Friday, January 31, 2020

Bringing Adam Home Essay Example for Free

Bringing Adam Home Essay Bringing Adam Home review examines the story of the decades-long investigation into the abduction and murder of 6-year-old Adam Walsh. The police investigation took 27 years to prove guilt of the serial killer, Ottis Toole, who made multiple confessions to the murder. The book is written by the experienced detective writer Les Standiford with the help of the retired detective Joe Matthews, who finally found evidence of Toole’s committing the murder 27 years afterwards. The case of Adam Walsh has influenced the American society in the way that legislatures were made protecting children, and practices were adopted helping find missing and potentially abducted children. Key words: abduction, evidence, investigation, kidnapping, murder. Bringing Adam Home Book Review Standiford, L., Matthews, J. (2011).Bringing Adam home: The abduction that changed America. New York, NY: Harper Collins. ISBN:9780061983900. Bringing Adam Home is the story of the decades-long investigation into the abduction and murder of 6-year-old Adam Walsh who missed from a local Sears in Hollywood, Florida, on July 27, 1981. The police investigation took 27 years to prove guilt of the serial killer, Ottis Toole, who made multiple confessions to the murder – yet the Hollywood, FL, police department did not believe him and failed to use any of evidences that had been found. The abduction of Adam Walshblew people’s minds and undermined their sense of protection. The American society has never been the same ever since – parents did not let their kids play alone outside, nor did their ever say ‘Be home by dark’; a child could be left nowhere unsupervised. It was Adam’s family bad luck that at that time, there were no Amber Alerts and no national data base for crimes against children. Adam’s parents, John and  Revà © Walsh, bent backwards to change the situation. They became renowned crime fighters, propelled the passage of the 1982 Missing Children Act, and John Walsh became a host of the television program America’s Most Wanted (Standiford2011). Adam Walsh’s kidnapping was not only the most important casein American history of missing children that changed the corresponding legislature but also the most famous one. Many people still remember themselves being kids and watching it on the news (Martin, 2011). However, the details of the case are not as well-known as they should be; given the coverage in the media.The more emotional side of the story, through the eyes of the Walsh family, is rendered in Tears of Ragewritten by John Walsh (Scott, 2011). The puzzle of the botched investigation that ran over almost three decades was solved by the retired Miami detective Joe Matthews and written down by the acclaimed writer Les Standiford, the au thor of 9 fiction novels and 6 non-fiction books (Standiford, 2001). The authors open their cards in the very beginning of the book and introduce the killer, Ottis Toole, right in the second chapter. Toole was a low IQ drifter who set fires and assaulted people to relieve his psychological pressure. From chapter 2 to 4, the authorsgive a detailed recount of the work of Hollywood detective Hoffman who could not organize his work so not to lose important clues and evidence and who was not very keen on the idea that Toole was the killer. According toMatthews, Hoffman is portrayed as a moody and self-contained investigator who â€Å"looked like a guy who disapproved of most things on general principle† (Standiford, 2001). Apart from disregarded leads and lost evidences, Hoffman also treated Adam’s parents carelessly not bothering to inform them that their friend Jimmy Campbell, who was prime suspect, had been cleared. For many years John and Revà ©Walsh received no information from the police as for the investigation of their son’s murder. Matthews felt that it was extremely insensitive on the part of Hoffman. Together with undeveloped enough forensic methods, the case of Adam Walsh advanced by imperceptible pace. As Reve Walsh put it: It was a sad thing for this country that the fight had to be led by two broken-down parents of a murdered child(Standiford, 2001). The authors underscore that it could not be said that the Hollywood department was incompetent. Rather that the case was too difficult, and Detective Hoffman turned out to be too snobbish not only to ask for help but also to accept help from Joe Matthews when he  offered it not once. Hoffman was â€Å"too unstructured and ill-equipped† for such mind-bogging case (Standiford, 2001).Det. Serg. Matthews was a lie detector expert and an experiences homicide detective and, being hired by the Hollywood, Fl, Police Department, he was very interested by the case and was ready to use his knowledge to solve the case. Among other things, the difference in approaches of two detectives was that Hoffman was obsessed with finding physical evidences linking Toole to the Adam’s