MV Sewol Sinking: Media Reaction

MV Sewol Sinking: Media Reaction 2014 is a year with frequent accidents, many of them attracted large attention around the world. Media from different countries follow-up report these events under different views and media policy. The sinking of the MV Sewol is one of the concerned event. It occurred on 16th April 2014, a ferry named â€Å"SEWOL† carrying 470 passengers was sank dramatically in the southwest coast of South Korea. Most of passengers are Danwon High School’s students. Lots of passengers rescued by some fisher and merchant ship, South Korean coast guard and ROK Navy ship arrived minutes later. According to the official announce number, by the end of 15th May 2014, 295 people died in the accident and 172 people were injured, the whereabouts of other 9 people are still unknown. The captain and three other crew have been accused of murder, the other 11 crew members are charged to abandoned passengers which lead to people die. Domestic and foreign media gave increasing coverage to the sinking of the MV Sewol event (Asia Bulletin, 2014). It is not clear wrecks cause of the accident, however officials believe that overloading may be the main reason of vessels sinking. Throughout the media coverage about this event, not all of them are objective and authentic, lots of factors such as media policy, national interest, self-censorship, public opinion etc. can influence the media coverage and the representation of journalists. This essay will focus on the sinking of the MV Sewol event to explore and analysis the U.S. and South Korean’s media context of the media policy. Focusing on this event, not all media are objective, compare with some Korean media, U.S. media are more objective. The obvious reasons are not only media in U.S. have more relative free speech  but also any truth cannot influence U.S.’s public interests, national interests or government image. The United State is a country with democracy and freedom, the news media also has freedom. The first press law is the First Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1971, it stipulates that congress shall not abridging the freedom of speech or of the press (CRS,1971). It strongly protect news media’s freedom. Some major newspaper in South Korea such as The Chosun Ilbo, Munhwa Bangsong Jushikhoesa and JoongAng Ilbo have report lots of inaccuracy information which can mislead readers. For example, at the beginning of the accident MBC report that all students have been rescued (The Chosunilbo, 2014), this parlance sustained nearly half hour. Also, the initial report shows that rescuer rescued 368 people from freezing water and most of are students, but South Korea government clarify that 295 people were missing. In the morning of 17 April, Chosun Ilbo report that 174 people were rescued, 6 people had died and 290 people were missing. Compare with Chosun Ilbo, CNN report tha t 6 people had died (Hancocks, Shoichet and Pearson, 2014). The JoongAng Ilbo also reported similar inaccurate reports, for example at the beginning of the accident, they report the number of passengers and the number of rescued people which government announced and not verified, it is false report. In the coverage of the number of rescue divers who enter the water, JoongAng Ilbo quote the government announcement that â€Å"178 divers participate in the rescue†, it sounds like all 178 divers enter the water to search and rescue the victims at once. However, in fact, the number provide by government mean that 178 divers can participate into the rescue and in general, at the scene of the accident, only around 20 divers go into the water to search and rescue the victim every time(Nam, 2014). It can be seen that some of these South Korea medias are trend to government or controlled by government. In general, the standpoint of Chosum Ilbo is on the conservative side. Bennett deal with press-government relations as â€Å"indexing hypothesis† which considered that â€Å"reporters index the slant of their coverage to reflect the range of opinions that exist within the government† (Bennett, 1990). This view is one of the function of media. It is a common phenomenon that some media controlled by government and what they express is represent government opinion and what government want people to know. In this case, for this tragedy, media try to reduce the effect of the event in the society. Media always use less obvious expression to mislead readers. It can be understand as â€Å"symbolic power†, it is indirect and having the power to induce people and control their minds (Van Dijk, 1995). Through the representations, media can influence large number of people. However, lots of people have the ability to judge right from wrong, there are lots of foreign media and some of the local media to lead the correct, mainstream and objective opinion. Focusing on the Sewol tragedy, the main topics are considered about the mass sorrow, why this accident can happened and what should the government and state do to protect and help their citizens. The information that â€Å"all passengers have been rescued† reported by various media cause disastrous impact to the public (Sridharan, 2014). Hundreds journalists have gone on strike to protest government control media. Under the pressure from public, the president of South Korea public broadcasting KBS had resigned (Jun, 2014). The South Korea government and their media drew strong condemnation, which necessitate them to do apologize to public and victims and their families. On 16th May, JoongAng Ilbo published an article to do apologize for its false news during the period of Sewol tragedy. After that , criticize government and media controlled by government become the core topic.The Korea Herald published an article named â€Å"Sewol disaster reveals failure of mass media as watchdog†, it indicate that media blindly depend on government’s inaccurate announcement (Lee, 2014). The president of the journalists association of South Korea Park Chong Ryul said that reporters should listened to public and report what public want to know instead of government said. He think media should standing on its’ ‘watchdog’ and public role. â€Å"Watchdog† is a defined of media in classical liberalism communication theory, media with fair