Senegal - An In Depth Study Essays - , Term Papers

Senegal - An In Depth Study Senegal is a republic located in western Africa and has Dakar which is its largest city as capital. On the northern border is located Mauritania, on the east is Mali and on the Guinea. Senegal is also bordered by the Atlantic ocean on the west. Located in the center of the country is the small republic of Gambia. The county is pierced by the River Gambia. (see figure: 1) Figure 1 Senegal primarily is made up of a large plain. The only real exceptions to this are in the south east where relatively high elevations exist. There are only a few rivers of any reasonable size in Senegal, these include; the Saloum, Gambia, Casamance and of course the Senegal which runs along the northern border of the country. Like all rivers, these recess during dry seasons and surge forth during wet seasons. Like most other countries of this region in Africa, Senegal has a vast multitude of climatic regions. These range from dry desert to a wet tropical zone in the southern portion of the country leaving the dry region to the north. There are two distinct seasons; the dry season, and the rainy season. The latter lasts from July to October in the north. (see figure: 2) Figure 2 Here, the rainfall averages 350 mm . In the south the season starts a month later in June but ends as it does in the north in October. In the north the average yearly rainfall averages 1525 mm . In January the average temperature is 22 degrees centigrade and in July it averages at 28 degrees centigrade. In Senegal the citizens to indeed have to endure very diverse climatic conditions. Figure 3 Figure 4 As mentioned before the northern portion of the country is dominated by very dry desert like conditions while the south is a very wet region. The northern portion of the Country is part of the Sahal which is a buffer for the wetter southern part of the country against the Sahara which is located to the north of the country. In the Sahel the vegetation resembles that of the movie The Lion King in that it consists primarily of savanna grasses with random outcroppings of small stunted shrubs (see Figure: 3). As you move south towards the Gambia trees become more common. Further south still, there are actual swamps and dense forests. In these forests the typical tropical woods can be found including mahogany, palms and bamboo. In the Gambia and the others rivers as well crocodiles and hippopotamuses can be found. Other animals such as elephants can be found in the eastern portion of the country. Senegal's infamous varieties of snake include the cobra and the boa constrictor. Senegal possess many minerals and other natural resources. Among these is Senegal's principal exploited mineral resource, phosphates.( see figure:5) Iron ore is also present I but it has not yet been exploited due to a lack of accessibility. In the 1970's deposits of both natural gas and petroleum were located off the western coast of Senegal. Figure 5 Senegal's economy is based primarily on agriculture. The soul of the agricultural economy is based on peanuts, literally. Although this is the case Senegal has a growing industrial sector which is the largest in West Africa. Senegal receives aid from France and other European countries through the World Bank. Senegal is starting to learn to budget, and is now only spending $700 million more than the country brings in every year. About 27% of Senegal's land is arable which is very inproportionate to the 78% of the population which relies on subsistence farming. Because of French colonization, Senegal is now the leading producer of peanuts in the world. These peanuts are primarily grown in the north-west but are also grown in other parts of the country. Peanuts and peanut oils constitute a significant percent of the yearly export earnings ranging from 29% in the 80s to 12% in the early 90s . Most of the land is Figure 6 devoted to the production of peanuts and great strides have been made recently to diversify the types of crops grown. (see Figure:6) Among the crops to

