Describe with Examples the Importance of Recognising and Responding to Concerns About Children and Young People’s Development.

U1 – 2. 210-11-11 Describe with examples the importance of recognising and responding to concerns about children and young people’s development. The following things would cause concern about a child or young person’s development. If the problem was left untreated then things could get worse, and a delay in treatment could mean that the outcome is not as good as it would have been if treatment was started earlier. 1. Speech / Language. If a child or young person does not talk to anyone or even only speaks a few words compared to others, this may cause concern. This would socially affect the child or young person’s because they would find it hard to make friends, work in groups or even interact with adults. It would also affect their communicational development because they would find it hard to speak to people and also may find it hard to listen to instructions etc. Early intervention would be the best way to respond to this concern, the first step would be to have the child or young person’s hearing checked because if they have poor hearing they will find it hard to hear people so will not want to communicate with others in case they get something wrong. . Poor reading and writing. If a child or young person has difficulties with their reading and writing it may cause concern, but this may not be noticeable until the child is around the age of 6 or 7 because by this age they should have learnt how letters are formed and start to string words together. These are the main skills a child needs to help them develop in all areas. Due to poor reading and writing the child or young person will start to fall behind his peers of the same age. They may find it difficult to interact or make friends with others who are more advanced than them, in case they are bullied etc. They would struggle with their intellectual development not only with the reading and writing, but they would struggle with their memory and even their concentration. They would have a low self-esteem, and could also have a speech problem. They may become very disruptive in the class, because they can not do the work etc. The best way to respond to this concern would to inform the main teacher and also inform the SENCO, so that they can follow it up correctly as the child or young person may have dyslexia. 3. CO-Ordination. If a child or young person starts to show signs of clumsiness or struggle with their fine motor or gross motor movements then this would cause concern and make you wonder what could be causing this? Their social development may be affected as they may find it hard to interact with other children when playing games in the playground. The child or young person will have problems with fine motor and gross motor skills and therefore may struggle to use a pen/pencil, have hand-eye co-ordination problems, balance and even running. This will also have a knock on affect on them intellectually, because if they are unable to hold a pen/pencil then they will be unable to write. The best way to respond to this concern would yet again inform the child’s teacher and also inform the SENCO, as the child or young person may suffer from dyspraxia, and they will need to be assessed. . Signs of Abuse. It can be very difficult to recognise signs of abuse in a child or young person. They are some signs, which could alert staff to the fact that the child or young person might be being abused at home, for example constant bruising, or having unusual injuries for the child or young person. This may have an affect on their emotional development because they may suffer from low self-esteem, and be unable to name the emotion they ar e feeling. They may also have problems with their physical development because if the child or young person has been physically abused and hurt then they may be in pain when doing things. The best way to respond to this kind of concern is to inform the child’s teacher and also the head teacher and then they can then inform social services and the police and then they can look into the situation more closely. 5. Diet / Weight. If a child or young person’s diet / weight were to suddenly drop or increase in a short period of time then this would cause some concern about them. Things that would raise concern would be if they came to school and did not have any lunch (packed lunch) or if they only eat small amounts, this would make the child very irritable and very lethargic because they are not getting the right nourishment for one reason or another. If the child or young person is malnutrition they may have difficulty with their social development because they nay struggle with their speech and therefore are unable to interact and make friends. Their physical development may develop at a slower rate compared to the other children etc. The signs of a child being under weight could be that they have an illness like leukaemia, or the fact that they are being neglected at home. The best way for staff to approach this would to be speech to the parents/carer of the child or go to social services. 6. Behaviour. If a child or young person’s behaviour is more along a negative line constantly then this may cause concern and make staff etc wonder what could be causing the constant negative behaviour. This behaviour could be signs that the child or young person has ADHD, Autism etc. If left untreated then the child or young person’s development would be affected in a big way. Socially no one would want to be their friend if they constantly hit, kick or even bite others, this would then make is hard for them to make friends and share with others. If the child does have a condition that is affect their behaviour this would cause them to have poor concentration and their listening skills would also suffer. Emotionally they may be constantly angry or confused by what is going on. The best way to respond to this would be to inform SENCO and maybe introduce a behaviour chart in the class and reward the good behaviour.