and objective position is a tool that stand for public and help to supervise government behavior. These media didn’t to self-censor themselves and didn’t rely on political correctness to restrict the expression before report which cause disaster effect. The social force lead to the threat to free speech on t he campuses which is the underlying logic of political correctness (Loury, 1994). People afraid of ostracism to avoid the candid expression of their views and opinion which are compelled with communal wisdom, it can be known as self-censorship, argued by Loury. The phenomenon that most of media stand on one side to criticize government and its’ media is an example for self-censorship. Once a common concern has been established, it will spread quickly, just as the wave to criticize and censure South Korea government and its media. On the other hand, other media follow up the critical comments are doing the self-censorship and political correctness perfectly. Although U.S. Media always boast their objective and nonpartisan principle, in fact, U.S. news media become the instrument of monopoly capital and consortium of political. They always put the so-called national interest, rather than public interests first and build the basic frame of political correctness. The partisanship of America media is obviously. For instant, The New York Times and Washington Post are inclined to the Democratic Party of the United States. To coverage the incident of South Korea, they are relative objective. Most of coverage are about the incident without any censure government speech and expression. U.S. media strictly follow the potential limitation: political correctness. It includes U.S. national interests, as a tool of extending national interest, the core mission of U.S. media is to guide audiences accept the standard of U.S. value and regard the U.S. national interest as public interest. It can understand easily, U.S do not want to destroy the South Korea-U.S. Alliance relations. In this case, U.S. Media can only report the objective fact and avoid to accuse South Korea government directly. This is kind of media self-censorship, the basic reason is U.S. national interest. Nevertheless, on the other aspect, Korean and some local media are focus on criticize the government and its’ media. As an example that the America overseas Korean published an advertisement on New York Times to criticize South Korea government, it states that mainstream media shaping public opinion and report false news deliberately to defense for government. Accuse that Park Geun-hye guide South Korea back to the authoritarian regime. The JoongAng Ilbo coverage this issue not only described the advertisement, but also mentioned that publishing this advertisement cost $160000 U.S. Dollar (Shen and Kim, 2014). This news article also quote the speech of the Saenuri Party who strongly condemn this advertisement. They asserted that these America overseas Korean utilize Sewol tragedy to reach their political purpose, they stressed that mourn over Sewol victims and against the government behavior should be distinguished. The article quote the opinion that such high advertising cost s which is better to donate to bereaved family. To analyze JoongAng Ilbo’s coverage, it can be seen that this media is still slant to government. It seems like they coverage the America overseas Korean’s opinion, but in fact they want to tell government’s opinion which induce people to rethink their speech. This article can influence lots of readers’ opinion. As Loury explained about political communication that the transmission of ideas and information about affair of common concern with the purport to form public opinion or influence policy consequence (Loury, 1994). Due to the large number of coverage about the Sewol tragedy and public opinion tendency, it influence the government policy making. According to the coverage of Yonhap on 7th November, South Korea Congress pass by , in order to find out the truth of the incident, taking back the illegal income from criminals and donate to the bereaved family, determining the basic frame about some stuffs wh ich to protect national security (Yonhap, 2014). Government’s policy making should considered about public interest, according to the Down (1962) explanation about public interest, it can be know as â€Å"the will of the people†, it is the combination of individual interest which establish a common value. McQuail(1992) defined public interest as informational, cultural and social benefits. In short, public interest is public’s interest, is citizens common interest. The basic opinion of public interest is that the law should reflect and protect public and public interest. The Sewol incident and the failure of the rescue in the Sewol tragedy damaged the public interest, large number of people died, young students stop their life, government lose public reliance. Most media in this incident are trying to emphasize describing the tragic victims and their family to give pressure to government and prompt government make some measure to remedy the damage of public inte rest, based on the media policy, media should supervise government to protect the public interest. In this case, South Korea government punished abandon captain and crew, passing by the to support victims and their families. The pressure of government not only come from media but also come from public opinion. Public opinion is an aggregate of individual views, attitude and other beliefs. Public opinion have strong power in many fields. Politician support that public opinion have influence on the development of government policy. In contrast, sociologists state that public opinion is an outcome of social communication. Media and communication is a tool to spread the opinion, when the opinion presented by media, the influence of public opinion has been enlarged (Davison, 2012). In this case, public opinion have more power to influence government policy. On the other hand, media can guide the public opinion, media always provide an opinion to incite mass and guide the public opinion. After the incident, the support rate of Park president declined dramatically, more and more people do not trust their government and suspicious of government’s rescue capabilities. According