The Crimes of Scorecard Killer Randy Kraft

The Crimes of Scorecard Killer Randy Kraft Randolph Kraft, also known as the Scorecard Killer, the Southern California Strangler, and the Freeway Killer, is a  serial rapist, torturer, and killer who was convicted for the mutilation and deaths of at least 16 young males from 1972 through 1983 throughout  California, Oregon, and  Michigan. A cryptic list found at the time of his arrest linking him to 40 additional unsolved murders became known as Krafts Scorecard. Early Life Born on March 19, 1945, in Long Beach, California, Randolph Kraft was the youngest child and only son of four children born to Opal and Harold Kraft. As the baby of the family and the only boy, Kraft was showered with attention from his mother and sisters. However, Krafts father was distant, preferring to spend most of his non-working time with his mother and sister. Krafts childhood was mostly unremarkable. He was, however, prone to accidents. At the age of 1, he fell from a couch and broke his collarbone. A year later, he was knocked unconscious after falling down a flight of stairs but a trip to the hospital determined that there was no permanent damage. Krafts family moved to Midway City in Orange County, California when he was 3. His parents purchased a former Womens Army Corps dormitory located in a commercial zone within 10 miles of the  Pacific Ocean and converted the structure into a three-bedroom home. Although the house was modest, both parents worked to pay the bills. Early Education At the age of 5, Kraft was enrolled in the Midway City Elementary school. Although a working mother, Opal was was a member of the PTA, baked cookies for Cub Scout meetings, and was active at church, making certain that her children received Bible lessons. Kraft excelled at school where he was recognized as an above-average student. In junior high school, he was placed in the advanced curriculum program and continued to maintain excellent grades. It was during these years that his interest in conservative politics grew and he proudly declared himself a diehard Republican. By the time Kraft entered high school, he was the only child still living at home. His sisters had married and moved into homes of their own. Since both his parents worked and were not often around, Kraft was fairly independent. He had his own room, his own car, and money he earned working part-time jobs. Kraft seemed like a typical fun-loving kid. While he was academically gifted, Kraft got along well with his peers. He played the saxophone in the school band, enjoyed tennis, and was a founder and participant in a student club focused on conservative politics. Kraft graduated high school at the age of 18, ranking 10th in his class of 390 students. College Years and Homosexual Awakening During his final year of high school and unbeknownst to his family, Kraft began cruising gay bars. After graduating, Kraft enrolled at Claremont Mens College on a full scholarship where he majored in economics. His interest in conservative politics continued, and he often attended  pro-Vietnam war  demonstrations. Kraft joined the Reserve Officers Training Corps, and in 1964, was a staunch supporter of Republican presidential candidate Barry Goldwater. During his sophomore year of college, Kraft became involved in his first openly homosexual relationship. He also changed his political affiliation from conservative to left-wing liberal. (He would later explain his years as a conservative as merely an effort to be like his parents.) Although Krafts homosexuality was not a secret at Claremont, his family was still unaware of his orientation. In an effort to clue his parents in, Kraft often brought homosexual friends home to meet his family. Remarkably, they failed to make the connection and remained unaware of Krafts sexual preferences. While still in school, Kraft took a part-time job as a bartender at The Mug, a popular gay bar located in Garden Grove. During this time, Krafts sexual appetites flourished. He began cruising for male prostitutes at known pickup spots around Huntington Beach. In 1963, he was arrested after propositioning an undercover police officer but the charges were dropped because Kraft had no previous arrest record. Change in Lifestyle In 1967, Kraft adopted more of a hippie look. He let his hair grow long and started sporting a mustache. He also became a registered  Democrat and worked on the Robert Kennedy campaign. It was at about this time that Kraft also began suffering from recurring headaches and stomach pain. His family doctor prescribed tranquilizers and pain medicine- which he often mixed with beer. Between his bartending job, his own drinking and drugging, his sexual experimentation, and heavy political campaigning efforts, Krafts interest in academia declined. In his final college year, rather than studying, he spent his time getting high, gambling, and hustling. As a result, he didnt graduate on time. It took him eight additional months to earn a Bachelor of Arts in economics, which he received in February 1968. U.S. Air Force and Coming Out In June 1968, after scoring high marks on the Air Force aptitude tests, Kraft enlisted in the U.S. Air Force. He threw himself into his work and quickly advanced to the rank of Airman First Class. It was at this time that Kraft finally decided to come out to his family. His ultra-conservative father flew into a rage. While she did not approve of her sons lifestyle,  Krafts mother continued to show love and support for him. His family eventually came to terms with the news, however, the relationship between Kraft and his parents was never the same. On July 26, 1969, Kraft received a general discharge from the Air Force on medical grounds. He later claimed the discharge came after he told his superiors that he was gay. Kraft briefly moved back home and took a job as a forklift operator and also worked part-time as a bartender- but not for long. Relationships with Jeff Graves and Jeff Seelig In 1971, after deciding to become a teacher, Kraft enrolled at Long Beach State University. While there, he met fellow student Jeff Graves. Kraft moved in with Graves and they stayed together until the end of 1975. It was Graves who introduced Kraft to bondage, drug-enhanced sex, and threesomes. The open relationship