Hunger in America Essay Example for Free

Hunger in America Essay Early this year, the talent search reality show American Idol used the popularity of its program to bring to light a problem that most Americans did not realize existed until that point in time. The show presented us with the harsh reality that, although America is the last remaining super power and has the most stable economy on the planet, it has a section of its population that deals with hunger on a daily basis. I found myself sitting in front of the TV set in disbelief. I wondered how some people of America can be hungry all the time and not have enough to eat when food seems so easy to come by. As far as I was concerned, food was aplenty and could be shared by everybody. I knew that the government has a food stamps program in place for those deserving â€Å"below the poverty line income† families. Charitable organizations host soup kitchens and a meal can even be had for a dollar over at McDonald’s. I will admit that times are rough for us these days. Money is tight even for the middle income bracket of society because of the recent financial crunches that have been hitting the nation. Plenty of people have recently lost their homes and jobs. Some people have unexpected financial emergencies that they are not prepared to deal with. When such situations occur, families tend to restructure their budgets and the one part of the budget that is usually hit hard is the food allowance. For most American families who do not have credit cards to time them over from paycheck to paycheck, hunger becomes an ugly monster that not only rears its ugly head but also swallows the family whole. American families usually sacrifice their food supply thinking that keeping the other necessities of life in working order is important in their quest to keep the family from starving. A low to middle income father or mother will choose to spend on car repairs and sacrifice the food supply because the car takes them to the job that pays them cash which in turn buys the food. Medical care is unintentionally put on the back burner while the family tries to cope with rising food prices. When a family member is taken seriously ill and needs emergency care, it is the food budget that will automatically be slashed in order to afford the necessary healthcare. Basically, Americans are hungry because the government miscalculated the actual cost of living allowance for a basic family of 3. Originally designed to figure out the food cost for a started family, it failed to take inflation, transportation, rise in utility costs, and healthcare insurance into the picture. Looking at today’s actual cost of living, a $5 hourly minimum wage is an insult to the worker and his needs in life. I think that the main reason that people in America are going hungry is because after the Welfare Reform Act of 1990 was introduced into law, it became almost impossible for families in need of food aid to qualify for the food stamps. I cannot understand the logic behind that move of the government. Why would a government willingly stop supporting the people who voted them into power? The government collects taxes from us specifically because there are government projects and social needs that need to be addressed for the benefit of the entire population. This includes a more effective food stamp program that does not discriminate amongst the already poor and needy population of the land. Food stamps and soup kitchens should always be open and available to those who need it. If they get a job later on and stop needing the food stamps, well and good. But if they lose their jobs again or need the help of the food stamps to quash their hunger pangs, those tax dollars they paid to the government while working better be ready and available to help them in the form of food aid. After all, nobody chooses to be nor wants to be hungry and we would all want to receive help when we need it the most. Work Cited Valentine, Vikki. (2007). QA: The Causes behind Hunger in America. NPR. Retrieved October 15, 2007 from http://www. npr. org/templates/story/story. php? storyId=5021812.

Spurs :: Essays Papers

Spurs â€Å"It was rather more than a hundred years between the first into the presence of the rowel and the final disappearance of the prick spurs from the heel of our forefathers† (Lacy) In looking back at the time of chivalry and the knight it is not common that one forgets the existence of the spur and the true value it poses. The spur was one of the essential tools that a knight possessed as an equestrian. The spur was first introduced for its purpose in encouraging the horse on, but as medieval times approached the spur gained its decorative aspects and held more of a romantic value to people. The spur became elaborate with beads and embroidery, fancy brass, and gold metals. The spur was essentially an emblem of Knighthood; â€Å"to win his spurs† ceremonies put spurs at the investiture of a knight, and were cut off at occasions of degradation (Lacy). The spur is a piece of hard ware that is attached to the heel by a strap usually made of leather. It is Y-shaped, and pointed towards the horse so that the rider can aggress his horse on. In early time the spur was always attached with a strap, however as the spur evolved, the strap was no longer of importance. The spur also grew more and more elaborate during the medieval ages, velvet straps, intricate designs and wheels that made the spur more of a showpiece than a tool. Before the period of the 13th century the spur was that of the â€Å"prick† style, where it is basically just a point that urged the horse. However during the 14th century the â€Å"rowel† type spur gained its popularity. This type of spur looked as though it had a wheel on the end of it. Spurs at its earliest times were made of bone and wood, then later of bronze, brass or iron. The rowel spur was definitely the spur of choice around medieval times because it was so elaborate. It was first introduce d in 1238 by France Simon de Montfort, however did not really catch on until 1285. In looking at the spur and how it correlates to the chivalrous time period. The moist important spur to know is St. George's Spurs, or the Kings Coronation Spurs. These spurs are part of a regular presentation with crown jewels in the Tower, which are used at the coronation of the Sovereign made by Sir Robert Vyner.

