The Passage And Impact Of USA Patriot Act - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 7 Words: 2101 Downloads: 1 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Law Essay Level High school Did you like this example? A Paper by Tyler Clay Mr. Hoban: 4th Period I chose to write about the USA PATRIOT Act because it was passed within my lifetime. Its purpose and the actions used because of it will greatly affect me in my lifetime and I wanted to know how it could affect me and what the Act actually contained. I had heard about the Act constanly on the news and knew that it was controversial. I wanted to hear both sides of the story, and in writing this paper, I did. Tyler Clay Mr. Hoban Honors U.S. History 14 Dec. 2010 The Passage and Impact of the U.S.A. P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Act The PATRIOT ACT is a United States bill that was turned into law to help defend the country from terrorist attacks. It also contains measures to help investigate terrorist activities towards or within the country. After its passage on October 26, 2001, the PATRIOT Act has dramatically changed how the United States approaches and monitors terrorism. In doing this, though, the Act has also aroused critics and controversy over its constitutionality. Thi s bill has a particular name given to it that exemplifies the attitudes the United States had when the bill was passed. This bill was called the PATRIOT Act, and it was thus called because during its time of passage, there was widespread patriotism throughout the country because of a series of attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001. On this day, nineteen terrorists hijacked two planes which were flown into the World Trade Center towers in New York City, New York. Sometime after the initial attacks, the two towers collapsed and the entire city was scarred with the rubble and the emotional damage caused by the trauma. Sometime after, another plane was taken over and flown into the Pentagon, the United States State Departments headquarters. The crash caused a fire and many people died in the attack, including the passengers of the plane. But Americas traumatic experience was still not over: a final plane crash was caused by even more hijackers of yet another flight which either was going to be flown into the White House or the Capitol building. Fortunately for those in Washington, the passengers of this flight took it upon themselves to fight back against the terrorists and stopped the plane from reaching its target. Instead, it crashed somewhere in the Pennsylvania countryside. After these devastating attacks on the country, the citizens of the United States began to feel mourn those they lost. In doing this, the country began to come together as one, and feelings of patriotism began to fill the hearts of the country. Americans began to want to fight back against those that had hurt them. Patriotic songs filled the airwaves and the country stood united against its new enemy: terrorism. To combat terrorism, the USA PATRIOT ACT was composed. In this bill, a plan to help bring an end to terrorist activities is outlined and separated into Titles, each of which has a different purpose. Title I outlines procedures to strengthen security within the Un ited States. It does this by establishing a counter-terrorism fund and strengthening the Federal Bureau of Investigations technical fund. Title II, the most controversial section, is a section devoted entirely to surveillance of terrorist activities. This section broadens the governments range of what it can and cannot listen into. It allows wiretapping, or listening into, phone conversations suspected to be terrorist involved, and the sharing of information through phone service providers. The next Title contains articles to stop money laundering, which as the bill states is moving money around to help fund criminal activities. Money laundering can be used by terrorists to help fund their initiatives and plots and congress wanted to put a stop to this before it could affect Americans. Title IV tightens border security in the United States. This includes checkpoints along the northern and southern borders of the United States and increased protection and security at airports and oth er international imports. Title V involves something called a National Security Letter. These are somewhat of a warrant that the Federal Bureau of Investigation uses to gather information from organizations suspected of crime. This Title strengthens these National Security Letters greatly so that they can be more useful to fight terrorism. Unfortunately for the bill, though, these extensions on the National Security Letters caused quite a bit of controversy. Title Six has little to do with combating terrorism, and more to do with repaying the families of those who either perished in the rescue attempts made in the attacks on the United States, or who actually perished in the attacks. A fund was created under this Title to pay thanks to those who were hurt or died in the attacks. Title Eight changed the criminal laws of terrorism. It did this by creating measures against those who aid terrorists, broadening the definition of terrorism, and including cyber terrorism measures. Over fifty-million was spent on new computer crime labs to help track cyber threats and cyber terrorism such as government hacking and other dangerous threats. This is the Title that actually cracks down on the criminals of the future to make sure that they are dealt with in congruence to their acts. Title IX expands upon international intelligence, especially within the Central Intelligence Agency. Many intelligence centers were set up, such as translation centers, specializing in information translation. The final Title, number Ten, includes everything that did not fit into the other Title, such as new definitions of terms like electronic terrorism and electronic surveillance. The USA PATRIOT Act is actually the combinations of many different Nine-Eleven reaction legislations, such as the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2001 and the Financial Anti-Terrorism Act, which included the money laundering deterrent actions that are found in the PATRIOT Act. The original PATRIOT Act or Provide Appropr iate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act was first introduced to Congress on October 2, 2001. During its time in the House of Representatives, it went under minor tweaks and after passage was known as the Uniting and Strengthening America, or USA, Act. After the passage in the House, the bill went under more revisions by House members and was reintroduced as the USA PATRIOT Act. This bill incorporated the already passed PATRIOT Act and incorporated the Financial Anti-Terrorism Act. This Act was presented to the House and passed, and Americans began to really take interest in the contents of the bill. The first prominent government figure to openly scrutinize the bill was Russ Feingold, a Senator who was the only person to oppose the passage of the bill in Congress. His concerns included the hurried passage of the bill, wiretapping, and the change of the way immigrants would be dealt with. Russ Feingold was not the only person to take on the USA PATRIOT Act, tho ugh. The media took quite an interest into bashing the new