Sunday, December 29, 2019

The Federal Reserves Role During the Great Depression

The Federal Reserve was faced with the ultimatum of either preserving the gold standard currently in place, or to dent the depression as quickly as possible. Denting the depression would require much easier credit than the latter, but the â€Å"gold standard handcuffed governments around the world (econlib).† After Britain went off gold, higher interest rates initiated by the Federal Reserve followed to â€Å"stem gold outflows.† Once this happened, â€Å"the discount rate went from 1.5 to 3.5 percent,† which was a â€Å"huge increase† considering the current situation of the economy. Although the gold standard was not the sole cause of the depression, there is a trace amount of evidence suggesting that it helped foster the depression in that â€Å"once countries abandoned it† their â€Å"economies usually began to grow again (econlib).† Despite the fact that the actions of the Federal Reserve were not the leading causes of the Depression, it is important to note that the decision to increase interest rates only instigated the crash of 1929, while also highlighting the complications of the gold standard, which then led to its dismantlement and the initiation of slow but sure recovery. †¢ The Dust Bowl With 30 percent of Americans already agitated by the crumbling prices of agricultural goods, the severe drought known as the Dust Bowl, lasting nearly ten years, wiped out farmers crops, and carries with it implications of prolonging the end of the Great Depression. 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Saturday, December 21, 2019

Essay about Caravaggios First Inspiration of St. Matthew

Michelangelo Caravaggio, the great Baroque painter of the seventeenth century, was always an artist under scrutiny. His style, the subject matter of his paintings, and how he chose to depict his subjects, was often criticized and rejected by his patrons. In a journal article written by Troy Thomas, entitled Expressive Aspects of Caravaggios First Inspiration of Saint Matthew, these rejected paintings are discussed. The article focuses on the themes of these rejected works, but namely Inspiration of St. Matthew, and uses these themes to prove the works validity. This painting is compared and contrasted to other similar, accepted works of the time as well, to help show that the work was not done in bad taste. Commissioned by†¦show more content†¦Thomas mentions these aspects of the painting, but attributes them not to indecorousness, but to being an integral part of the message of the work. Thomas states that there are three important themes in the Inspiration of Saint Matthew: surprise, ignorance, and humility. These ideas were not reasons to reject the painting, but themes that gave the work a certain effect that was necessary to contemplate in order to understand. First, to address the issue of the offensive realism of Caravaggio, one must understand the artist. Caravaggio always said that he could not paint what he had not seen. So, the use of models was extremely important to him. Possibly, the model that he had used was indeed, old and wrinkled. This representation of the aged Saint Matthew was not intended to be distasteful, but was probably due to the type of model that he had chosen to pose for the painting. Other artists, when depicting angelic figures, use diaphanous, ethereal angels or infant-like putti figures. Caravaggio, however, portrayed the angel as a pubescent boy, who looked more human than heavenly. This was also a reason to reject the work, since the angel had a certain erotic quality, which was deemed inappropriate for a religious painting. The substantiality of the body of the angel is also due to Caravaggios style ofShow MoreRelatedArt Criticism Of The Baroque Era1908 Words   |  8 Pagesdefined as â€Å"Baroqu e† than Caravaggio; his character, like his art, was confrontational and uncompromising, and both loved and hated. â€Å"He introduced a powerfully frank realism and dramatic, theatrical lighting and gesture into Italian Baroque art. Caravaggio’s unvarnished realism and tenebrism influenced nearly every important European artist of the seventeenth century.†(Stokstad, Cothren). By the end of the 16th century, art began to break away from the refined and disciplined style of mannerism, heavily