to the organ of public opini on survey Realmeter, more than 1,000 adults was do the survey, 51.7% interviewees are dissatisfied with Park Geun-hye government, only 41.4% interviewees are satisfied with Park Geun-hye government which is lowest in the history (Chung, 2014). People no long trust their government, they thought that if they were encounter similar incident, their government cannot rescued them. In this case, Park Geun-hye later anthologized publicly for several times, severely punished the abandon captain and crew, government also pass by policies to deal with problems arising from the accident. All of them are certified that public opinion have influence on government policy making. Media as an instrument to convey the public opinion to the government, at the same time, it affects the people’s view about government. It’s hard to explain the relationship between the South Korean media and politics by using authoritarian or liberalism theory. Analyzing the developing trend, the relations of South Korean politics and media is transforming from authoritarianism to liberalism. In South Korean political-media relations structure, political power is in a strong position. However, under the democracy pressure, political power have to comply with public opinion. Political power gradually tamed by democracy. It can be summarized from the Sowel incident. Moreover, in South Korea, political and capital have different effect on different media in different time. Just like newspaper media under the influence of capital will be more obvious and the TV media is affected by the government. The American media also controlled by interest group, guiding the public opinion that lead to the country’s leader stepping down. The â€Å"Watergate scandal† is kind of example. In short, through the anal ysis of South Korean media coverage and American media coverage about the Sewol tragedy, it can be seen that media restrict by self-censorship and political correctness, at the same time, the expression and representation of media can stand for the will of interest group, it can be controlled by government to lead the trend of public opinion. In this case, media is a double-edged sword, it not only can representative public opinion to influence government policy making, but also can help government lead the public opinion. References Asia Bulletin. (2014).Four crew members of sunken South Korea ship charged with murder.Available: http://www.asiabulletin.com/index.php/sid/222031775. Last accessed 13th Nov 2014. CRS. (1971).FIRST AMENDMENT RELIGION AND EXPRESSION.Available: http://www.law.cornell.edu/anncon/html/amdt1afrag1_user.html. Last accessed 13th Nov 2014. The Chosunilbo. (2014).140 Minutes to campsizing A country that loses children while staring.Available: http://news.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2014/04/17/2014041700213.html. Last accessed 13th Nov 2014. Hancocks p., Shoichet C.E. and Pearson M., CNN. (2014).South Korean shipwreck survivors: Passengers told dont move as ship sank.Available: http://edition.cnn.com/2014/04/16/world/asia/south-korea-sinking-ship-students/. Last accessed 13th Nov 2014 NAM, I.S. (2014).Media Outlets Apologize Over Sewol Ferry Disaster Coverage.Available: http://blogs.wsj.com/korearealtime/2014/05/16/media-outlets-apologize-over-sewol-ferry-disaster-coverage/. Last accessed 13th Nov 2014. Bennett, W.L. (1990). Toward a theory of press-state relations in the United States.Journal of Communication. 40 (2), p103-105. Van Dijk, T.A. (1995). Power and the News Media. In: David L PeletzPolitical Communication in action: states, institutions, movements, audiences, Cresskill. NJ: Hampton Press. p9-36. Sridharan, V. (2014).South Korea Ferry Tragedy: US Amphibious Assault Vessel to Join Rescue Operation as 295 Remain Missing.Available: http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/south-korea-ferry-tragedy-us-amphibious-assault-vessel-join-rescue-operation-295-remain-missing-1445002. Last accessed 15th Nov 2014. Jun, J. H. (2014).KBS President under pressure to quit.Available: http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2014/05/116_156954.html.Last accessed 15th Nov 2014. Lee, S. S. (2014).Sewol disaster reveals failure of mass media as watchdog.Available: http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20140516001217. Last accessed 15th Nov 2014. Loury, Glenn.C., 1994, ‘Self-censorship in public discourse: a theory of ‘political correctness’ and related phenomena,Rationality and Society, 6, pp.428-461. Shen, G.Z. Kim, J.X. (2014).Some American Korean published NYT advertising require that check the truth of Sewol.Available: http://chinese.joins.com/gb/article.do?method=detailart_id=119413. Last accessed 15th Nov 2014. Yonhap. (2014).Cabinet passes package of bills in aftermath of ferry accident.Available: http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/search1/2603000000.html?cid=AEN20141118002900315. Last accessed 15th Nov 2014. Iosifidis, Petros, 2011, ‘Media policy and regulation in the public interest,’ inGlobal Media and Communication policy, Palgrave Macmillan. pp.23-75.P95.8.I672011 Davison, W. W. (2012).Public Opinion.Available: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/482436/public-opinion. Last accessed 16th Nov 2014. Chung, M.U. (2014).Parks approval ratings slip steeply.Available: http://koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2014/04/113_156249.html. Last accessed 16th Nov 2014. Is the American Dream Achievable? Is the American Dream Achievable? The American dream came about during the United States Declaration of Independence where it was meant to be a land of freedom where prosperity and success to the people prevailed regardless of their social status or where or how they were born. All people were to be treated equally by having their rights exercised freely with their happiness. Children were to be given good education and career without any barriers. Everyone was to make his or her own choice without the obstacles of their class, caste, religion, race ethnicity (Kronenwetter, 1997). By this it meant life should be great, richer and be enjoyed to the fullest by everyone according to their opportunities and achievements. Ever since independence, America has been seen to be a land