Freedom Versus Predestination a Comparative Analysis Essay

Freedom versus Predestination: A Comparative Analysis Shane Furlong Humanities 4640 April 14, 2013 (Week 5) Freedom versus Predestination: A Comparative Analysis This week’s essay is a comparative analysis of the theories of freedom (indeterminism) and predestination (religious determinism). Our analysis will attempt to prove the superiority of the theory of freedom over the theory of predestination. First, we will examine the theory of predestination as it is explained in the text â€Å"Ethics: Theory and Practice† (Thiroux amp; Krasemann, 2012). The organization of the text lends itself to our analysis since it highlights differences between the two theories in its defining process. We will illustrate the theory of†¦show more content†¦The theory further goes on to claim that this is an accurate depiction of the three major Western religions. For an example of the theory of predestination, we will look at the life of Judas Iscariot as portrayed in the Christian Bible. According to the theory of predestination, from the day Judas was born, he destined for hell . Judas was born for the sole purpose of betraying Jesus Christ. He had no choice in the matter. After betraying Jesus, Judas went off and hanged himself. It was his destiny to be damned for all time. While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled (Bible, John 17:12). It is my contention that predestination is not an accurate representation of the three major religions. For the sake of brevity, we will look at only one of the three major Western religions, Christianity. I will use the defining text of Christianity, the Bible, as my reference. One of Jesus’s disciples, Simon Peter, also betrayed Jesus on the night of his arrest. Although, Peter declared that he would never desert Jesus, he in fact denied knowing Jesus three times before the sun came up for the next day. According to the tenets of predestination, Peter, like Judas, was not a good person. He was not faithful to Jesus. In predestination there is no room for rehabilitation. We are either bornShow MoreRelatedInstitution as the Fundamental Cause of Long Tern Growth39832 Words   |  160 Pagesof scale, education, capital accumulation etc.) are not causes of growth; they are growth† (italics in original). Factor accumulation and innovation are only proximate causes of growth. In North and Thomas’s view, the fundamental explanation of comparative growth is diï ¬â‚¬erences in institutions. What are institutions exactly? North (1990, p. 3) oï ¬â‚¬ers the following deï ¬ nition: â€Å"Institutions are the rules of the game in a society or, more formally, are the humanly devised constraints that shape human interactionRead MoreDeveloping Management Skills404131 Words   |  1617 PagesLine 58 Understanding and Appreciating Individual Differences Important Areas of Self-Awareness 61 Emotional Intelligence 62 Values 65 Ethical Decision Making and Values 72 Cognitive Style 74 Attitudes Toward Change 76 Core Self-Evaluation 79 SKILL ANALYSIS 84 Cases Involving Self-Awareness 84 Communist Prison Camp 84 Computerized Exam 85 De cision Dilemmas 86 SKILL PRACTICE 89 Exercises for Improving Self-Awareness Through Self-Disclosure 89 Through the Looking Glass 89 Diagnosing Managerial Characteristics

