Mental illness Essay Example

Mental illness Essay Example Mental illness Essay Mental illness Essay Health is not the absence of disease but it is a state in which an individual is physically, mentally and psychologically well. When looking at health, you have to consider both the structural, emotional and chemical health of the body. Emotional health involves peoples’ attitudes and thoughts which play a great role in the overall health of an individual. The body is considered to be structurally health when organs, muscles, bones and other body parts are physically health without any damage. Chemical health exists when there is a chemical balance in our body such that toxic chemicals are gotten rid off. I choose this definition because it incorporates every part of the body: psychological aspect, physical and chemical aspect. An individual may not be suffering from a disease but still be considered as unhealthy if there is chemical imbalance in the body or his/her body structures are not sound. Aspects such as body mass index, weight/height ratio are important in determining an individual’s physical health (Tilden, 2005). Mental health: Mental health differs from one individual to the other with others being mentally healthier than others. It is said that we all suffer from some form of mental illness that cannot be medically diagnosed. For one to be mentally health, he/she should be able to enjoy life, be flexible and self actualized. This is achieved through activities such as mindfulness meditation that allow an individual to get the best out of the present. Flexibility on opinions can also enhance the mental health of an individual. Individuals who are rigid in their opinions may end up developing mental problems as a result of stress from the rigid opinions they holds. Self actualization is important in getting the best out of someone. People who are mentally health are in the self actualization process because they try to get the best out of every situation. This is the right definition because of the different aspects of life that it involves. Flexibility, self actualization and enjoying life help in dealing with the different situations that face us in our day to day lives. They help us socialize and make new friends, enable us to deal with loss and misfortunes, raise our self esteem and improve our sexuality (World Health Organization, 2005). Opinions about mental health: My ideas about mental health and illness have mainly come from biological theories that exist. Research indicates that there is a genetic connection to development of a mental disorder. Presently, it is thought that genes have an influence on expression or non-expression of the human character like the facial expression and mental health. Research on identical twins has provided strong evidence that genetic components play a role in development of schizophrenia. On average, there is a 1 % probability of an average person in the US developing schizophrenia while in identical twins if one is diagnosed with this condition, there is a 50% probability of the other one developing the condition regardless of the conditions in which he/she has been brought up in. Dementia on the other hand has been renowned to run in families although one cannot predict with certainty that the same can affect the generation that follows. It is only Huntington’s cholera: a movement disorder that appears to have a single gene as a determinant. Other types of dementia such as Alzheimer’s do not express a familial pattern although its expression in an individual cannot be predictable. Scientists believe the same can apply to other mental disorders which run in families like obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), anxiety, panic and depression disorders. I believe that alcohol together with substance abuse have a connection to mental illness. Because alcohol is a central nervous system depressant, I believe it plays a major role in development of depression together with other mental health disorders. Apart from depression, nutritional deficiencies that result from alcohol use increase the risk of individual developing nutritional related mental disorders. For example, deficiency of thiamine can lead to brain damage in form of severe dementia even during the early stages of life. Individual suffering from withdrawal syndrome have been found to be at a greater risk of developing delirium tremens which can result to cardiovascular shock or even death. â€Å"Designer† drugs such as â€Å"Ecstasy† have a significant effect on behavior and can bring about permanent memory loss together with severe depression which respond poorly to treatment. Therefore, these drugs can be thought to be contributors to sudden mental illness onset. Other factors such as social cultural factors also contribute to other mental illnesses like Anorexia nervosa, body dysmorphic disorder and bulimia nervosa. Because of the society’s perception of slender women as beautiful, there has been a significant occurrence of eating disorders. This is because of lack of self-esteem together with feelings of being out of control. The fear of sexual maturation has also been said to be a contributing factor to psychological eating disorders. Such factors has changed the society such that it has shifted to valuing activities over the rest which has turned many individuals to slaves of work with little care for the inner self. Mild cases of stress related disorders have as a result an increased likelihood of developing to full blown panic, depressive disorders and anxiety. Therefore, according to my opinion, for one to acquire a healthy mental state, there has to be a balance between work/activities and rest/relaxation. Is it possible for an individual to have a mental illness and still be healthy? It is possible for an individual to be health despite being diagnosed with a mental illness. Mental health stretches beyond the absence of a mental condition. When an individual is diagnosed with a mental condition, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the individual is mentally unhealthy but instead it means that: they have to work more in maintaining their mental health as compared to others. There are individuals who do not have any mental condition but cannot be said to be mentally healthy. This is because they have difficulties in managing stress to the extent that it affects their physical well being by developing headaches, heart diseases and stomach upsets. Difficulties in anger management also can contribute to mental instability which in return affects the mental health. Therefore, it is possible for an individual with a mental condition to be healthy if he/she is able to manage him/herself effectively to be able to enjoy life and achieve goals without many difficulties. What is recovery? According to me, it is the process of changing for the better which can be enhanced by the following factors: treatment, criminal justice interventions, faith institutions, receiving support from family, friends and other individuals and also mutual groups/recovery centers. Stigma associated with a mental illness can affect an individual in different aspects. It can lead to isolation from the community and friends through exclusions and rejections. It can make the individual to be denied proper housing, health insurance, loans and even jobs. A person may as a result of stigma loss self esteem making it difficult for him to interact and make new friends affecting his/her social life. They may also be denied treatment because of the denial state of the individual or the family members. It can also lead to separation in couples. Hence it is important for proper care to be taken to ensure that adequate care and love is provided to people with mental conditions. Bibliography Tilden, H. J. (2005) What Is Health? Kessinger Publishing, LLC. World Health Organization (2005). Mental health: facing the challenges, building solutions: report from the WHO European Ministerial Conference. WHO Regional Office Europe.