between Kraft and Graves grew more volatile as time went on. They frequently argued. Kraft had grown less interested in cruising for one-night stands and was looking to settle down into a monogamous relationship. Graves wanted just the opposite. Kraft met Jeff Seelig at a party in 1976, about a year after he and Graves split up. At 19, Seeling, who worked as an apprentice baker, was 10 years younger than Kraft. Kraft took on the mantle of a mentor in the relationship. He introduced Seelig to the gay bar scene and taught him about cruising a nearby U.S. Marine base for partners to engage in threesomes. Kraft and Seelig advanced in their careers. Eventually, the couple decided to purchase a small home in Long Beach but after Kraft landed a computer job with Lear Siegler Industries, he began spending a lot of time away from home on business trips to Oregon and Michigan. Tensions between the pair grew. The age gap, as well as the disparity in their educational backgrounds, and general personalities differences began to take their toll. The couple split up in 1982. The Tip of the Iceberg: Krafts First Murder Charge On May 14, 1983, two California highway patrol officers spotted a car weaving down the road. The driver was Kraft. The officers signaled for him to pull over but he continued driving for a short distance before coming to a stop. When Kraft finally pulled over, he quickly emerged from the car and walked toward the patrolmen. He smelled of alcohol and his fly was open. After failing a standard field sobriety test, the patrolmen went to take a look at Krafts car, where they found a young man, his pants pulled down and barefoot, slumped over in the passenger seat. The victims genitals were exposed, his neck showed signs of strangulation marks, and his wrists were bound. After a brief examination, it was determined the young man was dead. The victim was identified as a Marine stationed at the El Toro Marine Airbase, 25-year-old Terry Gambrel. Gambrels friends later reported that the young Marine had been hitchhiking to a party on the night he was murdered. His autopsy revealed hed been killed by ligature strangulation, and also indicated that his blood contained excessively high levels of alcohol and tranquilizers. The Scorecard and Other Key Evidence During the search of Krafts vehicle, patrolman found 47 Polaroid photos of young men, all nude, and all appearing to be unconscious- or possibly dead. The photographs were likely viewed by Kraft as trophies he could use to revisit the murders. Perhaps even more alarming was evidence found inside a briefcase taken from the trunk of Krafts car that contained a list of 61 cryptic messages. Investigators came to believe the messages- later dubbed Krafts infamous scorecard- formed a list of Krafts murder victims. Further evidence gathered at Krafts apartment- including clothing owned by victims, fibers from a rug matching fibers found at murder scenes, and Krafts fingerprints were later linked to various unsolved murders. Police also found pictures next to Krafts bed matching three cold-case murder victims. Krafts Modus Operandi All of Krafts known victims were  Caucasian males with similar physical characteristics. Some were gay, some were straight. All were tortured and murdered but the severity of torture varied by degree from victim to victim. Most were drugged and bound; several were mutilated, emasculated, sodomized, and photographed postmortem. The severity of the violence his victims endured seemed to correspond with how Kraft and his lover were getting along at the time of the incident. When Kraft and his lover were on the outs, the victims would often pay the price. Investigators learned that Kraft often traveled to Oregon and Michigan while employed at an aerospace firm from June 1980 through January 1983. Unsolved murders in both areas coincided with the dates that Kraft was there. This, along with decoding some of Krafts cryptic scorecard messages, added to the growing list of Krafts victims. Possible Accomplice Some of the investigators working the case believed Kraft must have had an accomplice. As damning as the evidence was, they couldnt ignore the fact that many of the victims had been pushed out of a car traveling at about 50 miles an hour- a feat that would be next to impossible to do achieve alone. Jeff Graves became the  main person of interest. He and Kraft had lived together during the time that 16 of the known murders took place. Graves backed up Krafts statement to police about his whereabouts on March 30, 1975, the night that 19-year-old Keith Daven Crotwell disappeared. Crotwell and his friend Kent May had gone on a drive with Kraft that evening. Kraft supplied both the teens with drugs and alcohol. Kent passed out in the back seat. Kraft pushed Kent out of the car. Crotwell was never seen alive again. Witnesses who saw May being thrown from the car helped police track Kraft down. When questioned, Kraft maintained that  he and Crotwell went for a drive and that the car had gotten stuck in the mud. He said he called Graves to come help but Graves was 45 minutes away so he decided to walk and  find help. When he returned to the car, Crotwell was gone. Graves corroborated  Krafts story. After Krafts arrest for murder, Graves, then in the advanced stages of AIDS, was questioned again. He told investigators, Im really not going to pay for it, you know. Graves succumbed to his illness before revealing anything incriminating. The Trial Kraft was initially arrested and charged with the murder of Terry Gambrel but as forensic evidence linking Kraft to other murders piled up, additional charges were filed. By the time Kraft went to trial, he was charged with 16 murders, nine counts of sexual mutilation, and three counts of sodomy. Kraft went to trial on September 26, 1988, in what turned out to be one of the longest and most costly trials in the history of Orange County. After 11 days, a jury found him guilty and he was given the death sentence. During the penalty phase of the trial, the state called Krafts first known victim, Joseph Francher to  testify  about the abuse hed suffered at Krafts hands when he was just 13, and how it had impacted his life. Kraft is currently  on death row in San Quentin. In 2000, the California Supreme Court upheld his death sentence.