of opportunity where good life can be achieved through your sweat, freedom of democracy is allowed and where everyone has a right to exercise his or her religion and moral beliefs. Equality was the in-thing. American Dream ever since has been operating under the principle of freedom but nowadays, much has changed in America. It has been born from a nation of freedom to a nation of materialism (Adamson, 2002). Before, one earned his leaving through hard work which was considered to be an achievement of financial success but nowadays people no longer look into the vision of the future which includes time, sweat and ultimate success but instead they sit in their comfort waiting for it to come true. American being a nation of capitalism, the quest for money was part a way forward to achieve their dreams. Instant wealth to the Americans was never part and parcel to their success, working hard was always their dream. During the colonization period, Benjamin Frankline counseled people on their way to wealth, according to him, retiring early to bed and waking up earlier will make you healthier, richer and wiser (Adamson, 2002). The American Dream education system has also been influenced towards not achieving the dream. One needs to qualify in a given area in order get an opportunity in the society instead of developing genuine competence and knowledge or show their interest. The poor who cannot afford education cannot fit in the system with whatever knowledge and experience they have because all this is left to the educated ones. Freedom of the people has also been altered because most of them nowadays have been turned into slaves to some people, the government and any other kinds of institutions. They have got no freedom of their own to rest. They work hard for other people instead of themselves. The achievement of security for all has also become a mirage with the United States topping the list of countries with the highest crime rates in the world. Crime rates heighten to new levels every day and curbing terrorism has become a hard nut to crack, increasing government spending and worsening the already b ad economic situation of America hence hindering the achievements of the American Dream (Kronenwetter, 1997). With all the above happenings, the American Dream can still be achieved through the norms that have been isolated. Norms such as old principles should be observed instead of being materialistic, the concept of being right or wrong, believing in inalienable freedom and the liberty of the individual. With the above, some achievements can be attained. Adaptation to change in institutions, organization or the government can also contribute very much towards the achievement of the American Dream. Faithfulness in what the nation stands for, for instant obeying the rules or the constitution of the nation and being a good citizen rather than being an obligation to the country. Poverty, ignorance, oppression and those things which are meant to hinder the countrys progress towards achieving its dream must be fought in all means (Lasch, 1995). With poverty, addressing the issue of inequitable distribution of wealth among the American people will solve the issue. This can be termed as a sign of justice and fairness among its people since there will be no favor or class of distinction (Adamson, 2002). Education should be put into consideration because with the old principles forgotten, achievement in academic can lead to achievement of a dream, happy and prosperous life. Best education comes with hard work and with this, knowing the root course what is hindering the achievement of the American Dream today can be possible. Economic crisis among the American citizen should be observed. Of recently, the Obama administration has been able to observe that by helping the needy through extending health and unemployment benefits and increasing food-stamp benefits. The problem of unemployment has been able to be addressed through the economic stimulus funding to the state and local government as they concentrate on other infrastructures such as repairing the aging transportation infrastructures. Safety among the citizens should be observed. Violent crimes should be abolished. Instead of crime, good virtues such as peace and prosperity should prevail. With unity, the gift is happiness; integrity of the country is always showing true spirit of the citizen. Goal achieving has been part and parcel of everybodys life but obstacles at times do come on the way. Political instability in a country can affect one to achieve the nations dream. If you want to start a business and the country or two groups are always at war with each other then your business will not grow either. Lack of motivation and drive is a major and key contributor to the achievement of the set goals and dreams (Adamson, 2002). Intrinsic motivation for goal attainment increases once drive to follow through the plan. Developing a set of ambitious life dreams is one thing, but having the drive, motivation and determination to follow through and work toward making your dreams a reality is entirely different. Knowing the motivating factor and never losing sight of it aids in sticking to the action plans. Once motivation is not cultivated in ones inner being the spirit of making the first step towards achieving the dream is deterred and in the long run the dream shuttered. Its therefore a pre-requisite for one to set attainable dreams and walk the dream (Lasch, 1995). Flexibility in making decisions is another critical factor that impacts on dream achievement. Fixed mindedness is a deterrent factor since individuals are not allowed to think beyond in a wider context but rather follow the st rict guidelines in achieving there set targets and as a result the spirit of invention and innovation is not appreciated. It is therefore upon every individual to look at various means of achieving the dream and the most productive decision empowered (Weir, 2007). Skills and competences also sway once judgment in setting dreams. Having the skills to follow through with the desired action is an important factor to consider when elaborating your plan to achieve your dreams (Lasch, 1995). It is therefore once obligation to be handy in identifying his special attributes and align