ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Introduction The reformation of the Rockefeller drug laws was a significant step forward in the way of softening the draconian measures and enhancing the effectiveness of the anti-drug policies through adopting more humane and cost-effective alternatives. However, taking into account certain drawbacks of the reformed legislation, particular alterations could be considered for improving the outcomes. Policy A: The Rockefeller Drug Law Reform Act The policy options implemented for solving the drug-related problems, including the increased rates of addiction and illegal drug trade can vary from one extreme of war and draconian punishments to the legalization of particular substances in different countries and at different stages of their development. In recent years, significant success has been made in many countries which have reformed their policies by recognizing drug addiction as a chronic disease. For instance, the recent changes in China’s drug policies were based upon the premise that treatment f addicted individuals are preferable to incarcerating them. “The government of China has come to realize that simply bringing drug addicts to justice is not the ultimate solution in the new era of drug addiction in China” (Liu et al, 2010, p. 153). The same approach of replacing the prolonged sentences for non-violent drug offenses with paroles and involvement in the treatment programs was adopted by the US policymakers who reformed the drug laws in 2009. Another influential factor deserving consideration when discussing the rationale for reforming the anti-drug policies is the economical implications of the increased inmate population and the prolonged sentences. Through the financial and legal analysis, it has been discovered that the draconian punishment for non-violent drug offenses is cost-ineffective. “Treatment delivered in the community is one of the most cost-effective ways to prevent such crimes and costs approximately $20,000 less than incarceration per person per year” (Justice Policy Institute, 2010, p. 8). After the implementation of Rockefeller drug laws, the prison population has increased significantly, while the prisoners arrested for non-violent offenses, including the storage of small amounts of substance for their personal use only counted for the largest part of the inmates. These measures placed the main burden and spent enormous amounts of resources upon the addicted, while the big players of the illegal drug trade remained unpunished. On the contrary, the draconian drug law enforcement was associated with the increased levels of drug market vio
Introduction On October 17, 1989, a 10-15 second earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale hit the San Francisco Bay area. (Federal Construction Council 4) The epicenter was located 70 miles south of San Francisco in the Santa Cruz Mountains, near Loma Prieta peak from which the earthquake gets its name. (Karl 12) This was the largest earthquake in the San Francisco Bay area since 1906 and although it did not tear the ground surface it caused 63 deaths and close to $6 billion in property damage including 1,018 homes destroyed, 23,408 homes damaged, 366 businesses destroyed and 3,530 businesses damaged. (Karl 12) Infrastructure, including a section of the San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge, was also damaged. The area of San Francisco that suffered the most damage was the Marina district where four buildings were destroyed by fire and several others collapsed, many of which were apartment buildings common in the area. (Karl 12) To understand why this was the case a brief history of the Marina district is required. The Marina District The Marina district was built following the devastating 1906 San Francisco earthquake and in preparation for the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition hosted by the city by filling in a shallow inlet of San Francisco Bay using a mixture of sand, dirt, discarded rubble from the 1906 earthquake, and other materials containing a high percentage of groundwater. (Tobriner 264) After the Exposition apartment buildings were built on the filled land where the sand and the gravel are the major components of the ground. In this respect, the district is particular for its primordially dangerous background for building apartments. The thing is that all soft massive materials are more destructive for even small vibrations. Thus, the Marina district was concerned initially with relatively close to the area beaches and dunes which contributed to the fill of the region. In general, the structural estimation of the ground components in the district showed that the major material in it is the sand. In turn, it is a prerequisite for the cataclysms in nature, such as earthquakes and the effect of liquefaction which was particular to the Marina district in the disaster of 1989 (Arulanandan et al 967). Impact of soil conditions on ground movements Soil conditions of the Marina district were the main reason for the disastrous outcomes of the Loma Prieta earthquake. The point is that, as was stated above, the softness of the ground does not give a guarantee for buildings’ safety. In other words, the role of the fill was significant for counting on the dangerous outcomes of the earthquake along with the numbers of possible lost people, etc. Though, it is necessary to state and analyze the peculiarities of the soil as for its components in San Francisco and the Marina district, in particular. The soil conditions of the San Francisco area are terrified by its initially deep fill structured with sand and clay. It is dangerous owing to “sandy fills that were not densified before construction of buildings and other facilities on them” (Mitchell et al 3). Nevertheless, the ground