Angels Demons Chapter 106-108

106 It was 11:07 P.M. Langdon's car raced through the Roman night. Speeding down Lungotevere Tor Di Nona, parallel with the river, Langdon could now see his destination rising like a mountain to his right. Castel Sant' Angelo. Castle of the Angel. Without warning, the turnoff to the narrow Bridge of Angels – Ponte Sant' Angelo – appeared suddenly. Langdon slammed on his brakes and swerved. He turned in time, but the bridge was barricaded. He skidded ten feet and collided with a series of short cement pillars blocking his way. Langdon lurched forward as the vehicle stalled, wheezing and shuddering. He had forgotten the Bridge of Angels, in order to preserve it, was now zoned pedestrians only. Shaken, Langdon staggered from the crumpled car, wishing now he had chosen one of the other routes. He felt chilled, shivering from the fountain. He donned his Harris tweed over his damp shirt, grateful for Harris's trademark double lining. The Diagramma folio would remain dry. Before him, across the bridge, the stone fortress rose like a mountain. Aching and depleted, Langdon broke into a loping run. On both sides of him now, like a gauntlet of escorts, a procession of Bernini angels whipped past, funneling him toward his final destination. Let angels guide you on your lofty quest. The castle seemed to rise as he advanced, an unscalable peak, more intimidating to him even than St. Peter's. He sprinted toward the bastion, running on fumes, gazing upward at the citadel's circular core as it shot skyward to a gargantuan, sword-wielding angel. The castle appeared deserted. Langdon knew through the centuries the building had been used by the Vatican as a tomb, a fortress, a papal hideout, a prison for enemies of the church, and a museum. Apparently, the castle had other tenants as well – the Illuminati. Somehow it made eerie sense. Although the castle was property of the Vatican, it was used only sporadically, and Bernini had made numerous renovations to it over the years. The building was now rumored to be honeycombed with secret entries, passageways, and hidden chambers. Langdon had little doubt that the angel and surrounding pentagonal park were Bernini's doing as well. Arriving at the castle's elephantine double doors, Langdon shoved them hard. Not surprisingly, they were immovable. Two iron knockers hung at eye level. Langdon didn't bother. He stepped back, his eyes climbing the sheer outer wall. These ramparts had fended off armies of Berbers, heathens, and Moors. Somehow he sensed his chances of breaking in were slim. Vittoria, Langdon thought. Are you in there? Langdon hurried around the outer wall. There must be another entrance! Rounding the second bulwark to the west, Langdon arrived breathless in a small parking area off Lungotere Angelo. On this wall he found a second castle entrance, a drawbridge-type ingress, raised and sealed shut. Langdon gazed upward again. The only lights on the castle were exterior floods illuminating the fa;ade. All the tiny windows inside seemed black. Langdon's eyes climbed higher. At the very peak of the central tower, a hundred feet above, directly beneath the angel's sword, a single balcony protruded. The marble parapet seemed to shimmer slightly, as if the room beyond it were aglow with torchlight. Langdon paused, his soaked body shivering suddenly. A shadow? He waited, straining. Then he saw it again. His spine prickled. Someone is up there! â€Å"Vittoria!† he called out, unable to help himself, but his voice was swallowed by the raging Tiber behind him. He wheeled in circles, wondering where the hell the Swiss Guard were. Had they even heard his transmission? Across the lot a large media truck was parked. Langdon ran toward it. A paunchy man in headphones sat in the cabin adjusting levers. Langdon rapped on the side of the truck. The man jumped, saw Langdon's dripping clothes, and yanked off his headset. â€Å"What's the worry, mate?† His accent was Australian. â€Å"I need your phone.† Langdon was frenzied. The man shrugged. â€Å"No dial tone. Been trying all night. Circuits are packed.† Langdon swore aloud. â€Å"Have you seen anyone go in there?† He pointed to the drawbridge. â€Å"Actually, yeah. A black van's been going in and out all night.† Langdon felt a brick hit the bottom of his stomach. â€Å"Lucky bastard,† the Aussie said, gazing up at the tower, and then frowning at his obstructed view of the Vatican. â€Å"I bet the view from up there is perfect. I couldn't get through the traffic in St. Peter's, so I'm shooting from here.† Langdon wasn't listening. He was looking for options. â€Å"What do you say?† the Australian said. â€Å"This 11th Hour Samaritan for real?† Langdon turned. â€Å"The what?† â€Å"You didn't hear? The Captain of the Swiss Guard got a call from somebody who claims to have some primo info. The guy's flying in right now. All I know is if he saves the day†¦ there go the ratings!† The man laughed. Langdon was suddenly confused. A good Samaritan flying in to help? Did the person somehow know where the antimatter was? Then why didn't he just tell the Swiss Guard? Why was he coming in person? Something was odd, but Langdon didn't have time to figure out what. â€Å"Hey,† the Aussie said, studying Langdon more closely. â€Å"Ain't you that guy I saw on TV? Trying to save that cardinal in St. Peter's Square?† Langdon did not answer. His eyes had suddenly locked on a contraption attached to the top of the truck – a satellite dish on a collapsible appendage. Langdon looked at the castle again. The outer rampart was fifty feet tall. The inner fortress climbed farther still. A shelled defense. The top was impossibly high from here, but maybe if he could clear the first wall†¦ Langdon spun to the newsman and pointed to the satellite arm. â€Å"How high does that go?† â€Å"Huh?† The man looked confused. â€Å"Fifteen meters. Why?† â€Å"Move the truck. Park next to the wall. I need help.† â€Å"What are you talking about?† Langdon explained. The Aussie's eyes went wide. â€Å"Are you insane? That's a two- hundred-thousand-dollar telescoping extension. Not a ladder!† â€Å"You want ratings? I've got information that will make your day.† Langdon was desperate. â€Å"Information worth two hundred grand?† Langdon told him what he would reveal in exchange for the favor. Ninety seconds later, Robert Langdon was gripping the top of the satellite arm wavering in the breeze fifty feet off the ground. Leaning out, he grabbed the top of the first bulwark, dragged himself onto the wall, and dropped onto the castle's lower bastion. â€Å"Now keep your bargain!† the Aussie called up. â€Å"Where is he?† Langdon felt guilt-ridden for revealing this information, but a deal was a deal. Besides, the Hassassin would probably call the press anyway. â€Å"Piazza Navona,† Langdon shouted. â€Å"He's in the fountain.† The Aussie lowered his satellite dish and peeled out after the scoop of his career. In a stone chamber high above the city, the Hassassin removed his soaking boots and bandaged his wounded toe. There was pain, but not so much that he couldn't enjoy himself. He turned to his prize. She was in the corner of the room, on her back on a rudimentary divan, hands tied behind her, mouth gagged. The Hassassin moved toward her. She was awake now. This pleased him. Surprisingly, in her eyes, he saw fire instead of fear. The fear will come. 107 Robert Langdon dashed around the outer bulwark of the castle, grateful for the glow of the floodlights. As he circled the wall, the courtyard beneath him looked like a museum of ancient warfare – catapults, stacks of marble cannonballs, and an arsenal of fearful contraptions. Parts of the castle were open to tourists during the day, and the courtyard had been partially restored to its original state. Langdon's eyes crossed the courtyard to the central core of the fortress. The circular citadel shot skyward 107 feet to the bronze angel above. The balcony at the top still glowed from within. Langdon wanted to call out but knew better. He would have to find a way in. He checked his watch. 11:12 P.M. Dashing down the stone ramp that hugged the inside of the wall, Langdon descended to the courtyard. Back on ground level, he ran through shadows, clockwise around the fort. He passed three porticos, but all of them were permanently sealed. How did the Hassassin get in? Langdon pushed on. He passed two modern entrances, but they were padlocked from the outside. Not here. He kept running. Langdon had circled almost the entire building when he saw a gravel drive cutting across the courtyard in front of him. At one end, on the outer wall of the castle, he saw the back of the gated drawbridge leading back outside. At the other end, the drive disappeared into the fortress. The drive seemed to enter a kind of tunnel – a gaping entry in the central core. Il traforo! Langdon had read about this castle's traforo, a giant spiral ramp that circled up inside the fort, used by commanders on horseback to ride from top to bottom rapidly. The Hassassin drove up! The gate blocking the tunnel was raised, ushering Langdon in. He felt almost exuberant as he ran toward the tunnel. But as he reached the opening, his excitement disappeared. The tunnel spiraled down. The wrong way. This section of the traforo apparently descended to the dungeons, not to the top. Standing at the mouth of a dark bore that seemed to twist endlessly deeper into the earth, Langdon hesitated, looking up again at the balcony. He could swear he saw motion up there. Decide! With no other options, he dashed down into the tunnel. High overhead, the Hassassin stood over his prey. He ran a hand across her arm. Her skin was like cream. The anticipation of exploring her bodily treasures was inebriating. How many ways could he violate her? The Hassassin knew he deserved this woman. He had served Janus well. She was a spoil of war, and when he was finished with her, he would pull her from the divan and force her to her knees. She would service him again. The ultimate submission. Then, at the moment of his own climax, he would slit her throat. Ghayat assa'adah, they called it. The ultimate pleasure. Afterward, basking in his glory, he would stand on the balcony and savor the culmination of the Illuminati triumph†¦ a revenge desired by so many for so long. The tunnel grew darker. Langdon descended. After one complete turn into the earth, the light was all but gone. The tunnel leveled out, and Langdon slowed, sensing by the echo of his footfalls that he had just entered a larger chamber. Before him in the murkiness, he thought he saw glimmers of light†¦ fuzzy reflections in the ambient gleam. He moved forward, reaching out his hand. He found smooth surfaces. Chrome and glass. It was a vehicle. He groped the surface, found a door, and opened it. The vehicle's interior dome-light flashed on. He stepped back and recognized the black van immediately. Feeling a surge of loathing, he stared a moment, then he dove in, rooting around in hopes of finding a weapon to replace the one he'd lost in the fountain. He found none. He did, however, find Vittoria's cell phone. It was shattered and useless. The sight of it filled Langdon with fear. He prayed he was not too late. He reached up and turned on the van's headlights. The room around him blazed into existence, harsh shadows in a simple chamber. Langdon guessed the room was once used for horses and ammunition. It was also a dead end. No exit. I came the wrong way! At the end of his rope, Langdon jumped from the van and scanned the walls around him. No doorways. No gates. He thought of the angel over the tunnel entrance and wondered if it had been a coincidence. No! He thought of the killer's words at the fountain. She is in the Church of Illumination†¦ awaiting my return. Langdon had come too far to fail now. His heart was pounding. Frustration and hatred were starting to cripple his senses. When he saw the blood on the floor, Langdon's first thought was for Vittoria. But as his eyes followed the stains, he realized they were bloody footprints. The strides were long. The splotches of blood were only on the left foot. The Hassassin! Langdon followed the footprints toward the corner of the room, his sprawling shadow growing fainter. He felt more and more puzzled with every step. The bloody prints looked as though they walked directly into the corner of the room and then disappeared. When Langdon arrived in the corner, he could not believe his eyes. The granite block in the floor here was not a square like the others. He was looking at another signpost. The block was carved into a perfect pentagram, arranged with the tip pointing into the corner. Ingeniously concealed by overlapping walls, a narrow slit in the stone served as an exit. Langdon slid through. He was in a passage. In front of him were the remains of a wooden barrier that had once been blocking this tunnel. Beyond it there was light. Langdon was running now. He clambered over the wood and headed for the light. The passage quickly opened into another, larger chamber. Here a single torch flickered on the wall. Langdon was in a section of the castle that had no electricity†¦ a section no tourists would ever see. The room would have been frightful in daylight, but the torch made it even more gruesome. Il prigione. There were a dozen tiny jail cells, the iron bars on most eroded away. One of the larger cells, however, remained intact, and on the floor Langdon saw something that almost stopped his heart. Black robes and red sashes on the floor. This is where he held the cardinals! Near the cell was an iron doorway in the wall. The door was ajar and beyond it Langdon could see some sort of passage. He ran toward it. But Langdon stopped before he got there. The trail of blood did not enter the passage. When Langdon saw the words carved over the archway, he knew why. Il Passetto. He was stunned. He had heard of this tunnel many times, never knowing where exactly the entrance was. Il Passetto – The Little Passage – was a slender, three-quarter-mile tunnel built between Castle St. Angelo and the Vatican. It had been used by various Popes to escape to safety during sieges of the Vatican†¦ as well as by a few less pious Popes to secretly visit mistresses or oversee the torture of their enemies. Nowadays both ends of the tunnel were supposedly sealed with impenetrable locks whose keys were kept in some Vatican vault. Langdon suddenly feared he knew how the Illuminati had been moving in and out of the Vatican. He found himself wondering who on the inside had betrayed the church and coughed up the keys. Olivetti? One of the Swiss Guard? None of it mattered anymore. The blood on the floor led to the opposite end of the prison. Langdon followed. Here, a rusty gate hung draped with chains. The lock had been removed and the gate stood ajar. Beyond the gate was a steep ascension of spiral stairs. The floor here was also marked with a pentagramal block. Langdon stared at the block, trembling, wondering if Bernini himself had held the chisel that had shaped these chunks. Overhead, the archway was adorned with a tiny carved cherub. This was it. The trail of blood curved up the stairs. Before ascending, Langdon knew he needed a weapon, any weapon. He found a four-foot section of iron bar near one of the cells. It had a sharp, splintered end. Although absurdly heavy, it was the best he could do. He hoped the element of surprise, combined with the Hassassin's wound, would be enough to tip the scales in his advantage. Most of all, though, he hoped he was not too late. The staircase's spiral treads were worn and twisted steeply upward. Langdon ascended, listening for sounds. None. As he climbed, the light from the prison area faded away. He ascended into the total darkness, keeping one hand on the wall. Higher. In the blackness, Langdon sensed the ghost of Galileo, climbing these very stairs, eager to share his visions of heaven with other men of science and faith. Langdon was still in a state of shock over the location of the lair. The Illuminati meeting hall was in a building owned by the Vatican. No doubt while the Vatican guards were out searching basements and homes of well-known scientists, the Illuminati were meeting here†¦ right under the Vatican's nose. It suddenly seemed so perfect. Bernini, as head architect of renovations here, would have had unlimited access to this structure†¦ remodeling it to his own specifications with no questions asked. How many secret entries had Bernini added? How many subtle embellishments pointing the way? The Church of Illumination. Langdon knew he was close. As the stairs began narrowing, Langdon felt the passage closing around him. The shadows of history were whispering in the dark, but he moved on. When he saw the horizontal shaft of light before him, he realized he was standing a few steps beneath a landing, where the glow of torchlight spilled out beneath the threshold of a door in front of him. Silently he moved up. Langdon had no idea where in the castle he was right now, but he knew he had climbed far enough to be near the peak. He pictured the mammoth angel atop the castle and suspected it was directly overhead. Watch over me, angel, he thought, gripping the bar. Then, silently, he reached for the door. On the divan, Vittoria's arms ached. When she had first awoken to find them tied behind her back, she'd thought she might be able to relax and work her hands free. But time had run out. The beast had returned. Now he was standing over her, his chest bare and powerful, scarred from battles he had endured. His eyes looked like two black slits as he stared down at her body. Vittoria sensed he was imagining the deeds he was about to perform. Slowly, as if to taunt her, the Hassassin removed his soaking belt and dropped it on the floor. Vittoria felt a loathing horror. She closed her eyes. When she opened them again, the Hassassin had produced a switchblade knife. He snapped it open directly in front of her face. Vittoria saw her own terrified reflection in the steel. The Hassassin turned the blade over and ran the back of it across her belly. The icy metal gave her chills. With a contemptuous stare, he slipped the blade below the waistline of her shorts. She inhaled. He moved back and forth, slowly, dangerously†¦ lower. Then he leaned forward, his hot breath whispering in her ear. â€Å"This blade cut out your father's eye.