive at the conclusion, while I'm sitting out on my porch, staring at his vacant driveway, that it's time to get to the bottom of what's going on with Micha. There is only one person I could think of who might know where he is. Ethan. And I need backup. â€Å"What are we trying to get out of him?† Lila asks as I drive up to the shop Ethan works at. â€Å"Where Micha is.† I tell her, putting the shifter into park. â€Å"And I think Ethan might know.† Her forehead scrunches as she eyes the open garage door. Ethan is behind a car being worked on, tossing a screwdriver and catching it like a baseball. â€Å"But why am I here?† â€Å"Because you're my backup.† â€Å"And what exactly is it you want me to do?† â€Å"I'm not sure yet.† I bite my nail, assessing the situation. Ethan is dressed in a nice pair of jeans and plaid button-down shirt, not his work clothes, which means he can leave if he wants to and he probably will, making this as difficult as possible. Especially if Micha told him not to tell me. He tips his head back and laughs at something his dad said. Then his eyes find my dad's Firebird and his expression drops. I open the door and he throws down the tool and runs through the shop. I jog across the gravel and swing open the front door, leaving Lila behind. Sitting behind the counter is Mrs. Gregory, Ethan's mother who has the same dark hair and brown eyes as Ethan. She looks up quickly from a magazine and her eyes brighten. â€Å"Ella, is that you?† She gets up from the stool and rounds the counter to give me a hug. â€Å"I didn't know you were back, honey.† â€Å"For the summer, I am.† My eyes skim the room and the shop. â€Å"Is Ethan in there?† She points over her shoulder. â€Å"He just ran back into the storage room. You want me to go get him?† â€Å"Would you mind if I did?† I ask politely. â€Å"Sure, hun.† She steps aside and lets me behind the counter. The storage room is lined with rows and rows of shelves holding parts for cars. It's quiet, dark, and the sink has a drip. â€Å"Ethan,† I say, shutting the door quietly behind me. â€Å"I know you're in here.† â€Å"I hear a shuffle from the back corner diagonal from me. I hurry down the tire aisle, peeking through the shelf, and catch him running up the other side. I skitter backwards, hoping to cut him off at the end by the door. â€Å"Ethan will you please talk to me?† My voice echoes back at me. Looking left then right, I exit the aisle. â€Å"Look, I know he told you where he went, so will you please just tell me†¦ or at least tell me if he's okay.† He suddenly reveals himself from an aisle a few rows down. â€Å"He told me not to tell you where he was.† I press my lips together at the sting in my heart. â€Å"I need to know. I'm worried about him.† He props his elbow on the edge of a shelf. â€Å"Well, now you know how he's felt for the last eight months.† The painful feeling of reality sinks in. â€Å"Please, please, will you just tell me where he is. It's killing me not knowing.† He eyes me over, like he's hunting for my sincerity. â€Å"He went to see his dad.† My jaw almost hits the floor. â€Å"When did he find out where his dad was?† Ethan sighs and leans against the shelf. â€Å"He started calling the house a few weeks ago, asking to talk to Micha. Micha wouldn't talk to him, but then a few days ago, he finally decided it was time to go see him.† â€Å"Is he still with his dad?† I ask. He hesitates. â€Å"No†¦ Let's just say the visit didn't go very well.† I force the lump in my throat down. â€Å"Is he okay?† â€Å"I'm not sure†¦.He was staying with some of our old friends over at Farrows Park the last time I talked to him.† â€Å"Is he coming back?† â€Å"Again, I'm not sure.† I sink to the cold concrete floor and let my head fall into my hands. â€Å"Why didn't he tell me?† Ethan puffs out a loud breath and sits down beside me. â€Å"Because he didn't want you dealing with his problems on top of your own. He worries about you all the time. It's kind of annoying.† I raise my head and scowl at him. He chuckles and nudges me with his elbow. â€Å"What? I'm the one who's had to listen to him talk about you for the last eight months. At one point, I almost stabbed my ears out just so I didn't have to hear it.† I give a gentle pat to his knee. â€Å"Pretend all you want. You're not as bad of a guy as you want people to think.† He comprehends the deeper meaning to my words. â€Å"Yeah, yeah, say what you want, but deep down, I'm just your average douche bag, like every other guy out there.† Laughing, we get up and go out to the lobby, where there's a guy waiting at the front counter. He walks me to the door and stares out at Lila sitting out on the hood of my car examining her watch. â€Å"So what are you going to do?† he asks as I push open the door. â€Å"I'm not sure yet,† I say. â€Å"I doubt you're going to tell me where the house is that he's staying at.† â€Å"I don't think it'd be a good idea for you to go there. He needs to clear his head.† He backs up toward the register with his hands stuffed into his pockets. â€Å"I got customers to take care of.† I meet Lila at the car and she slides off the hood. â€Å"Did he tell you anything?† We climb in the car and I quickly explain to her the vague details of what happened. â€Å"So where are we going?† she asks, buckling her seatbelt. The sunlight sparkles through the windshield and into my eyes. â€Å"We're going home.† *** A couple more days drag by and I still don't hear anything from Micha. It baffles me how much I miss him, but I do my best to keep busy, not wanting to get sucked up in the loneliness and worry. Dean and Caroline went home about a week ago. Caroline told me they'd come back to visit before the summer was over or she would at least see me again at the wedding, which is in October. Lila is out for the day with Ethan, not on a date, something they both insisted when I brought it up. My dad is locked in his room. He had a rough night and got into a fight. I received a call from Denny at two o'clock in the morning telling me to come pick him up. Deciding I need a break from my house, I peek in on my dad who is fast asleep, and then drive over to Grady's house. Amy's car is parked in front of the trailer and the front door is wide open, swaying in the wind a little. I hop out of the car as she walks outside with a bag over her shoulder and a box of Grady's stuff in her arms. I fear the worst has happened. â€Å"Is everything okay?† She sighs, transferring the box to the side of her hip to free her hand so she can get the car door open. â€Å"He caught a bad case of pneumonia and he's been taken to the hospital over in Monroe.† I brace my hand on the trunk of the car for support. â€Å"Is he okay?† Shaking her head, she sets the box on the seat and slams the door shut with her hip. â€Å"His body's already fightin' cancer. This just makes things worse.† â€Å"I need to go see him,† I mumble and turn for my car. â€Å"He can't have visitors right now, Ella,† she says empathetically. â€Å"His immune system's too low.† I frown. â€Å"Will you let me know when he can?† She gives me a small smile, but there's something in her eyes I don't like. â€Å"Yeah, hun. I will.† As I back down the driveway, watching her lock up, I feel helpless and out-of-control. I want to run away, back to Vegas, or somewhere else equally as far away, so I won't have to feel it. But I don't. *** I try not to stress too much about Grady, but my thoughts keep drifting to him. Whether he's in a hospital bed with sterilized walls? Or did Amy take a box of his stuff to fix it up for him? â€Å"What song is this?† Lila is lying on her stomach in my bed, flipping through the pages of a magazine. â€Å"‘Black Sun' by Jo Mango,† I say, sharpening one of my charcoal pencils over the garbage in my bedroom. â€Å"It's sad.† She frowns, resting her chin in her hand. â€Å"It makes me want to cry.† â€Å"It's a good song to draw to.† I return to my drawing on the floor. The dark lines of it form pieces of a shattered mirror and I start sketching a picture of a guitar inside one of them. When I'm done, each piece will hold something about my life, but it might take me a while to finish it. Lila raises her head away from her hand and glances at the window. â€Å"Did you hear that?† There's shouting coming from outside, loud enough to be heard over the music. I shade one of the corners with my pinky. â€Å"It's probably just the neighbors.† The yelling gets louder and Lila sits up nervously and draws back the curtain. â€Å"Ella, there's a man and a woman fighting out in front of the driveway.† I set my pencil down on the floor and go over to the window. There's a short, fat man and a tall, slender woman yelling at each other just outside the boundaries of my front yard. â€Å"That's the Anderson's,† I explain. â€Å"They always do that.† â€Å"We should stop it,† she says worriedly. â€Å"He might hurt her.† â€Å"I'll take care of it,† I tell her. â€Å"You stay here.† I pad down the stairs, barefoot and in my boxer shorts and tank top, and poke my head out the door, but the Anderson's have vanished from the street. The lyrics and music of â€Å"Behind Blue Eyes† by The Who is blasting from the stereo in Micha's room next door. It's his sad mood song, the one he lets play over and over again when he's depressed. The lights aren't on in the house, but the one in the garage shines brightly into the night. Sticking out of the open door is the back end of his Chevelle. There's a large dent in the bumper that wasn't there when he left and a scratch on the corner of the fender. Walking down the steps the concrete is ice-cold against my bare feet. I spot him through the window of the garage, searching the shelf for something with a cigarette in his mouth. I watch him move, my pulse instantly speeding up, and I have to work to keep breathing. As he pulls away from the shelf with a box in his hand, he turns his head toward the window, like he senses me out here. Our eyes lock and collide. He sets the box down and disappears out of my view. A few seconds later he walks out of the garage. His jeans ride low on his hips and the porch light hits his chest, highlighting his well-defined muscles and the cursive font of the tattoo on his rib. â€Å"When did you start smoking again?† I inquire from my driveway. He takes the cigarette out of his mouth with his eyes on me. â€Å"I slipped up a few days ago†¦ There's just too much going on, I guess.