The Unsolved Case of the Zodiac Killer

The Unsolved Case of the Zodiac Killer The Zodiac Killer was a serial killer who stalked parts of Northern California from December 1968 through October 1969. Through a series of cryptic letters he sent to the press and others, he disclosed his motivation for the killings, offered clues to future murder plots, and adopted the nickname Zodiac. He took responsibility for murdering as many as 37 people, but police investigators have only confirmed five deaths and seven total attacks.   December 20, 1968   Betty Lou Jensen, 16, and David Arthur Faraday, 17, were parked at a secluded spot located on Lake Herman Road on the eastern side Vallejo, California. Witnesses noticed the young couple huddled together in the front seat of Faradays Rambler station wagon between around 10:15 and 11:00 p.m. Nothing about the couple seemed unusual to bystanders. But by 11:15 the scene had taken a tragic turn. The couple was discovered lying on the ground outside their bullet-riddled car. Betty Lou was found several feet from the car, dead from five gunshot wounds in the back. David was found closeby. He had been shot at close range in the head  but was still breathing. He died  en route to the hospital. Clues Detectives had few clues, aside from the fact that there was an earlier confrontation in the same area. Bill Crow and his girlfriend were parked in the same place as Faraday and Jensen just 45 minutes earlier. Crow told police that someone driving a white Chevy drove past them, stopped, and backed up. For unknown reasons, Crow sped away in the opposite direction. The Chevy turned around and followed the couple, but was unable to keep up after Crow made a sharp right turn at an intersection. Two hunters also reported seeing a white Chevy parked at a gravel turn-around on Lake Herman Road. They approached the car but did not see the driver inside. July 4, 1969   Darlene Elizabeth Ferrin, 22, and Michael Renault Mageau, 19, were parked at the Blue Rock Springs Golf Course in Benicia around midnight. The golf course was four miles from where Jensen and Faraday were gunned down. A car pulled up behind the couples car, blocking them from driving away. A man, who Mageau believed was a police officer, got out of his car holding a bright flashlight that obscured his face. As the stranger approached the drivers side of the car he immediately began shooting at the couple, firing five nine-millimeter rounds into the car. Both Ferrin and Mageau were shot. The shooter turned to leave  but came back after hearing shouts coming from Michael. He fired four more times. One bullet hit Michael and two struck Darlene. The shooter then got into his car and drove away. Within minutes after the attack, three teens came across the couple and hurried to get help. When authorities arrived both Ferrin and Mageau were still alive, but Ferrin died before reaching the hospital. Clues Michael Mageau survived the attack and was able to give a description of the shooter to authorities. He described the attacker as a short, heavyset white man, about 5 8 and around 195 pounds. The Call At 12:40 a.m. an anonymous male caller contacted the Vallejo Police Department and reported the double murder. During the call, he also said he was responsible for the Jensen and Faraday murders. Police traced the call and found it was made from a phone booth located just blocks from the police department and less than a mile from Darlene Ferrins home. The caller told police: I wish to report a double murder. If you will go one mile east on Columbus Parkway to a public park, you will find the kids in a brown car. They have been shot by a nine-millimeter Luger. I also killed those kids last year. Good-bye The Zodiac Letters On Friday, August 1, 1969, the first known Zodiac letters were received by three newspapers. The San Francisco Examiner, San Francisco Chronicle,  and Vallejo Times-Herald each received an almost identical letter written by a person who took credit for the attacks on the four teens. He also gave details about the murders and included one-third of a mysterious cipher in each letter. The self-proclaimed killer demanded that the three letters be published on the front page of each newspaper by that Friday afternoon or he would go on a rampage and randomly kill a dozen people over the weekend. The letters were signed with a crossed-circle symbol. The letters were published and efforts to untangle the messages in the ciphers began by authorities and citizens. August 4, 1969 Police investigators stated publicly that they had doubts as to the authenticity of the letters in an attempt to get the killer to contact them again. The plan worked. On August 4th, another letter arrived at the San Francisco Examiner. The letter began with the words that have since