Objective of Punishment Free Essays

Objectives of Punishment There have been many rules throughout history some choose to follow those rules and some choose to break the rules. The big question is the product to those who should break the rules. There was a day when parents could spank their children freely and accepted as simply normal. We will write a custom essay sample on Objective of Punishment or any similar topic only for you Order Now As the years went on, society started to see how people would take it too far. Therefore, laws had to change. It is the same within today’s prison system. Individuals are in prison because they broke the rules and would have to serve their time. Some go to federal prison and some go to state prisons. It depends on the type of crime that a person commits; because these prisons harbor different types of criminals they also have different guidelines to follow in terms to punishing the inmates. How does sending one person to state or one person to federal prison affect the correctional system altogether? The State of California’s main goal of sentencing is to match the community sanctions with the offender. The types of community sanctions include: Criminal offenders who benefit from prevention services and are at risk of committing more crimes include: juvenile offenders with learning difficulties, high school dropouts, and urban youth gang members. Prevention services may include activities such as special education programs, and big brother programs. Criminal offenders who have received and benefited from these early intervention services are mostly first time offenders. Early intervention programs can significantly decrease the offender’s chances for committing crimes in the future. Offenders need substance abuse and alcohol counseling-related services, work skill development, and education, (Nieto, 1996). Offenders eligible for these programs are people in prison who can divert to alternative services and programs. The convicted offenders can be a second time or even a third time offenders who failed probation and even convicted of several of nonviolent offenses. California’s â€Å"three strike’s law,† can result in convicted felon sentenced to prison for life if the convicted offenders first two felonies were violent crimes and the third felony committed by the repeat offender is also a violent crime, (Nieto, 1996). The main goal of these sentencing guidelines is to put the targeted offenders with appropriate community sanctions. However, there are some differences and variations in the California sentencing guidelines, which include the punishment by the nature of crime committed, frequency, and severity. A good example took place in Michigan. If an offender is arrested for burglary, which is a class ‘C’ felony in the state of Michigan, and a previous drug arrest, which are also a class C crime. The Michigan sentencing guideline rates provide sentencing options from alternative community corrections to a two-year prison sentence, (Nieto, 1996). The community correction’s alternative gives the judge the option of sentencing the criminal offender to a community-based and secured substance abuse treatment program for a period of six months. Upon successful completion of the treatment program, the offender must complete a probationary period. The discretion of the judge comes from a vast array of options. However, if an offender is found guilty of a serious felony and has prior nonviolent felony, sentencing guidelines provide community corrections and alternatives are not authorized and a minimum two-year prison sentence may be requisite, (Nieto, 1996). Until 1975, the federal bureau of prisons operated under the principles of the medical model of managing inmates. The medical model entailed educational, vocational, and treatment programs that attempted to transform criminal behavior into a positive and productive behaviors that would benefit society. The medical model utilized the federal inmate classification system to manage the inmate population and promote individualized treatment, (Miller, 2011). By 1975, the federal bureau of prisons had a much greater inmate population than it had several decades earlier during its inception, and they adopted the balanced model to manage those inmates. The balanced model no longer promoted individualized treatment. The balanced model was a composite model that focused on a combination of the principles of rehabilitation, deterrence, retribution, and incapacitation, (Miller, 2011). Several other major changes over the last few decades have affected the sentencing of those convicted of violating federal laws. The U. S. Sentencing Commission of 985 limited the use of probation for federal offenses, particularly for drug offenses and violent crimes. The Sentencing Reform Act of 1984 limited the amount of time the prisoners could reduce from their sentences for good behavior. This new law mandated that federal prisoners must serve a minimum of 85% of their sentence. The Sentencing Reform Act of 1984 also abolished the use of parole for federal p risoners, (Miller, 2011). Federal prisons manage their inmates within the guidelines of a Prisoners Bill of Rights. The prisoner’s rights include clean and decent living environments. Prisoners also have the rights to develop and maintain skills as a productive worker and have the rights to maintain and reinforce family and community ties, (Miller, 2011). The adoption of prisoner rights has helped the federal prisons avoid much of the legal turmoil that has embroiled the state prison systems. Most of the United States economist believed that in today’s times, the USA experiences the most drastic crisis in decades. All states in the United States report about significant budget shortfalls. As the results, the state governments significantly have to reduce their spending for correctional system. For the last two decades of the 20th Century, the spending for state and federal penitentiaries increased 600% because of the growth of measured requiring economic expenditures, for example, mandatory minimum sentences, truth in sentencing laws and three-strike legislation, (Carlson, 2008). Although economic trends started affecting the consideration of sentencing policy, the public attitude toward crimes has greatly changed. Polls show that more people think that it is necessary to address the root causes of crimes and less support the use of strict measures toward criminals. The attitude toward mandatory sentencing also underwent a change. The pool conducted in 2005 showed that 38% think that mandatory sentencing is a good idea whereas 45% of respondents prefer judicial discretion. This radical change in the attitude can be causing significant drop in the crime rate registered in the country, (Carlson, 2008). State and federal governments respond to the impact of the economic crisis on the correction system in a number of ways. The nature of problems varies, depending on the state, and so varies the strategies used. The most popular measures are as follows: prison closings, cuts of the staff in corrections, reviewing the budget of corrections concerning nonessentials, reconsidering sentencing schemes, establishing sentencing committees and commissions. Everything in life changes all the time and will always be that way, which is why everything about the past be called history. The rules and regulations for punishing the wicked and wrong doers always have been around. Many past mistakes made; consequently, the rules had to have either adjusted or completely erased altogether to fix these mistakes. The system of punishment is not a design to humiliate or degrade individual in any way, it is an intention to teach the difference between what is right and what is wrong according to the guidelines set forth by government officials. As the rules and regulations change, it affects the state and federal prison systems. They have had to become more lenient and tolerant with the individuals punished for their crimes. Still they have to try to maintain order within the walls of the confinement even though tougher laws outside the walls are making it easier to put individuals behind bars causing overcrowding and less money for security. References Carlson, Peter M. (2008). Garrett, Judith Simon, Prison and Jail Administration: Practice and Theory, Jones and Bartlett Publishers. Miller, Whitehead (2011). Report Writing for Criminal Justice Professionals, 4th Edition, p140, Chapter 6, State and Federal Prisons, Retrieved from The University of Phoenix eBook Collection database. Nieto, Marcus (May 1996). Community Correction Punishments: An Alternative To Incarceration for Nonviolent Offenders. http://www. library. ca. gov/crb/96/08/#RTFToC6. How to cite Objective of Punishment, Papers

