Introduction The purpose of this paper is to introduce, discuss, and analyze the topic of the Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA) involvement in Iraq before the 2003 invasion, and how they contributed to the war with Iraq. Specifically, it will contain information on the CIA's initial studies on Iraq, and include a personal opinion regarding the CIA's influence on beginning the war. The CIA's reports on Iraq and their weapons of mass destruction before the invasion of Iraq helped move the invasion forward, and justify the war to the American people. How did the CIA's intelligence go so wrong, and are there still weapons of mass destruction hidden in Iraq' These are difficult questions to answer, and perhaps the American people will never know the entire truth. However, the CIA's mission is to protect the American people, and despite setbacks, the CIA continues to provide some of the best protection in the world.

Communicating effectively interpersonally and within a group has always been my problem. More specifically, communicating orally, that is, oral communication and presentation is another aspect that I feel anxious about. This is why I try to develop my communication skills and competence by reflecting on the important factors that influence one's communication skills.

The book Henry David Thoreau by Joseph Wood Krutch involves a detailed look at the life and works of Thoreau. While it does include biographical information, the main purpose of the book appears to be not to describe Thoreau's life, but to explore who Thoreau was. This focuses on his writing and especially, on the unique view of life presented in his writing. In reading the book, it becomes clear that Krutch holds Thoreau in high regard. In particular, he seems to respect his individuality, his focus on his own journey, and his overwhelming happiness. At the same time, there is a sense that the author is fascinated by Thoreau's outlook and is trying to understand this outlook for himself. After reading the book, I found myself considering Thoreau in the same way. I find him interesting in a fascinating way, where I have a sense that he knew something most people don't. Overall, I am left with a view of a person with an outlook unlike that of most people, and

Based from the story, and compared against the rest of the characters, the antagonist in Ring Lardner's "Haircut" was Jim Kendall. Although, somehow, Jim was the main character the story speaks about, he was the foe of those whom he did wrong. To count, the narrator of the story told quite a number of people whom Jim had done unpleasant things for his enjoyment. Jim Kendall was the funny man in Haircut. His pleasure was making jokes that had never missed to entertain people. However, in most of his fun, Jim created e

Acquaintance rape, also known as date rape, is more common than you think. An estimated one in eight college students are raped by acquaintances every year, and about 85% of all rapes are date rapes, not rapes by strangers ("Acquaintance Rape"). Because date rape is so common, it is important for all women to be aware at all times and to understand the facts about this all-too-common form of sexual assault. As with all rape, the effects on the victim are psychologically profound. Following the incident, the survivor may experience anxiety, depression, and even post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (Curtis). A survivor of acquaintance rape may experience difficulties maintaining intimate relationships, especially those with the opposite sex. The victim may not experience pleasure during consensual sex and could become withdrawn or act out, becoming sexually promiscuous. However, the individual effects of being raped vary considerably from person to person. Becau

A monk becomes the brunt of vehement anger in Robert Browning's poem "Soliloquy of the Spanish Cloister." Using sarcastic remarks and cruel metaphors, the speaker directs his diatribe directly to Brother Lawrence, criticizing him for being impious, lustful, and greedy and comparing him to a swine. The setting of the soliloquy adds a dose of irony to the poem, as the speaker's tone is anything but peaceful as a cloister should be. In addition to the setting, Browning's rhyme and meter aptly convey the fiery tone of the poem. Likewise, diction is replete with hellish imagery and harsh words that fit the speaker's ire. Poetic elements like diction, meter, rhyme, and imagery work together in "Soliloquy of the Spanish Cloister" to create an ironic poem that lambastes a monk. The tone of Browning's poem is angry, resentful, and even hateful, indicated clearly by his diction. Moreover, the narrator's word selec