haunted many involved in the case: Dear Editor This is the Zodiac speaking... It was the first time the killer used the name Zodiac. In the letter, the Zodiac included information which proved he was present during the murders and a message that his identity was hidden inside the ciphers. August 8, 1969 A high school teacher and his wife cracked the 408-symbol cipher. The last 18 letters could not be decoded. The message read: I LIKE KILLING PEOPLE BECAUSE IT IS SO MUCH FUN IT IS MORE FUN THAN KILLING WILD GAME IN THE FORREST BECAUSE MAN IS THE MOST DANGEROUE ANAMAL OF ALL TO KILL SOMETHING GIVES ME THE MOST THRILLING EXPERENCE IT IS EVEN BETTER THAN GETTING YOUR ROCKS OFF WITH A GIRL THE BEST PART OF IT IS THAE WHEN I DIE I WILL BE REBORN IN PARADICE AND THEI HAVE KILLED WILL BECOME MY SLAVES I WILL NOT GIVE YOU MY NAME BECAUSE YOU WILL TRY TO SLOI DOWN OR ATOP MY COLLECTIOG OF SLAVES FOR MY AFTERLIFE EBEORIETEMETHHPITI. The fact that the code did not contain the killers identity was a disappointment to the police, however, some believe the letters can be rearranged (and three more letters added) to spell Robert Emmet the Hippie. September 27, 1969   College students, Cecelia Ann Shepard, 22, and Bryan Calvin Hartnell, 20, were picnicking on a peninsula at Lake Berryessa near Napa, Ca. A man carrying a semi-automatic pistol and wearing a hooded costume approached the couple. He told them that he was an escaped convict from a Montana prison where he killed a guard and stole a car and that he wanted money and their car to drive to Mexico. The couple was cooperating fully with his demands, offering him money and the car keys and the three talked for  a while. He instructed Shepard to hog-tie Bartnell with precut pieces of a clothesline that he supplied. He then tied up Shepard and told the couple, Im going to have to stab you  people, and took out a long double-edged knife and stabbed Hartnell six times and Shepard ten times. He left the couple for dead and walked casually back to Hartnells car where he drew a crossed-circle symbol in black magic marker on the side of the car and the dates of the attacks in Vallejo. A  fisherman  discovered the couple and called the police. Both victims were still alive, but it took over an hour for medical help to arrive. Shepard died two days later after lapsing into a coma. Hartnell survived and gave police a detailed account of the events as well as a description of the attacker. The Call At 7:40 p.m. an anonymous caller contacted the Napa County Police Department. He spoke to officer David Slaight in what was described as a low, monotone voice. He told Slaight: I want to report a murder - no, a double murder. They are two miles north of park headquarters. They were in a white Volkswagen Karmann Ghia... and ended the call with, Im the one who did it. As in the Vallejo case, the call was traced to a phone booth just a few blocks from the police department. October 11, 1969   San Francisco cab driver Paul Stine, 29, picked up a passenger in Union Square and drove to the wealthy area of Cherry Street and Nob Hill. It was there that the passenger shot Stine in the temple, killing him, then removed his wallet, car keys and carefully tore off a large portion of his shirt. Three youngsters witnessed the event from a second-floor window across from the parked taxi. They contacted the police and described the  shooter  as a  white male, 25 to 30 years old, stocky build and a crew cut. An intensive manhunt was immediately launched, but somehow there was a mistake made as to the killers race and the police were searching for a black male. How this mistake was made was never reported and no one was ever apprehended for the  crime. It was later determined that police drove by a large white male fitting the original description just blocks from the shooting, but because of his  race, the police did not consider him a suspect. October 14, 1969 The Chronicle received another letter from the Zodiac. A piece of Stines  blood-soaked  shirt was enclosed and the author referred to the Stine murder, saying the police failed to catch him because they did not search the area properly. He then pointed to his next intended victims, school children. October 22, 1969 A caller identifying himself as the Zodiac contacted the Oakland Police Department and demanded on-air time on the Jim Dunbar television talk show with F. Lee Bailey or Melvin Belli, both famous defense lawyers. Belli appeared on the show and a call from someone saying they were the Zodiac came in while the show was being televised. He said his real name was Sam and asked that Belli meet him in Daly City. Belli agreed but the caller never showed. It was later determined that the call was a hoax and the imposter was a  mental patient  at the Napa State Hospital. November 1969 