† I take a few small steps across the driveway and my heart thuds in my chest. â€Å"Is it because of your dad?† Micha reaches the grass, just before the fence divides our houses. â€Å"How do you know about that?† I stop just short of the fence and wrap my arms around myself to keep warm. â€Å"Ethan told me.† He shakes his head, annoyed. â€Å"He's worse than a girl.† â€Å"Hey.† I feign offense, attempting to lighten his mood. â€Å"Not all girls are bad. I've always been an excellent secret keeper. You know that.† He places his hands on the fence and clutches at the links. â€Å"I don't know if that's true anymore.† He gestures his hand at me. â€Å"Maybe this was who you always were. Maybe this place was just getting in the way of you.† He's upset and I need to get to the bottom of why. â€Å"You could have told me about your dad.† â€Å"Could I of?† The front of his thighs push against the fence. â€Å"I don't think you can handle it right now – you can barely handle your own problems.† I reduce the small gap left between the fence and myself. â€Å"Try me.† His eyes examine my face, looking for something deep within me. Then his head falls down, defeated, and he lets out a slow breath. â€Å"It was almost as painful as that day you ran off. I mean, he has a whole other fucking family†¦.† His voice cracks and he clears his throat. â€Å"Like we weren't good enough or something.† The ache in his voice nearly kills me. I close my eyes and tell myself I can do this – that I'm the strong one at the moment. My eyes open and I put my finger under his chin, forcing him to look at me. His eyes are glassy, like he's about to cry, and he tries to look away. I place an unsteady hand on his cheek and maintain his gaze. â€Å"I know it hurts right now,† I say, grappling my voice even. â€Å"But it will get better. It'll just take some time and I'll be here for you this time. I promise.† He looks unconvinced. Not knowing what else to say, I stand on my tiptoes, lean over the fence, and lightly graze my lips across his. Heat caresses my mouth and skin. â€Å"I need you right now,† Micha murmurs against my lips with so much desire in his eyes that my knees buckle. â€Å"I need this right now.† His hand cups around the back of my neck, much gentler than the intensity in his voice, and he crashes my body against his. He tempts me with a soft brush of his lips and every ounce of sexual tension between us explodes. I can't help myself – I fall into him. My lips part willingly, lost in the mind-numbing moment as he slips his tongue deep inside my mouth, devouring me thoroughly. He tastes like cigarettes mingled with mint and the scent of his cologne is intoxicating. My hands trace up the front of his bare chest, and I loop my arms around his neck. The links of the fence dig into my skin as we crush it between our bodies, trying to bury ourselves into one another. Micha pulls away for a second and my lips falter in protest, but he lifts me up over the fence and encourages my legs around his waist. My inner thighs burn as they graze his hips. Every part of him touches me and it makes my body flame. I arch into him, moaning as his lips return to mine even more ravenously. â€Å"Oh my God, this feels so good.† He groans, before heading toward his house. â€Å"What are you doing?† I whisper against his lips, knowing where he's going, but I'm not sure I'm ready for it yet. â€Å"Shh†¦Ã¢â‚¬  His warm tongue slips deep inside my mouth and I forget about arguing. His hands hold me up by the ass as he kicks the back door open and stumbles into his kitchen. He knocks over a lamp and bumps into the wall as he carries me blindly down the hall and into his room. Then we collapse on the bed, tangled together. The music is loud and he reaches over to the stereo and turns it down so it filters through the room softly. â€Å"Ow,† I squeal, squirming. â€Å"Something just poked me.† â€Å"I'm pretty sure that's supposed to happen,† Micha jokes with feral eyes. I swat his chest and reach underneath me, retrieving a drumstick. He snatches it from my hand, laughing softly as he chucks it over his shoulder and it lands somewhere in the dark. His face turns serious as he smoothes my hair back, looking into my eyes so passionately, my nerves crack through. â€Å"Do you know I realized I loved you when we were like sixteen? But I didn't want to tell you because I was afraid you'd run away.† I prop up on my elbows, making our faces inches away. Strands of his hair hang in my face. â€Å"But I was normal back then. Or at least partly normal.† He lets his forehead rest against mine. â€Å"Yeah, but I thought that's how things were supposed to happen when people were in love.† I realize how bad I must have hurt him when I ran off after he tried to tell me he loved me. â€Å"Micha, I'm sorry.† His jaw spasms and he tips his head back up. When he kisses me again, it feels different somehow – more intimate. My apprehension starts to emerge, but I choke it down and let my head fall back against the pillow. His lips follow mine and he kisses all the fear out of me. My chest presses into his as my neck arches against his trail of kisses along my skin, sucking and nipping at it all the way down. â€Å"Fuck,† he groans when his mouth reaches the curve of my breast. The fabric of my tank top is thin and I don't have a bra on. Hesitantly, his tongue lightly slides between my breasts. Instantly, my nipples harden and an irrepressible moan escapes from my lips as desire takes over my body. I sit up, stunning him, and he moves back. â€Å"What's wrong?† he asks. Sucking in a deep breath of air, I shut my eyes and wiggle my shirt off. My chest heaves, bare and exposed, as my lungs strain for air. I've never been this far with a guy before – never wanted to. Getting close to someone meant getting attached and getting attached has only brought me hurt in the past. But Micha's different. He always has been. I just didn't realize it until now. He takes me in deliberately and then covers his body with mine, colliding our bare chest together as we collapse back onto the mattress. My fingers tangle in his soft hair as his hands travel down my shoulders to my breasts. My back bows up, seeking to feed a starvation inside my body, but unsure how to do it. Pausing, I curve my hips and rub up against him. A shot of ecstasy swells through my body and a gasp fumbles from my lips. Hearing the unrestrained noise sends me into a state of anxiety and I fall back to reality. I'm not sure if my mind is ready to go where my body obviously wants to – whether I can allow myself to completely let go. â€Å"Micha wait,† I say in a strained voice. He jerks back quickly, his hand still cupping my breast. â€Å"What is it?† â€Å"I'm sorry. I just can't†¦ I don't think I'm ready yet.† He kisses my forehead tenderly and boosts up on his elbows, his body still hovering over me. With his fingertip, he sketches a line from my temple to my jaw and my eyelids flutter. â€Å"Will you let me try one more thing?† I open my eyes, dazed from his touch. â€Å"I'm not sure if I can go any farther tonight.† â€Å"Just trust me, okay?† he says. â€Å"And if it gets to be too much, just say and I promise I'll stop.† I bite at my lip, knowing where he's going with this. â€Å"Okay.† Unhurriedly, with his eyes fastened on mine, he moves his mouth and kisses the hollow of my neck, sending shivers over my skin. His lips move downward and linger just above my breast. My eyes shut as his mouth touches my nipple and his tongue slips out over it. He sucks on it hard and I swear to God I can't breathe. My legs vice-grip around him and the longer he devours me, the fiercer his mouth gets. With each movement of his tongue, my thighs burn hotter. I need†¦ something. â€Å"Micha, I†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Shh†¦Ã¢â‚¬  he whispers and trails rapturous kisses up my neck. â€Å"I'll take care of it.† His fingers slide down my bare stomach and to the bottom of my shorts, leaving a path of heat along my skin. As his lips find mine again, his finger slips deep inside me. The lyrics of the music fade away as my panic bursts into a thousand blissful pieces. Micha When Ella screams out my name, with her head tipped back, her eyes lost, it's unlike anything I've ever experienced before. She trusted me enough to do things to her that no one else has and it makes me feel alive again. Of course, my dick is so hard it actually hurts. â€Å"Behind Blue Eyes† by The Who is stuck on repeat and fills up the moment. It's the song I turn on when I feel down, but I don't think it's going to be that anymore – not after tonight. I brush her hair away from her forehead. â€Å"Are you okay?† Her green eyes are glazed over as she nods her head up and down. There's a look on her face that brings a smile to my lips. â€Å"I'm better than fine.† She leans up and kisses me. I draw her in, intensifying the kiss, then let her go, needing to cool down. â€Å"You should stay here tonight.† I expect her to protest, but she nods as she tugs her shirt back over her head. â€Å"Okay, but I'll have to use your phone to text Lila. I didn't bring mine with me.† I kiss her forehead, then her temple, breathing her in. â€Å"I'm gonna go take a shower. I'll be right back.† Confining a laugh, she reaches for my phone on my nightstand. â€Å"A cold one?† I grab some clothes out of my dresser and back out the doorway. â€Å"You better watch it, Ella May. Or I may decide against it and you'll just have to deal with me for the rest of the night.† She flops back on the bed as she sends a text. â€Å"Maybe that's what I'm hoping for.† Shaking my head, I throw my clothes on the floor and jump onto the bed, putting a knee on each side of her. She laughs as I playfully trap her arms above her head. I move my lips next to her ear and gently take a nip at her. I breathe on her neck, letting my warm breath cause her to shudder, teasing her and driving both our bodies crazy. She lets out a moan and I feel her legs start to move around me. Sighing, I pull away before I get even more wound up. â€Å"Okay, I have to go take a shower.† I climb off the bed, watching her all the way to the door. Once I'm out of the room, all of the pain I've been feeling about my dad smothers me again, but all I can do is keep breathing.