† Vittoria knew in that instant that she was capable of killing. The Hassassin turned the blade again and began sawing upward through the fabric of her khaki shorts. Suddenly, he stopped, looking up. Someone was in the room. â€Å"Get away from her,† a deep voice growled from the doorway. Vittoria could not see who had spoken, but she recognized the voice. Robert! He's alive! The Hassassin looked as if he had seen a ghost. â€Å"Mr. Langdon, you must have a guardian angel.† 108 In the split second it took Langdon to take in his surroundings, he realized he was in a sacred place. The embellishments in the oblong room, though old and faded, were replete with familiar symbology. Pentagram tiles. Planet frescoes. Doves. Pyramids. The Church of Illumination. Simple and pure. He had arrived. Directly in front of him, framed in the opening of the balcony, stood the Hassassin. He was bare chested, standing over Vittoria, who lay bound but very much alive. Langdon felt a wave of relief to see her. For an instant, their eyes met, and a torrent of emotions flowed – gratitude, desperation, and regret. â€Å"So we meet yet again,† the Hassassin said. He looked at the bar in Langdon's hand and laughed out loud. â€Å"And this time you come for me with that?† â€Å"Untie her.† The Hassassin put the knife to Vittoria's throat. â€Å"I will kill her.† Langdon had no doubt the Hassassin was capable of such an act. He forced a calm into his voice. â€Å"I imagine she would welcome it†¦ considering the alternative.† The Hassassin smiled at the insult. â€Å"You're right. She has much to offer. It would be a waste.† Langdon stepped forward, grasping the rusted bar, and aimed the splintered end directly at the Hassassin. The cut on his hand bit sharply. â€Å"Let her go.† The Hassassin seemed for a moment to be considering it. Exhaling, he dropped his shoulders. It was a clear motion of surrender, and yet at that exact instant the Hassassin's arm seemed to accelerate unexpectedly. There was a blur of dark muscle, and a blade suddenly came tearing through the air toward Langdon's chest. Whether it was instinct or exhaustion that buckled Langdon's knees at that moment, he didn't know, but the knife sailed past his left ear and clattered to the floor behind him. The Hassassin seemed unfazed. He smiled at Langdon, who was kneeling now, holding the metal bar. The killer stepped away from Vittoria and moved toward Langdon like a stalking lion. As Langdon scrambled to his feet, lifting the bar again, his wet turtleneck and pants felt suddenly more restrictive. The Hassassin, half-clothed, seemed to move much faster, the wound on his foot apparently not slowing him at all. Langdon sensed this was a man accustomed to pain. For the first time in his life, Langdon wished he were holding a very big gun. The Hassassin circled slowly, as if enjoying himself, always just out of reach, moving toward the knife on the floor. Langdon cut him off. Then the killer moved back toward Vittoria. Again Langdon cut him off. â€Å"There's still time,† Langdon ventured. â€Å"Tell me where the canister is. The Vatican will pay more than the Illuminati ever could.† â€Å"You are naive.† Langdon jabbed with the bar. The Hassassin dodged. He navigated around a bench, holding the weapon in front of him, trying to corner the Hassassin in the oval room. This damn room has no corners! Oddly, the Hassassin did not seem interested in attacking or fleeing. He was simply playing Langdon's game. Coolly waiting. Waiting for what? The killer kept circling, a master at positioning himself. It was like an endless game of chess. The weapon in Langdon's hand was getting heavy, and he suddenly sensed he knew what the Hassassin was waiting for. He's tiring me out. It was working, too. Langdon was hit by a surge of weariness, the adrenaline alone no longer enough to keep him alert. He knew he had to make a move. The Hassassin seemed to read Langdon's mind, shifting again, as if intentionally leading Langdon toward a table in the middle of the room. Langdon could tell there was something on the table. Something glinted in the torchlight. A weapon? Langdon kept his eyes focused on the Hassassin and maneuvered himself closer to the table. When the Hassassin cast a long, guileless glance at the table, Langdon tried to fight the obvious bait. But instinct overruled. He stole a glance. The damage was done. It was not a weapon at all. The sight momentarily riveted him. On the table lay a rudimentary copper chest, crusted with ancient patina. The chest was a pentagon. The lid lay open. Arranged inside in five padded compartments were five brands. The brands were forged of iron – large embossing tools with stout handles of wood. Langdon had no doubt what they said. Illuminati, Earth, Air, Fire, Water. Langdon snapped his head back up, fearing the Hassassin would lunge. He did not. The killer was waiting, almost as if he were refreshed by the game. Langdon fought to recover his focus, locking eyes again with his quarry, thrusting with the pipe. But the image of the box hung in his mind. Although the brands themselves were mesmerizing – artifacts few Illuminati scholars even believed existed – Langdon suddenly realized there had been something else about the box that had ignited a wave of foreboding within. As the Hassassin maneuvered again, Langdon stole another glance downward. My God! In the chest, the five brands sat in compartments around the outer edge. But in the center, there was another compartment. This partition was empty, but it clearly was intended to hold another brand†¦ a brand much larger than the others, and perfectly square. The attack was a blur. The Hassassin swooped toward him like a bird of prey. Langdon, his concentration having been masterfully diverted, tried to counter, but the pipe felt like a tree trunk in his hands. His parry was too slow. The Hassassin dodged. As Langdon tried to retract the bar, the Hassassin's hands shot out and grabbed it. The man's grip was strong, his injured arm seeming no longer to affect him. Violently, the two men struggled. Langdon felt the bar ripped away, and a searing pain shot through his palm. An instant later, Langdon was staring into the splintered point of the weapon. The hunter had become the hunted. Langdon felt like he'd been hit by a cyclone. The Hassassin circled, smiling now, backing Langdon against the wall. â€Å"What is your American adagio?† he chided. â€Å"Something about curiosity and the cat?† Langdon could barely focus. He cursed his carelessness as the Hassassin moved in. Nothing was making sense. A sixth Illuminati brand? In frustration he blurted, â€Å"I've never read anything about a sixth Illuminati brand!† â€Å"I think you probably have.† The killer chuckled as he herded Langdon around the oval wall. Langdon was lost. He most certainly had not. There were five Illuminati brands. He backed up, searching the room for any weapon at all. â€Å"A perfect union of the ancient elements,† the Hassassin said. â€Å"The final brand is the most brilliant of all. I'm afraid you will never see it, though.† Langdon sensed he would not be seeing much of anything in a moment. He kept backing up, searching the room for an option. â€Å"And you've seen this final brand?† Langdon demanded, trying to buy time. â€Å"Someday perhaps they will honor me. As I prove myself.† He jabbed at Langdon, as if enjoying a game. Langdon slid backward again. He had the feeling the Hassassin was directing him around the wall toward some unseen destination. Where? Langdon could not afford to look behind him. â€Å"The brand?† he demanded. â€Å"Where is it?† â€Å"Not here. Janus is apparently the only one who holds it.† â€Å"Janus?† Langdon did not recognize the name. â€Å"The Illuminati leader. He is arriving shortly.† â€Å"The Illuminati leader is coming here?† â€Å"To perform the final branding.† Langdon shot a frightened glance to Vittoria. She looked strangely calm, her eyes closed to the world around her, her lungs pulling slowly†¦ deeply. Was she the final victim? Was he? â€Å"Such conceit,† the Hassassin sneered, watching Langdon's eyes. â€Å"The two of you are nothing. You will die, of course, that is for certain. But the final victim of whom I speak is a truly dangerous enemy.† Langdon tried to make sense of the Hassassin's words. A dangerous enemy? The top cardinals were all dead. The Pope was dead. The Illuminati had wiped them all out. Langdon found the answer in the vacuum of the Hassassin's eyes. The camerlegno. Camerlegno Ventresca was the one man who had been a beacon of hope for the world through this entire tribulation. The camerlegno had done more to condemn the Illuminati tonight than decades of conspiracy theorists. Apparently he would pay the price. He was the Illuminati's final target. â€Å"You'll never get to him,† Langdon challenged. â€Å"Not I,† the Hassassin replied, forcing Langdon farther back around the wall. â€Å"That honor is reserved for Janus himself.† â€Å"The Illuminati leader himself intends to brand the camerlegno?† â€Å"Power has its privileges.† â€Å"But no one could possibly get into Vatican City right now!† The Hassassin looked smug. â€Å"Not unless he had an appointment.† Langdon was confused. The only person expected at the Vatican right now was the person the press was calling the 11th Hour Samaritan – the person Rocher said had information that could save – Langdon stopped short. Good God! The Hassassin smirked, clearly enjoying Langdon's sickening cognition. â€Å"I too wondered how Janus would gain entrance. Then in the van I heard the radio – a report about an 11th hour Samaritan.† He smiled. â€Å"The Vatican will welcome Janus with open arms.† Langdon almost stumbled backward. Janus is the Samaritan! It was an unthinkable deception. The Illuminati leader would get a royal escort directly to the camerlegno's chambers. But how did Janus fool Rocher? Or was Rocher somehow involved? Langdon felt a chill. Ever since he had almost suffocated in the secret archives, Langdon had not entirely trusted Rocher. The Hassassin jabbed suddenly, nicking Langdon in the side. Langdon jumped back, his temper flaring. â€Å"Janus will never get out alive!† The Hassassin shrugged. â€Å"Some causes are worth dying for.† Langdon sensed the killer was serious. Janus coming to Vatican City on a suicide mission? A question of honor? For an instant, Langdon's mind took in the entire terrifying cycle. The Illuminati plot had come full circle. The priest whom the Illuminati had inadvertently brought to power by killing the Pope had emerged as a worthy adversary. In a final act of defiance, the Illuminati leader would destroy him. Suddenly, Langdon felt the wall behind him disappear. There was a rush of cool air, and he staggered backward into the night. The balcony! He now realized what the Hassassin had in mind. Langdon immediately sensed the precipice behind him – a hundred-foot drop to the courtyard below. He had seen it on his way in. The Hassassin wasted no time. With a violent surge, he lunged. The spear sliced toward Langdon's midsection. Langdon skidded back, and the point came up short, catching only his shirt. Again the point came at him. Langdon slid farther back, feeling the banister right behind him. Certain the next jab would kill him, Langdon attempted the absurd. Spinning to one side, he reached out and grabbed the shaft, sending a jolt of pain through his palm. Langdon held on. The Hassassin seemed unfazed. They strained for a moment against one another, face to face, the Hassassin's breath fetid in Langdon's nostrils. The bar began to slip. The Hassassin was too strong. In a final act of desperation, Langdon stretched out his leg, dangerously off balance as he tried to ram his foot down on the Hassassin's injured toe. But the man was a professional and adjusted to protect his weakness. Langdon had just played his final card. And he knew he had lost the hand. The Hassassin's arms exploded upward, driving Langdon back against the railing. Langdon sensed nothing but empty space behind him as the railing hit just beneath his buttocks. The Hassassin held the bar crosswise and drove it into Langdon's chest. Langdon's back arched over the chasm. â€Å"Ma'assalamah,† the Hassassin sneered. â€Å"Good-bye.† With a merciless glare, the Hassassin gave a final shove. Langdon's center of gravity shifted, and his feet swung up off the floor. With only one hope of survival, Langdon grabbed on to the railing as he went over. His left hand slipped, but his right hand held on. He ended up hanging upside down by his legs and one hand†¦ straining to hold on. Looming over him, the Hassassin raised the bar overhead, preparing to bring it crashing down. As the bar began to accelerate, Langdon saw a vision. Perhaps it was the imminence of death or simply blind fear, but in that moment, he sensed a sudden aura surrounding the Hassassin. A glowing effulgence seemed to swell out of nothing behind him†¦ like an incoming fireball. Halfway through his swing, the Hassassin dropped the bar and screamed in agony. The iron bar clattered past Langdon out into the night. The Hassassin spun away from him, and Langdon saw a blistering torch burn on the killer's back. Langdon pulled himself up to see Vittoria, eyes flaring, now facing the Hassassin. Vittoria waved a torch in front of her, the vengeance in her face resplendent in the flames. How she had escaped, Langdon did not know or care. He began scrambling back up over the banister. The battle would be short. The Hassassin was a deadly match. Screaming with rage, the killer lunged for her. She tried to dodge, but the man was on her, holding the torch and about to wrestle it away. Langdon did not wait. Leaping off the banister, Langdon jabbed his clenched fist into the blistered burn on the Hassassin's back. The scream seemed to echo all the way to the Vatican. The Hassassin froze a moment, his back arched in anguish. He let go of the torch, and Vittoria thrust it hard into his face. There was a hiss of flesh as his left eye sizzled. He screamed again, raising his hands to his face. â€Å"Eye for an eye,† Vittoria hissed. This time she swung the torch like a bat, and when it connected, the Hassassin stumbled back against the railing. Langdon and Vittoria went for him at the same instant, both heaving and pushing. The Hassassin's body sailed backward over the banister into the night. There was no scream. The only sound was the crack of his spine as he landed spread-eagle on a pile of cannonballs far below. Langdon turned and stared at Vittoria in bewilderment. Slackened ropes hung off her midsection and shoulders. Her eyes blazed like an inferno. â€Å"Houdini knew yoga.†