On November 8 and 9, the Chronicle received two Zodiac letters. The first one was a 340-character cipher. The second letter was seven pages long and included another piece of Stines shirt. In the letter, he claimed the police had stopped and talked with him three minutes after he shot Stine. He also drew a schematic of what he referred to as his death machine which was made to blow up large objects such as buses. December 20, 1969 Melvin Belli received a Christmas card at his home which included another piece of Stines shirt. In the card the Zodiac claimed he wanted help from Belli, ending with: Please help me I can not remain in control for much longer. Attempts from Belli to get the Zodiac to contact him again were made, but nothing ever happened. Some speculate that the card was written during a moment of clarity, while others believe it was another attention-getting hoax on the part of the Zodiac. March 22, 1970 On the evening of March 22, 1970, Kathleen Johns, who was eight-months pregnant, was on her way to meet her mother. She had her ten-month-old daughter in the back seat of the car. While on Highway 132 in San Joaquin County, west of Modesto, Johns pulled over after a driver pulled up alongside her and indicated that something was wrong with her car. The driver pulled over and told Johns that her wheel was wobbling. He said he would tighten the wheel bolts, but instead loosened them, then returned to his car and drove off. When Johns pulled away her tire fell off. The man in the car was not far ahead and backed up and offered Johns a ride to a gas station. She agreed  but became frightened when he failed to stop  at several  gas stations. The ride took over three hours of what Johns described as, silent aimless driving around. She was able to escape with her child when the driver stopped at an intersection. Johns fled across a field and hid until she saw the man drive away. She received help from a passerby and was taken to the local police department in Paterson. While at the station she saw a  wanted poster  with a composite sketch of the Zodiac and identified the person as the man who kidnapped her. Her car was later found gutted and burned. Throughout the years, Johns account of the nights events has changed from her original statement, leading some to question her story.   This was the last time anyone ever reported seeing the Zodiac. April 20, 1970 The Zodiac sent a letter to the Chronicle which included a 13-character cipher, a diagram of a bomb he planned to use to blow up a school bus, and a statement that he was not responsible for the February 18, 1970, bombing of a police station in San Francisco. He ended the letter with a score  [Zodiac Symbol]10, SFPD0. Authorities interpreted the number ten as a body count.   April 28, 1970 A card was sent to the Chronicle with the words,  I hope you enjoy yourselves when I have my BLAST  along with the cross-circle symbol. On the back of the card, the writer threatened to use his bus bomb if the Chronicle failed to publish the April 20 letter he sent detailing his plans to blow up a school bus. He also requested that people begin wearing Zodiac buttons. June 26, 1970 A letter received  at  the Chronicle contained another 32-letter cipher. The author said he was upset that he had not seen people wearing Zodiac buttons. He took credit for another shooting  but gave no specifics. Investigators suspected it was the shooting death of Sgt. Richard Radetich a week earlier. Also included was a Phillips 66 map of the Bay area. A clock-like face was drawn around Mount Diablo with a zero at the top, the number three on the right side, six on the bottom and a nine of the left side.  Next  to the zero, he wrote,  is to be set to Mag.N. The map and the cipher were supposed to give the location of a bomb he buried that was set to go off the following fall. This letter was signed  [Zodiac Symbol]12. SFPD0. July 24, 1970 In this letter, also sent to the Chronicle, the Zodiac took credit for abducting Kathleen Jones four months earlier and described burning the car, a fact that only one local paper, the Modesto Bee, had printed. July 26, 1970 In this next letter, the Zodiac included his own twisted version of the song  Ive Got a Little List  from Gilbert Sullivans musical, The Mikado. In it, he described how he planned to collect and torture his slaves. Also drawn on the letter was a giant crossed-circle, a score notation of  13, SFPD  and the words, PS. The Mount Diablo Code concerns Radians # inches along the radians. In 1981, Zodiac researcher Gareth Penn figured out that when placing a radian angle over the map, it pointed to two locations where Zodiac attacks took place. October 5, 1970 Three months had passed without any further communication from the Zodiac. Then, a card written with cut-out