General Trends of English Politics Before The Viking Invasions Essay

Do you detect any general trend or trends in the pattern of English politics before the Viking invasions? Although there were sporadic Viking attacks on the coasts of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms from 793 onwards, the Viking invasions, when large forces started to appear for sustained campaigns, should probably be seen as beginning in 865, when a â€Å"heathen army† encamped on Thanet.1 Before this time, we see a trend in English politics of increasingly extensive overlordship of some kings over others. There is debate about the extent of these overlordships, but it seems reasonable to suggest that certain kings at certain times were able to dominate other kingdoms, and also that there was some increase in the area a king might aspire to control. However, there is more argument about what this trend might mean, and particularly whether it can be seen as part of an inexorable progression towards the unification of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in the ninth and tenth centuries. I shall argue that the pattern tended to a limit, and that there is no reason to see unification as its inevitable result, for three main reasons. Firstly, we see another trend that, as kingdoms grew both in size and strength, it became harder to convert overlordship into amalgamation, although this is seen in some cases. Secondly, I shall contend that the overlordship seen was based upon opportunism, with little or no institutional continuity between different overlords. Thirdly, the nature of Anglo-Saxon politics was such that no kingdom before the Viking invasions could sustain its ascendancy sufficiently for the trends to represent long-term moves towards unification. The best way to explain the eventual unification is not as a result of long-term trends, but as West Saxon opportunism at a time when the other kingdoms were weak, buttressed by a latent sense of united ecclesiastical identity, which the Viking threat brought to the surface. The main trend that we see in the pre-Viking Anglo-Saxon kingdoms is the growth of overlordship, whereby one political unit, while retaining a degree of separate identity, and quite possibly its own ruler, was dominated by another. Bede uses a variety of terms to refer to different rulers, including rex, princeps and subregulus. The impression that one gets from this is a complex patchwork of kings, with some subordinate to others: Dumville and Campbell both justifiably point out that the terminological variety suggests that there was no universal pattern, but a web of dependent relationships; this is similar to the situation in Ireland at the same time. It is likely that such relationships go back to the beginning of the Anglo-Saxon period; Kirby points out that this would hardly be surprising, since Tacitus describes similar hierarchies in Germany. However, we do see overlordship being exercised over increasingly large areas: the traditional starting point here is Bede’s lis t of seven kings who ruled â€Å"over all the southern kingdoms†. 2 The evidence does generally support the view that these kings exercised considerable power over large parts of England. Keynes asserts that it is inconceivable that Aelle of Sussex and Ceawlin of Wessex, the first two rulers, could have wide ranging power. We know little about them, but the Chronicle entries do suggest that they were significant and had successes, particularly against the Britons.3 Furthermore, Myres’ studies of the distribution of pottery fragments suggest that both rulers exercised some authority in the Midlands and East Anglia, since pottery finds match those in their native kingdoms. The evidence is not sufficient to suggest that they had control as far north as the Humber, but we would be unwise to dismiss the idea that these kings had some form of overlordship over much of southern England. Furthermore, Keynes is sceptical about Aethelbert of Kent’s power, suggesting that Bede’s reiteration of the claim that he was king of all the land south of the Humber4 shows that this was dubious, requiring repetition to convince readers. However, the papal appeal that Aethelbert should spread the Word to his subjects suggests that he had considerable power, as Higham argues, even if he was not literally â€Å"king of the English†, the style accorded to him by the appeal.5 It is less easy to rebut Keynes’ diminution of Raedwald of East Anglia, since we know very little about him. If we could be more certain that the person buried at Sutton Hoo is indeed Raedwald (as many historians posit), we could assume that he was a very rich and powerful king; however, Keynes does not give us any positive reason to doubt Bede’s claim regarding Raedwald’s wide overlordship. Although Keynes asserts that Bede makes inflated claims about the scope of the influence of Edwin, Oswald and Oswiu of Northumbria, there is no strong evidence to support this: Bede’s account is internally consistent, giving examples of these kings intervening in the Mevanian Islands (Angelsey and Man),6 Wessex,7 East Anglia,8 and Mercia9 at various times. These interventions could be entirely military (as is implied for the islands) or could involve peaceful shows of power, such as Oswald’s participation in the baptism of Cynigils of Wessex. It seems reasonable to conclude that these kings did exert influence across large parts of Southumbria and it appears that the areas they could control increased; Keynes’ attempt to deny extensive overlordship in this period to strengthen his (already strong) case against a formal Bretwaldic institution is not particularly convincing. Furthermore, overlordship did not end with Oswiu: indeed, the later Mercian kings were possibly even more successful in securing practical overlordship across much of Southumbria. Bede acknowledges that the southern kingdoms were subject to Aethelbald at the time he was writing,10 supporting Dumville’s conclusion that the omission of the Mercian kings from the earlier list was prompted by concern to curtail the digression from Aethelbert’s death, rather than Northumbrian bias. There is evidence of Mercian hegemony in the south before Aethelbald: Bede explicitly states that the South Saxons were subject to Wulfhere11 and Eddius refers to Wulfhere’s ability to draw forces from all the southern kingdoms.12 Furthermore, charters give us evidence that Mercian kings were overlords in Southumbria: in the Ismere Diploma, Aethelbald is styled â€Å"king not only of the Mercians but also of all provinces which are called by the general name ‘South English'†;13 Offa could confirm a land grant by an ealdorman of the South Saxons;14 Offa was apparently the â€Å"most beloved lord† of the Hwicce;15 Offa was in a position to revoke a grant of land by the King Egbert of Kent;16 Wiglaf could grant land in Worcestershire;17 and Brihtwulf could do the same in Berkshire.18 This charter evidence is very important: it demonstrates that the kings of Mercia in this period claimed authority over other southern kingdoms and also implies that this authorit y could have practical manifestations, such as the right to grant land or at least to confirm grants made by their underkings. The extent of their authority seems to decline after Offa, but the principle of overlordship, in a more limited sense, continued. One of the most debated possible indicators of widespread Mercian overlordship is the document known as the Tribal Hidage. The difficulties and ambiguities of this text are such that the charter evidence cited is a far stronger sign of extensive Mercian overlordship, but there is a significant possibility that the Tribal Hidage is a Mercian tribute list, estimating the tribute that the Mercian kings hoped to collect from southern kingdoms. Higham’s bold self-confidence in dismissing a Mercian origin is unwise, in that such levels of certainty are wholly inappropriate in this context: all we can do is suggest hypotheses, while accepting that other hypotheses may be valid. As Featherstone and Sawyer point out, the methodical arrangement, with the kingdoms being arranged in an approximately clockwise order around Mercia, hints at a Mercian origin. The inclusion of a figure for Mercia, which Higham sees as evidence that the document is a Northumbrian tribute list, might be an assessment of internal food renders, Featherstone suggests. The preservation and copying of the Tribal Hidage imply that there was some practical purpose in estimating the hidation of Southumbria: it is still possible to accept tentatively the claims of Davies and Vierck that the Tribal Hidage is an indicator of widespread Mercian overlordship. There is some agreement that Egbert of Wessex, whom the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle appends to Bede’s list of overlords and styles Bretwalda (Manuscript A – ‘ruler of Britain’) or Brytenwalda (other Manuscripts – ‘wide ruler’), was overlord of extensive territories. Keynes accepts the Chronicle’s claim that Egbert â€Å"conquered the kingdom of the Mercians, and everything south of the Humber†;19 this statement must cast doubt upon Stenton’s assertion that the extent of Egbert’s overlordship was not comparable to Offa’s. Nevertheless, Keynes’ claim that Egbert was the first, not the eighth, wide ruler is dubious: the evidence very strongly suggests that overlordship had been an aspect of Anglo-Saxon politics for centuries. However, the territories being brought under a single overlord were tending to increase in scale: the archaeological record suggests that the early great kings, like Aelle and Ceawlin, could aspire to rule much of the land south of the Humber, but nothing like as much as the later Mercians and Egbert. This trend was not relentless: in the period between Offa and Egbert, there is little evidence of comprehensive overlordship on the scale of either of these rulers. Although we observe this trend towards the formation of more extensive overlordships, we should not conclude, as Stenton and John do, that this trend could be extrapolated to encompass the unification of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. In the first place, it seems to have been increasingly difficult to convert overlordship into the actual amalgamation of kingdoms. Initially, with small kingdoms, it may not have been unduly difficult to effect such assimilation: Yorke points out that East Kent seems to have consumed West Kent sometime during the sixth century. Indeed, much amalgamation probably occurred in the sixth century, before the various kingdoms that we see emerged. Furthermore, it was often possible for a larger kingdom to digest a smaller one: this is seen in the cases of Deira (eventually subsumed into Bernicia after 651) and the Hwicce (gradually divested of independence by Mercia in the eighth century). However, integration was not always smooth: despite being united under Aethelfrith and Edwin, Deira was ruled separately under Oswine from 642 until 651. In the latter part of the pre-Viking period, it would have been very difficult for one of the greater kingdoms to consume another permanently: this is suggested by the fact that, despite their struggles and periods of subjection to one another, Northumbria, East Anglia, Mercia and Wessex all survived until the Viking onslaught. An illustration of this difficulty is the case of Mercia: Oswiu of Northumbria was only able to rule Mercia directly for three years after his victory in 655; he was driven out by the Mercian ealdormen in 658. Similarly, Egbert’s domination of Mercia was not secure: he was recognised as king by the Mercians in 829 but Wiglaf was restored in 830. Indeed, it would seem that political union was most successful when it was pursued gently: unlike Offa’s aggressive attempts to dominate Kent from 764 until 785, Wessex’s absorption of Kent and Sussex was done with sensitivity to the local nobles; this did, however, mean that the sense of union was perhaps not cemented, as is suggested by Aethelwulf’s proposed division of Greater Wessex, with Aethelbert succeeding in the East and his other sons taking Wessex itself in turn. However, unification in the ninth and tenth centuries can be explained in that the situation after the coming of the Vikings was different, since Mercia, East Anglia and Northumbria were seriously weakened by the attacks, aiding Wessex’s expansion. Moreover, the overlordship that we see was probably highly opportunistic, without institutional underpinnings. Yorke is probably right that the principal motivation for overlordship was the collection of tribute: Bede mentions tribute in connection with overlordship20 and Eddius says that Wulfhere’s purpose in attacking Northumbria was to gain tribute.21 Furthermore, the Mercians could presumably have conquered a tribe like the Hicca (assessed at a mere 300 hides in the Tribal Hidage), had they wished to do so; that such tribes existed as notionally independent entities suggests that, if the Tribal Hidage is a Mercian tribute list, the Mercians were content with tribute rather than political