A Birthday - Imagery and Symbolism

The imagery used in the first stanza draws on familiar natural objects but can also be read at another level in the light of Rossetti’s knowledge of the Bible. In the second verse, the focus is on artificial objects hung, carved and worked by human hands. Various images in this verse demonstrate an awareness of traditional Christian art, as well as reflecting and celebrating human creativity. A singing bird To a ‘singing bird’ (line 1), vocal expression is as natural as breathing. By speaking of her ‘heart’ in these terms, the speaker indicates that her song forms a natural part of herself and is an overflow of her identity. The image of the singing bird is one which is often used in Romantic poetry. William Wordsworth emphasised the importance of expressing natural feelings when he argued that it was his intention to create a poetry which was a ‘spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings’. (See Literary context gt; Romantic poetry). A watered shoot By having a ‘nest’ in a ‘watered shoot’ (line 2), the speaker suggests that the sustenance upon which she can live and rest has been provided: †¢The word shoot alludes to the first stages of growth of a plant as it emerges from the ground. By describing a shoot as ‘well watered’, the poem conveys ideas of lushness and fertility. However, rather than making a nest in a full grown tree, by making it in a shoot, the singing bird remains in a place of fragility, since it is easy to uproot or destroy a shoot †¢The idea of being watered has biblical connotations. In the Old Testament book of Isaiah, the believers in Jerusalem are encouraged by God’s promise that he will guide them and provide for their needs: The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs †¦ You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Isaiah 58:11 TNIV An apple tree The image of the ‘apple tree / Whose boughs are bent with thickset fruit’ (lines 3-4) would be a familiar sight in an age more in touch with its agricultural roots than today †¢It recalls the imagery in Keats’ Ode to Autumn. This begins by describing fruit ripe and ready on apple trees: Season of mist and mellow fruitfulness Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun Conspiring with him how to load and bless With fruit the vines that round he thatch-eves run; To bend with apples the mossd cottage-trees, And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core; †¢Mention of apples might also lead Rossetti’s readers to think of the accounts of the first humans in the Garden of Eden before the Fall where they lived in perfect peace with nature and one another. It is also likely that Rossetti is alluding to the biblical concept of the Tree of Life. The writer of the Old Testament book Proverbs, declares that those who ‘lay hold’ of this tree ‘will be blessed’ (Proverbs 3:18). Rainbow †¦ halcyon By speaking of her heart as a ‘rainbow shell / That paddles in a halcyon sea’ (lines 5-6), the speaker provides an image of exuberant colour drifting at ease in tranquil waters. †¢According to the Bible, the image of the rainbow refers to the fulfilment of God’s promises, when God helped Noah to escape the flood which wiped out the known world. He then set a rainbow in the sky as a promise that never again would such an event occur (Genesis 19:3) ? It is possible that the speaker perceives that God’s promises are being fulfilled in her life and wants to celebrate this †¢The term ‘halcyon’ comes from the Greek myth of a bird (possibly a kingfisher) which was said to breed about the time of the winter solstice in a nest floating on the sea. According to ancient writers, it charmed the wind and waves so that the sea was especially calm during the period. For English readers, the phrase ‘halcyon days’ was associated with ideas of joy, prosperity and tranquillity ? The poem’s speaker uses the image of the halcyon sea to indicate the deep comfort and rest she has found. By ending the first verse with the declaration that her ‘heart is gladder than all these’ (line 7), the speaker indicates that descriptions of the natural world are incapable of fully expressing her exubera nt emotional state. Pathetic fallacy The speaker of A Birthday uses the technique of pathetic fallacy when she gives emotions to the ‘apple tree’ full of fruit and the ‘rainbow shell’. This is the treatment of inanimate objects, such as trees and houses, as if they had human feelings, thought or sensations. The term was invented by critic John Ruskin in 1856 when he wrote that the aim of the pathetic fallacy was ‘to signify any description of inanimate natural objects that ascribes to them human capabilities, sensations and emotions’. The Temple Rossetti draws on the imagery used in the Old Testament to discuss the Temple which symbolised God’s presence with his people. For the Jews in the Old Testament, the Temple was the place where they met with God. A Birthday mentions purple hangings, carved fruit and statues of animals, which all figure in the descriptions of Solomon’s Temple given in 1 Kings 6:14, 1 Kings 6:18, 1 Kings 6:29 and 2 Chronicles 3:14 and 2 Chronicles 3:16. More on the Temple: In the teachings of the early church, recounted in the New Testament, the idea of God’s Temple shifts in meaning. Christians generally understand this Temple to be a model of an individual’s heart, where God communicates with the human soul. This understanding comes from the New Testament teaching that every Christian believer is understood as a temple in which the Holy Spirit can dwell. A Dais The word ‘dais’ (line 9) indicates a raised platform. The speaker seems to envisage a structure built in celebration of the return of her love. The ‘silk and down’ from which it is made are materials of softness and luxury, as well as conveying lightness, which adds to the sense of uplifting that the poem conveys †¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœDais’ is also a word commonly associated with the raised part of a church upon which the altar and communion table are placed. Rossetti attended a high Anglican church (see Religious / philosophical context gt; Tractarianism) which emphasised the significance and symbolism of the structure of the church building and would have undoubtedly made use of a dais. Royalty and nobility The imagery of ‘vair’, ‘purple’, ‘gold’, ‘silver’ and ‘fleur-de-lys’ (line 10) is imagery traditionally associated with royalty and nobility †¢Ã¢â‚¬Ëœvair’ is an expensive fur obtained from a variety of squirrel with a grey back and white belly. It was often used in the 13th and 14th centuries as a trimming or lining for garments and is associated with heraldry †¢The dye used to create purple tones was so expensive it was only available to the rich and therefore, became a colour associated with royalty †¢Precious metals are associated with crowns and other regalia †¢The fleur–de-lys is a heraldic symbol derived from the lily. It was often engraved on the armour of royalty. Birds Following the description of the singing bird in the first verse, the second alludes to representation of doves and peacocks on the dais. †¢Doves are used in the Bible to represent: ? Reconciliation and peace. This arises from the story of Noah, when a dove sent out from the Ark returns with an olive leaf in its beak, signifying that the storm / flood was over (Genesis 8:11) ? The Holy Spirit, as at the baptism of Jesus (Matthew 3:16) †¢The description of ‘peacocks with a hundred eyes’ (line 12) corresponds to a traditional and mythical understanding of the bird as a symbol of all-seeing God. Investigating imagery and symbolism †¢List the imagery the speaker uses throughout the poem ?Why do you think that she moves from describing the natural world to objects that have been man-made? †¢What ambiguous aspects are there in the imagery described? Do you think that the symbolism that is drawn upon adequately reflects the speaker’s joy? ?What images would you use to reflect a state of joy you were feeling? ?Do these images correspond to any in the poem? Themes Self-expression and the natural world A Birthday is concerned with natural and spontaneous expression through song or poetry, beginning with the image of the ‘singing bird’ (l. 1). Poetry provides a natural outlet for the speaker’s emotions. Memory and forgetfulness Memory is a sustaining force in this poem. In A Birthday, the speaker’s joy in the arrival in her love is bound up in the memory of what he means or has meant to her. This hints at the notion that identity is founded upon memory and that self-awareness is constructed by the remembrance of a former self. Earthly life and ‘life after life’ The images of new life in the natural world in A Birthday can be seen to allude to new life after death. Investigating themes †¢List all the allusions to the natural world that the poem makes ? How do these allusions correspond to the speaker’s emotional state? ?What do they reveal about the purpose of the poem? ?What do they reveal about the identity of the speaker?