Robert Browning's poem "My Last Duchess" conveys a Duke's feelings toward his deceased wife. The Duke addresses his feelings to her lifelike portrait on the wall, which contains enough of her essence and personality to invoke an emotional response in the speaker. Furthermore, the Duke's reaction to the painting reveals his feelings toward his wife as well as about his own personality. Her joyous countenance and demeanor invokes a degree of resentment in the speaker, who compares her to an exotic sea creature toward the end of the poem. This also proves that the Duke is a possessive and haughty man, who perceived his wife as more of a trophy or art object than as a human being. Through the medium of dramatic monologue, in which the poet's voice is hidden behind that of the narrator, Browning creates a psychological character study with his poem "My Last Duchess." The audience for the Duke's monologue is twofold: he speaks both to an envoy present within the dramatic setting of the poem, but he also s

Introduction The death penalty has always been a very controversial issue. Death sentences are usually handed out to people who have been found guilty of capital crime. However it is not so easy to consider death penalty as an easy way to punish the guilty. If the death penalty is to condemn it does not mean that the guilty party should be released or allowed some sympathy. It would defeat the purpose, as it would be using violence to counter violence. How can we tell if a man/woman convicted for murder is really guilty' There may be a margin of error. Would it be right to wrongfully accuse someone and execute him/her' We should look at the ethical downsides of the death penalty. This has been a very serious problem for civil rights groups, religious figures and other people who oppose the death penalty. The death penalty has a lot of ethical and religious matters tied to it. There are many who support death penalty while others oppose it staunchly. The death penal

"It's not as easy as it looks!" Well, that much was certainly true. I was sitting at a metal wheel. I had a pedal under my right foot. If you've ever used a sewing machine you know the kind of pedal I mean. There was a lump of clay on the wheel. It spun round and round, but it wasn't round. My friend Carol said it was "out of round." "Out of round' You can be out of sugar, or salt, but how can you be out of round' Is it something you can buy in the store'" "Yes and no," said Carol, smiling at me. Carol is a potter. She puts lumps of damp clay on a metal wheel, steps on the power, and makes beautiful round pots. She said it was very important to start with the clay "centered" or the pot would be lopsided. Right now lopsided sounded good enough, but she said it should be round. Carol centered the clay for me, and slowed the wheel down. After a couple of tries, I managed to pull up some sides. I was throwing a pot." The words made sense to me. I could see som

Like many people, I usually feel more than a twinge of anxiety when I have to give a presentation. No matter how much I prepare or how well I know my subject matter, I still get stage fright before standing up in front of a roomful of people. Therefore, the biggest challenge I face in presentations is nervousness. Because the demeanor of the presenter impacts the entire tone of the presentation, managing this kind of emotional and mental distress is necessary to create effective presentations. Another personal challe

This paper reviews how a presenter can vary their image from one presentation to another and also to what extent it can be said to be ethically correct.

For many years, the phenomenon of distance learning with interactive video techniques has been used in many institutions. The latest innovations of telecommunications technologies, notably compressed interactive video systems, have become a great source of long distance learning because they have lowered equipment and transmission costs, making interactive video affordable for small colleges, businesses, classrooms, libraries and even homes to use in making presentations and lectures. Despite such innovations interactive video technology has not proven to be a good source as a valuable learning tool. Interactive video is appeals to educators in par

When people talk about psychological development, what most people think of are children, who have clear and obvious developmental points. A child's development corresponds to his or her physical growth. Thus we can look at an infant and not expect the child to be able to walk a balance beam or ride a bike. We can look at a four year old and know that most four year olds will not yet know how to read. We can look at ten year old and state with confidence that this child is not yet ready to learn to ride a car. When thinking about development in this way, it is easy to conceptualize development as essentially over by age 18, allowing for some sort of transition to the one final state called "adulthood." However, adulthood has stages just as childhood does, and the recognition of this fact can help adults as they face new challenges and learn new skills. Adults have to face the establishment of their lives as independent of their parents, building their own