letters from magazines and newspapers was sent to the Chronicle. The card bore 13 holes and indicated that there had been another Zodiac victim and that he considered himself crackproof. Originally considered as a hoax, certain letter configurations and the phrase crackproof later reappeared in confirmed Zodiac letters, adding new authenticity to this one. October 27, 1970 Paul Avery, the key reporter in the Zodiac case for the Chronicle, received a Halloween card which included a threat on Averys life. The letter was posted in its entirety on the front page of the Chronicle and days later Avery received another letter urging him to investigate the similarities between the known Zodiac murders and the murder of college student Cheri Jo Bates years earlier. A Step Back In Time - October 30, 1966   On October 30, 1966, Cheri Jo Bates, 18, was studying at the Riverside City College library annex until the library closed at 9 p.m. Investigators suspect that her Volkswagen parked outside the library was tampered with prior to her leaving the library. The distributor coil and the condenser had been pulled out and the middle wire of the distributor was disconnected. Police believe that when she tried to start the car the person who disabled it approached her and offered his help. Somehow he lured her into a secluded dark driveway which sat between two empty houses, where police believe the two sat for about an hour and a half. The man later attacked Bates, beating her, slashing at her face and cutting her a total of 11 times, seven of which nearly decapitated her. Clues found at the scene included a size 10 heel-print, a Timex watch with a torn seven-inch wristband displaying the time 12:23, fingerprints and a palm print, skin tissue underneath the victims fingernails and hair and blood in her hands. On November 29, 1966, two identical letters were sent to the Riverside Police and the Riverside Press-Enterprise by someone claiming to be responsible for killing Bates. The letters included a poem titled  The  Cofession[sic] which offered details of the murder that only the police and the killer knew about. The letters also included a warning that she was not the first or the last of his victims. Many interpreted the tone of the letter as very similar to that of the Zodiac letters mailed after the Vallejo murders. In December 1966 a custodian at the Riverside City College discovered a poem carved into the underside of a folding desk. The poem, titled  Sick of living/unwilling to die  had a tone similar to that of the Zodiac as well as handwriting which looked like some found in the Zodiacs letters. Some believe the author, who signed the poem with the initials rh was describing the murder of Bates. Other theorize that the letter was written by a student who had unsuccessfully tried to kill themselves. However, Sherwood Morrill, one of Californias top Questioned Documents examiners, was of the opinion that the true author of the poem was the Zodiac. Six months after the murder of Bates three nearly identical letters were received by the Riverside Press, the Riverside police  and  Cheri Jo Bates father. The letters all contained more postage than was necessary and two of the letters were signed with a symbol which looked like the letter Z next to the number three. The Zodiac letters sent in the 1970s all contained excessive postage, symbol-type signatures and the threat that more murders would follow. The two letters received by the newspaper and the police read: BATES HADTO DIETHERE WILLBE MORE Bates murder was never solved. The Riverside Police Department maintains that a local man was the key suspect, not the Zodiac, although the letters sent may have been written by him. March 17, 1971 A letter was sent to the Los Angeles Times because, as the writer put it,  they dont bury me on the back pages. In the letter, the Zodiac gave the police credit for making the Bates connection, but added that the police were still only finding the  easy ones  and that there were plenty more  out there.  The letter included the score,  SFPD-0 [Zodiac Symbol]-17. This was the only letter ever sent to the Los Angeles Times and the only one postmarked outside of San Francisco. March 22, 1971 Chronicle reporter Paul Avery received a postcard thought to be from the Zodiac in which he took credit for the case of a missing nurse, Donna Lass, from the Sahara Hotel and Casino. Lass was never seen again after treating her last patient at 1:40 a.m. on September 6, 1970. The following day her uniform and shoes, marked with dirt, were discovered in a paper bag in her office. Two calls were made, one to her employer and one to her landlord, by an unidentified caller who said Lass had a family emergency and had left town. The postcard that Avery received included a collage made up of