Emerging Technologies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Emerging Technologies - Essay Example Peer-to-peer file sharing is highly beneficial to all users and other potential users based on the intent of use. In this regard, installation of bitTorrent clients is simple, as so is the configuration of all computers on the sharing network. With this in mind, time is saved for purposes that are more constructive rather than spending extended periods working on it. In addition, all resources required for file transfer are shared amongst peers making the file transfer process efficient. This is due to the elimination of servers that store content and are more susceptible to failure, which inconveniences users (Rodrigues and Druschel 2010, p.72). For this reason, p2p allows users to continue functionally without influencing other users thus; is more reliable as compared to server based sharing. In addition, it is relatively cheap as compared to other networks due to the few resources required and elimination of additional hardware. ... Concerning business, p2p sharing can be used for intra-business collaborative project management, where participants in project share documents and personal files with one another. Non-commercially, it can be used for academic purposes to publish research works between and amongst scholars as is seen in the LionShare Project in the Pennsylvania State University (Federal Trade Commission 2005, p.5). In addition, persons or users who do not wish to charge for their content, such as musicians providing free, legal downloads or artists providing writing, art photography and other electronic content may use it. However, despite this, P2p networks are difficult to secure due to the numerous hops made by the network to reach the required files and pieces making it one of the main hurdles that the technology faces. Since p2p is widely implemented over the internet, it is relatively easy to break into using erroneous code responses at the application and network levels leading to denial of se rvice (Krebs 2009). In addition, attacks on the network could occur through where certain users would like to store information, maliciously on available nodes/ user computers against what is allowed. With this, p2p is vulnerable, and trustworthiness of files shared remains in question. In conclusion, the development of p2p has been in progress for a long time and is yet to achieve its ultimate intended goal. As a result, it is crucial to understand its working and problems behind it and by overcoming the stated challenges, the technology could advance greatly for large-scale legal use. Cloud Computing Abstract Cloud computing is a technology that

Big Dog & Little Dog's Performance Juxtaposition Assignment

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Holcims Romanian Unique Venture Yields Positive Results for all Essay

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Gowers Crisps Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

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Resume Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Resume - Assignment Example duated with a master’s degree in business administration and am highly competent to undertake the roles and responsibilities expected from an office manager. I have excellent communication and interpersonal skills; have proven leadership and conflict negotiation skills from the length of service working as an engineer. I possess commendable work ethics with manifested talent in problem-solving and in decision-making, within the scope of responsibilities. I have had extensive training and experience in undertaking the functions of planning, organizing, directing and controlling teams of subordinates from one’s work experiences. Finally, I can easily adapt and adjust to different work environments and value conformity to an organization’s code of discipline and adherence to ethical behavior. I am very much interested to becoming an instrumental part of your organization’s further growth and development. I assure you that the working relationship would be symbiotic and mutually beneficial. I am hereby including my resume for your perusal. I could be reached at any of the stipulated contact numbers indicated therein. I would be looking forward to hearing from you soon. OBJECTIVE To work in a global organization that uses both my education and experience for the application of managerial expertise, as well as research and development of new products relating to renewable resources. Thank you so much for the opportunity that you have accorded me during the scheduled interview yesterday, 31 August 2012. It was very illuminating that the candidate for the position of an office manager for your headquarters office would be given challenging responsibilities that range from managing, not only a diversely creative and innovative team, but also the chance to contribute one’s knowledge on designing, inspecting, and materials testing of the organization’s products to ensure quality at all stages of manufacturing, of which I am most capable of. I was advised by

Homosexuality in ancient cultures Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Homosexuality in ancient cultures - Case Study Example Duels and accounts of epic gladiatorial contests craft a large proportion of the modern day perception of this epoch. The exercise of these macho tendencies seems immediately at odds with Homosexual practice, and it is indeed intriguing to question the prevalence and attitudes' toward Homosexuality in said societies. Before continuing, it should be noted that it is simply impossible to assess, with respect to the question, each "culture" simultaneously: differences between Spartan, Roman and Greek societies would not allow for a detailed, thorough study if categorised together. Instead this essay will attempt to deal with each separately, before bringing its findings together in a broad conclusion. While it may appear a simplistic approach to adopt it is, quite simply, the best manner in which to approach the question. Spartan society was in many ways driven by military ambition. Textbooks refer to the Spartans in such terms as: "an armed camp," "brutal," "culturally stagnant," "economically stagnant," "politically stagnant"[1]. From the age of six, Spartan boys were taken from their mothers to train to be a soldier. It was common throughout this transitory period for the youths to engage in homosexual relations with older men, in fact it was regarded as an important part of their education. Indeed, the Spartan military actively pursued the placing of Homosexual lovers together in combat: while in Thebes, the general Epaminondas commanded a regiment composed of 150 pairs of lovers. This 'Band of Lovers' became a formidable fighting force, with lover defending lover until death. 1: Whitby, 63. Few members of Spartan society frowned upon this practice. Conversely, once the youth reached full adulthood opinions toward this practice shifted greatly. This was mainly because it placed one of the participants in a position of submission: which Spartans regarded as being completely unacceptable for a man holding full citizenship. The best ancient source on Sparta, Xenophon, refutes the already suggestion about widespread pederasty. [2] There is no Spartan/Laconian art that depicts explicitly homosexual motifs-as there is from Athens. The notion that Spartan men tended to wed relatively young, by Greek standards anyway, insinuates that they simply had much less time for the pederasty that characterized the coming to manhood in the rest of Greece. The state considered men who did not wed a public disgrace, and a citizen who did not marry and procreate was not afforded the luxuries that a Father would be. Sparta was known for the extent to which women were so well integrated into society: this goes against the very essence of a homosexually prevalent society. Based on the evidence, it is clear that Homosexuality-in the form of pederasty-- was at the very least, tolerated by the Spartans. Rather than full Homosexual affairs between grown men, much more common were "grooming" relationships between Adults and adolescents, seen as an intrinsic aspect of military training and development. Such as the ancient world is, many accounts become skewed or simply "lost in translation", and thus the account of Xenophon should not be regarded as providing a definite answer. Pederasty or the practice thereof, was undoubtedly a facet of Spartan life. The Historical accounts of Epaminondas at Thebes support this,