The American Kennel Club was literally going to the dogs. The organization did not have a public relations image problem, it did not have any image at all. Membership had declined since the mid-'90s and nearly all of the AKC's endeavors on behalf of animals had gone unnoticed. Some marketing had been done, but it was inconsistent. Therefore, early last year, the AKC decided for the first time ever to emphasize communications, including hiring a full-time staff. The result: both pet owners and members are more acquainted with the Club's activities and pleased with what they have learned. When the organization embarked on its communication plan, it recognized that the average person who heard of AKC did not know what it did besides sponsoring dog shows. The AKC's Canine Health Foundation also researches all dog ailments and its recovery department deals with various technologies, especially microchipping, to help recover lost canines. In addition, the group regularly

The Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle were among the most important and creative thinkers of the ancient world. Their treatises set forth most of the important problems and concepts of Western philosophy, psychology, logic, and politics, and their influence has remained insightful from ancient to modern times. Although both Plato and Aristotle also wrote about poetry and the arts, most scholars today spend most of their time discussing other aspects of their discourses. However, in several of their works, including The Republic, Ion and Aristotle Poetics, these two philosophers spent considerable time analyzing these topics concerned with aesthetics. Readily apparent, when reading their works, is their divergent viewpoints on the value of art in human society. For Plato, the key to regarding art, specifically poetry, lies in the relationship between the poem and its inspiration. The relationship of the poem itself to the truth it endeavors to represent, as

The idea that racism is a thing of the past is a hard concept to document, from either side of the argument. Today in America there is more opportunity, and more freedom to move from one social class to another than there ever has been. However, just as there is a "glass ceiling" in some career paths that have been traditionally dominated by white males, there also exists evidence in our country that racism is still a problem, and must be addressed in positive, proactive terms in order to create true equality. How we measure and define equality, if there is such a thing, will be the most difficult aspect to developing a strategy to eliminate racism from our midst. Written in the mid 1960's, the racial picture in the country was significantly different at that time. While 1963 brought court mandated end to the Separate - but - Equal treatment of black Americans, the attitudes and social prejudices which remained in tact created a significant glass ceiling, and glass walls, fences, and barriers which black Americans were not allowed to cross. In Lois Stalve

The concept of "a sense of place" denotes more than physical space. In sociological terms, a sense of space refers to the meanings people attach to the place or environment. This thus includes the orientation of people towards that place, the understandings and feelings that people generally attach to that environment (Hummon 253). These meanings could take on different forms. In some contexts, the sense of place could be a cohesive force that pulls people together into a community. In other cases, the sense of place may involve alienation, resulting in people who do not identify with a certain space or who may be prevented from full participation (Hummon 278). This concept of a sense of place as alienation can be seen at work in the United States Congress. When Congress was initially convened in 1774, women could not vote, much less hold office. Both the Senate and the Lower House acquired a very strong masculine sense of space. It would not be until 1917 when a woman w

In her novel How the Garcia Girls Lost their Accents, Julie Alvarez presents the reader with a series of 15 interlocking stories that narrate the difficulties of growing up bicultural in the United States. The Garcia girls are Carla, Sandra, Yolanda and Sofia, though Alvarez speaks most through Yolanda's narrative. They Garcia girls were born in the Dominican Republic and move to the United States as children. The book opens in 1989, with the Garcia girls are American adults. The narrative then flows backward, tracing the transition the girls had to make as they strive to create an identity that is both Latina and American. As implied in the title, language plays a vital role in the transculturalization of the Garcia girls, into their assimilation into American popular culture. The acquisition of English language skills as well as American argot was a vital step in the Garcia girls' forging of their dual identity. Their struggle with the language is

Affirmative action was created to ensure equal employment opportunities for all individuals, regardless of race, sex, and age. According to Froomkin (1998), "affirmative action calls for minorities and women to be given special consideration in employment, education and contracting decisions. Institutions with affirmative action policies generally set goals and timetables for increased diversity - and use recruitment, set-asides, and preference as ways of achieving those goals." Therefore, it is important to review all employment practices to make sure that they do not discriminate against minorities, and to introduce special programs to encourage minorities to apply for a wider range of positions within the