them with his dreams even if means developing the skills through training and research an example would be a carpenter will never achieve his dream of becoming the best unless he continuously improve on his skills. Despite the above achievements and obstacles, they are those who have made the American Dream to become a reality. For instance Abraham Lincoln at some point was quoted saying Where is the American Dream and this, he achieved. Kennedy Abraham Lincoln who was the 16th president of the U.S between 1861 and 1961 took over power when the country crisis of Civil War was on the rise with millions of the Americans already dead (Kronenwetter, 1997). The war was between two worlds with their own visions. These worlds were the Union states of the North and Confederate states of the South. This gave rise to the War of Succession or Civil War. This was a time when the unity of the U.S and its territories were at risk. Lincoln was determined to end this war through the means of unifying the nation. By achieving this, he arrested those suspected to be secessionists and put them under detention without trial. Lincoln career as a president was a very humble person who never loved war. At one point, Lincoln became under attack by both sides of the Union states of the North and Confederate states of the South, Radical Republicans voiced for harsher treatment of the South while Democrats desired Compromise of which he fought back with patronage by making them feel sorry for each other (Adamson, 2002). He had power in speech to convince the American people. For example, at one occasion when addressing the Gettysburg in 1863, he was quoted saying and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, will not perish from the earth (Kronenwetter, 1997). This statement remained to be an icon of the Americas dedication to the principles of nationalism, equal rights, liberty, and democracy. Abraham Lincoln dream came true when he abolished slavery in the U.S. With time discrimination and segregation came to an end. Racism only remained in many older North Americans while the young ones continued to interact with different races. Civil Rights Act allowed anybody from any race to study in the U.S with no discrimination. Equality was considered first. Most migrants moved in to the U.S in search of different freedoms and opportunities. Other intermarried for example the blacks and the whites. Then black man, Barrack Obama, with Lincolns footsteps came into being the president. Abraham Lincoln remained a hero and one of the greatest U.S presidents after giving freedom to the slaves (Lasch, 1995). Martin Luther King Jr. was never left behind for fighting for the American Dream. Being a Baptist minister, he was in the war front fighting discrimination against the blacks. All he wanted was racial equality among the Americans. 1963 is the day to be remembered when Martin and his staff went to Birmingham Alabama and protested non-violently. This kind of behavior intrigued bad publicity, forced the white leaders of Birmingham to agree to some anti-segregation demands. He was later arrested and jailed. This was the last time to be seen in public until the memorial of Abraham Lincoln (Lasch, 1995). Here, he invoked the name of Lincoln in his I Have a Dream which was televised across the country. In his speech, he talked about slavery which Lincoln had fought for before. In his own word he said, I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood (Lasch, 1995). All he meant was the equality among the American people. His speech of I Have a Dream to the Americans has achieved the American Dream. The fight for the racism has been achieved equality between the blacks and the whites (Lasch, 1995). Black people are being offered same opportunities in the American at large. Kings was against crime to the humanity, he was against the Vietnam War. In his speech titled Beyond Vietnam he openly declared that he was against U.S involvement with the Vietnam War. To him, U.S was in Vietnam to occupy it as an American colony and calling the American government the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today. He also didnt miss the wealth and poverty topic, to him, U.S needed some moral changes in which he said, A true revolution of values will soon look uneasily on the glaring contrast of poverty and wealth. With righteous indignation, it will look across the seas and see individual capitalists of the West investing huge sums of money in Africa, Asia, and South America, only to take the profits out with no concern for the social betterment of the countries (Lasch, 1995). Politically, his prediction about his four children living in a nation where a black will rule came to be accomplished the Barrack Obama. Martin Luther King Jr. left a legacy behind for fighting equality and human rights. Despite this kind of lives, the two leaders demonstrated leadership in themselves. Trying to look at their personalities and their achievements, we can see each having growing up to fight for the rights of the human nature. Their life stories, memorable phrases and quotes and incredible feats that give us a glimpse of what we already know. There destinies were shaped by the obstacles but they managed to overcome it. For instant, Born on February on 12, 1809, Abraham Lincoln came from a very humble family and made a living with simple jobs like cutting wood, failed merchant. With nine years old, Lincoln lost her mother due to milk sickness, and then her older sister died also when giving birth at a young age (Kronenwetter, 1997). His father re-married again of which his fathers wife became very close to Lincoln despite the distance between him and his father. Slavery was part of their family. This haunted Lincoln very much with the kind of hard labor his father was going through due to lack of education. All cores expected of him as a male in the household such as building rail fences was his work. Lincoln worked so hard when he was young and whatever he earned, he gave his father and when he grew older, he at times loaned some money from his father. His romance life was also full of obstacles, her first love died of typhoid fever before they could settle together. Her second romance didnt work either after courting for some time. At