Hybrid Vehicles Essay Example for Free

Hybrid Vehicles Essay The 21st century is considered as the time for more advance development and innovation of the human society. Prior to this era, mankind has already been busy with making ground-breaking design to significantly improve how people live their lives. However, due to changing times, these actions have resulted to some consequences that initiated changes for the better and for the worse. Some of the changes that have transpired in the past nine years since the commencement of the 21st century are the occurrence of global warming and the recently devastating global financial crisis. Evidently, these problems have been caused by humans but they are aware that these crises exist. Because of their realization, many learned as well as ordinary individuals have drafted solutions on how to mitigate the effects and even eradicate the problems at hand. In relation to the growing threat of climate change and fiscal recession, experts have devised a simple apparatus that would address these two problems. This wonder solution is the hybrid vehicle. Nowadays, it is common knowledge that global warming is mainly caused by the emission of harmful gases in the earth’s atmosphere. More so, the increase in oil prices has been one of the major factors for the decline of the US economy. Through the hybrid automobile, these alarming causes can be directly dealt with if this type of automobile will be utilized for public transportation. By doing this, the production of carbon emissions can be greatly reduced, fares would significantly decline and use of gas would be lessened thus helping millions of commuters to save money and at the same time the environment. A hybrid vehicle is a specific kind of automobile that has â€Å"two or more major sources of propulsion power. † This vehicle is usually made out of a â€Å"conventional gasoline and electric motor. † These two parts are the source of power for a hybrid which means that gas and electricity or any other renewable energy such as â€Å"hydrogen, propane, CNG and solar energy† are simultaneously used to run the vehicle. As a result, fuel â€Å"efficiency, increase in horse power, longer driving range and reduced greenhouse gas emissions† can all be accomplished by one single machine (What-is-what. com, 2007). In comparison with regular and other green cars available in the market, the hybrid vehicle is more beneficial to use. Hybrid vehicles can only accumulate an â€Å"average of 33 to 60 miles per gallon during city driving and 27 to 68 miles per gallon in highway driving. † According to the Environmental Protection Agency, these numbers are way better than the performance of other types of vehicles. This only shows that by using hybrid vehicles, users can definitely reduce their gas expenses. In a year, this type of vehicle can consume only $600 to $700 worth of gas which is lower to the average cost of $2000 annually using ordinary vehicles. Also, a hybrid is only low maintenance due to the fact that it utilizes less gas which results to less strain on the engine. Furthermore, the battery is another major part of the hybrid that supplies energy to the motor. This power source can be regularly drained and recharged but need not to worry about its durability because it was made to withstand various problems. Also, most manufacturers offer warranty just in case it wears out (Green Living Answers, 2009). In contrast with electric cars, a hybrid has smaller batteries which do not require constant charging. In addition, using electric cars can cause some drawbacks such as â€Å"availability of charging stations, lack of range, low top speed, and lack of acceleration† (Halt, 2009). Moreover, there are numerous initiatives pioneered by the government and business establishment in order to provided monetary incentives and perks to hybrid users. First, the â€Å"Federal Tax Credits for Advanced Vehicles† which entails â€Å"new tax credits for advanced vehicle technologies ranging from $250 to $3,400 depending on the vehicles level of fuel economy improvement. † Second incentive is giving out discounts for auto insurances on hybrid vehicles. Third, hotel discounts are given to users of hybrid vehicles (Union of Concerned Scientists, 2007). Given all these facts, it is apparent that hybrid vehicles can bring positive changes to the current global situation. By employing this innovation on a large scale, revolutionary transformation can immediately be seen and felt by the public. In this case, the looming threat of climate change and oil price hike can be alleviated by using Hybrid vehicles for mass transportation. References Green Living Answers. (2009). Hybrid Cars vs Regular Cars. Retrieved May 4, 2009, from http://www. greenlivinganswers. com/hybrid-vehicles/hybrid-cars-vs-regular-cars Halt, G. (2009, March 19). Electric Cars Vs Hybrids. Retrieved May 4, 2009, from http://ezinearticles. com/? Electric-Cars-Vs-Hybridsid=2120736 What-is-what. com. (2007, November 2). What is a Hybrid Vehicle? Retrieved May 4, 2009, from http://what-is-what. com/what_is/hybrid_vehicle. html Union of Concerned Scientists. (2007). State and Federal Hybrid Incentives. Retrieved May 4, 2009, from http://go. ucsusa. org/hybridcenter/incentives. cfm