murder; while Matthews believed that circumstantial evidence could make do in some cases. That meticulous recount of all glaring mistakes of the Hollywood, Fl, police department and the detailed description of their daily working life had its aim in showing that detectives’ work is far from the glamorized TV series. Doing on a daily basis such boring chores as searching for a person who moved and did not leave the new address, or surveilling a suspect for many days, exhaust detectives, and the not very dedicated ones â€Å"let things slide† (Standiford, 2011).Standiford and Matthews seem to mention every lead that was not followed, and every report that was incomplete or even falsified. Matthews blames the manner of interrogation when the suspect was let speak without asking necessary questions, and he found the witness who was consistently ignored by Hoffman. The most shocking omission, the reader may consider, was the neglect of the repeated confessions by Toole with a graphic description of the whole process of abduction, murdering, sodomizing, and decapitating of Adam Walsh and the subsequent dismembering and setting ablaze his body. Toole even gave a sensational interview to Jacksonville Times Union where he repeated his confession to the murder of Adam Walsh (Standiford, 2011). Chapters 5 to 6 focus on Matthews’s account of how he proceeded with the investigation. It became possible only after Hoffman was transferred to the Patrol Division in 1994 (Standiford, 2011). Matthews spent two years and nine months reviewing the case and adding new materials. In the end,Matthews had multiple eyewitness identification of Toole taking Adam from Sears, twenty-five independent confessions to the crime made by Ottis Toole, and most important of all – missed by previous investigators – luminal images of machete and luminal outline of a child’s face on the carpet of Toole’s Cadillac. It finally proved Ottis Toole to be the man who committed the crime. The first part of the book does not make an easy reading. When Toole gives his numerous confessions to various  detectives all the same details of the murder, rape, and dismembering are repeated ad nauseam, without adding anything new. Because of it, for those readers who like genuine crime stories, the book may seem quite slow. Standiford and Matthews were extremely repetitive in details of the crime itself, its prolonged investigation, the history behind the suspects, and descriptions of Toole’s perversions. However, the authors rather had in mind to show how the process of investigation can be dragged for years due to the inability of the police to find hard evidence for the already confessed crime. Standiford, who is an experienced detective writer with a number of narrative non-fiction stories under his belt, narrates dryly and matter-of-factly, which contributes to the authentic feel of the blood-chil ling story. Despite waving their incompetence, Matthews provides a scrupulous evidence of the Hollywood, Fla., police department’s negligence, thus making it difficult to believe that behind such an undisciplined behavior may be anything other than a conspiracy to cover up its incompetence. The authors’aim seems to lay in proving two points. Firstly, the case could have been solved within two years, when Ottis Toole was arrested for arson and confessed repeatedly to the murder of Adam Walsh saying that he was â€Å"very, very sorry that he did it† (Standiford, 2011). Secondly, the police department of Hollywood, FL, had a chance to solve the case quickly, had they let do it to Det. Serg. Matthews. Bringing Adam Home is a gruesome story of justice finally served two decades too late. By that time, though, Ottis Toole had died in prison. And our society has changed. Now kids are warned about strangers. No one leaves their kids in the toy area and goes shopping anymore. Lawenforcement has transformed its practices to better protect children. Public places have adopted Code Adam, a powerful search tool for lost and potentially kidnapped children (Code Adam, n.d.). Code Adam is a predecessor to Amber Alert, a network of notifications to the public through urgent bulletins on television and radio. References Code Adam.(n.d.). The National center for missing exploited children. Retrieved from http://www.missingkids.com/CodeAdam Martin, C. (2011, February 09). Book Review Bringing Adam home by Les Standiford[Web log post].Retrieved fromhttp://www.chaoticcompendiums.com/2011/02/book-review-bringing-adam-home-by-les.html Scott, M. (2011, February 26). Bringing Adam home offers strong proof in the 1981 murder of Adam Walsh. Cleveland.com. Retrieved fromhttp://www.cleveland.com/books/index.ssf/2011/02/bringing_adam_home_offers_stro.html Standiford, L. (2001). Biography[Web log post].Retrieved from http://www.les-standiford.com/Pages/Biography.html Standiford, L., Matthews, J. (2011).Bringing Adam home: The abduction that changed America. New York, NY: Harper Collins. E-book

