The Gulf War - An Environmental Disaster Essay -- Exploratory Essays R

While militarily, the Gulf War of 1990-91 seemed like a quick and decisive victory, it was an environmental disaster, both at the time and when considering the residual impacts. Environmental travesties were committed by both the Iraqi aggressor and the allied forces, ranging from use of minerals like depleted uranium in weapons to deliberate dumping of oil into the Gulf. Oil fires and spills had a severe impact on all forms of life, most prominent in the Gulf region, but with possible global implications. Human health, wildlife, natural resources and ecosystems were all adversely impacted by actions taken and not taken by both sides of the conflict. Controversy over where the oil that spilled into the Persian Gulf in the early months of 1991 came from still exists, but the fact remains that about 10 million barrels of oil were eventually discharged into the Gulf. This amount is about forty times that spilled in the Exxon Valdez disaster, and was beyond any previously imaginable scope. Both Saddam Hussein’s army and Coalition forces claimed that the other had done more to wreak havoc on the Gulf environment by releasing oil into the Gulf. In reality, both belligerents in the conflict did significant damage to the environment and mostly the damage was unnecessary. The US military accused Saddam Hussein’s forces of releasing large amounts of oil from the Sea Island Terminal in Kuwait by dynamiting the station at the beginning of the air war. In the end, about 6 million barrels flowed from Sea Island into the Gulf (Hawley, p 46). Iraqi sabotage of oil ports are also cited as sources of the spill. Significant am ounts were also released into the Gulf by Coalition attacks on oil tankers stationed in the Gulf. One tanker... ...ve international community and then by implementing more stringent laws that would make destruction of the environment without severe repercussions impossible. Bibliography: Â   Clark, Ramsey The Fire This Time (New York: Thunder’s Mouth Press, 1992) Â   Environmental News Service Iraqi Environment Defenseless Before Warring Forces (Electronic source: March 24, 2003) Â   Kirby, Alex Gulf environment faces worse threats (BBC online news: March 14, 2003) Â   Lash, Jonathan Reflections on War and the Environment (MSNBC.com interview: January 10, 2003 Â   Levy, B. and Sidel, V. eds. War and Public Health (New York: Oxford University Press, 1997) Â   Loretz, John The Animal Victims of the Gulf War (PSR Quarterly, 1991) Â   UN Environment Program Air pollution from Baghdad fires poses risks for human health and the environment (Press release, March 30, 2003)