union. However, John argues that there was some kind of institutional framework and that overlordship was being gradually translated into unification. Key to this argument is the adoption of formal titles by kings: John contends that the ideal of a united Britain was a real one in kings’ minds, citing the use of various titles. The most famous of these is Bretwalda or, as John prefers, Brytenwalda, which appear in different versions of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle;22 I shall not become drawn into an argument about which style is the original, because the ambiguity and confusion is sufficient of itself, as Wormald argues, to cast doubt upon the existence of such an institution in reality. Clearly, whoever was copying the manuscripts was not familiar with the term, which suggests that it was a literary construct devised retrospectively to describe Egbert; its frequent application to kings like Aelle and Raedwald is therefore probably anachronistic and Kirby’s vision of kings â€Å"striving to become Bretwalda†23 is most likely to be fanciful. John also argues that other titles imply the existence of some kind of abstract concept of overlordship separate from the individual kings who happened to be overlords. For example, he highlights that Adomnan says that Oswald was â€Å"ordained by God as emperor of all of Britain†24 and that Boniface refers to Aethelbald â€Å"wielding the glorious sceptre of imperial rule over the English†.25 This evidence, combined with the point about Bretwaldas, is a rather thin basis for a case: it is quite possible that the titles were simply being used for flattery; the fact that Boniface calls Aethelbald â€Å"king of the Mercians† in his letter asking Herefrith to deliver the previous communication suggests that the imperial title used in the letter to Aethelbald was unofficial.26 Moreover, Offa is also generally styled â€Å"king of the Mercians†,27 as is Cenwulf.28 In their charters, they tend to claim to be kings of various kingdoms, rather than stressing title s of institutional overlordship. If there was no institution of overlordship, each de facto overlordship would have to start afresh in trying to create cohesion: the trend of increasingly extensive overlordship was not therefore destined to result in the formation of England, since there was often little continuity between the different overlords. The sense of common identity that began to emerge by the later ninth century (Alfred could speak of Angelkynn and Englisc) probably had far more to do with religious unity in the face of the pagan Viking threat. As Wormald argues, the Church, rather than the so-called Bretwaldas, was the institution that provided a common reference point for the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, by stressing that the Gens Anglorum was a chosen people, selected to receive the Word. Given that there were most probably no institutions to produce continuity in overlordship, momentum towards unification could only be maintained as long as a particular kingdom was in the ascendant; however, the nature of Anglo-Saxon politics in this period was such that success tended to be transient. We see this is Northumbria, whose hegemony collapsed very quickly after defeats at the Battle of the Trent (679) and Nechtansmere (685). Likewise, Mercian hegemony seems to have declined gradually after Offa. There was, to a significant extent, a natural instability in the pattern of politics: kings required land to grant to warriors (to secure their support), which required the conquest of land, which required more warriors; this pattern was clearly unsustainable in the longer term. The importance of giving gifts to warriors is seen in â€Å"Beowulf†, where Hrothgar says that he will â€Å"dispense / his God-given goods to young and old†;29 Bede shows that such gifts were necessary in the real world, expressing concern that excessive endowment of secularised monasteries had left Northumbria with insufficient land to grant to warriors. 30 There is evidence to suggest that warriors would desert their lord, if he ceased to provide them with treasure and land: Aldhelm expresses disapproval of those who do this in his letter to the clergy of Bishop Wilfrid.31 Probably, the importance of conquering new lands explains why the initiative shifted away from the south-east to Northumbria, Mercia and Wessex: these kingdoms could, at least for a while, conquer land from Britons, in a way that kingdoms like Kent could not. A notable feature of both â€Å"Beowulf† and Anglo-Saxon politics is that kingdoms tended to come to grief sooner or later; success was rarely lasting. Another source of instability was internal dynastic politics: there seem to have been frequent civil wars. This is hardly surprising given that, according to Dumville, any aetheling could claim the throne through descent in the male line from the founder of the kingdom: the â€Å"multiplicity of aethelings†32 would not infrequently compete for the kingship. The Historia Regum attributed to Simeon of Durham demonstrates that four different dynasties competed for the Northumbrian throne between 759 and 796, with murders, exiles and (probably forced) tonsures being common.33 Similarly, there is evidence of the threat of dynastic instability in Mercia, in that Offa decided to eliminate his son Cenwulf’s potential competitors; Alcuin attributes conflict in Cenwulf’s reign to this policy and says that â€Å"this was not the strengthening of his kingdom, but its ruin†. 34 Given that there were such internal problems, it is hardly surprising that kingdoms could lose overlordship quickly, as dynastic politics came to predominate. The importance of dynastic stability is seen in the eventual rise of Wessex: Egbert’s successes against Mercia came when the latter was probably engaged in dynastic wrangles; Campbell suspects that neither Ludeca (825-7) nor Wiglaf (827-40) were related to their predecessors. On the other hand, the West Saxon succession was more stable, as Dumville points out: this is seen in the succession in turn of Aethelwulf’s sons, even if it did not conform entirely to Aethelwulf’s intentions. However, dynastic tension was generally a feature of the pre-Viking period: this contributed to the rapid rise and fall of kingdoms, meaning that overlordship could not consolidate into unification. We do therefore see a trend towards greater overlordships in this period, though it must be noted that this trend was gradual and not entirely linear. Nevertheless, it is clear that certain kings were able to exert influence over far larger areas just before the Viking invasions than others could at the beginning of the Anglo-Saxon period. However, it would be unwise to extrapolate this trend and interpret it as some kind of progression towards the eventual unification of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms under the West Saxons. It became harder to translate overlordship into political amalgamation as kingdoms grew, and overlordship was not itself stable, given the internal vicissitudes of kingdoms. We see that, before the later ninth and tenth centuries, no kingdom could sustain overlordship for long and, in the absence of recognised institutions of overlordship, this meant that whatever progress might conceivably have been made towards unification under one overlord was lost when his kingdom’s power waned. The rise of Wessex was predicated upon factors that mostly could not have been foreseen: it was able to take advantage of the weakness of the other English kingdoms in the wake of the Viking attacks and could exploit the latent sense of religious unity, which was probably made stronger by the common, external, pagan threat. Bassett’s extended metaphor of a knockout football competition, which inevitably produces a single winner, is not particularly apposite; while we might nowadays modify Kemble’s nineteenth century allusions (he described overlordship as â€Å"a mere fluctuating superiority such as we may find in Hawaii, Tahiti or New Zealand, due to success in war and lost in turn by defeat†35), his basic conclusion, that the overlordships that we see in the pre-Viking Anglo-Saxon kingdoms were not leading inexorably towards unification, still seems entirely reasonable. Bibliography Sources: Adomnan, Life of Columba, ed. and trans. R. Sharpe (1995) Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, in ‘English Historical Documents’, i, 1, ed. and trans. D. Whitelock (1955) Beowulf, trans. S. Heaney (1999) Bede, Ecclesiastical History, ed. and trans. B. Colgrave and R.A.B. Mynors (1969) Bede, Letter to Egbert, in ‘English Historical Documents’, i, 170, ed. and trans. D. Whitelock (1955) Eddius, Life of St Wilfred, in ‘English Historical Documents’, i, 154, ed. and trans. D. Whitelock (1955) Simeon of Durham, Historia Regum, in ‘English Historical Documents’, i, 3, ed. and trans. D. Whitelock (1955) Charters: in ‘English Historical Documents’, i, 54, 66-7, 76-7, 79-80, 85-7 Letters: in ‘English Historical Documents’, i, 165-6, 177-9, 191-3, 195, 197-200, 202, 204-5, 208-10, ed. and trans. D. Whitelock (1955) Secondary works: S. Bassett (ed.), The Origins of the Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms (1989) M.P. Brown and C.A. Farr (eds.), Mercia: An Anglo-Saxon Kingdom in Europe (2001) J. Campbell, Bede’s Reges and Principes (Jarrow Lecture 1979), in J. Campbell, Essays in Anglo-Saxon History (1986) J. Campbell (ed.), The Anglo-Saxons (1982) J. Campbell, The Impact of the Sutton Hoo Discovery on the Study of Anglo-Saxon History, in J. Campbell, The Anglo-Saxon State (2000) W. Davies and H. Vierck, The Contexts of the Tribal Hidage: Social Aggregates and Settlement Patterns, in ‘Frà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½hmittelalterliche Studien 8’ (1974) D.N. Dumville, The Aetheling: a study in Anglo-Saxon Constitutional History, in ‘Anglo-Saxon England 8’ (1979) D.N. Dumville, The Terminology of Overkingship in Early Anglo-Saxon England, in ‘The Anglo-Saxons from the Migration Period to the Eighth Century: An Ethnographic Perspective’, ed. J. Hines (1997) N.J. Higham, An English Empire: Bede and the early Anglo-Saxon kings (1995) D. Hill, Offa’s Dyke: Pattern and Purpose, in ‘Antiquaries Journal 80’ (2000) E. John, Orbis Britanniae and the Anglo-Saxon Kings, in E. John, ‘Orbis Britanniae’ (1966) J.M. Kemble, The Saxons in England, ed. and revised W. De G. Birch (1876) S. Keynes, Raedwald the Bretwalda, in ‘Voyage to the Other World: the Legacy of Sutton Hoo’, ed. C.B. Kendall and P.S. Wells (1992) S. Keynes, England 700-900, in ‘The New Cambridge Medieval History II, c.700-c.900’, ed. R. McKitterick (1995) D.P. Kirby, The Making of Early England (1967) D.P. Kirby, The Earliest English Kings (1991) J.N.L. Myres, Anglo-Saxon Pottery and the Settlement of England (1969) P.H. Sawyer, From Roman Britain to Norman England (1998) F.M. Stenton, The Supremacy of the Mercian Kings (1918), in F.M. Stenton, ‘Preparatory to Anglo-Saxon England’ (1970) F.M. Stenton, Anglo-Saxon England (1971) A. Williams, Kingship and Government in Pre-Conquest England c.500-1066 (1999) P. Wormald, Bede, the Bretwaldas and the Origins of the Gens Anglorum, in ‘Ideal and Reality in Frankish and Anglo-Saxon Society: Studies presented to J.M. Wallace-Hadrill’, ed. P. Wormald et al. (1983) P. Wormald, The Venerable Bede and the Church of the English, ‘The English Religious Tradition and the Genius of Anglicanism’, ed. G. Rowell (1992) B. Yorke, Kings and Kingdoms of Early Anglo-Saxon England (1990) 1 Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, 865 2 Bede, Ecclesiastical History, ii, 5 3 Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, 485, 491, 568, 577, 584 4 Bede, Ecclesiastical History, i, 25; ii, 3; ii, 5 5 Bede, Ecclesiastical History, i, 32 6 Bede, Ecclesiastical History, ii, 5; ii, 9 7 Bede, Ecclesiastical History, ii, 9; iii, 7 8 Bede, Ecclesiastical History, ii, 14 9 Bede, Ecclesiastical History, ii, 16 10 Bede, Ecclesiastical History, v, 23 11 Bede, Ecclesiastical History, iii, 30 12 Eddius, Life of St Wilfred, 20 13 English Historical Documents, i, 67 14 English Historical Documents, i, 76 15 English Historical Documents, i, 77 16 English Historical Documents, i, 80 17 English Historical Documents, i, 85 18 English Historical Documents, i, 87 19 Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, 829 20 Bede, Ecclesiastical History, ii, 5; iii, 24 21 Eddius, Life of St Wilfred, 20 22 Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, 829 23 Kirby, The Making of Early England, p 54 24 Adomnan, Life of Columba, i, 1 25 English Historical Documents, i, 177 26 English Historical Documents, i, 178 27 English Historical Documents, i, 191, 198, 210 28 English Historical Documents, i, 204, 205 29 Beowulf, lines 72-3 30 Bede, Letter to Egbert 31 English Historical Documents, i, 165 32 Dumville, The aetheling: a study in Anglo-Saxon constitutional history, p 13 33 Simeon of Durham, Historia Regum, in English Historical Documents, i, 3 34 English Historical Documents, i, 202 35 Kemble, The Saxons in England, volume ii, p 17