“Red Robin” by Clark Richard

â€Å"Red Robin† by Clark Richard â€Å"Red Robin,† by Clark Richard is one song, which without fail always makes me cry. My little sister Ann and our father danced to this song at her quince for the father daughter dance. It was originally planned for me to sing the song but I got too emotional in order to sing it thus there was a change of plans. This song was written by Clark Richard for a future daughter that he wishes to have. Red Robin,† helped me personally celebrate a very joyous occasion by making me realize my little sister was growing up, letting me know how my parents feel, and by allowing me to show her that our family will always be there for her; especially myself. It has been harder for me to see my sister growing up than some. Unlike other older sisters, where they just had to be an older sister, I helped raise my younger sister. When we were very young both of my parents were in the military and we moved around all the time.When my mom was deploy ed to Germany and my dad become â€Å"mom,† it was horrid. He had never been on that side of the relationship before, where he wasn’t the provider. He would stress out and leave to go work out all the time and we wouldn’t see him for hours. When my older brother was at school, I took care of my little sister. Now don’t get me wrong, my dad was a great dad. It just took him time and patience that he didn’t have just yet to get better and before he would leave he would always make sure everything harmful was out of reach.He became a great mom after a while; it just took time. Until then though, I helped clean, put up my sister’s toys, get us something to eat, help take baths, get her pajamas on, etc. I love my little sister almost like a daughter and in this song, it explains a little girl growing up to be a women and it is a struggle for me because I will always see my little sister as this little girl who I had to help take care of when my m om wasn’t home. In my opinion, this is what also helped me into the mindset of my parents and helped me understand how they must feel.I believe that all parents have different feelings about the love that they have for their children and they all show it very differently as well. The way that Richard describes how he feels for his daughter is moving and passionate. He sings to her saying, in not so many words, that he will always be there for her and watching over her, he can’t rest without knowing that she is safe, and that even after death he will be waiting for her return home. If one was to meet my mom or dad, I would believe that this would be similar to how they feel.I use this song to express the emotion in which me and my parents towards my little sister becoming a women and it makes me want to cry. There is one main lyrical line that even shows the worries and thoughts in which a parent would be thinking through a child life. In â€Å"Red Robin,† Richar d states, â€Å"she knows I’ll toss and turn no chance I’ll sleep tonight till I know she’s made it home all right. † In this line Richard describes how when his daughter is out and about, he won’t be able to sleep at all until she is home and safe.When he states, or sings this line, he shows the compassion and forethought in which a parent would have. He describes how his daughter’s safety matters above all and without the knowledge of her safety he will never be at rest. This is how all parents should feel or worry about their children. The part that frustrates me is that there are a lot of parents who could care less and they just expect their children to be home and don’t even check on them. I have cousins who sneek out all the time and never get caught because their mother doesn’t check on them and they never tell anyone where they are going.They could get seriously injured or even raped and no one would know where they we re. I worry about my sister and when I am home, and I get back from being out, whether my mom as already or not, I always check on her. I see her as a daughter and when she is out with her friends or with a particular cousin I will always worry about her until I know she is home safe. Plus, in my personal opinion, when you have a 17 year old daughter (or sister), you should always worry about them until they get home because they don’t always get into the safest situations; especially when or if they are feeling neglected.Teenagers when they go through their hormonal phases to become adults always have times when they feel neglected, unwanted, that no one listens to them and that everyone’s against him or her and so on. When my sister and I were younger, when my mom was actually home, I was the kind of child that demanded more attention and she was not. Although, now that she’s older, she demands a lot of attention and she gets it since she is still â€Å"the b aby† and she is the only child my mom and dad have left that is not already going to college. When we had her Quince, one big point was to include my sister in every decision that was made.That usually is not true for most Hispanic girls. Usually it is planned for them and they learn the dances and attend, it’s very rare that a soon to be 15 year old girl gets any decision making power in this type of situation, but; my mom is a very open Hispanic. My mom and I did everything in our power to make this whole party all about her and by the end of it, everyone cried, including my sister. If she ever felt unwanted or inconvenienced, it wasn’t while we were planning or Quince and it wasn’t during the night we had the party either. And, even if she did, she didn’t after she looked at the bill.We still have fights today, mainly her and my mom since I’m at college, because she believes that no one is listening to her and that my mom is completely aga inst her. Whenever I come home, if I don’t side with her completely on everything, she still throws tantrums and I have to get on to her and scold her so that she will go apologize to our mom since she wasn’t right and she knows it. She just doesn’t want to admit it or she didn’t â€Å"see it that way†. I love my little sister and no matter how many times we get in fights, I will always be there for her no matter what. Red Robin,† by Clark Richard is a very moving, emotional song. Just singing it in my head still makes me want to tear up. The emotional stress that this song caused me during my sister’s Quince was very annoying but it made me realize and learn many things. This song was written by Clark Richard for a future daughter that he wishes to have. â€Å"Red Robin,† helped me personally celebrate a very joyous occasion by making me realize my little sister was growing up, letting me know how my parents feel, and by allowi ng me to show her that our family will always be there for her; especially myself.

Comparison Essay on Large Shopping Centers vs Downtown Stores

Comparison Essay on Large Shopping Centers vs Downtown Stores Large Shopping Centers vs. Downtown Stores At the first glance, both establishments are similar, as they have the main goal – to sell different goods to people and in such a way satisfy their needs. But there are so many different kinds of shopping centers that we can but wonder – why so many? Do we really need them? And what is the difference between a small store in the country and a shopping center in the city? First of all, I want to say that nothing in the world of business is done without demand. If people didn’t express a desire to shop in different stores, there wouldn’t have been so many of them. And I think that there is nothing particularly bad about it. People choose places to buy what they need on the basis of different factors, such as affordability, location, choice, goods and service quality and many others. In fact, each person has his or her own selection of characteristics an ideal shopping place has to possess. Thus, it is clear that to satisfy needs of different people, we need many shops with different combinations of the above listed features. As for large shopping centers and downtown stores, they differ in everything, which is conditioned first of all by the tastes of people who are used to shop in them. An average person from a village will simply get lost in a large shopping mall, as you really have to get used to it. But he just won’t understand the reason why he has to wonder between rows filled with such a variety of goods. At the same time, the ones who are used to such shopping will find the village variant boring and useless. For them shopping has