A Beautiful World

Seven years ago, I was on plane. The sky was full of darkness, but had speckles of light scattered all over the atmosphere. Looking down, I observed millions of buildings illuminating. I experienced a dropping feeling down in my stomach, and my ears were starting to ache. I pulled out a piece of gum and started chewing; we were about to land! Being in a plane for about twelve hours made me want to escape unless I slept the whole way. Entering the terminal, our family welcomed us. Our family was so excited to see us. When we arrived at their house, I went straight to bed. The next day I was awakened with the aroma of my aunt’s delicious cooking. She prepared eggs, beans with sour cream, fresh bread, fresh tortillas, and tamales! After breakfast my siblings and I climbed the long, cold cemented stairs to the roof, a place where we could examine the beautiful volcanoes in the distance, hundreds of houses all clustered together, markets, and a park. My aunt lived in the vivacious city. As we were exploring, we heard a sound coming from the house in front of us. We strolled to the front end of the house. Then, four boys about my age approached us, greeted us, and inquired millions of questions. That day my siblings and I played soccer and hide and seek with them. Those four boys became our friends. Guatemala, a beautiful world, provided my family and me with rich cultures.

Juvenile Justice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Juvenile Justice - Essay Example Failing to complete the program message or continuing it on a steady platform the ultimate outcome will be the message to be distorted or incomprehensive for the young adult. The quality of delinquency of preventive programs in the school system have been heavily correlated with the outright success of the program all together. When the program is not implemented completely and successfully the outreach of the program on youths is processed at a failing return. An example of a program would be any program where implementation is assessed by organization capacity, organizational support (training, supervision, principal support), program features - manuals, implementation standards, quality control mechanisms, and integration into normal school operations, local initiation, and local planning (D. Gottfredson and G. Gottfredson 5-7). Directing the message with the use of these characteristics can implement a more successful outreach within the school. Aside from delivering positive mes sages to youths there is the likely little or no contributions being made on behalf of the adolescent’s parents.