1. Communication Since the advent of technological revolution, my writing skills have improved and developed to cope up with the changing pace of technologies present. Because of technological revolution, computers and the Internet have emerged, two technology media that increased the speed and pace in which humans communicate. Through computers, people can now write without the fuss and effort that is put in writing in handwritten form. Computers provided ease in writing by allowing users to just tap into keys in the keyboard, and produce compositions without too much physical effort. Furthermore, writing in computers allows you to think in freestyle' form, making it possible to write immediately into the computer without exactly putting your thoughts into writing (of course, an outline is still needed for compositions). The Internet, on the other hand, allowed users to communicate via chat or e-mail. Just like the m

I am convinced that some of the greatest people on earth do not see their name in neon lights, nor do they have the most money or fame. Instead, they exist in our everyday lives and it is up to us to realize how very un-ordinary they really are. Such is the case with my uncle, Matt. Matt is a computer programmer. Matt has never really seemed like an uncle to me in that he always acted like my brother or friend. A brother to my mother, he lives close to us, which has always been a good thing-- especially when I was having difficulties at home. I've ended up over at Matt's house more than once fuming or complaining about something. As long as I can remember, he has always lived just a few miles from where I live. His house looks like the house of a computer programmer, with one spare bedroom devoted to old computers and gadgets he cannot bring himself to throw away. In the corner of the large living room, he always has the latest, greatest computer on the mark

What is Elder Abuse Due to the innovations in the fields of medicine, science and technology the life expectancy of an average male and female has increased drastically. Many people are living longer and are in a better state of health. However the more old they grow the more they are dependent on others to take care of their needs. This leads to many problems as it exposes a hidden problem known as elder abuse. There are several cases of elder abuse reported every year. Due to the extent of the elder abuse, some of the victims tend to die earlier due to the psychological and physical damage. There are many elderly people in the world who live by themselves. They are forced to rely on other people to take care of their needs. However aren't that simple as them seem. They are often mistreated and abused while being taken care of. This form of abuse takes place in the form of any physical, emotional or psychological harm caused to an elderly person. In many cases this

The Treaty of Versailles was supposed to be a peace agreement between the Allies and the Germans (Bailey, 1972). However, the treaty sparked political discontent and economic chaos in Germany, as it represented the results of hostility and revenge and opened the door for a dictatorship and a second world war. On November 11, 1918, World War I ended. Germany surrendered and signed an armistice agreement, so the Allies were faced with the task of creating a peace agreement (Bailey, 1972). In December of 1918, the Allies met in Versailles. The main representatives at this meeting were Woodrow Wilson, representing the United States, David Lloyd George, representing Great Britain, David Lloyd George, and George Clemenceau, representing France. While the task of drafting a peace agreement seemed relatively simple, it soon became apparent that each country had conflicting ideas and motives for the Treaty of Versailles. For example, President Wilson did not enter the war unti

For society to continue to progress, I believe the concepts of morality and truth must be examined and re-infused into society. Morality and truth are the most crucial component of being a decent human being, and without such aspects of humanity, society would crumble. In some respects, society is already crumbling under the weight of an excessive lack of morality and common human decency. Morality and truth have been defined since the beginning of time. Idealists such as Plato defined morality in a deliberate manner, and the bible defines morality and truth in much the same manner. The bible actually has established principles and laws that govern how a society should operate. The bible supports the idea that a moral and true society operates for the benefit and good of all men, and that all men are subject to the same rules and regulations. These ideas and principles are explored further within this paper. Plato stated the following regarding human's capacity to

In The Death of Common Sense, Philip K. Howard argues that the present day over-reliance on statutes and regulations in America as a means to create a just and fair society has, in fact, achieved just the opposite. In presenting his case, Howard is actually making a strong point in reminding the reader that the dispensation of justice requires the understanding and practice of the spirit of the law. Blind application and adherence to statutes of law will only lead to a system that may end up being self-defeating. Howard traces the root of the system to the rationalist movement in the 1960s that favored statutory law, as it was believed to be more consistent and fair: "The credo of this rationalist order, like our law today, was that government should be self-executing and dispassionate. The idea spawned numerous reform movements, including socialism. It also led to the invention of modern bureaucracy." (Howard, 27-28) It is evident in the preceding statemen