lettering cut from newspapers and magazines and contained a picture of an ad of the condominium complex known as Forest Pines. The words,  Sierra Club, Sought Victim 12, peek through the pines, pass Lake Tahoe areas, round in the snow,  hinted at the location of where Lass body could be found. A search in the area turned up only a pair of sunglasses. Some believe the postcard was a forgery, perhaps the attempt of the real killer to make the authorities believe Lass was a Zodiac victim. However certain similarities such as the misspelling of Paul Averys name (Averly) and the use of a hole-punch had both become traits found in letters known to be from the Zodiac. Although it did not appear that  kidnapping  was a pattern of the Zodiac, but rather spontaneous random murders, if in fact, he was responsible for Johns abduction then possibly Donna Lass could also be a victim of the Zodiac. The  mystery  surrounding the case of Donna Lass was never solved, nor was her body ever located. The Pines postcard was the last communication received from the Zodiac for three years. In 1974 he resurfaced although this time he dropped his opening line,  This is the Zodiac speaking  and the cross-circle symbol signature from the letters. January 29, 1974 The Zodiac sent the Chronicle a letter describing the movie  The Exorcist  as  the best saterical comidy that I have ever seen.  It also included a part of a verse from The Mikado, a hieroglyph-type drawing and a threat that the letter had to be published or he would  do something nasty.  His signature score changed to read  Me-37 SFPD-0. May 8, 1974 The Chronicle received a letter from a concerned citizen complaining about the movie  Badlands  and asking the paper to stop advertising it. Although the Zodiac did not identify himself as the author of the letter, some felt the similarities of the tone and handwriting was unmistakably that of the Zodiac. July 8, 1974 A complaint letter regarding the conservative Chronicle columnist, Marco Spinelli who used the pen name, Count Marco was received at the newspaper and ended the letter with: Since the Count can write anonymously, so can I signed the Red Phantom (red with rage). Some believe the Zodiac sent the letter, others do not. Doubting that the letters were really authored by the Zodiac, police detective David Toschi sent them to the FBI Laboratory who responded that the letters were probably prepared by the writer of the Zodiac letters. No other communication was received from the Zodiac for another four years. April 24, 1978 A letter was sent to the Chronicle and given to reporter Duffy Jennings, Paul Averys replacement after he went to work at the San Francisco Examiner. Duffy contacted Detective David Toschi, who had worked on the Zodiac case since the Stine murder and was the only remaining San Francisco Police Department (SFDP) investigator working the case. Toschi turned the letters over to John Shimoda of the U.S. Postal Service crime laboratory to verify if the letters were authored by the Zodiac instead of giving them to the chief examiner for the Questioned Documents Division of the SFPD. Why he made that decision is unknown, however, Shimoda did verify that the letter was authored by the Zodiac. Four experts three months later declared the letter a hoax. At that time Toschi was in the middle of a political battle and looking at possibly replacing the current chief of police. For all of those who adored Toschi, many just wanted him to go away. When it became known that the letters were a hoax, many pointed the finger at Toschi, believing he had forged the letter. The suspicions about Toschi  forging  the Zodiac letter was based on an earlier incident involving columnist Armistead Maupin, who was writing a series for the Chronicle called,  Tales of the City.  He received a lot of fan mail for the series and in an effort to verify that the letters were legitimate he became suspicious that Toschi had written some of them under fake names. Maupin made the decision to do nothing about it at the time, but when the forged Zodiac letter surfaced, Maupin thought it was possible Toschi was responsible and reported the fake fan letters and his suspicions to Toschis superiors. Toschi eventually admitted to writing the fan letters, but always denied the implications that he forged the Zodiac letter and insisted the rumors were politically motivated. The Toschi incident is just one example of the many bizarre twists the Zodiac investigation has taken over the years. More than 2,500 suspects have been investigated without anyone ever being charged. Detectives continue to receive telephone calls weekly with tips, theories​,  and speculation. The  case  remains open in some jurisdictions, but the San Francisco Police Department has designated it  unsolved  and inactive.