Family on Film Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Family on Film - Movie Review Example In both of these movies, the directors show these mothers in different terms of success: Beth does not succeed because she cares too much about society, and Antonia and Danielle succeed because they are willing to break free from society’s constraints. In â€Å"Ordinary People,† Beth is the mother of Conrad and Buck. After Buck dies in a boating accident, Beth focuses a lot of pent-up guilt and blame on Conrad, and acts in a way that defies the expectations of what it means to be maternal. Mostly, people think of maternal nature as being warm and nurturing, abut Beth is cold and sarcastic towards Conrad, and berates him for being weak, just because he needs to see a psychiatrist about their dysfunctional family. Beth is fixated on the idea that the family should appear â€Å"normal,† and fit in to society. For example, when Calvin, Conrad’s father, lets it slip that Conrad has been seeking mental help at a party, Beth is furious, because this disrupts the idea of the normal family that she has strived so hard for (Ordinary, 1980). And when Conrad finally gathers the courage to tell Beth that he blames her for never visiting him in the mental hospital, she is still cold and sarcastic to him, using this as an opportunity to tell him once again how much more she loved Buck than she loves him.

Looking at Women Essay Example for Free

Looking at Women Essay â€Å"Looking at Women† by Scott Sanders was first published in spring of 1989 in the Georgia Review and was later reprinted in Sander’s essay collection titled â€Å"Secrets of the Universe† (1991). In this work, Sanders tells us his thoughts on how men look at women, hence the title; he explains to us that he feels that men turn women into things rather than people by objectifying their bodies. He goes into great detail about how a lot of women feel their role in today’s society is to exist for the pleasure of men and he questions how simple minded creatures we must be to fall for such things. Although I agree with his argument, I also see the other side of it. This could be the subject of a long drawn out debate, there is a much simpler way to approach it in that we get used to a certain way of thinking and it eventually becomes habit to look at a female and judge her, to make her feel as though she has to fit a certain image because she knows people expect that much of her, to make her want to dress and act a certain way for people to actually see her and so when she does a good job at it, she feels good. When a person is young, they look at things in an innocent manner. As they mature over time, they start to look at things in a different way. A guy for example, will start to notice things he didn’t before such as the way a girl walks, how tight her clothes are, the curves on her figure, and other things. And these of course, are all things he has seen before, just never in this light. So he continues to look and as that happens over time he get in the habit of searching for these fine details, even if he isn’t necessarily interested. Sander’s addressed that thought in Looking at Women when he stated that â€Å"what attracts our eyes and rouses our blood is only partially instinctual† (187) which implies that some of it is learned. The way men look at women over time has reached a point where it has become degrading and on some level can be disrespectful. The things we do as women to get men to look at us are not required to get the same end result, and this is also approached with in the text where it says that â€Å"The fraction of desire that leads to procreation is †¦ irrelevant† (Sanders 180). Sometimes men do look because they’re interested in the woman herself.. However most of the time, he will look and in his mind he has already have graded this woman on a scale of 1-10 without even realizing it because he’s so used to doing it. I think a lot of people would agree that females have always been painted as submissive, delicate things who are there to be dependant and cared for. We’re supposed to do â€Å"girly† things like paint our nails, cook, clean, and wear high heels while the men go out and get all the attention. We are portrayed as a â€Å"fluff pastry †¦ plastic figurine †¦ to achieve the status of art† (185). We are works of art though, we do not wake up with our faces painted and hair perfect – we have to make it happen and like true art, it takes time and effort. We are to be delicate and beautiful, something worth bragging about, a thing to look at and admire. With this type of thinking, we slowly become objects, instead of people. Scott Sanders poses the question, a few times in the story â€Å"Why †¦ do so many women decorate themselves like dolls?† (184). Upon further reading, we will come to see that the answer (qtd. in Le Deuxieme Sexe) lies within the text: we do it simply because â€Å"it is the most potent identity available to (us)† (Sanders 184). While it might be nice as a man to have a woman to take of you or even to have one dependant on you, it’s not what defines us as a species and it certainly isn’t the only role we are capable of playing. As this is the role we identify most with, we feel this need to be good at it. It is typically viewed as an immoral, degrading thing (trying to be sexy) but with a little bit of tweaking and experience (also stores such as Victoria’s Secret help), we can perfect it to where it then becomes a tool, a weapon, a trap. â€Å"Women need not make spectacles of themselves in order to draw the attention of men† (186), in other words we don’t need to dress up and put makeup on our faces or wear shoes with heels that prevent us from walking. We know we don’t and that if men really want to look, they will do so regardless of what we look like or what we’re wearing. Although, it’s easier to just conform to the role society as created for us. For some women it can even be fun, if they happen to be bored or insecure enough to crave that type of attention. They don’t see themselves as a pretty damsel in distress, rather a lion or a tiger with the strength, cunning, and speed needed to hunt and capture its prey. They can entice a man, and make him want more, make him crave it. She’ll draw him in with a false sense of security, because as a man, he naturally assumes he is in control. But he’s not, he’s just flying along and suddenly caught in a web. And just like that, like the lion pounces on the gazelle, he has fallen victim to â€Å"put-ons whose only purpose is in being taken off† (184). And just like that, the roles are reversed. Two spiked heels, a ton of lace, and one tube of bright red lipstick later, she is on top and he is an object she is toying with. He then becomes a trophy of what she is capable of, and what she has accomplished. She is proud because she has done so with the role society designed to diminish her. As time goes on, these social roles with change and hopefully everyone will be seen for whom they are not what they look like. Sanders made many interesting points in his story about the way society views women and we take that idea and run with it. Society took us and tried to turn us into an object that can’t be feared, an object simply for admiration and we became works of art that we too can be proud of. However, we should not be proud of the fact that this has become a habit and that we insist on making people feel like they need to fit a certain image in order to be proud of themselves. While society may not like it, we are strong and independent and can handle anything they throw at us. We’re champions and they’re going to hear us roar. Works Cited Sanders, Scott. â€Å"Looking at Women.† The Norton Reader. 13th ed. Eds. Linda Peterson. New York: W. W. Norton Company, Inc. 2012: 179-189. Print.