Are Genocidal Perpetrators Ordinary Men or Ideological Monsters

Are Genocidal Perpetrators Ordinary Men or Ideological Monsters The term genocide was coined by Raphael Lemkin as a response to the mass murder of Jews, Jehovahs Witnesses, Romani, homosexuals and other minority demographics discriminated against and ultimately murdered on a mass scale in Nazi occupied Europe in the 1930s and 1940s. Prior to Lemkins definition, the Holocaust was, as Churchill described it, a crime without a name (Jones, 2006:8). Lemkins definition described the crime as the destruction of a nation or an ethnic group (Jones, 2006:10) and was later adopted by the newly formed United Nations in the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (1948) which in Article 2 defined the crime as acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group including murder; causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; or forcibly transferring children from the group to another. The question arises however, as to how individual perpetrators of genocide could be considered normal or ordinary and not the evil of their actions; a debate summarised by Matthà ¤us as ordinary men vs. natural born killers (1996:134). We label the perpetrators of crimes we deem particularly heinous because, as Waller argues a world in which ordinary people would be capable of extraordinary evil is simply too psychologically threatening (1996:12) and incomprehensible because we fail to comprehend something about them (Dudai 2006:699). Following the Holocaust, much academic research was conducted across multiple disciplines in an attempt to explain how an otherwise outwardly normal person could be, or become, a perpetrator of genocide. Goldhagen explained the actions of perpetrators of the Holocaust as based entirely on the entrenched historical anti-Semitism within Germany and such a monocausal explanation is sufficient (1997:416); however his thesis assumes that the majority of German citizens believed in this ideology and focuses only on the genocide of European Jews. Conversely, Browning (2001), Bauman (2009) and others have argued that the actions of individuals are a response to their immediate social surroundings and that their role in the social structure of hierarchy has a far greater impact on complicity. Mann, however, bridges these two central reasons as to why perpetrators commit their crimes. Firstly, the individuals were peculiar people, either ideologically motivated or disturbed perhaps by mental ill-health or as a result of their upbringing, career path or marginalised lifestyle. Secondly, the individuals were largely ordinary but bigoted, trapped in a coercive and comradely organization, trapped within a bureaucracy or pursuing material goals (2000:232-3). Utilising social-psychological studies, sociological and historical research, it will be shown that where genocide occurs, the individual perpetrators who actively participate in acts of violence or murder are largely normal, healthy human beings who respond to the micro social situations and organizations in which they find themselves. Although the research focuses primarily on the Jewish Holocaust of Nazi Europe, other twentieth century genocides will be considered to assess whether ideology was the primary factor across the spectrum. A critique of Goldhagens thesis of eliminationist anti-Semitism will be presented to discuss that this was the wider, macro social environment of genocide but was not the sole reason why individuals were complicit. The Macro, Ideological Approach Dudai argued that the ideology of genocide is the macro social environment in which perpetrators act (2006). Accordingly, ideology was central to genocidal policies of the twentieth century; racial as in the case of the Turkish genocide in Armenia or the Serbian genocide of Muslims; against a class for example in the Communist genocides in Russia, Cambodia and during Maos Great Leap Forward in China; or an intertwining of both as with the Holocaust (2003:176-177). Societies in which violence is idealised and an acceptable form of achieving goals are more likely to utilise violence by the state as a means of social control (Staub, 2002: 55) for example, Germany had a strong use of violence to manage the unruly during the Weimar republic (Rafter, 2008) and Russian Communists found violence to be valuable and necessary (Staub, 2002:54) and were therefore more likely to be violent and aggressive in order to achieve their ideological goals. William Gladstone claimed The very worst things that men have ever done, have been done when they were performing acts of violence in the name of religion (Jones, 2006:400). Staub argues that pluralistic societies are less likely to be susceptible to narrow ideology as individuals are offered a more independent perspective without fear of ostracism or physical danger (2002:235) therefore suggesting that without the rigorous hierarchy and oppression of genocidal states, individuals may have the ability to choose not to participate. Where genocide takes place, a process of othering takes place whereby the persecutors believe themselves to be superior and their enemies, the others, inferior. Howard Becker defined the outsider as the individual or group who fail to abide by the rules of his wider social group, imposed by the insiders. To be an outsider does not require a specific act but is a consequence of the application by others of rules and sanctions (Becker, 1968:11). Anti-Semitism had existed for centuries in Germany and across Europe prior to the Holocaust however, the concept that eliminationist anti-Semitism (Goldhagen, 1997:71) was a standard belief is highly discredited. Goldhagen infamously argued that the Germans had for centuries harboured homicidal animosity towards Jews which lead to 80-90 percent of the German population under Nazi rule wanting to murder them (1997:541) although he presents no evidence for this assumption. European anti-Semitism was partly a result of Christian dogma regarding Jews as the killers of Christ and unbelievers early in the middle ages, perpetuated by the education of Christian children in the criminality and inferiority of Jews (Staub, 2002:101). Although the Christian Church had never outwardly called for the destruction of the Jewish faith, the Church had made the Jewish people a symbol of unredeemed humanity; it painted a picture of the Jews as a blind, stubborn, carnal, and perverse people (Blass, 1993: 44). Mann studied fifteen hundred biographies of perpetrators of the Holocaust in an attempt to explain who these people were, finding an unexpected correlation between Christianity and Nazism whereby those who identified with the Catholic Church were disproportionately represented as perpetrators (2000:347). Similarly, the Christian Armenians had, for centuries lived under oppressive Ottoman rule and under aspects of Islamic law. Under Islamic civil law, Muslims enjoyed the full rights and duties of citizenship whereas dhimmà ®, non-Muslims, were to be endured with great inequality between the two groups (Akcam, 2007:7). Edicts dating back to the sixteenth century declared that the dhimmà ® were unable to testify against Muslims in court or marry Muslims and they were unable to observe their religious practices if it would disturb Muslims, therefore building new churches or ringing bells was forbidden and repairs to existing churches required official permission from the state. P hysical othering also took place to identify non-Muslims as socially lower than their Muslim counterparts where houses were not to be built higher than Muslims, valuable materials such as silk were not to be worn and head and footwear were to be coloured red (Akcam, 2007:9).In Rwanda, Jones argues that the high rates of conversion in religion to Islam from Catholicism was a result of Islamic rejection of participation in the genocide and the rescuing of Tutsi (2006:400). However, secular ideology can be as destructive as fundamentalist, extremist religious ideology in the instigation of genocide (Jones, 2006:400). Indeed, secular ideologies have underpinned twentieth century genocides (Jones, 2006:400). If Goldhagen is considered to be incorrect in his assertion that traditional and historical eliminationist anti-Semitism was the sole reason behind the Holocaust, new ideologies must also be considered as to the macro social background behind genocides in the twentieth century. Stalins Russia, Maos China and the Khmer Rouges Cambodia were based on Marxist Communist theory which, although written decades prior to the genocide, caused new political revolutions in which individuals fought for a new role in society. Maslow identified cultural differences in synergy, the extent to which individuals forfeit their own gains and fulfil themselves by contributing to a common good (Staub, 2002:51). As one Stalinist perpetrator argued, with the rest of my genera tion I firmly believed that the ends justified the means. Our great goal was the universal triumph of Communism, and for the sake of that goal everything was permissible to lie, to steal, to destroy hundreds of thousands and even millions of people (Jones, 2006:401). However, universality of acceptance of the new regimes was not the case. Davis argues that Stalins terror famine and the famine of Maos Great Leap Forward were the culmination of violence and killing of the peasantry, designed to break independent spirits and force subordination (Shaw, 2003:39). Furthermore, resistance to the movements became common with some families choosing suicide over living under Communist rule and subsequent starvation, by choosing to kill livestock rather than hand it over to the Communist party or being part of violent uprisings (Shaw, 2003:55). If one considers the role of capitalist, democratic ideology in recent warfare, enforcing this ideology in other countries has, in some instances been very unpopular. The anti-Vietnam movement, for example, demonstrated against the United States bombing of Cambodia as part of the war on Communism in Vietnam (Shaw, 2003:202) and there were similar demonstrations against the early twenty-first centurys war in Iraq which held the intention of restoring democracy to the Iraqi people but was highly unpopular with British citizens. Goldhagen argues, with no supporting evidence, that the bystanders of Kristallnacht, the infamous pogrom in 1938, believed this would serve the Jews right because the absence of evidence is evidence itself (Augstein, 1998:157) however if anti-Semitic ideology was as traditional and prolific in other European countries as Goldhagen argues, the thesis neglects to reason why for the majority of Europe, it took Nazi invasion or annexation to give rise to such eliminationist attitudes. In Italy where anti-Semitism was rife, it was only when the country attempted to further their allegiance to Germany that anti-Semitic policy increased (Rafter, 2008:302). Conversely, Czechoslovakia for example had a long history of anti-Semitism with pogroms and the forced removal of Jews into a ghetto in the Josefov district of Prague dating back to the thirteenth century but had made no outward attempts to deliberately exterminate the Jewish population. Moreover, if the eliminationist anti-Semitic ideolo gy was so powerful in Germany, Goldhagen, in acknowledging that without the economic depression the Nazis would have never come to power, fails to consider why the overwhelming desire to eliminate the Jews was not acted upon sooner (Finkelstein, 1997:42). Responses to Nazi occupation varied greatly both within occupied areas and globally for example, Jan Karski infiltrated the Warsaw ghetto and Belzec concentration camp, escaping to London with hundreds of documents detailing the genocide taking place but many, Jews included, found the actions unbelievable (Jones, 2006:399) and early reports following the liberation of Auschwitz were disbelieved by the British media who only reported their findings after other global media had verified and reported. Furthermore, if the ideology was so entrenched in society and traditionally perceived as a threat, Goldhagen fails to acknowledge why many Jewish citizens of occupied Europe did not attempt to emigrate sooner, believed the Nazi propagand a detailing their resettlement at work camps and that the gas chambers in extermination camps were shower facilities as testimony from those survived the concentration camps and particularly those who worked in the Sonderkommando (special units of concentration camp prisoners who worked in the gas chambers and crematoria) describes (for example Venezia, 2009; Mà ¼ller, 1999; Haas, 1984). Moreover, Goldhagen fails to explain why the eliminationist ideology rapidly dissipated (Goldhagen, 1997:593-4) following the fall of Berlin and Nazi rule. Propaganda and indoctrination are highly used in genocide to spread the state ideology across the masses. For example, propaganda in Nazi Europe and indoctrination of Argentinean soldiers to promote character, honour and pride (Staub 2002:214). Coupled with the perceived threat of Communism, propaganda was highly used against the Jews, portraying them as not only racial inferiors but as assisting in Bolshevism (Jones, 2006:267). Indeed, perpetrators were more likely to have originated from the threatened borders of the Reich where anti-Bolshevism and anti-Semitism were great (Mann, 2000:348). Similarly, the Hutu portrayed the Tutsi as bloodthirsty foreigners intent on exterminating the Hutu (Valentino, 2005:35) by means such as the radio and the extremist Hutu newspaper, the Radio-Tà ©là ©vision Libre des Mille Collines and Kangura respectively, and calling on Hutu to follow the infamous Hutu Ten Commandments calling for vigilance against the Tutsi enemy (Jones, 2006:237). The 1972 genocide in Burundi of Hutus was a theme of Hutu political discourse and used in an attempt to invoke fear in the Hutu population, that if the Tutsi were not destroyed, the Tutsi would destroy the Hutu (Valentino, 2005:183) for although there was little evidence of fear and hostility between the two groups prior to the 1994 genocide, the conflict was engineered (Valentino, 2005:57). Ideological propaganda can be received by individuals differently however. Franz Stangl, commandant of Treblinka believed propaganda was used by the Nazis to condition those who actually had to carry out these policies to make it possible for them to do what they did, further arguing that the primary motive for genocide was for Nazi control of Jewish money and property (Semelin, 2003:270). Self-concept is a large factor in the ideology of genocide. Germany had lost a large proportion of their territory following their defeat in World War I, a war fought to gain the power and advantages Germany felt were owed to them, and the subsequent Treaty of Versailles. Hitler subsequently blamed the Jews for the loss of the war and, owing to the Sonderweg (special status of the country) (Elias, 1996:438) declared that Germany needed more Lebensraum (living space) resulting in the invasion of many countries across Europe to regain land which was seen as belonging to Germany. Moreover, individuals may have a strong sense of belonging to a group, identified for or against by visible symbols, education and other means (Staub, 2002:253). Self image is reinforced by the relationship to the others, the outsiders who have been deemed a threat by the social group. For example we may consider the attitude of the British in their war efforts in World War II or the social responses to terrori sm in comparison with genocidal action; where a threat (whether real or imaginary) is posed by one social group against another a unity of identity forms. Racially unclean social groups in Nazi occupied Europe, including the mentally and physically ill, were deemed inferior and inherently criminal based on biological criminology and