History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

History - Essay Example In the 1890 and 1915 elections in the Unite States, the republicans and the democrats joined to draft state laws prohibiting third party candidates from having third names on the ballot in presidential elections. Third party candidates are more likely to win elections easily at the local level which may cost a lot in other aspects of the elections according to Bibby and Schaffner (278). In avoiding this, the American government adopts a unique electoral system of winner-takes-all which allows the domination of two parties only. The third party candidate is said to add more weight on either of the two candidates in an attempt to improve their political agenda after elections. Although these third party candidates rarely emerge as winners, they may have an impact on the elections. For instance they mostly accused with issue of spoiler impact. This is because they it is likely for them expose issues which majority parties may ignore. If the issue is accepted by the voters, the major par ties may adopt it into their party platform. Another impact of third party candidates is that they can be used to pass a protest vote as a type of referendum on a significant issue. This may have the effect of an important issue being voted against due to disagreements between the major parties.

How does depreciation accounting help the firm manage equipment Essay

How does depreciation accounting help the firm manage equipment investment costs and taxes - Essay Example † More so, the question which contains a series of sub-questions will be answered in the order in which these sub-questions have been asked. Current Liabilities usually form a sub-section of the Balance sheet. Typical Current Liabilities of known amounts may include accounts payable, short-term loans, outstanding salaries or other operating expenses that are still outstanding. Accounts payable refer to the amounts that ought to be paid to suppliers for merchandise bought from them in credit terms. Short-term loans are those types of loans that are usually repayable in a time period of less than a year. Outstanding expenses are those expenses that have already been incurred in the business in their day-to-day operations and which are yet to be met but have are already due. For an illustration of how Current Liabilities of known amounts are treated in the accounts, Accounts payable will be used. Whenever accounts payable increase in the business, the accounts payable ledger accou nt is usually credited with the increase while the goods or stock account is debited with a similar amount. The journal entry is usually as illustrated; Dr Cr Amount Stock a/c xx Accounts payable xx Then, this Accounts payable amount has to be put under Current Liabilities sub-section in the Balance Sheet. The other Current Liabilities are also credited with an increase and debited with a decrease. (principlesofaccounting.com, 2011) Estimated Liabilities are those liabilities for which payee is known as well as payment date, but they remain uncertain as concerns their payment amounts. These payment amounts can be estimated with reasonability, though. Uncertainty in the amounts may come about due to the fact that the amounts to be paid are based upon a given event the will occur in future or an amount which determination is not yet. Estimated Current Liabilities maybe with the inclusion of; vacation, bonus, warranty liabilities and health benefits. Any estimated liability is usually recorded for expected commodities in future to be provided in that future period. Whenever payments are met that estimated liability is usually reduced and to reflect the same in the Balance Sheet the equivalent account of estimated Current Liability in question is debited and the double entry is also reflected in the equivalent account. When a payment of an estimated current liability is made the journal entry is as follows (using health benefits as an example): Dr Cr Amount Health Benefit xx Cash/ Check xx (harpercollege.edu, 2008) Contingent Liabilities are liabilities that are connected with uncertain events. To this, the explanation given in any typical business is that some events are likely to eventually lead to a liability; however, the timing of such an event as well as the amount is not possible at present. Such liabilities are thus, referred to as Contingent Liabilities. Examples of Current Liabilities befitting this description are Legal disputes which are ongoing and wh ich may cause a contingent liability to the business, environmental pollution that may call for the business to cover the cost in future, or other liabilities like commodity warranties. However, it should be noted

Arts of China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Arts of China - Essay Example The advent of the computing technology saw the introduction of new platforms to aid artists in their work.The following discourse specifically focuses on how arts has been influenced through technology. In specific, it gives inferences to china as the focus of the topic. Computers introduced desktop publishing as well as computer aided designs, examples of the influence they have on arts. There are various software in the market that are used for producing artistic images and creations. It has influenced virtually every aspect of arts including music, paintings, as well as in designing. The use of computers in arts has its drawbacks and benefits. One of the arguments fronted by those who are against technology is that it suppresses the very artistic talents that it is supposed to promote. The platforms provide easier ways of producing the various forms of ort that the innate creativity in a person is not nurtured at all. However, this argument is not admissible since technology only makes work easier for mankind. Consequently, the use of computing in arts is to aid and develop the art in ways in which it can be embraced by all. Computers use software and applications make drawing and creation of arts easier. Besides, the applications have tutorials that guide users on how to come up with high quality pieces of art. However, despite all these, it is also still evident that there are other aspects that the artists must have; computers may help with drawings but will not communicate the intended idea unless the artist employs creativity. The artist must thus have a sense of color balance and know the effective use of colors to communicate. Colors have their meanings and using one instead of the other can take the whole picture out of context (Sullivan 87). Just as stated, art is a channel of communication. Paintings and drawings have been used in the past to overcome cultural or even language barriers. One aspect communicated through arts is identity. This determi nes one’s likes and preferences. These are easily manifest in arts and come out flawlessly through creative expression. For instance, an artist would easily employ a favorite color, which is the most common manner of expressing identity. Additionally, identity exposes the cultural practices of a community within which one lives. The images an artist chooses to draw and the manner in which tit is done portray the cultural practices alluded in a an artist’s imaginations. Daoism and Confucianism Daoism and Confucianism are two philosophical provisions largely manifest in Chinese arts. Confucianism rejects unwarranted emotions and beliefs in superstitions. It espouses that logic and reason can solve most, if not all, human problems. Daoism, on the other hand, provides for a natural life; this is a life lived in ascribing to the provisions of nature. The two may appear conflicting but strike a common ground in the need for people to live on the naturally occurring and visib le aspects of life. Trying to explain the unknown by use of myths and spirits begets delusion. This dictate is manifest in the Chinese arts through creation of artifacts that give more credence to nature and ignoring the beliefs in illogical superstitions and beliefs in spirits (Sullivan 132). Foreign invasion is a feature that affects the entire culture and organization of the society. In arts and craft, artists begin developing interest in the

Short Answer questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Short Answer questions - Essay Example Microbes are found to have healthy effects on humans and there are multiple benefits attached to the consumption of Probiotic Microbes; for instance, they improve the functioning of digestive system, reduce the side effects of antibiotics and risk of acute infectious diseases, improve the absorption of lactose and develop immunity (California Dairy Research Foundation, 2011). The Human Digestive System is made up of Gastrointestinal Tract which is composed of organs including Oesophagus; from where the food travels to the Stomach; here food undergoes the effect of several enzymes and acids which further break down the food particles. Then it comes to Small intestine; where further digestion takes place and the digested material enters the blood stream. Undigested food is moved to the Large intestine where water is absorbed and then the food is expelled out of the body through anus. Any disturbance in this process leads to Gastrointestinal Diseases (Nutricia, 2010). Probiotics have the ability to manipulate the intestinal physiology by direct or indirect intonation of immune system or endogenous ecosystem; therefore they can be used for the treatment of gastrointestinal diseases (Philippe R. Marteau et al., 2001). There are significant evidences which suggest that Probiotics are beneficial for the treatment gastrointestinal tract including chronic inflammatory diseases (Eamonn P Culligan et al., 2009). Diarrhea as defined by the World Health Organization is the condition in which 3 or more loose stools are excreted in every 24 hours. It is caused by virus and parasitic organisms. A person usually gets infected with diarrhea due to the consumption of contaminated food or drink. If not treated on time; it might lead to severe fluid loss in addition to the loss of other body minerals (WHO, 2013). Probiotics are found to be effective in early recovery of diarrhea. A study was conducted

My Three Most Recent Classical Escapades Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

My Three Most Recent Classical Escapades - Essay Example Eight months ago, I was opportune to have the London Symphony Orchestra in a rare spectacle at Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. The orchestra under Valery Gergiev’s direction had created for the audience a milestone high with raptures of Prokofiev’s fifth and sixth symphonies (LSO Press) becoming that indescribable moment the lifeblood of the violin concerto which the ensemble took to the level of genius. The raving Russian conductor had had his very peculiar way of getting every bow on chord to regulate textures of rhythm with a wide range of crescendo from which to pick an element either of mildness or of severity. Laid back on my seat some ten meters from the stage, tensions fastened with me every shaken sense that my appreciation grew with intense curiosity from one level on to the next as if a wide-eyed scene shut into suspense. A particular story was being weaved movement upon movement like an act in a play, while the tempo brought indications where tragedy must come in, the point to remain as such or otherwise jolt-free with the magical winds, as their collaboration with the strings awaited subsidence of the latter to tell which part would relax cardiac beating.