Lagaan Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Lagaan - Movie Review Example Instead the villagers were told to deposit their lagaan as soon as possible. In a mocking mood, Captain Russell (played by Paul Blackthorne) threw a challenge to the farmers, that if they can defeat the British soldier's team in the game of cricket, they won't have to pay any lagaan. Bhuwan, the leading character played by the producer actor, Amir Khan, accepted the challenge. Initially, most of the villagers laughed at Bhuwan for accepting such a challenge, but gradually they saw in him a ray of hope and started preparing for a game - called 'cricket'. The film is interspersed with some musical dance sequences, the trademark of Indian movies in particular. Gauri, played by Gracy Singh is the female lead in the film. She is in love with Bhuwan, and keeps encouraging him during the preparation for the game of cricket. But, Elizabeth Russell, the better half of Captain Russell somehow develops a soft corner for the villagers and their issues and in the process finds herself attracted towards Bhuwan, which is of course not liked by Gauri. But, the storyline of the film is so strongly built around the main subject, that nowhere does it appear to leave the main course. Therefore such anecdotes only provide some refreshing changes while highlighting the humane side of the story. Captain Russell gets an earful from his bosses, for having allowed the villagers an esca

Emergency Management 670 week 7 Conference Essay

Emergency Management 670 week 7 Conference - Essay Example In the future, emergency managers will need to develop a region wide approach to emergency management, implement interoperable GIS technologies and protect key infrastructure in the communities. Effective emergency managers need some skills and traits in order to effectively manage the unforeseen disaster. Some of the skills include risk assessment skills, mitigation planning, and ability to work with the communities in preparedness through periodic drills. According to Drabek’s study of 1987, effective emergency managers should have salient traits such as anticipating disasters, exhibition of professionalism, being community mentors, reconciliatory traits, the knowledge of extend of authority and ordinance based powers and doing anything possible to protect and preserve the safety of the community. The National Academy of Sciences study of emergency management concluded that efficient emergency managers need critical future skills such as grasp of the public administration and budgeting skills. It also made it clear that understanding of HAZUS software and improvement warnings and communications was essential for emergency managers. The study concluded that emergency managers should improve the use of social media and acquire higher education on risk assessment and preparedness skills (Langberg, 2010). The study also suggested that emergency managers should be more regionally focused and share best practices in emergency management in order to enhance the response capabilities of the first responders. The National Academy of Sciences study also proposed the better use of GIS and other software technologies in identifying and responding to emergencies. On the other hand, International Association of Emergency managers (IAEM) recently announced that the emergency managers should be compressive, risk-driven, progressive, inclusive, collaborative, professional, coordinated and flexible in response to

Legalizing the use of midicinal marijuana Essay

Legalizing the use of midicinal marijuana - Essay Example rlands, cannabis is openly tolerated and can be both purchased and consumed in one of several Amsterdam ‘coffee houses.’ Inexplicably, the city has not been thrown into anarchy which, evidently, is what the opponents of cannabis legalisation are afraid of. The evidence demonstrates that legalizing cannabis for medicinal in addition to general purposes would prove a benefit to society, evidence which is well-known throughout the scientific, political and public arena but this collective knowledge has yet to be acted upon. This discussion will examine the issue of legalisation drawing from European and American experiences. A report in The Economist expressly states concerns regarding a rising drug using and dependent population if these drugs should be made more available. While acknowledging that the price of drugs is artificially high due to the difficulties of circumventing the law, authors of this report indicate that it is precisely because of the high cost and difficulty to obtain that prevents more individuals from experimenting with them, thus becoming addicted, either physically or psychologically. Although these arguments can also be made for other substances that are currently legal, voters have argued that it is not necessary to bring in more potentially harmful substances into legal circulation at this time. To support the argument in favor of legalisation, authors pull in the theories of John Stuart Mill, who espoused that adult citizens should have the right to make their own choices regarding whether or not to participate in harmful activity as long as it does no harm to others, a theo ry that has been largely ignored in the decisions regarding alcohol and tobacco, but not cannabis. (â€Å"Case for Legalisation,† 2001) Eleven states allow the use of marijuana for medicinal use, Rhode Island the most recent joining California, Alaska, Hawaii, Colorado, Oregon, Nevada, Montana, Washington and, Vermont and Maine. However, laws enacted by