alterations to Lombrosos Born Criminal thesis (Rafter, 2008). Where the Weimar Republic had been a series of turbulent governments and viewed as soft on crime, a more authoritarian policy on crime and criminals was called for by conservatives. Hitler was, Goldhagen argues, not seen as a madman but a politician to be taken seriously (Augstein 1998:157). With biological evidence collected by the Criminal-Biological Service in Bavaria that these groups were the cause of crime within the state, the ideological policies became incorporated into the criminal justice system, further perpetuating the image of the Jew as inferior and a potential threat to the German way of life. The Micro, Bureaucratic and Hierarchical Approach An acknowledgement of ideology must therefore be considered to underpin the rationale of genocide. Browning, in arguing a multi-causal rationale of the Holocaust acknowledges the deluge of racist and anti-Semitic propaganda (Jones, 2006:270), however he also questions the role of obedience, peer pressure and obligation. Arendts Report on the Banality of Evil impacted greatly on the impression we have of perpetrators of genocide, drawing focus away from the pathological and towards more social explanations of their actions (Dudai, 2006:700), followed by Bauman who argued that cruelty is social in its origin much more than it is characterological (Bauman, 1989:116). Prior to multi-disciplined research into the psychology of perpetrators, individual participants were believed to be mentally ill. Goldhagen reinstates this claim, arguing that the anti-Semitic ideology made the Germans pathologically ill, struck with illness of sadism diseased, tyrannical and sadistic (Goldhagen, 1997:397). Blass discusses a dispositional approach to the individual pathologies of the perpetrators in that they may be in some way mentally unhealthy (Blass, 1993:37). Rorschach ink-blot tests were conducted on Nazi leaders prior to the Nuremberg trials in 1945 to conclude that they were of a distinct group and were not psychologically normal or healthy individuals (Blass, 1993:37). However, the findings have largely been discredited with Kelley arguing that the personalities displayed were not unique or insane and could be duplicated in any country of the world today; the tests were not blind and the researchers could therefore have been biased in their analyses and whe re blind analyses were conducted there was individuality of results that contradicted the conclusion of a uniform distinction setting apart the perpetrators (Blass, 1993:37). Where Eichmann had been perceived by Arendt and Wiesenthal to be normal and acting under orders, blind analyses of personality tests revealed him to be sadistic and violent in his hostility, quite paranoid and a criminal with an insatiable killing intention (Blass, 1993:37). Finkelstein rebuts this claim, arguing that a homogeneously sick society would act as an alibi for the perpetrators for who can condemn a crazy people (Finkelstein, 1997:44). Arendt, who was present at the trial of Eichmann found him to be normal and there to be potentially an Eichmann in every one of us (2005:113). Nazi ideology and German culture in the 1930s and 1940s were strongly affiliated with the concept of obedience, indeed as Berger notes, the first commandment in indoctrinating Nazi youth was the leader is always right (Blass, 1993:33).The Holocaust in Nazi Europe took place under a strict bureaucratic regime with a meticulous division of labour and linear graduation of power (Bauman, 2009:98). Those faced with the task of directly murdering enemies were the subordinates at the end of a long bureaucratic chain leading to Himmler, the head of the SS and Heydrich, the head of the Einsatzgruppen. The practical and mental distance afforded to those at higher levels of the bureaucracy who may have had little experience or knowledge of the true nature of the delegated orders was not the case for those whose responsibility it was to shoot at point-blank range in the Einsatzgruppen or pour in the poison Zyklon B pellets into the gas chambers (Bauman, 2009:99). The obedience that allows the subordinates of a hierarchy to commit murder is therefore of critical importance. A psychological explanation offered by Blass is that of a situational perspective, whereby forces outside of the individual, largely from the social environment such as the position in a hierarchy and subordination can explain seemingly deviant or counter normative behaviour as a result of the immediate situation (Blass, 1993:31). Blass argues that the results of Milgrams obedience experiments are representative of the causal relationship between the immediate situation and the reactions of individuals. Milgrams experiment consisted of asking the subject to apply increasing voltages of electric shock to the learner should they answer a question incorrectly in 15 volt increments up to 450 volts, ominously marked XXX. 65% of subjects subjected the learner to the highest levels of voltage and he concluded that individuals could become agents in a terrible destructive process o ut of a sense of obligation, through the course of their jobs and without any hostility towards their victim (Blass, 1993:33). Responsibility for any harm caused was relinquished to the legitimate authority, the examiner, and the subordinate subject was no longer guided by conscience but the extent to which they obey the orders of authority (Blass, 1993:33). Similar experiments were carried out throughout the 1970s including that of Ring, Wallston and Corey who found a 91% obedience rate in applying painful sound to a learner, even when the experiment appeared to go awry and surprise even the experimenter (Blass, 1993:34). In the well-documented experiments conducted by Zimbardo, individuals were randomly labelled as prisoner or guard and were to carry out these roles in a controlled environment for a period of time. Those labelled as guards, knowing they were overseeing individuals who were had in no way been labelled as inferior prior to the experiment, became overly zealous in their positions and when physical violence and humiliation was utilised against the prisoners, the experiment was halted on ethical grounds. Zimbardo concluded that the dominant positioning within the hierarchy allowed sadistic behaviour to be elicited from non-sadistic, normal people who would exert violence on their equals because their social positioning allowed them to (Valentino, 2005:44-46) Two social-psychological theories attempt to explain the actions of genocide perpetrators whilst obediently following orders. The concept of the divided-self considers that the self, our personality and behaviour remains intact but a second self is created or activated in a new situation. Conversely, unitary-self theories argue that there is a single self which becomes altered as a result of the societal forces, situations and organisations (Waller, 1996:12). Lifton uses examples of The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde or the comic, Superman in his analogy of the divided self in that when presented with a situation of distress, a character such as Clark Kent changes into his alter-ego of Superman to save the world (Waller, 1996:13). Clark Kent remains the primary self but Superman, the secondary self, becomes activated and controls the behaviour of the body and mind. A variation of this dissociation may be doubling where the two selves are separate with no conflicts and where mo ral standards are annulled (Waller, 1996:14-15). Auschwitz survivors have described some of the doctors as two different people (Waller, 1996:26) For example, The Nazi doctor, Mengele who performed pseudo-medical experiments on Auschwitz inmates asked children to call him uncle and would appear to behave with kindness, playing with them and giving them luxuries of sweets and chocolate only to continue to perform his experiments and murder (Nomberg-Przytyk, 1985:104). Steiner also noted differing psychosocial types which only present under certain conditions for example the sleeper will not be apparent until an environment allows for or causes the release (Blass, 1993:43). Bauman similarly notes a difference in personalities dependent upon the extraordinary situations in which one finds oneself. Recounting the studies of Le Monde, survivors of a hijacking had a high incidence of divorce owing to individuals seeing their partners in a different light; good husband were selfish, the br ave business man displayed cowardice and the resourceful fell to pieces'(Bauman, 2009:6). The journalist questioned which face of the survivors was their true self; the original or their selves during the hijacking and concluded that neither was more true than the other. The normal good face was apparent in ordinary settings and, but for the extraordinary circumstance of the hijacking, the other self would have remained dormant (Bauman, 2009:6). Milgram contended that in conforming to the orders of a superior, an agentic state is created where the individual operates on the behalf of their superior and thus becomes an agent of their will. Similar to Steiners psychosocial types and Baumans analogy of the hijack victims, Milgram argues that this state lies dormant until it is required that one will act under orders. However, unlike Liftons doubling, the agentic state avoids an inner moral conflict by toggling between the autonomous and agentic states (Waller, 1996:16). More contemporary social psychology has adopted a strategy of the unitary self. When an individual is faced with actions which are inconsistent with their morality, they must either alter their behaviour or their personality as inconsistencies between the two cause individuals to feel troubled (Waller, 1996:16). In certain situations, including the rigid hierarchy of the SS where each individual was accountable to an immediate supervisor (Bauman, 2009:100), changing ones behaviour may not be possible or desired as individuals who hid or aided a Jew were punishable by death (Staub, 2002:165) as were moderate-Hutu in Rwanda (Jones, 2006:238). Fear is arguably a motivation for compliance. As Augstein criticised Goldhagen, he had grown up in an American democracy and could not imaging the conformist pressure and moral cowardice which took place under Hitlers dictatorship (Augstein, 1998:153). In Cambodia, one survivor talked of his complicity in the violence saying Collaborate? Everyone do what Khmer Rouge say no one want to be killed (Baum, 2008:158). Therefore in order to remain consistent, the manifest conformity to rules and orders may lead to a change in the self (Waller 1996:16). Waller furthers this argument by stating that there are three catalysts to the internal changes in the selves of direct perpetrators of genocide; devaluing and dehumanising the victim and blaming them for their own suffering; the escalating of commitments to a cause; and learning by doing. The process of dehumanization was raised in the Rwandan context by Hatzfeld as one perpetrator felt they no longer regarded the Tutsi as people as the killing escalated (2005:47). While Goldhagens answer to the Germans murder of the Jews was because they wanted to, Foster, Haupt and de Beers answer to the political violence in South Africa was because they felt entitled to (Dudai, 2005:703). Entitlement would imply an option of redeeming behaviour by the victims however victims of genocide are not persecuted because of what they do rather, who they are. Routinisation of actions are argued to facilitate genocide, for example Hatzfeld quotes one Rwandan informant who claimed I struck a first blow. When I saw the blood bubble up, I jumped back a step later on we go used to killing without so much dodging around (Hatzfeld,2005:23)and repetition caused the perpetrators to become more and more cruel, more and more calm, more and more bloody (2005:50). Furthermore, Waller argues that coerced behaviour is rarely internalised however when our initial attitudes are weak, the initial act may result in a change of attitude (1996:22). The attitude of ones superiors could directly influence the behaviour of the subordinates. For example the police sergeant, Hein, was never seen to hit or humiliate a Jew, participate in mass-killings of Jews, or be unfair in his treatment of Jews. Furthermore, those under his command could abstain from the mass-shootings. However, self presentation theorists seek to explain Heins following of official requirements for Jews to stand whilst he was sitting as an attempt to maintain an appearance of conforming whilst inwardly rejecting the ideology (Matthaus, 1996:141). Goldhagen argued that the cruelty of the perpetrators of the Holocaust was nearly universal (Valentino, 2005:52) however a surprising number of the Einsazgruppen refused to participate, perhaps twenty to thirty percent in comparison to the less than thirty percent who presented themselves as enthusiastic and the remaining members who dutifully adopted their roles within the system (Valentino, 2005:54). During their first mass killing in Lithuania, the Schutzpolizei (urban police) members of one Einsatzgruppen (mobile killing unit) dropped out of the act because they knew some of the victims or could not stand the mental pressure. Furthermore, doubts were raised regarding the legality of the killings and justifications were made amongst themselves that one generation has to go through this so that our children will have a better life (Matthaus 1996:136). However, obedience need not be in a downward, linear direction but obedience to ones peers. Browning argues that for some members of a police battalion faced with the mass-shooting of Jews, comrades not participating would be seen to leave the dirty work to their comrades, risking isolation, rejection and ostracism which, in the tightly knit regiments, would have been an uncomfortable prospect (Valentino, 2005:46). Similarly, a unity existed between the Hutu, using lexis as comrades and patriotic brothers (Hatzfeld, 2005:12). Where Browning argued members of the Einsatzgruppen existed in a reverse morality; where those who avoided killings were regarded, by themselves included, as cowards, in Rwanda, a supportive comrade would assist when one perpetrator felt unable to participate that day whilst the individual would contribute with other useful tasks (Hatzfeld, 2005:74). Hilberg argued that the methods for genocide of European Jews in the 1930s and 1940s were not suggested entirely by those further up the hierarchy; major ideas could be produced by those at a lower level of responsibility and approved by superiors to become policy (Blass, 1993:37). Manns biographical study of perpetrators included an examination of the previous job positions held by individuals prior to Nazi rule and found correlations between Nazi policy, related institutions and individuals within them. For example, a key Nazi policy was racial purity, ensuring the Aryan race was free of those considered undesirable, beginning early in the rule with the T4 experiments to euthanize those with mental or physical health problems. Correlating with this policy, Mann found 13.53% of his sample to have been previously employed as healthcare workers. Rafters assertions of Nazi racial policy impacting on German criminology and policy within the Criminal Justice System correlate with 22.29% of Manns sampled perpetrators holding previous employment in the military, police or prison system, 12.92% having held employment in civil administration and 3.38% having worked in the legal field (2000:350). Individuals may therefore have acted in an agentic state towards the Nazi ideology because this was their profession and they were caught up in the hierarchy and bureaucracy. In instances of revolution and rapid-paced political change, however, an anomic theory where a lack of social position and role in a hierarchy, as a