the end, he married Mary Todd Lincoln whom they had children together who died later with different ages. This haunted both parents so much and at some point Mary was committed to a mental care asylum in1875 while Abraham Lincoln suffered from melancholy (Kronenwetter, 1997). Life went on with lots of ups and down until Lincoln became a legislator of Illinois, an advocate against the extension of slavery, later a candidate of the nascent Republican Party, later the President of the United States, and, finally, a man of principles who believed in the essential virtue of democracy for resolving conflict of which he fought for so much and at one point, he was quoted saying As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master. This expresses my idea of democracy. Whatever differs from this, to the extent of the difference, is no democracy (Lasch, 1995).Education wise, Lincoln was very smart. He observed nature with a lot of closeness which enabled him later to accomplish his American dream. Living in Illinois opened his future of becoming a lawyer and this helped him sharpen up the skills of politics. Through politics he managed to become the president of the United States of America. Abraham Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, a well-known actor and confederate spy from Maryland in 1864. Martin Luther King Jr. was also assassinated in 1968 in his room that he had booked. He was born in January 15, 1929 as Michael which later changed to be Martin, grew up in a Christian family. His father was a pastor in Ebenezer Baptist church in Atlanta where he acted as a co-pastor. Martin was a learned man, he attended segregated schools in Georgia, graduated from high school at the age of fifteen; he received the B.A. degree in 1948 from Morehouse College, a distinguished Negro institution of Atlanta from which both his father and grandfather had graduated. Three years after his theological study at Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania where he was elected preside nt of a predominantly white senior class, he was awarded the B.D. in 1951 (Kronenwetter, 1997). Later he married MaCoretta Scott, a young woman of uncommon intellectual and artistic attainments of whom he had two sons and two daughters with. He worked as a strong worker for Civil Rights for the members of the race. He fought for the equality of the American citizens. Left behind a legacy of predicting that one day the American will be ruled by the blacks. Of which it has been accomplished. This two leaders had some few things in common, the both fought for the humanity rights (Lasch, 1995). The both wanted America to be a land where freedom is exercised and opportunity citizen to both are adhered to. Through their fight for humanity, American Dreams have been achieved. Education wise, resources are being distributed freely to all the people. In summary great people dream big, this can be translated to mean people will always try to get a good life. The Promised Land flowing with goodies will always attract masses; in view of this fact America has been seen by many as a country that promises the good life. What people do not realize is that the country was built through hard struggles and sacrifices to achieve the success. Successful people commit to achieving better than their peers. For them, commitment has becomes an instinctual habit they practice every day. However, commitment is not merely about the intention or the strength of your promises, it is all about taking action. Even the strongest commitment is just another broken promise unless a commitment to take action occurs. In conclusion achieving once dream is a product of individual efforts and intrinsic power to venture into the world of unknown unveiling discoveries. Americas top two icon leaders have lived the example and the idea of achieving once dreams made practical and many more yet to be unfolded.

Hawthorne :: essays research papers

"A 'place in the mind', wherever or whatever it may be, can only ever be fictitious. In the act of its creation, the 'place' is formed by a process that necessitates an imaginative leap; it does not actually exist, and therefore its constituent elements have to be imagined, made up by the creator. For a place - in this case, America - to exist in the realms of the mind, it must be a place that exists outside of a corporeal, material reality. Fiction becomes the perfect arena to present this place, because its very nature allows imagined, idealised and remembered places to exist, a venue where the intangibility of these places can achieve a tangible realisation. Between the pages of a book, the place in the mind can become real, if only for a while; the America that exists between the pages of its nation's fiction is often an America of the mind, but an America that for a fleeting moment achieves a kind of actuality." Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Blithedale Romance", is the first person narration of a man bent upon joining a world that has no need of him by imposing an arbitrary order upon his reality. Blithedale, is a novel of polarities. Just as Coverdale imposes order on reality, Zenobia, the feminine voice of creation, understands reality as a fragmented thing that cannot have order forced upon it. We see in the novel oppositions in communities, in social order, and in place. But, Hawthorne also gives us a richly crafted story about what it is that defines community and the common spirit or communal soul. The romance, of this book, is not just that of man and woman, but of the romantic ideals of society and of order. Coverdale, who is the namesake of the primary translator of the King James bible, is a man bent upon making the world be what he wants it to be. Hawthorne's, The Blithedale Romance, provides the reader with a set of beliefs, ideals, and aspirations, that become ideologies that actually mask reality thus pitting the utopian hopes of Blithedale against actual human behaviors - which makes for a difficult conflict at best Hawthorne was born in Salem, Massachusetts, into an old Puritan family. Hawthorne's own 17th-century ancestors, as he frankly admitted, had been among the real-life Puritan zealots. "Young Goodman Brown" is a story of initiation. Evil is the nature of mankind.