Parliamentary sovereignty Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Parliamentary sovereignty - Essay Example The term freedom or independence here must not be associated to escaping from human slavery in fact over time this term has broadened into its scope and expanded in its meaning and context. In the modern world humans combat for independence and freedom not from slavery but from suppression, inequity, poverty, injustice, discrimination and helplessness.1 Under the establishment of a democratic setup, the body that represents common man and brings his issues to discussion in at the executive level is known as parliament. The term parliament is adopted from a French word â€Å"parlement† that means â€Å"to speak† and this pretty much determines the function of the parliament in the political machinery of a state. The parliament’s main task is to speak for the rights of the people that it represents, at a level that can create an impact, a positive one. Parliament Parliament is the representation of common man at the executive level. The selection of representatives of masses is done through open and transparent elections where the masses participate and vote for their potential representatives. The selection is made on the basis of majority vote and the selected representatives form the parliament of the country. A colossus of powers and responsibility vest on the shoulders of the parliament. Parliament is responsible for raising public concerns and addressing to them as per the demands and expectations of the masses that cast the votes for the selection of parliamentary candidates.2 Parliament empowers the people as it gives them the right to be a participant in the decision making of the state, indirectly. Parliament provides means to the operations of a government. The personnel required to look after the affairs of the state and run various ministries, comes from the parliament and this is where a common man can be a part of the system as his selected candidate is now placed at the decision making slot.3 With great power comes great respo nsibility, the parliament is endowed with the task of legislation. In the greater interest of the public parliament has the additional charge of making, proposing and passing of laws that are to be practiced under the doctrine of state. Parliament also has the power to approve or reject any financial decisions regarding any ventures that come up to the parliament for the final decision. It is totally up to the parliament to decide upon the feasibility and relevance of the venture to its policies and objectives. The presence of parliament also adds accountability in the operation of state affairs. Parliament has the whole sole authority to question the executive and bring him to task for explanation of various actions that has been taken on his behalf. This forces the executive to be extra cautious in his actions and decision making for he stands accountable to general public and hence the parliament. Power of the Parliament The domain of powers that reside with the Parliament of a s tate is defined in the constitution of the country. The powers can be increased or decrease with respect to the significance and spontaneity of the events, and this modification is subject to the passing of bills in the parliament that gain majority of the vote in their favor from the parliament itself. For instance in UK the Bill of Rights 1869 stated that the power to change or amend a law lies with the parliament.

Monetary policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Monetary policy - Essay Example The RBA often determines the official cash rate after deciding on what monetary policy target it intends to attain (Reserve Bank of Australia, 2012a). Such targets may include, increasing economic growth, lowering inflation. RBA uses open market operations to affect the changes of the official cash rate, which in turn trickles down to the financial system in the country. Although RBA changes the official cash rate through open market operations, the actual cash rates are often determined by supply and demand actions among banks. Each bank is free to determine the rate by which it lends to another bank. Changing the official cash rate however, impacts all other interest rates in the market which in turn impacts the supply and demand of money in the economic system (Reserve Bank of Australia, 2012b; Lowe, 1995:1-2). The market rate of interest on the other hand is the rate that financial institutions charge its clients for borrowing money. This interest is often impacted by changes in the official cash rate, whereby increases in cash rate would imply that the banks are borrowing from other banks expensively and hence would also increase the interest rate that they charge their customers for borrowing money. A drop in the official cash rate would make it cheaper for the banks to borrow funds and hence competition among banks would reduce the market interest rate across the Australian Economy (Smales, 2011:52-55). The RBA decreases the cash rate through open market operations in order to ensure that the official cash rate that has been set is as close as possible to the actual cash rate exhibited in the market due to forces of demand and supply. Each financial institution in the country has an Exchange settlement account for which enable banks to settle payments between each and also with the RBA. Where RBA wants to reduce the cash rate, it would buy repurchase agreements (repos) or second-hand common wealth government securities (CGS) from the financial institutio ns in the economy. The RBA pays the banks using their exchange settlement accounts with the RBA which increases the amount that they have access to and can lend out (Reserve Bank of Australia, 2012b; Kuttner and Mosser, 2002: 16). This increases the supply of money in the economy, and due to competition to lend out to borrowers, the cash rate as well as the market interest rates drop. This is as demonstrated in a simple Keynesian model below: As noted in the figure, when the RBA uses the open market mechanism to purchase government securities and repos, the money supply denoted by MS, moves from the original position MS to MS1 showing a rise in money supply. Since the supply money is inelastic relative to interest rates, the MS curve is perfectly inelastic. On the other hand, the demand for money changes with changes in interest rate. Hence as money supply increases in volume due to RBA purchasing repos and CGS, interest rates fall also drop. Answer two Effect of a decrease of inter est rate on: Consumption and Investment expenditures: a fall interest rates increases investment and consumption. As noted above, a fall in interest rates is as a result in an increase in money supply. This makes it possible for businesses and consumers increase their borrowing from banks at a lower rate of interest since it is cheaper to access loans. Hence, there would be an increase in consumption and investment expenditures financed by debt as businesses are able to access funds for capital goods such as equipments, and consumers are also able