Searching For Meaning in Virginia Woolfs Between the Acts Essays

Searching For Meaning in Virginia Woolf's Between the Acts I wanted to examine the states at the limits of language; The moments where language breaks up...I wanted to examine the language which manifests these states of instability because in ordinary communication--which is organized, civilized--we repress these states of incandescence. Creativity as well as suffering comprises these moments of instability, where language, or the signs of language, or subjectivity itself are put into "process". (Julia Kristeva) Any attempt to study the complex layers of the human endeavor of "meaning-making" should include an examination of those places where the spoken word (or articulation itself) "breaks up" or fails. Woolf's Between the Acts is itself a study of the struggle of relying on language to act as the sole currency of significance in a world which refuses to be contained. The novel does in fact put language, the signs of language, and subjectivity into "process". Consequently, "meaning" becomes complicated as it often falls outside, (but not entirely), of ordinary discourse and speech. "Meaning" wedges itself in between words; it is found in the silences between two characters, in the interruption of a speech by wind, in the social taboos which make the unsayable so much louder than the said. " kind of meta-discourse emerges in Between the Acts, one which pushes the conventional foreground (i.e. the characters themselves and their conversations) of a novel into the background. This inversion p laces humans in a broad dialogue that the characters themselves, (and even we the readers), may fail to recognize as a dialogue because it does fall outside of normative, controlled language. It is in this larger context of silences an... ...ess process. In the traditional narrative of resolution, there is a sense of problem solving...a kind of ratiocinative or emotional teleology... "What will happen" is the basic question. In the modern plot of revelation, however, the emphasis is elsewhere, the function of the discourse is not to answer the question or even to pose it...It is not that events are resolved (happily or tragically) but rather that a state of affairs is revealed. (Seymour Chatman) Works Cited Julia Kristeva, 'A Question of Subjectivity--An Interview',Women's Review, no. 12 (1986), pp. 19-21 Ferdinand de Saussure,From Course in General Linguistics, Modern Literary Theory ,Third Ed. (1996),Ed. Rice and Waugh, pp. 8-15 Jacques Derrida, 'Structure, Sign and PLay in the Discourse of the Human Sciences', Modern Literary Theory ,Third Ed. (1996),Ed. Rice and Waugh, pp.176-190