Undertake a suitable critical environmental audit for a well known Essay - 2

Undertake a suitable critical environmental audit for a well known Western brand considering entering Saudi Arabia - Essay Example The macro environment refers to the factors in the nation within which the business seeks to operate. Henry (2008) states that macro environmental audit is mainly about the factors that affect entire population of the whole country within which the organisation operates. The main tool for this is PESTEL. Saudi Arabia is a monarchy ruled by a king. The current king, Abdullah bin Abdulaziz was enthroned in August 2005. Ever since he came into power, he has sought to make reforms to a nation that was mainly ran by the Royal family and the religious elite who ruled according to strict Islamic codes and systems (Ramady, 2010). There are reforms that are being made to enable people to take part in governance. Also, the reforms aim to cut down on government interference in the economy. However, due to the central and exemplary role that Saudi Arabia plays in the Arab and Muslim world, the reforms are being practiced at a very slow pace. Governance at all levels are controlled and affected by members of the Royal family (The House of Sauds) and their agents and representatives. Also, the religious elites are very powerful and they have a lot of say in the policies of the nation, which remains for strategic and international purposes, influenced mainly by Sharia. The Saudi economy is based on the export of crude oil. Saudi Arabia’s GDP stood at US$622.5 billion in 2010 (CIA World Factbook). The main authority in charge of the regulation of the financial sector is the Saudi Arabia Monetary Agency, which is the Central Bank. Taxes are collected by the Department of Zakat and Income Tax. Income tax is levied on non-Saudi individuals and entities. Saudi Arabian citizens and entities are normally exempt from taxation. Also, most non-Saudi individual salaries and employment benefits are tax-free (SaudiNet). It is only professional foreigners and foreign investment income that

Leadership - MAO ZEDONG Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Leadership - MAO ZEDONG - Essay Example The story of Mao Zedong is one the Chinese reflect on to date. People understand that the situation of his growth to a national figure started by the decision to make a difference in the society. The idea was to allow people to understand they had rights. He wanted to show the society that even peasant farmers have a voice when it comes to making the choices within the society. He was born to wealthy farmer. From the beginning, Mao took up the nationalism sceptre as his guide towards the issues taking place within the organization. In many sessions, Mao was willing to lead the people towards a revolution and create a platform that would give them a say in the issues of the society (Shuyun, 2006). However, upon taking the leadership, he created the People’s Republic of China and stated that one party, the Communist Party of China, would control it. This reduced the participation of the people because only those accepted at the party level would have a chance at the leadership levels in the country. He played a psychological card that made it easy for him to consolidate his leadership in the country after taking up his position as the leader of the new republic (Shuyun, 2006). He wanted to see the country develop and his idea of the great leap forward was to see the country better managed, developing, and increasing its appeal to everyone across the world. People would get a chance to participate in the growth by learning new skills that would be essential for the general improvement of their lives. This set the country apart towards the achievement of greatness (Chang, & Halliday, 2005). A variety of leadership styles can be used to define the life of Mao as a leader of the great country of China. At the very start of his journey towards meeting the ideals of his people as a revolutionary, Mao was using a contingency theory of leader. Here, the leader knew that the only way of making it work in the country was by changing the leadership styles to

An Intelligence View of Music Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

An Intelligence View of Music Education - Essay Example This certainly puts a whole new perspective on music education. Parents and teachers can now understand the great potential that resides un-explored in the mind of a child and know that music holds the key to unlock that potential. The narrative style is very simple and easy to follow. That is another achievement by Dr Harvey as he has spared us the high-sounding, difficult to pronounce technical jargon associated with brain studies. Sequential details make it easy to follow the chronology of development in this field. The under-tone of the article is that after knowing the unique qualities of music education, it does not have to remain an "extra-curricular" activity. As Ives said, "Music expands my mind and challenges me to be a true individual". That is good enough reason to make music education a part of education curriculum. Research Proposal Music Education - Just Arts or Smarts "Music is about communication, creativity, and cooperation, and, by studying music in school, students have the opportunity to build on these skills, enrich their lives, and experience the world from a new perspective". These words of former President Bill Clinton sum up the point of view of music education proponents. The advocates of music education consider music education essential for development of both intellectual and aesthetic faculties. Several studies have confirmed that music directly enhances learning through increased spatial development. Math and reading are improved by learning rhythms and decoding notes and symbols. So there appears to be cross disciplinary learning in music.[1]. On the internet, www.childrenmusicworkshop.com is a strong advocate of music education. They say that, "it is...â€Å"Music is about communication, creativity, and cooperation, and, by studying music in school, students have the opportunity to build on these skills, enrich their lives, and experience the world from a new perspective†. These words of former President Bill Clinton sum up the point of view of music education proponents. The advocates of music education consider music education essential for development of both intellectual and aesthetic faculties. Several studies have confirmed that music directly enhances learning through increased spatial development. Math and reading are improved by learning rhythms and decoding notes and symbols. So there appears to be cross disciplinary learning in music.[1]. On the internet, www.childrenmusicworkshop.com is a strong advocate of music education. They say that, â€Å"it is an anomaly that while music is undermined in our public schools as a legitimate subject for serious study, there is a rise in the body of research demonstrating that music is a valuable tool for educators. Those who consider music to be an extra-curricular activity unworthy of inclusion as a core subject are overlooking the unique qualities that music instruction provides to all children†. [2]. In the words of Dr Arthur Harvey of the University of Hawaii (Manoa) :- â€Å"Three major developments in recent years have strengthened our position in promoting music as a significant and research supported discipline that ought to be the core of the curriculum.

Square Pharma Essay Example for Free

Square Pharma Essay The scope of the report was based on the annual reports web site, input from interviews of executives of the SQUARE Pharmaceuticals Limited. To analyze the situation in question, we worked on focusing on SQUARE Pharmaceuticals Limited and analyzing their objectives, market strategies, market situations, product mixes, etc. The analysis was based on the exposed and available information only. In-depth data were not always available on-demand due to some unavailable reasons. SWOT analysis of the company has been done. Objective of the study: The specific objectives aimed for this report is to analyze the environmental factors that influence the marketing sector of SQUARE Pharmaceuticals Limited. Methodology: Information used to prepare this report has been collected from both the primary and secondary sources which together provided more comprehensive information. Collection of the data: An open discussion method was followed to gather primary information by informally interviewing the various executives of the company. Participants were purposefully selected as they commonly engaged in marketing directly or indirectly. Observations were also used to collect primary data while working in different desks. The secondary data was accumulated from two sources- a. internal and b. external. The former sources were annual reports, periodicals, articles and brochures published by the company. So in later we use journals, research papers and articles from various online sources. Limitations of the Study: This report suffered from several limitations: †¢ The most important of them was â€Å"time constraint†. Time was not adequate to complete the study more perfectly. †¢ Another important limitation was â€Å"inaccessibility in many section of the organization†. We confronted difficulties in getting appointment from the desired respondents as well as appropriate response from the selected respondents due to being confidential for the company. †¢ This report also suffered from inadequate secondary information. †¢ This report’s factual accuracy may be compromised due to out-of-date information. †¢ The findings may not be generalized to the SPL as a whole. About SQUARE pharmaceuticals Ltd: SQUARE Pharmaceuticals Limited is the largest pharmaceutical Company in Bangladesh and is leading the Pharmaceuticals sector from the very beginning. It has been continuously in the 1st position among all national and multinational companies since 1985. It was established in 1958 and converted into a public limited company in 1991. The sales turnover of SQUARE Pharmaceuticals Ltd was more than Taka 7.5 Billion (US$ 107.91 million) with about 16.92%market share (April 2006– March 2007) having a growth rate of about 23.17%. SQUARE Pharmaceuticals Limited is an organization with equal emphasis on Leadership, Technology, Quality and Passion. SQUARE Pharmaceuticals Ltd. is the leading branded generic pharmaceutical manufacturer in Bangladesh producing essential and other ethical drugs and medicines by maintaining the quality. SQUARE today symbolizes a name a state of mind. But its journey to the growth and prosperity has been no bed of roses. From the inception in 1958, it has today burgeoned into one of the top line conglomerates in Bangladesh. SQUARE Pharmaceuticals Ltd., the flagship company, is holding the strong leadership position in the pharmaceutical industry of Bangladesh since 1985and is now on its way to becoming a high performance global player. SQUARE Pharmaceuticals started as a Partnership Firm in 1958. It converted into a Private Limited Company in 1964. The company made its initial price offering in 1995. It has achieved MHRA certificate as the first pharmaceutical company of Bangladesh. Environmental factors influencing the marketing activities of SQUARE pharmaceuticals Ltd: Environmental factors and forces that exist in our outside marketing affect marketing management’s ability to build and maintain successful relationship with target customers. And successful companies like â€Å"SQUARE pharmaceuticals Ltd† know the vital importance of constantly watching and adapting to the changing environment. Microenvironment of SQUARE pharmaceuticals Ltd: TheCompany: In designing marketing plans marketing management takes other company groups into account-groups such as top management, finance, research and development, purchasing, operations and accounting. SQUARE strives for best compensation to all the employees who constitute the back-bone of the management and operational strength of the company through a pay-package composing salary/wages, allowances, bonuses, profit participation, leave salary and superannuation retirement benefits. Suppliers: Suppliers like as- different in regents of making pharmaceuticals products, packaging related products and others. They provide the resources needed by the company to produce its goods and services. Supplier’s problem can seriously affect marketing. SQUARE strives for the best co-operation of suppliers who offer them at the best prices at the opportune moments. Marketing Intermediaries: Marketing intermediaries includes resellers, physical distribution firms, marketing services agencies and financial intermediaries. SQUARE pharmaceuticals Ltd do not have physical distribution firms or marketing services. But they influenced by reseller and financial intermediaries to market their goods and services. Customers: The five types of customer markets are consumer, business, reseller, government and international market. Square strives, for top quality health care products at the least cost reaching the lowest rungs of the economic class of people in the country. Square values our social obligations. SQUARE pharmaceuticals Ltd have enough capturing power in all the customer markets. That is why they are in leading role in pharmaceuticals business in Bangladesh. Competitors: The marketing concept states that to be successful, a company must provide greater customers value and satisfaction than its competitors do. A team of scientific pharmaceutical experts who continuously conduct research development programs for improving quality of products, reduction of cost, adaptation of products that are free of intellectual property rights and innovative products. These efforts have enabled the company to add new products to its product lines every year to the benefit of the common men of the country and the shareholders. The success in this field has secured the leading position for the company in the pharmaceutical sector. Publics: Any group has an actual or potential interest in or impact on an organizational ability to achieve its objectives. They are financial, media, government, citizen action, local, general and internal publics. SQUARE strives for best compensation to all the employees who constitute the back-bone of the management and operational strength of the company through a pay-package composing salary/wages, allowances, bonuses, profit participation, leave salary and superannuation retirement benefits. Square strives for practicing good-governance in every sphere of activities covering inter alia not being limited to, disclosure reporting to shareholders, holding AGM in time, distribution of dividends and other benefits to shareholders, reporting/dissemination of price sensitive information, acquisition of shares by insiders, recruitment promotion of staff, procurement supplies, sale of assets etc. all that directly and indirectly affect the interest of concerned groups the shareholders, the creditors, suppliers, employees, government and the public in general. Macro environment of SQUARE pharmaceuticals Ltd: Demographic environment: Demography is the study of human, populations in terms of age, density, location, gender, race, occupation and other. SQUARE pharmaceuticals Ltd is the pioneer of pharmaceuticals business in our country. So they our countries overall population and gradually they are capturing the international market. Square strives for equality between sexes, races, religions and regions in all spheres of our operation without any discriminatory treatment. Economic environment: This environment consists of buying and selling pattern, spending power, income, saving patterns of a group and this environment can discussed in two ways – (1) Subsistence and (2) Industrial economics. Square owes their shareholders and strive for protection of their capital as well as ensure highest return and growth of their assets. SQUARE pharmaceutical is influenced by the economic environment of our country directly. Economic conditions influence the growth and continuation of their entire business operations. Natural environment: Marketers take natural resources as input. Considerations of marketers in case of their awareness about natural resources are (1) Shortage in supply of raw materials (2) Increased population (3) Government interventions, SQUARE pharmaceuticals Ltd produce and distributes their product by their own. So they are aware of above and considerations for their betterment. Square strives for an environment free from pollution and poisoning. Technological environment: Incase of capture the following and need markets, marketers should consider the facts and they are (1) Accelerating pace of technological change, (2) New markets and opportunities, (3) Innovational oppurtunities.The international market become more competitive due to globalization. So technological environment and it’s considering factors are a matter of concern of importer and their marketing. SQUARE pharmaceuticals Ltd is endeavoring to upgrade and adopt new technology in production, quality control, distribution and administration of its products to patients. During the year (2007-2008) the company invested an amount of Tk. 36,424,234 in improving its Laboratory. Political environment: The considerations of political environment are- (1) Legislation regulation of business, (2) Changing government agency enforcement, (3) Increased emphasis on ethics and society, (4) Political situation. The political condition of our country is not so stable. So SQUARE pharmaceuticals Ltd faced many damage due to change in political condition of our country. Square strives for fulfillment the responsibility to the government through payment of entire range of due taxes, duties and claims by various public agencies like municipalities etc. Cultural environment: Incase of cultural environment, a company should think about following considerations (1) People views of themselves, (2) People views of society,(3) People views of organization (4) People views of nature,(5) People views of universe. Square strives for the achievement of millennium development goals for the human civilization. Square strives for an environment free from pollution and poisoning. Square strives, as responsible citizen, for a social order devoid of malpractices, anti-environmental behaviors, unethical and immoral activities and corruptive dealings.