Thursday, January 23, 2020

Japanese Business Etiquette Essay -- Japan Traditions Culture Business

Japanese Business Etiquette Content: I.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Introduction II.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  History a.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  What is the country ¡Ã‚ ¦s political tradition? b.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Is there a dictatorship or other form of the government which means that the government will be closely involved in your efforts? c.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Is there a history of colonization or occupation by another state? d.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Are there any tensions with neighbors? e.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Is the country secular or not? f.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Religion? III.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Concepts for doing business a.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  How does this culture see time? b.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  How does this culture gather information? c.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  How does this culture fit into the other models presented in class? d.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  What are the important values in this culture; is there understanding of these values the same as yours? e.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  How do hierarchies and negotiation styles fit in? f.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Is bribery an issue? IV.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Social Situation a.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Are there any particular manners or etiquette tips that are very important? b.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Is there a place for humor, small talk, etc.? c.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Are there particularities about food and drink? d.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Are there particularities about dress, body contact? V.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Conclusion VI.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  References a.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  History b.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Concepts for doing business c.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Social situations I. Introduction Our German company is planning a joint venture in Japan. For the reason that this is the first international venture of the company in its thirty year reason, we will send you, a delegation of men and women from our company, for a week-long trip to Japan for a first meeting with our counterparts. There are several factors which we tried to cover while for you in order to make your stay as successful as possible: „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  history „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  what factors might pose problems for Germans „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  how Germans can avoid offending the locals „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  how Germans can avoid culture shock „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  critical points to remember for the initial meetings We tried to collect all these information in order to smooth your way in the Japanese business world. We hope that this report will help you to find the way through the new culture you will soon have to handle. II. History a.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  What is the country ¡Ã‚ ¦s political tradition? Japan is academically considered a constitutional monarchy with a bicameral parliament, the Kokkai or Diet. A constitutional monarchy is a form of government which represents a compromise between tho... ...r for the initial meetings Hopefully, we could contribute to your upcoming business relationship and could help you answering all your questions and help to take away your anxiety. Even though we know that Japanese culture totally differs from our German culture, we have faith in you. We think that you will smooth our way for upcoming transactions and relationships. V. References a.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  History „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  www.japan-guide.html „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  www.fact-index.com „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  www.mapzones.com „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  www.dal.ca „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Foreign-relations-of-Japan „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/History-of-Japan „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  www.japan-tipp.de „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  www.oldbookroom.com b.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Concepts for doing business „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  http://www.venturejapan.com/japan-business-culture-meeting.htm „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  http://www.rieti.go.jp/en/rieti_report/012.html, „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  www.kellogg.northwestern.edu c.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Social situations „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  http://www.geocities.com/japanfaq/FAQ-Manners.html „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  http://gojapan.about.com/cs/etiquetteinjapan/a/bowing.htm „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  http://www.cyborlink.com/besite/japan.htm „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  http://www.escapeartist.com/efam27/japan.html „ «Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  http://www.japan-guide.com