Family: Television and Shooting Dad Essay

Family, they are there for you no matter what. They love you no matter what your views, but is there anything that is more important then family? In the two essays ; Shooting Dad and TV: The Plug-In Drug, both show what being a family is like for different people. Each essay shows pathos, ethos, and cause and effect in both different and similar ways. TV: The Plug-In Drug, by Marie Winn, is about televisions â€Å"taking over† quality family time. Winn uses pathos by talking to different types of people who come from different types of families; this way you get to hear from other people how the television is taking away from precious memory making. Trying to touch each of our emotional sides, although you might not start crying, Winn is able to talk to people and get information about families and the time they spend with each other versus the time in front of the television. Hear what this woman had to say about the television: â€Å"We were in the midst of a full-scale War. Every day was a new battle and every program was major skirmish†¦We have agreed on 2? hours of TV a day (with dinner gobbled up in between) and two half-hour shows between 7 and 8:30 which enables the grown-ups to eat in peace†¦Ã¢â‚¬  How many of us actually do this? Just like in Shooting Dad, by Sarah Vowell, average people try to use something else to cover up the feelings they have about something. Although Vowell shows a more clear side to pathos she does not get into as much detail, nor is her essay based on facts, which people tend to believe or rely on more then stories. Vowell uses a childhood story to explain to us how never giving interest to something can lead to being over-looked by the people you care about. One line in this essay that shows a lot of emotion is: â€Å"My dad says that when he dies he wants my mom, sister, and me to drag the cannon to the top of the Gravellies on opening day of hunting season. Looking off at Sphinx Mountain put his ashes in a little paper bag, then place the bag in the cannon. Aim the cannon high into the sky, making sure he does not take anyone else with him, just so he can take his last hunting trip on opening morning. Not only would this be hard for the family to hear their father say, it would also be hard to accomplish. This is very emotional and to some of us it is also quite personal. When it comes to being personal, Winn has an amazing way of sharing each comment with us. The one that touched me the most was from a woman who lived not far from here in Chicago, she said: â€Å"As a child I had millions of relatives around- my parents both come from relatively large families. My father had nine brothers and sister. And so every holiday there was this great swoop-down of aunts, uncles, and millions of cousins. I just remember how wonderful it used to be. The cousins would come and everyone would play and ultimately, after dinner, all the women would be in the front of the house, drinking coffee and talking, all the men would be in the back of the house, drinking and smoking, and all the kids would be all over the place, playing hide and seek. Christmas time was particularly nice because everyone always brought all their toys and games. Our house had a couple of rooms with go-through closets, so there were always kids running in a great circle route. I remember it was just wonderful. And then all the sudden one year I remember becoming suddenly aware of how different everything had become. The kids were no longer playing Monopoly or Clue or the other games we used to play together. It was because we had a television set which had been turned on for a football fame. All of that socializing that had gone on preciously had ended. Now everyone was sitting in front of the television set, on a holiday, at a family party! I remember being stunned by how awful that was. Somehow the television had become more attractive. † Do you remember those Christmases? Not until I read this essay did I clearly understand how the television is overpowering the family time we spend together now. The way Winn is able to use a story that anyone can relate to is so awesome and it makes the essay even more personal. Shooting Dad on the other hand is not people’s comments or stories, it is like the authors biography. Shooting Dad tells about Vowell and her father, how they fight all the time and rarely agree on anything. The reason I find this part so personal is my dad and I disagree on a lot and rarely agree on anything just like in the story. Sarah Vowell is able to take a personal story and easily make the reader feel like they are in her shoes. While both TV: The Plug-In Drug and Shooting Dad show pathos and ethos in similar and different ways, each one shows cause and effect the same. TV: The Plug-In Drug shows that is you watch television all the time you have no time for family. It also shows that television can take away from something or someone really special. Shooting Dad shows a similar scene although it has nothing to do with a television it still shows how something can â€Å"get in the way† of being a family. The father in this story is all about ammunition, but the daughter could care less; she would rather read a book or make a science project. When the daughter showed interest in her fathers completion of a cannon, she was amazed and they went out together to shoot it. Never would this have happened if the daughter did not try. Shooting Dad and TV: The Plug-In Drug both tell a story that liking something so unimportant so much that is takes away from what really matters. Shooting Dad and TV: The Plug-In Drug are two similar stories, told in different ways. Vowell, author of Shooting Dad, tries to use more of a personal story to help the reader better understand how average Americans let insignificant things get in the way of a family. TV: The Plug-In Drug on the other hand uses facts and opinion both to help the reader. In using other people’s opinions, the author, Marie Winn, is able to take different stories and create a story of her own that expresses everything and more about a television overpowering a families time spent together. So what matters to you? Is it your television, latest invention, new CD, what means so much to you that your family cannot come first? If you say â€Å"family means more to me than anything† or â€Å" my family always comes first,† remember the last time you were watching television or reading a book and someone called you name. Your response was probably, â€Å" Hang on just a minute, wait until the commercial comes on,† like the average American, we all tend to put something off and tell the person bugging us during our favorite television show to wait, like what they had to say was not important. Before you finish reading this essay, I am going to ask you one more time: Is there anything more important than family?