Strengthening Community Action Through Community Development Social Work Essay

Strengthening Community Action Through Community Development Social Work Essay Although the term empowerment is frequently used, the availability of high-quality research which demonstrates its success for improving the wellbeing of communities is fairly minimal (Woodall et al. 2010). There is, however, some evidence that shows that empowerment programs can lead to improve outcomes for participants. For example, in examining the effectiveness of interventions using community development approach, the Migrant Resource Centre of South Australia, which provides programs that targets particular community groups, including women, younger people, has recorded some promising ability to impact the lives of young refugees (MRCSA Annual Report, 2009). In fact, this essay argues that while community development interventions are difficult to measure, the migrant Resource Centre of South Australia has registered significant gains in the area of youth empowerment. This essay will highlight the various intervention programs implemented by the Migrant Resource Centre of South Australia (MRCSA). However, case study will focus on its youth empowerment component and to evaluate the overall effectiveness of community development approach of the organisation. To achieve this task, the essay is partitioned as follows. The first part will examine the definitions of empowerment. The next section will discuss about community development as a strategy and a model of practice by the Migrant Resource Centre of South Australia (MRCSA). The third section discusses the impact and challenges of this intervention. The final part of the essay will evaluate the impact of MRCSAs youth empowerment program among a number of interventions. Background and definition of the Concept of Empowerment In the 1990s the term empowerment began to replace community participation (Rifkin, 2003). Empowerment according to Rifkin has conceptually evolved from the idea of lay participation in technical activities to a broader concern of improving life situations of the poor. This evolution can be traced historically in the areas of policy and in community activities. In the policy area, Rifkin proposes that three theoretical constructs can be identified to trace the changing view of participatory approaches from consensus building to empowerment. These Rafkin stated correspond to the political and political environment of the time. The historical development of the concept of empowerment helps explain why there is no universally accepted definition of empowerment (Rifkin, 2003). However a number of scholars defined it as a process (McArdle, 1989; Laverack, 2005; Werner, 1988; Kilby, 2002). McArdle (1989) defines empowerment as a process whereby decisions are made by the people who will wear the consequences of those decisions. Similarly Werner (1988) and Laverack (2005) describe the concept of empowerment as a process by which people are able to gain or seize power to control over decisions and resources that determine their lives. Moreover, Kilby (2002) describe a process by which disadvantaged people work together to increase control over events that determine their lives. Expansion of individuals choices and actions, primarily in relation to others à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ fundamentally a shift of power to those who are disempowered. From a public health perspective, empowerment involves acting with communities to achieve their goals (Talbot Verrinder, 2005). This implies working with disadvantaged individuals or groups to challenge structural disadvantaged (on the basis of class, gender, ethnicity or ability) and influence their health in a positive way. The application of the concept into the field of health promotion as outline by Laverack and Labonte (2000) is categorized in two folds; the bottom-up programming and the top-down programming. The former more associated with the concept of community empowerment begins on issues of concern to particular groups or individuals and regards some improvement in their overall power or capacity as the important health outcome. The later more associated with disease prevention efforts begin by seeking to involve particular groups or individuals in issues and activities largely defined by health agencies and regards improvement in particular behaviours as the important h ealth outcome. Laverack and Labonte (2000) thus viewed community empowerment more instrumentally as a means to the end of health behaviour change. They argue that community empowerment which is defined as a shift towards greater equality in the social relations of power is an unavoidable feature of any health promotion efforts. On a much broader scale empowerment promotes participation of people, organisations and communities towards the goals of increased individual and community control, political efficacy, improved quality of community life, and social justice (Wallerstein, 1992). The next section is a case example of how this approach is applied by an agency in dealing with question of social inclusion. Community Development: A case of Migrant Resource Centre of South Australia (MRCSA) By reviewing the previous definitions of empowerment and examining MRCSAs framework, It is clear that the worker in (MRCSA) understand and adopt empowerment concept similar to which all of McArdle (1989); Laverack (2005); Werner (1988); Kilby (2002) and WHO (1986) do understand and adopt where empowerment is a matter of giving people the right and the opportunity to exercise power and control regarding making decisions that affect their health promoting. In addition, in order to empower migrant people and communities, the (MRCSA) provide and still providing number of interventions based on community development model of practice. According to Tesoriero (2010), community development is the use of a set of ongoing structures and processes which enable the community to meet its own needs. Similar to Tesoriero (2010), Community Development is understood and implemented by the (MRCSA) as a multifaceted program of activities that concentrated on supporting the need of new arrivals and their new and emerging communities to understand their rights and obligations, to link into training and employment pathways and to develop networks of support within their local and in the broader community (www.mrcsa.com.au). In fact, The MRCSA has adopted Laverack and Labontes (2000) bottom-up approach in implementing their programs by consult sing and working closely with leaders and key representatives of new and emerging communities, including women and young people, to support them in gaining the knowledge and skills that they need to further their independence as well as their capacity to support and provide assistance to their members. Moreover, beside community development programs, MRCSA is providing number of womens advocacy programs, youth leadership and participation and employment advocacy programs, As well. The programs also include Refugee Mens Talk, an initiative supporting men to adapt to their new social environment. To ensure and facilitate the participation of new and emerging communities in their local areas and in regional areas where they settle, or resettle, the program includes local government and regional initiatives. MRCSA believes that new and emerging communities require a place in which to implement their own activities. The organisation provides these through its own community centres and through linkages with other community facilities. Also, Given that community development as an approach require working across divergent spheres, the Migrant Resource Centre of South Australia (MRCSA) maintain link with a number of stakeholders. These include the Commonwealth Government, the state of South Australia and the NGO community.(www.mrcsa.com.au). At the level of the Commonwealth Government, the links include; Department of Immigration and Citizenship, Centrelink, Employee Advocate, Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs and Australia Council for the Arts. At the level of the State Government the links are; Multicultural SA, Department of Health, Department of Families and Communities, Department of Education and Childrens Services, Skills SA, English Language Services TAFE SA, Arts SA, Office for Women, Womens Information Service, Womens Health State Wide, Local Government Association of SA and Be Active. The links within the Non-Government Sector includes; Settlement Council of Austra lia (SCoA), Refugee Council of Australia, Federation of Ethnic Communities Councils of Australia (FECCA) LM Training Specialists, SA Council of Social Service (SACOSS), Service to Youth Council (SYC), Working Womens Centre, Migrant Womens Support and Accommodation Service, Youth Affairs Council of SA (YACSA), Anglicare SA, African Communities Council (ACCSA), Middle Eastern Communities Council (MECCSA), Volunteering SA and Northern Territory. Analysing this web of networks from Labontes, (1992) community development continuum, the MRCSAs programs deal with individuals which transcend to small groups, community organisations, coalition advocacy and political action. With this wide array of networks, the organization has been facilitated to maintains a huge amount of social capital and through careful co-ordination, it stands a lot to gain in achieving its primary objectives (Butter et al. 1966) The next section will focus on one of its many programs in the area of youth enhancement. Youth Empowerment Program The Migrant Resource Centre of South Australia (MRCSA) works closely with the leadership and key representatives of its client communities, including women and young people to support them in acquiring the knowledge and skills that they need to further their independence and self-determination, as well as their capacity to assist their members with their settlement and participation (www.mrcsa.com.au)). These goals are achieved through a number of programs including ethnic leaders forum, adult migrant education, community management and leadership forum by way of funding and leadership training. This section focuses on its youth empowerment program with emphasis on the Newly Arrived Youth Settlement Services (NAYS). The primary objective of this program as outlined in the MRCSA Annual Report (2008-2009) is to empower young people to develop their own programs and to become advocates for themselves, their families and communities. In partnership with TAFE SA, the MRCSA conducted a number of training programs for young people who were not engaged in school or work. Specific training includes Certificate II in Information Technology, Productively Places Program Certificate II, Volunteering, work experience capacity building, apprentiships and traineeships (MRCSA Annual Report (2008-2009). Through its new arrival humanitarian settlement program, the MRCSA has been an advocate and a voice for the inclusion and participation