Paranoid by Black Sabbath free essay sample

Im going to take you back. Back to September,18th 1970. The day that Black Sabbaths second studio album was released. Just four months before the band debuted the Heavy Metal scene with their self titled album, Black Sabbath and now, here they are releasing an album that will live on forever. Paranoid has been noted as the bands best work, critic Steve Huey gave incredible praise to the album, he even went as far as saying that Paranoid is one of the greatest and most influential heavy metal albums of all time. Now, Im going to bring you back, Present day. After all this time the album is still being praised! Paranoid is currently ranked at number, 131 on Rolling Stone magazines list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. Not to shabby if I do say so myself. Its been over forty years since the albums first release. We will write a custom essay sample on Paranoid by Black Sabbath or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page But the band remains relevant! I know tons of teens my age and younger who would do anything,to see Black Sabbath in concert, Including myself. I mean,this album has everything a Metal Head is looking for. When you first listen to the album you get the feeling that Lead singer Ozzy Osbourne Is singing directly to you. You will be bobbing your head to the music in no time, I guarantee that. And when the albums best songs start playing, You will find yourself singing every word. I mean, this is what I do every time I play the album. Its seriously that good! I would recommend this album to Metal Heads of all ages. Heck, I recommend it to all music fans! Paranoid is just one of those albums that appeal to everyone. No matter what age, or musical taste. Paranoid by Black Sabbath free essay sample Over the past 42 years, heavy metal music has increasingly moved into the limelight. Everything from the thrash and speed metal subgenres to the brutality of the death and black metal subgenres have been featured in film, television, and radio. However, this underground monstrosity was born with the 1970 release of probably the most influential heavy metal album: Black Sabbaths â€Å"Paranoid.† Just months after its release, the Birmingham, England group was thrown into everlasting fame. This album features some amazing guitar riffs from the master, Tony Iommi, with his signature â€Å"bluesy† sound and finger caps on his right hand. Iommi gave us great riffs like those in â€Å"War Pigs† and (of course) â€Å"Paranoid.† Supporting Iommi is Terence â€Å"Geezer† Butler on bass guitar. Geezer keeps up with the speeding guitar of â€Å"Paranoid,† the distorted riffs of â€Å"Iron Man,† and he even wrote most of the lyrics. Often overlooked drummer Bill Ward, is capable of striking the heads with great force, while he has  ­a soft touch on cymbals: a different style than most drummers. We will write a custom essay sample on Paranoid by Black Sabbath or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Last but hardly least is John â€Å"Ozzy† Osbourne, with his signature vocal style: you know, the one that every kid tries to imitate but cant. What sets Ozzy apart from others is the fact that he never sings like anyone but himself. And, more frustrating for other singers, no one can sing like Ozzy. This album features many styles. It has heavy metal with â€Å"War Pigs,† â€Å"Iron Man,† â€Å"Paranoid,† â€Å"Fairies Wear Boots,† and â€Å"Hand of Doom.† There are great instrumentals including â€Å"Rat Salad,† â€Å"Lukes Wall,† and â€Å"Jack the Stripper.† The album also has songs that do not fit one genre, like the bongo, psychedelic song â€Å"Planet Caravan† and the heavy use of a wah-wah pedal in â€Å"Electric Funeral.† The lyrics touch on multiple themes, such as protesting against the Vietnam War in â€Å"War Pigs,† fights with skinheads in â€Å"Fairies Wear Boots,† nuclear apocalypse in â€Å"Electric Funeral,† a fear of girlfriends leaving in â€Å"Paranoid,† the feeling of floating when one is in love in â€Å"Planet Caravan,† and lyrics simply based off a riff of â€Å"Iron Man†. This album is a must-have for any metalhead.