Wednesday, January 15, 2020

Movie Crash Analysis Essay

Choose three characters from the movie crash and compare their relationship elements based on social status, gender dynamics, age, race and tolerance of uncertainty. The opposing characters within the movie â€Å"Crash† depict contrasting lifestyles, attitudes and behaviours. The elements of social status and gender dynamics determine the characters’ tolerance for uncertainty as well as the ways in which they react to societal situations. A situation which may be quite dramatic and life changing for one person might be minimal for another. The following characters including: Jean Cabot played by Sandra Bullock, Daniel played by Michael Dena, and Officer Ryan played by Matt Dillon will be explored throughout this paper. Sandra Bullock’s character â€Å"Jean Cabot† illustrates an unforgettable amount of fear, stress, anxiety and turmoil within the film. For Jean, an upper class, affluent, Caucasian female, it is difficult for her to accept the fact that she has been a victim of a reckless crime as she and her husband were demanded to leave their vehicle while two black males with guns, drove off leaving them terrified and without their car. Jean makes it clear that the incident was in fact her fault because she knew it was going to happen. She makes it clear that she feared the two men based on their skin colour and that she initially did not say anything to her husband because she didn’t want to be implied as racist. Jean’s character shows an immense amount of anger but also a prominent stereo-typical attitude. Based on one experience Jean has had she then proceeds to discriminate against Daniel, a Mexican male who comes to her house to change her door locks. Daniel played by Michael Pena is a working class male in his early 30’s. He has a home and a family and is unfortunately discriminated against time and time again within the film. He is depicted within the film as having a happy life and a caring nature however, he lives in a lower-class neighborhood and can’t help many of his life circumstances. Rather than Jean being the victim it could be made quite obvious that Daniel is in fact the one who is now being placed in a target position. While both Jean and Daniel are victims in their own way, their reactions are immensely diverse. Daniel is a lot more calm and collected. Although his anger shows on his face, he has strong control over his emotions. Rather than speaking up in an angry tone after Jean directs biased comments against him, he still leaves her house with poise. Officer Ryan played by Matt Dillon has a fascinating role within this film. He is a police officer who has been part of the force for quite some time. It is apparent that he has had many incidences where it could be seen as understandable for him to have certain views of individuals based on social class, colour and background. His experiences in the force have allowed him to be present in a variety of situations that have shaped the way he sees individuals. At the beginning of the film, we are made to believe that Ryan is a racist, discriminatory, arrogant cop. Although we learn throughout the movie that some of his experiences do base his strong view points on truth. This is no excuse for him however to inappropriately touch a female car passenger when questioning her and her husband for a minimal accusation. All three of these characters can be compared and contrasted based on their diverse up-bringing and life experiences. For Daniel it is apparent that he has been challenged and turned against throughout his life. However, he has learned to cope and exudes poise and compassion for others. In contrast, Officer Ryan has also been through challenging times and has been a witness to years of criminal activity. Rather than demonstrating any kind of remorse or compassion for innocent victims, he is extremely judgmental even before anyone has proven to commit illegal actions. Both Jean and Ryan share similar hypercritical attitudes towards anyone that they assume could be involved in crime. It is quite sad however, to observe Jean’s discriminatory behavior throughout the film. Particularly seeing as how she has a Mexican female housekeeper, she is still terribly biased and subjective towards others. The symbolism between Jeans relationship with her housekeeper and the way she treats others is prominent. Ironically towards the end of the film, Jean makes a strong statement pointed at her housekeeper that she in fact is her only friend, which promotes the idea that Jean could be making amends with her negative past behavior. In terms of gender dynamics, it is evident that the female characters are significantly more emotional than that of the males. Jean is tremendously expressive in her behaviour while the male roles hold more of their emotions on the inside. Social class as well as gender also has a significant effect on the way the characters display their feelings. Jean is from a far more sheltered world while Daniel has been exposed to a harsher reality. It is only natural that Ryan is confident when it comes to expecting the unexpected as that is his role in life. This is despite the fact that it was inexcusable for him to have carried an undesirable arrogance and a discriminatory attitude at every turn. Throughout â€Å"Crash† the connection between the characters is much more than circumstantial. It is in fact human nature. The movie encourages the audience to realize that we are connected in a much larger context. This context is one that includes human qualities, experiences and emotions. We are all part of one world that has developed and made its own distinctions between itself. People separate themselves based on classifications such as social status, race, age and gender. This separation was depicted clearly in the movie and was shown to create a negative, discriminatory society. The irony of it all was that the characters made it a point to separate themselves from one another yet life brought them together through circumstances and although they may have thought they were vastly different from one another, their lives were in fact very similar.

Monday, January 6, 2020

Response Paper Mccloskey Article (278.205 Kb) - 2221 Words

Response Paper McCloskey Article (278.205 Kb) Having completed the unit of philosophy of religion, you are now ready to respond to an article written by an actual atheist. This article, titled â€Å"On Being an Atheist,† was written by H. J. McCloskey in 1968 for the journal Question. McCloskey is an Australian philosopher who wrote a number of atheistic works in the 1960s and 70s including the book God and Evil (Nijhoff, 1974). In this article, McCloskey is both critical of the classical arguments for God’s existence and offers the problem of evil as a reason why one should not believe in God. Your assignment is to read his short article, attached above, and respond to each of the questions below. The basis for your answers should†¦show more content†¦The uncaused cause holds to that which is outside the framework of causation. Most philosophers hold that this first cause cannot be caused for the reason that it is outside causation. Something would need to set forth in motion the ring of causality. If the premise stands, then such a first cause would have to exist necessarily, otherwise it would have been caused. This necessity is one of causal relation, as long as the premise is accepted. As regards the cosmological argument itself, McCloskey states that all we entitled to infer is the existence of a cause commensurate with the effect to be explained, the universe, and this does not entitle us to postulate an all-powerful, all-perfect, uncaused cause. (p.63) This is indeed true, there is no reason to necessarily infer a God person, however; the inference is of the nature that suggests (hence the term infer) a cause of such magnitude that it is practically God-like. Moreover, his words do not disprove the rational of a God. Entitlement not to call this cause God is neither entitlement to deny calling this cause or considering this cause to be God.  ·  · 3. On the Teleological Argument: o McCloskey claims that â€Å"to get the proof going, genuine indisputable examples of design and purpose are needed.† Discuss this standard of â€Å"indisputability† which he calls a â€Å"very conclusive objection.† Is it reasonable? o From your reading in Evans, can you offer an example of design that,