The Causes of the American Civil War

The American Civil War is one of the most significant and controversial periods in American history. The Civil War was caused by mounting conflicting pressures, principles, and prejudices, fueled by differences and pride, and set into motion by unlikely set of political events. The war divided the country between the North (Union) and South (Confederate). The war lasted five years and by 1865 the Confederate forces were truly beaten. Out of this horrendous war though, where some 600,000 men died grew a greater sense of nationalism than is today, unrivalled around the world One of the causes of the American Civil War was the economic and social differences between the North and the South. With Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin in 1793, cotton became very profitable. This machine was able to reduce the time it took to separate seeds from the cotton. However, at the same time the increase in the number of plantations willing to move from other crops to cotton meant the greater need for a large amount of cheap labor, Indo European slaves. Therefore the Southern economy became a one-crop economy, depending on cotton as well as slavery. On the other side the Northern economy was based more on industry than agriculture. In fact, the northern industries were purchasing the raw cotton and turning it into finished goods. This disparity between the two set up a major difference in economic attitudes. The South was based on the plantation system while the North was focused on city life. The second cause for the American Civil War was the fight between slave and Non-slave state proponents. As America began to expand, first with the lands gained from the Louisiana Purchase and later with the Mexican War, the question of whether new states admitted to the union would be slave or free. The Missouri Compromise passed in 1820 made a rule that prohibited slavery in states from the former Louisiana Purchase. The Compromise of 1850 was created by Henry Clay and others to deal with the balance between slave states and free states, northern and southern interests. One of the provisions was the Fugitive Slave Act. Another issue that further increased tensions was the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854. It created two new territories that would allow the states to use popular sovereignty to determine whether they would be free or slave. The last cause of the American Civil War was the growth of the Abolition Movement. Increasingly, the northerners became more polarized against slavery. Sympathies began to grow for abolitionists and against slavery and slaveholders. This occurred especially after some major events including: the publishing of Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin, the Dred Scott Case John Brown's Raid, and the passage of the fugitive slave act that held individuals responsible for harboring fugitive slaves even if they were located in non-slave states. The Civil War lasted longer than it was expected to. But, unfortunately, the War was inevitable due to the great gap between the North and South socially, economically and politically. In fact, due to these circumstances, if the South had won the War, the country would have probably been divided into two separate countries. As any war would have ended, the War ended with great losses to both sides. More Americans were killed in the Civil War than in all other American wars combined from the colonial period through the later phase of the Vietnam War. Apart from the number of deaths and casualties, the great loss of property and money, the country now needed to work together in order to rebuild what was lost. Emotionally, it would take long years for many people to overcome the consequences of the war. The war was followed by twelve years of Reconstruction, during which the North and South debated the future of black Americans and fought bitter political battles. Yet, there was a good outcome of this war. Slavery came to an end as a legal institution. But the war did not bring equal rights for blacks, they still had their own war to win until those rights would be achieved.