The United States Department of Veteran’s Affairs (VA) was created in 1930 to ensure the welfare of war veterans by providing coordination and cooperation at the Governmental level with programs such as disability compensation, education, home loans, life insurance, finding a job, medical benefits, pension as also benefits for a decent burial. The aim of the department was to ensure that all veterans and their families would be looked after by the state for the supreme sacrifices that they had made in the line of duty to the nation. The department’s mission statement borrowed from Abraham Lincoln’s second inaugural address “for he who has borne the battle, and for his widow and his orphan” (Scurfield 88) encapsulates the recognition a state gives and owes to its men in arms. However, there is a mismatch (real or perceived) between the lofty ideals and the actual performance of the VA, a charge which is the main focus of this essay. To examine the performance of the VA since its inception it is necessary to first examine its structure and administration. The VA is a government run health-care system that has a budget of $ 87.6 Billion and employs about 280, 000 people in scores of VA facilities spread over US territories. The department is headed by a Secretary and is usually a retired service officer chosen by the President. The Department has three main branches; Veterans Health Administration, Veterans Benefits Administration and National Cemetery Administration. Since the entire concept looks at ‘invalidation to grave’ time span, the department has to prioritize its activities to maintain its costs within the allotted annual budget. Prioritization is carried out by classifying the veterans into eight groups and several additional groups based on a complex matrix of factors such as service related disabilities, the individual’s income and assets. The classification of a disability is carried out by a VA rating board by the numerous VA regional offices. Those who are rated with 50% or more disability get a comprehensive medical care free of cost; others with lesser disabilities have to make pre-determined contributions to receive the medication and care at subsidized rates. In recent times, veterans have expressed growing dissatisfaction with the performance of the VA department’s ability to look after their genuine needs. One of the main reasons has been that the number of casualties have increased dramatically since the US ‘War on Terror’ unfolded in 2001 and shows no signs of being closed down. The number of veterans with 50% or more disabilities is steadily increasing as militants and terrorists in the two main war fronts; Iraq and Afghanistan use Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and suicide bombers to deadly effects. Most of these weapons cause US armed personnel to lose limbs or other grievous injuries that qualify for 50% or more disability and this fact is straining the limited VA budget. The sheer number of veterans claiming disability has resulted in a back lo
Crash is an Academy Award-winning drama film directed by Paul Haggis. It was first seen at the Toronto Film Festival in September 2004, and was discharged globally in 2005. The film is about racial and social pressures in Los Angeles. A self-imaged “fervor piece” for director Paul Haggis, Crash was motivated by a real life occurrence in which his Porsche was carjacked outside a video store on Wilshire Boulevard in 1991. It won three Oscars for Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay and Best Editing of 2005 at the 78th Academy Awards. The film reveals a few characters living in Los Angeles during period of 36 hours and brings them together by the means of car accidents, shootings, and carjacks. Most of the characters represented in the film are ethnically prejudiced in some way and turned to be involved in divergences which force them to inspect their own prejudices. Through these characters’ relations, the film seeks to portray and inspect not only racial nervousness, but also the coldness between foreigners in general. Crash is often contrasted with Babel , for both movies show the lives of dissimilar personalities and shows how their lives interweave and both film deal with major matters in nowadays’ society. Novel, which was adapted in 1996, is by English author J. G. Ballard, first published in 1973. It is a story about car-crash and sexual and racial prejudice: its characters turn to be sexually provoked by staging and participating in very real car-crashes, often with very real consequences. Ballard uses a cold and disconnected language, giving some the intuition of an engineering report or a medicinal journal. While comparing the adaptation with the original novel, first of all it is necessary to mention, that inspite of the similarity of main ideas in the movie and in the novel, the dissimilarity of authors’ accents is rather sensitive. Thus, Paul Haggis (director of the movie) was “inspired” for the film after personal experience of car crash. The book was taken as the basis of the script as the suitable background for depicting matters of sexual and racial prejudice, as it is known, that all vile features of people reveal only in danger, or in need. Crash is not, as many have alleged, an erotic movie. Though it has lots of sex scenes, most are shot from the waist up. Moreover, Crash has much more on its mind than the normal stag film. All of the upset that Crash has reasoned only confirms to its authority. Distorted though they may seem, it’s clear that the images and themes of Crash hit a little too close to home. Technically, Crash is top notch in every respectas we’ve come to expect from Cronenberg. The car accidents are brilliantly staged, as are the sex scenes. But those viewers expecting to see something along the lines of Cronenberg’s earlier films are bound to be disappointed. Crash is unrivaled, even in Cronenberg’s already unique filmography. But then, as bizarre as it is, perhaps Cronenberg’s gre