of young people of refugee background (www.mrcsa.com.au). According to the 2010 MRCSA Youth Empowerment Program Annual Report, the program has since 1998 addressed the needs of young people from new and emerging communities in South Australia through a multi-faceted program. The program provides young people with a range of services that aim to further their resilience, leadership skills and pathways to employment and independence. The MRCSA Youth Empowerment Program for 2008-2009 provided assistance to five hundred and twenty-nine (529) young people of refugee background, most of them recent arrivals to South Australia, to achieve some of their goals (Annual Report 2009-2010). These achievements were based on strong foundations upon which MRCSA operate. The next section will discuss the guiding principles which form the basis of MRCSAs operations. MRCSA Guiding Principles The Migrant Resource Centre of South Australias philosophy and approach in working with young people from refugee backgrounds outline a number of guiding principles (Annual Report, 2008-2009). The principles discussed below indicate that MRCSA operates Laverack and Labontes (2000) bottom-up approach of community development. The guiding principles include the following: Firstly, any youth programs, initiatives or activities are shaped and driven by the young people themselves through consultation with their peers. Secondly, young people are encouraged and supported to speak for themselves to drive their own development; the role of the MRCSA is that of mentor and advisor only. Thirdly, the importance of young peoples connection to family and community is recognized, valued and supported. Fourthly, the ethnic, religious and cultural identity and heritage of young people is affirmed and respected. Fifthly, respect for gender differences and how these impact on the planning and delivery of the youth program. Also, young people are active decision makers. Finally, an action research approach informs continuous service improvement and best practice. These guiding principles are based on the premise that empowerment strategies focus on what people can do to empower themselves and so deflect attention from social issues (Keleher et al. 2007; Keleher, and Murphy, 2004) . However, Labonte (1990) warns that unless national and international trends are taken into account, the decentralization of decision-making may shift from victim blaming of individuals to victimizing powerless communities. In view of such warnings, Wilson et al (1999) suggest that effective primary health care as in the case of public health functions depends on efforts to link local issues to broader social issues. Intersectoral action can be used to promote and achieve shared goals in a number of other areas, for example policy, research, planning, practice and funding. It may be implemented through a myriad of activities including advocacy, legislation, community projects, and policy and programme action. It may take different forms such as cooperative initiativ es, alliances, coalitions or partnerships (Health Canada http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca) What are the Barriers? In achieving their goal of empowering communities, the Migrant Resource Centre of South Australia (MRCSA) faces a number of challenging issues. When young refugees arrive in Australia they face a number of challenges. They need to begin a new life, establish new friends and networks and find pathways that link them into mainstream community (MRCSA Annual Report, 2008-2009). Some young people may also be at risk and need to deal with issues around language, religious identity, grief and loss, the justice system, consumer culture and intergenerational tension (MRCSA Annual Report, 2008-2009). Young people also need ways of dealing with race, racism and their identity (MRCSA Annual Report, 2008-2009). There are fewer opportunities for young women from new and emerging communities to participate in sport due to the barriers they experience from within sporting environments and their own communities (MRCSA Annual Report, 2009). These barriers can be based on cultural, religious, and gender expectations of young women and their roles in their community. The report (MRCSA, 2009) also highlighted other factors affecting young women participation in sports. These include; lack of parental support, perceived fear of racism, lack of knowledge about the structure of sport in Adelaide and high cost of membership and registration fees. On the other hand, community development approach can pose barriers to Public Health Practitioners in a number of ways. Epidemiological, sociological, and psychological evidence of the relationship between influence, control, and health, provide a rationale for a community empowerment approach to health education. For example, studies show an association between powerlessness (or similarly, learned helplessness, alienation, exploitation) and mental and physical health status. Examining the application of community empowerment approach to health education, Israel (1994) identified a number of limitations and barriers to this approach. Firstly, situations where community members past experiences and normative beliefs result in feelings that they do not have influence within the system (powerlessness, quiescence) and hence, they may feel that getting involved in an empowerment intervention would not be worthwhile. Secondly, differences in, for example, social class, race, ethnicity, tha t often exist between community members and health educators that may impede trust, communication, and collaborative work. Thirdly, role-related tensions and differences that may arise between community members and health educators around the issues of values and interests, resources and skills, control, political realities, and rewards. Fourthly, difficulty in assessing/measuring community empowerment and being able to show that change has occurred. Fifthly, the health education profession does not widely understand and value this Approach. Next, risks involved with and potential resistance encountered when challenging the status quo, for the individual, organizations, and community as well as the health educator. Seventhly, the short time-frame expectations of some health educators, their employers, and community members are inconsistent with the sustained effort that this approach requires in terms of long-time commitment of financial and personal resources. Finally, the collecti on and analysis of extensive amounts of both qualitative and quantitative data to be used for action as well as evaluation purposes may be perceived as slowing down the process. Inspire of these barriers, community development is still relevant to Public Health Practitioners. Epidemiological, sociological, and psychological evidence of the relationship between influence, control, and health, provide a rationale for a community development approach to health education (Israel, 1994). For example, studies show an association between powerlessness (or similarly, learned helplessness, alienation, exploitation) and mental and physical health status (Israel, 1994). The challenges posed by community development approach also extend to the wider arena of state level. The demand on government and competition for resources by professionals is a major obstacle. Similarly, Inter-professional distrust and reluctance to share information also remains a major obstacle. The way in which governments fund departments can be an obstacle to collaboration (Baum, 1993). It is therefore argued that Stability of an organisation and its staff is important for interagency agreements and establishing trust (Walker et al. 2000). Walker (2002) further argued that Competition for resources can affect trust and intergroup conflict can occur when there is a lack of adversaries. However, insecurity brought on by political and economic uncertainty can facilitate political coalitions (Weisner, 1983). Overcoming the barriers Overcoming the barriers will require a concerted effort from communities, concerned organisations and government. The Proceedings of 2008 the Conference on Social Inclusion for New and Emerging Communities, outline some of the areas that need urgent interventions are discussed below. Racism and discrimination Identified as a major area of concern, combating discrimination requires coordinated and targeted social inclusion and human right measures. The focus should not be limited to what occurs in a social context (e.g. schoolyard, public places etc.) but also the systemic racism that supports discrimination, the perpetuation of racial stereotypes, and institutional inclusion e.g. within the justice system, the employment sector and in the blocks to the recognition of overseas qualifications and experience as well as the registration and utilization of these. Women and safety Women should have the right to feel safe in their homes as well as the broader community, to access culturally appropriate services for themselves and their families (e.g. health, childcare, education etc ), to learn English without it compromising their chances at finding a job and to undertake training that prepares them for work and improve their employment potential. Empowering young people The voices of the diversity of young people rather than a token representative from new and emerging communities must be listened to and give strong credence in the advance of a national or state framework for social inclusion. Supporting the empowerment and participation of young people as future citizens and leaders of Australia will serve the country culturally, socially and economically. Base on the above discussion in the case of challenges to MRCSA operations, solutions to barriers could be summarized therein; Barriers can be overcome through integrated structures, developing responsibility within structures Support of local leaders, developing leadership skills for negotiation and collaboration. Enhancing Regional networks/structures, established processes and relationships are important for collaboration. Conclusion From the case studies, it was found that the Migrant Resource Centre of South Australia (MRCSA) utilize community mobilization approaches to improve equity of services, reduce institutional barriers within the society, enhance participation in new and emerging communities, strengthen civil society associations and create healthy social policies. The programs demonstrated that opportunities for community voices to be heard had been increased and this had raised community capacity to maximise their needs and create change. This study also found that empowerment can have a positive impact on participants self-efficacy, self-esteem, sense of community and sense of control and, in some cases, empowerment can increase individuals knowledge and awareness and lead to behaviour change. These findings were particularly apparent on youth empowerment approaches and those programmes concerning young women.