Calcite and Aragonite in Earths Carbon Cycle

You may think of carbon as an element that on Earth is found mainly in living things (that is, in organic matter) or in the atmosphere as carbon dioxide. Both of those geochemical reservoirs are important, of course, but the vast majority of carbon is locked up in carbonate minerals. These are led by calcium carbonate, which takes two mineral forms named calcite and aragonite. Calcium Carbonate Minerals in Rocks Aragonite and calcite have the same chemical formula, CaCO3, but their atoms are stacked in different configurations. That is, they are polymorphs. (Another example is the trio of kyanite, andalusite, and sillimanite.) Aragonite has an orthorhombic structure and calcite a trigonal structure. Our gallery of carbonate minerals covers the basics of both minerals from the rockhounds viewpoint: how to identify them, where theyre found, some of their peculiarities. Calcite is more stable in general than aragonite, although as temperatures and pressures change one of the two minerals may convert to the other. At surface conditions, aragonite spontaneously turns into calcite over geologic time, but at higher pressures aragonite, the denser of the two, is the preferred structure. High temperatures work in calcites favor. At surface pressure, aragonite cant endure temperatures above around 400Â °C for long. High-pressure, low-temperature rocks of the blueschist metamorphic facies often contain veins of aragonite instead of calcite. The process of turning back to calcite is slow enough that aragonite can persist in a metastable state, similar to diamond. Sometimes a crystal of one mineral converts to the other mineral while preserving its original shape as a pseudomorph: it may look like a typical calcite knob or aragonite needle, but the petrographic microscope shows its true nature. Many geologists, for most purposes, dont need to know the correct polymorph and just talk about carbonate. Most of the time, the carbonate in rocks is calcite. Calcium Carbonate Minerals in Water Calcium carbonate chemistry is more complicated when it comes to understanding which polymorph will crystallize out of solution. This process is common in nature, because neither mineral is highly soluble, and the presence of dissolved carbon dioxide (CO2) in water pushes them toward precipitating. In water, CO2 exists in balance with the bicarbonate ion, HCO3, and carbonic acid, H2CO3, all of which are highly soluble. Changing the level of CO2 affects the levels of these other compounds, but the CaCO3 in the middle of this chemical chain pretty much has no choice but to precipitate as a mineral that cant dissolve quickly and return to the water. This one-way process is a major driver of the geological carbon cycle. Which arrangement the calcium ions (Ca2) and carbonate ions (CO32–) will choose as they join into CaCO3 depends on conditions in the water. In clean fresh water (and in the laboratory), calcite predominates, especially in cool water. Cavestone formations are generally calcite. Mineral cements in many limestones and other sedimentary rocks are generally calcite. The ocean is the most important habitat in the geological record, and calcium carbonate mineralization is an important part of oceanic life and marine geochemistry. Calcium carbonate comes directly out of solution to form mineral layers on the tiny round particles called ooids and to form the cement of seafloor mud. Which mineral crystallizes, calcite or aragonite, depends on the water chemistry. Seawater is full of ions that compete with calcium and carbonate. Magnesium (Mg2) clings to the calcite structure, slowing down the growth of calcite and forcing itself into calcites molecular structure, but it doesnt interfere with aragonite. Sulfate ion (SO4–) also suppresses calcite growth. Warmer water and a larger supply of dissolved carbonate favor aragonite by encouraging it to grow faster than calcite can. Calcite and Aragonite Seas These things matter to the living things that build their shells and structures out of calcium carbonate. Shellfish, including bivalves and brachiopods, are familiar examples. Their shells are not pure mineral, but intricate mixtures of microscopic carbonate crystals bound together with proteins. The one-celled animals and plants classified as plankton make their shells, or tests, the same way. Another important factor appears to be that algae benefit from making carbonate by ensuring themselves a ready supply of CO2 to help with photosynthesis. All of these creatures use enzymes to construct the mineral they prefer. Aragonite makes needlelike crystals whereas calcite makes blocky ones, but many species can make use of either. Many mollusk shells use aragonite on the inside and calcite on the outside. Whatever they do uses energy, and when ocean conditions favor one carbonate or the other, the shell-building process takes extra energy to work against the dictates of pure chemistry. This means that changing the chemistry of a lake or the ocean penalizes some species and advantages others. Over geologic time the ocean has shifted between aragonite seas and calcite seas. Today were in an aragonite sea that is high in magnesium—it favors the precipitation of aragonite plus calcite thats high in magnesium. A calcite sea, lower in magnesium, favors low-magnesium calcite. The secret is fresh seafloor basalt, whose minerals react with magnesium in seawater and pull it out of circulation. When plate tectonic activity is vigorous, we get calcite seas. When its slower and spreading zones are shorter, we get aragonite seas. Theres more to it than that, of course. The important thing is that the two different regimes exist, and the boundary between them is roughly when magnesium is twice as abundant as calcium in seawater. The Earth has had an aragonite sea since roughly 40 million years ago (40 Ma). The most recent previous aragonite sea period was between late Mississippian and early Jurassic time (about 330 to 180 Ma), and next going back in time was the latest Precambrian, before 550 Ma. In between these periods, Earth had calcite seas. More aragonite and calcite periods are being mapped out farther back in time. Its thought that over geologic time, these large-scale patterns have made a difference in the mix of organisms that built reefs in the sea. The things we learn about carbonate mineralization and its response to ocean chemistry are also important to know as we try to figure out how the sea will respond to human-caused changes in the atmosphere and climate.