Managing and Reporting Project Items (Scope, Timeline, and Budget) The three aspects of a project, including time, scope, and budget, are the three most critical factors of implementing and completing the tasks. Since they operate in tandem with each other, they are referred to as the triple constraints. The figure presented below shows the constraints triangle and how they are intertwined to work simultaneously. When making changes to three constraints, there are a few considerations and steps that should be undertaken. These steps must be taken to understand that when the scope of the project is changed, it affects the other two factors that include time and cost. In this regard, the project manager must produce a scope statement with the items added or subtracted when making the changes. These items, also known as deliverables, are then broken down into small units called the sub-deliverables. The sub-deliverables should then be broken down into work packages that show the exact roles and undertakings that are added or disregarded in the project. When the overall changes concerning the work packages are identified, the manager should then determine the additional cost and time required to complete the new project description (Too, 2013). If the time cannot allow the project completion with the inclusion of those changes, the manager must increase the project’s cost to ensure that the original time remains. As such, the project changes should be made, bearing in mind that one or more constraints will change because of the changes that have been imposed on one of them (Indelicato, 2013). Measuring and Reporting Cost and Schedule When measuring and reporting the schedule and the cost of this project, it is crucial to use various indicators. This requires a methodology that involves the calculation of multiple items that have been presented in this list.  1. BCWS-This indicator is referred to as the Budget Costs of Working Schedule.  2. BCWP: This is an indicator that determines the Budget Cost of Work Performed.  3. ACWP-This is meant to determine the Actual Cost of Work Performed.  4. CPI-This is a quantitative factor used to determine the Cost Performance Indicator.  5. SPI- The indicator is applied to determine the Schedule Performance Indicator. It is a crucial indicator of the determination of the cost account (Turner, 2010). When the indicators are determined through the mentioned calculations, there should be a detailed analysis of the corresponding variances, especially targeting the amount that surpasses the agreed and stipulated thresholds. The indicators crucial because they give information about the nature of the project costs and time utilization. For example, when the CPI calculation indicates a measure that is less than one unit, it is concluded that the project is experiencing an overrun of cost. If the continuous measurement of CPI shows a decreasing trend, it should be noted that the overrun situation is becoming worse. On the other hand, increasing CPI indicates that the overrun condition is improving to the positive. When it comes to the sch
Many nations today have had to ask themselves whether the US really respects the sovereignty of other nations. The US has been accused of conspiring to oust heads of state in foreign countries to assert its economic objectives. Countries like Iraq have been attacked by the US in which Saddam Hussein was captured and later killed. Iraq is an oil-rich country. Other countries whose leaders have been overthrown by US-sponsored armies and agencies include Afghanistan and Venezuela. The military actions by the US against other countries may be viewed as invasive, calculative or personal depending on the impact generated by particular attacks. Human rights activists and some social diplomats have always criticized the US for its actions which seem to be founded on economic interests. Certain nations perceive these actions by the US as inclining towards a show of superiority and dominance. With a variety of analyses and scrutiny, the conflicts that existed in history still run up to date and the same reception that America received from the afflicted nations a hundred years ago is still maintained up to date. The feeling for the US by its enemies is that of bitterness, resentment, and malevolence. America has been affected by successive terrorist attacks by its enemies. The most remarkable of the attacks was evidenced by the September 11, 2001, attacks on Washington and New York City by al Qaeda adherents. Many Americans do not see the attacks as retaliatory but instead feel that the US invades certain countries to deliver justice to the perceived oppresses citizens of those countries. With the wars, rebellions, and revolutions in place, certain sch
Family relationships and own passions are sometimes different and an individual has to find ways to focus on a matter which can be misunderstood by the people closest to them. The movie “Shall We Dance” touches upon themes which describe the actions of a person who tries to follow own dreams and wants. There are several major themes that are illustrated in the movie which relate to personal life, family and outside opinion. Person’s private wants are frames that set the limits for the actions and goals of an individual. In the movie, the character lives in an environment that sets boundaries on his needs. He is unable to escape the routine and so, he decides to pursue something new and much wanted. It is clear that when a person feels trapped, they will tr