Friday, December 13, 2019

School Prayer Free Essays

Amy Hua English 1A TTh 1:45-3:10 Professor Marvin School Prayer Annie Laurie Gaylor argues against school prayer in her article â€Å"The Case against School Prayer† (Elements of Arguments, 679). When religion is included in daily school routines, it divides students into different beliefs. Public schools are meant to be open for all people to get an education, but not to influence them into a new religion. We will write a custom essay sample on School Prayer or any similar topic only for you Order Now Requiring students to practice prayer in public schools is a violation of Freedom of Religion.Public schools should not practice prayer because there is a diversity of religions in the United States and the Constitution of the First Amendment. Students in public schools get distracted from judgment of religion, but that is why there are places where schools may freely practice religion, such as private schools. Due to the diversity of religions, along with dissimilar practices, schools should continue their public structure leaving religion entirely out. Public schools educate the belief of God, which might (for example) be the religion of Catholicism.High schools, Middle schools, and maybe even Elementary schools that practice a certain religion might offend or hurt other religions. â€Å"When religion has invaded our public school system, it has singled out the lone Jewish student, the class Unitarian or agnostic, the children in the minority† (Gaylor 679-680). The United States has a vast variety of religions that include Buddhist, Christian, Catholic, Hinduism, Islam, etc. There are also those Atheists who do not believe in any God. Each belief practices different events that may contrast. For instance, Christians rejoice to the Lord on Christmas day as a result of the birth of Jesus Christ, whereas, Buddhists pay their respects to the dead. â€Å"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. (First Amendment, Bill of Rights, U. S. Constitution)† The First Amendment is the Freedom of Religion, press, and expression. Praying at schools not only excludes the students who do not believe in God, but also disrespects them by not allowing freedom of other religions.Forced into prayer does not verbally influence the student to believe in God, but it still implies that you cannot or should not practice a different religion. Most of the rules in public schools are useful: do not use profanity, attend school, and do your best at anything you set your mind to. No matter what the religion, these rules are useful to everyone and are universal to all countries because each one agrees with them. Teaching students about religion would be equivalent to converting them towards the American Republican Party or Democratic-Republican Party.For schools today, it is dishonest for teachers to promote subject during class period. Instructors cannot force what is not universal because of the different beliefs each religion practices. There will be disagreements among singular religions because there is not only one type of prayer system. There is a place for religion in schools. Private schools were made to eliminate the government from its system, so they are independent. Although students in public schools should be allowed to have personal prayers, there are also private schools and universities that focus on certain viewpoints on religion.If required, some private schools are given permission to freely practice their own religion. For example, Messiah College and John Brown University concentrate on Bible studies as much as other electives. It is more of an option to attend private schools, like Messiah College, so the student should know what he or she is signing up for. However, public schools are for all students to learn gender education. Therefore, no assumption of religion should be taught as a part of general education. As a child, I was enrolled into private Christian school by my parents. My parents and I were aware of the education I was being taught by the teachers and the sharing of general education and Bible studies. In â€Å"The Case against School Prayer†, Gaylor says â€Å"People should be judged by their actions, not by what religion they believe in or how publicly or loudly they pray† (82). Not only do people get distracted from judgment, but also from their studies from far most important subjects.With religion being in the same studies as Math and Science, students are unable to concentrate in studies that will mainly shape their future. Prayer can be harmful in many ways, depending on how much the school interoperates it daily. When I attended a Christian school during Kindergarten through fifth grade, I was required to announce the Pledge of Allegiance. But when my parents decided to take me out of Christian school and enroll me into public school, the Pledge of Allegiance was still mandatory to say.My parents, who converted into Buddhism, were offended that I still had to intentionally worship God. Annie Gaylor and, not to mention, Jesus had the same opinion for not allowing public schools to teach religion. â€Å"†¦when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret† (Bible, Matt. 6:5-6). School prayers add conflict to education in many ways. As a result of the vast amount of religions in the United States, there are conflicts caused my disagreements of religion. Japan, where no one prays at school, had the lowest crime rate of any developed nation† (Gaylor, 683). Religion should only be taught in private schools or organizations. The First Amendment was made for Freedom of religion, press, and expression, meaning that everyone has a right to pray, but not for public schools to convert the students into believe a certain religion. I strongly agree on Gaylor’s viewpoints of school prayers because I was felt in the same situation in the past. Public schools should stay open to different religions. How to cite School Prayer, Papers