The Effects Of Video Games On Today s Youth - 1131 Words

Introduction Video games have been one of the most popular sources of entertainment for quite some time. Video games have changed the entertainment industry and is now a billion-dollar industry. The industry has also effected society. Of course, there are some benefits of using video games, but there are also many negative effects of the use of video games, especially on today’s youth. According to NPD, ninety-one percent of children from the age of two to seventeen play video games (Camp, 2011). In terms of the population of the youth, that is nearly sixty-four-million children (Camp, 2011). According to Dino Grandoni, children play from one to three hours of video games per day (Grandoni, 2014). With these facts, it is obvious that the use of video games will have some physical, mental, and social effects on the child, especially if the child becomes addicted to playing video games. The consequences of playing these games in an addictive manner includes physical issues, psychological iss ues, as well as issues connecting with people in the real world. Physical Problems Of course video games can be fun or even relaxing. However, is playing as a fictional character in a fictional realm worth the physical problems that can arise from constantly playing? Playing video games for too long puts stress on the body’s immune system, muscles, and even the brain (video-game-addiction). Also, the addiction of video games can cause a child to maintain poor hygiene habits as well as poorShow MoreRelatedBanning Violent Video Games On Children1545 Words   |  7 Pages Banning Violent Video Games A child is killing police officers. A teenager is hiring prostitutes to potentially kill them. He is using weapons such as guns, chainsaws, and knives to kill and commit horrible crimes. Thousands of children and teens participate in these actions daily. How? Violent Video games such as Doom, Call of Duty, and Grand Theft Auto are just a few of the games that are full of these awful actions. The Harvard Mental Health Letter states, â€Å"The Pew Research Center reportedRead MoreVideo Games And Its Effects On Youth Essay1247 Words   |  5 Pagesof video games, and Angry Birds Theme Park in China Universal Studios in Hollywood, California both also involve video game entertainment, therefore everywhere you go videogames follow! Obviously, the better technology gets the more accessible video games are becoming. Over 90% of the young adults and young children population play video games in the United States. Unfortunately, 90% of those games involve mature content that often includes violence (â€Å"Little By Little, Violent Video Games MakeRead MoreVideo Game Effects On Young Children And Young Adults Essay1283 Words   |  6 Pages. VIDEO GAME EFFECTS ON YOUNG CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULTS Carlsbad, California Legoland is consists of video games, and Angry Birds Theme Park in China Universal Studios in Hollywood, California both also involve video game entertainment, therefore everywhere you go videogames follow! Obviously, the better technology gets the more accessible video games are becoming. Over 90% of the young adults and young children population play video games in the United States play video games. UnfortunatelyRead MoreVideo Games Have Become Part Of The Social Norm For Kids Now Days1688 Words   |  7 PagesVideo games have become part of the social norm for kids now days. Whether it be for educational purposes, sports, a way to take the edge off, or for just pure entertainment, games have evolved to simulate a real life feel. As video games have advanced, so have the graphics and objectives. Kids are not playing low bit games like Pong anymore, but rather games that look and feel like real life. When you pick up the controller now, you’re enterin g a completely different world. Today, children are growingRead MoreThe Effects Of Video Games On Our Lives1355 Words   |  6 Pagesthis subject. I personally think that video games can greatly impact your lives in a positive manner, but they can also destroy your lives. Videogames altering your intelligence making you less sophisticated, or time consuming making people over weight? The advantage of playing video games can be proven in its ability to enhance learning, hand-eye coordination, and can help to reduce feelings of stress and anger. Videogames a huge part of today s society, becoming more popular than everRead MoreVideo Games Effect On Today s Adolescents839 Words   |  4 PagesAre video games having a negative effect on today’s adolescents? For most teens, video games can be a fun way to escape reality. How do video games impact us? Are video games having a positive or a negative effect on today’s adolescents? Spending too much time playing video games leads to escalating rates of teen violence, obesity and declining grades. Violence, which also includes bullying, among teens has been on the rise for years, Watch the local evening news and you will most likely hearRead MoreVideo Games Encourage Teen Violence Essay1262 Words   |  6 PagesVideo Games Encourage Teen Violence A sniper perched high in a eagles nest zooms in through his scope to the head of his enemy, pulls the trigger, the enemy falls to the ground headless. This is a image that is common in the world of war, and now in the world of video games. Teens all over the world have become completely addicted to first person fighting games. With technology as great as it is today game makers are able to designed games that are so real it is truly scary. Millions of teensRead MoreEssay on Violent Video Games are the Root Cause of Youth Aggression1157 Words   |  5 Pagesone of the most popular being video games. Video games have come a long way since they were first introduced to the mainstream audience during the 1960’s and 1970’s and have drawn a large amount attraction among people of all ages and culture. However it wasn’t until the Play-station was released that violence became a concern to parents and politics. The level of violence in video games have been in a matter of controversy dating all the way back to the classic games like Pacman and Space InvadersRead MoreVideo Games And Its Effects On The Media1372 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction Many studies suggest that violent video games contribute to the aggressions of video games players. Today over 85% of video games contained violence, and the rest have explicit content like sex, drugs, and disregard to human life (Carnagey, Anderson, Bushman, 2007). Someone who is new to video games is exposing themselves to violence, and for many the general concern comes from being influence from such games. For example, video games first influence school shooting that first startedRead MoreThe Importance Of Violent Video Games932 Words   |  4 PagesWhile video games are fun for a lot of people, violent video games have proven to lead to more than just high scores and a source of entertainment. Violent video games need to be limited to our maturing youth. First, violent video games are one of the biggest and increasing outlets for providing our youth with deranged thoughts and aggressive impulsions. Second, the use of violent video games is very prevalent amongst soldiers in the U.S. Army being ordered to play these games to keep them in a warrior