Voodoo as a religion has its roots in traditional African religions. It original name is Vodu, but that paved way for the more widespread name; Voodoo. Other names referring to it include “Voudou, Vaudau, Voudoux, or Vaudaux” (Tallant 9). Captured slaves from West Africa carried its essential ideology into Haiti, then to America. The practice of Voodoo involves, “complicated rituals and symbols” (Riguad 7). It involves the worship of spiritual deities, with priests called papa loa, which means “father of the spirits” (Felix 21), and priestesses acting as intermediaries between the spiritual world, and humanity. Some of them also operate as oracles, revealing spiritual mysteries to those who seek their services. The term Voodoo also describes a charm that has supernatural powers known as juju. Adherents believe that it acts as a protective force over them. They also use it to mete out revenge on their enemies. Voodoo therefore refers to an entire religious system and to certain specific aspects of its practice. Voodoo picked pace from the practices of a snake cult in Haiti during the slave trade period. The cult came from West Africa and spread with slave trade, in the Americas and to Haiti. As new slave communities grew in the Americas, different religious identities amalgamated into a unified faith as the slave communities tried to forge a common belief system to unify them in their new locales. Felix says, “Voodoo became the intermingling of essential attributes of all the religions of the different African tribes to which poorly assimilated elements of Catholicism were added” (20). Voodoo got its form in Haiti, which was an important station during slave trade. Missionary efforts among the slaves saw them incorporate elements of Catholicism in practice of the Voodoo religion. In the process, some Voodoo spirits replaced catholic saints because of close relationships between their roles. Currently, it is common to find prayers offered to Mary and other Catholic elements such as the Lord’s Prayer and the sign of the cross forming part of the Voodoo liturgy. In fact, many Voodoo adherents are staunch Catholics. In America, Voodoo practice first took place in New Orleans before spreading to other states. This was because of the role New Orleans played in slave trade. The Voodoo belief system builds on the idea of an all-powerful impersonal Supreme Being responsible for creation of the entire universe, but who does not get involved in day-to-day running characterized by the affairs of men. The adherents worship lesser deities known as Loa who are animistic spirits. The initial practice of Voodoo revolved around slave communities that sought to retain the vital link wi
Introduction Adolf Hitler rose to power as the chancellor of Germany in 1933 through a legal election and formed a coalition government of the NSDAO-DNVP Party. Many issues in Hitler’s life and manipulations behind the curtains preceded this event. Hitler and the Nazi party rose to power propelled by various factors that were in play in Germany since the end of World War I. The weak Weimar Republic and Hitler’s anti-Semitism campaigns and obsession were some of the factors that favored Hitler’s rise to power and generally the Nazi beliefs (Bloxham and Kushner 2005: 54). Every public endorsement that Hitler received was an approval for his hidden Nazi ideals of dictatorship and Semitism regardless of whether the Germans were aware or not. Hitler’s pathway to power was rather long and coupled with challenges but he was not ready to let go; he held on to accomplish his deeply rooted obsessions and beliefs; actually, vote for Hitler was
Introduction This memorandum is aimed at planning the forthcoming negotiations between India and Pakistan. It will discuss the way how the representatives of India can act during the negotiations, the applicable strategies to follow, the possible opportunities and obstacles for the negotiations. We hope that this briefing paper will be helpful in the preparation for the negotiations and will contribute to their effectiveness. First of all, it should be said that the future negotiations between India and Pakistan can play an important role in the development of the history of the both countries. In case the parties manage to find a consensus, the existing problems will be solved, and the war of interests that lasted for more than a century can finally end. This is a considerable motivation for arranging a sufficient negotiation strategy, which will be prolific and will let the both countries move forward from the standstill they appeared at. Framework Before discussing the opportunities that the negotiations can bring it is worth thinking of the pre-negotiation work that can be done by India. First of all, there is an undisputable need for social network to be done. In case of intractable conflicts management, it is vital to create a peace infrastructure, which will be responsible for preventing the military actions or violent attacks. This infrastructure should better be represented by an independent organ, in order to be impartial in attitude to the parties. What is more, India may consider involving civil society of its own and of the confronting party, in this case of Pakistan, into the peace establishing program. Such network can serve as a profound basis for successful negotiations. This is due to the fact that the studies have shown, that the introduction of unofficial third parties into the conflict can contribute significantly to its resolution (Chigas, 2008). There is also an option of introducing an independent agent, who will be able to produce fresh views on the problem and offer some new solutions (Salacuse, 1999). In addition, the independent mediators can help to design a coherent political strategy for the parties (Crocker, 2003). In addition, while the representatives of government have a power to negotiate and make decisions, there are some spheres which can only be controlled by the civil society (Saunders, 2001).