legislation. Movies, television, and news incorporated the act into their scripts. Michael Moore uses it in his movie Fahrenheit 9/11, Law and Order has used it many times in its plots, often with negative portrayals of the Act. Americans must have begun to see these interpretations of the law, and began to show it in polls, such as the Gallup News poll which stated that by 2003, public support was decreasing and that twenty-five percent of the public thought that the bill went too far and was beginning to invade their privacy. Americans were beginning to get worried that the balance between national security and their rights as citizens was beginning to tip in the wrong direction. No citizen wanted their rights and privacy trampled upon. The EPIC, or Electronic Privacy Information Center, which upholds and does its best to protect the rights of Americans on the Internet, using phones, and other forms of communication, op posed the bill and even went as far as to call it unconstitutional. But one other organization, with quite a bit of civil rights protection history under its belt also took on this bill. The American Civil Liberties Union, majorly known as the ACLU, is definitely the largest and most outspoken protestor of the USA PATRIOT Act. The Union began its campaign against the bill immediately after it was introduced to Congress. After its passage, though, it began to support legislation that would limit the bills power, and even repeal it. The bills that the ACLU supported included the Protecting the Rights of Individuals Act, which attempted to limit the privacy and process changing sections of the PATRIOT Act. Another bill supported by the Liberties Union was the Benjamin Franklin True Patriot Act. This Act would give the PATRIOT Act a test period of ninety days. After that, its effects would have been reviewed and it would be represented to Congress for extension or repeal. Neither the Protecting Rights bill nor the Benjamin Franklin Act passed, and the American Civil Liberties Union had to find a new way to challenge the PATRIOT Act. The National Security Letters in the fifth section of the bill was a major cause of concern to the ACLU. To combat it, the Union found a client to represent, who remained anonymous, and took the case to the courts. Though the case was of national interest and could change the way the country was protected, much of the case was kept confidential. This is because the case involved information obtained in the search of an internet provider, the client, who was searched with authorization given through National Security Letters. The American Civil Liberties Union used the First and the Fourth Amendments as their prosecuting evidence. They stated that without proper legal procedure to defend themselves from investigation. The Supreme Court found that this portion of the Act was unconstitutional, but only if the NSLs were used for n on-terrorist investigations. Though the bill was constantly being opposed, some law makers found that the Act did not go far enough. After three years without any new anti-terrorism laws, a new law was introduced to congress. It was called the Tools to Fight Terrorism Act. This legislation was introduced despite the growing unpopularity of the PATRIOT Act. The Tools Act would give the Federal Bureau of Investigation even more power and surveillance opportunities. The Senate found that this bill was too much, especially since it was already on thin ice about the PATIOT Act, and subsequently congress denied to take the Tools to Fight Terrorism Act any further. Despite constant criticism by the public, the media, and the government, the PATRIOT Act is still in effect, today. This is because it has been constantly reinstated by congress. In 2004, the bill was coming upon its expiration. President Bush pushed for the Act to be reinstated in his State of the Union Address and many othe r speeches he gave to the public. Though people were disliking the bill, they recognized that they still understood that they needed to sacrifice some of their personal privacy to protect the nations physical and economic security. The new Attorney General also saw this, and pushed for the PATRIOT Act to be reauthorized, with a few changes. Congress took the bill in and created a reinstatement bill, called the USA PATRIOT and Terrorism Prevention Reauthorization Act of 2005. This bill was taken into the Senate, where a few amendments were made, and the Reauthorization Act was passed. It then headed to the House of Representatives. The House did not agree with many of the Amendments included in the Senates version of the bill. This created a continuous tug of war between the House and the Senate. Finally, after many prominent Republican sent letters to the Senate, the bill was passed again in the Senate by a very heavy majority. The House passed the bill later on, and on March 8, 200 6, the President of the United States, George W. Bush, signed the USA PATIOT and Terrorism Prevention Reauthorization Act of 2005 back into law. The Act continues to be vital in our countrys process of monitoring and defending against terrorism. Without it, who knows what sort of security situation our country would be in today? The USA PATRIOT Act was a very prominent piece of legislation in our countrys recent history. It changed how our country approached and combated terrorism since its original passage in 2001 and continues to be used to this day to protect our nation. But, in doing this, it has created controversy over its constitutionality. Ultimately, though, this bill has helped our nation progress against its new enemy: domestic terrorism. Hopefully, this act will continue to prove itself in the future. Don’t waste time! 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Essay on Downfall of Female Body Image Media’s Influence

Throughout the years, the connotative definition of beauty has gone through constant change. In today’s world, young women are constantly under the impression that they have to fit the current definition in order to fit in with society and be recognized by men. Many girls feel they need to fit the mold instead of being their true unique selves. Every single individual is different in their own way, however the media has drilled it into every young girl’s mind, that they have just like a Barbie doll in order to be happy. Furthermore, these same girls are resorting to extreme methods in order to feel like they fit in such as taking unhealthy weight loss pills and developing eating disorders. Advertising has caused more harm than good in†¦show more content†¦The mass media establishes ideological standards that if achieved will equate with happiness and acceptance† (19). However, most girls are never able to meet up to those standards for numerous reaso ns, which cause a great deal of unhappiness and distress. The media has given young women an overall negative mindset toward their body proven by women’s attempt to get the perfect Barbie image, sometimes resulting in unhealthy methods such as eating disorders and the loss of women’s individualism. When the original Barbie doll came out in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s it was meant as a child’s toy. It sparked a revolution however in women everywhere who wanted to look just like the doll with the â€Å"womanly† figure. Weissman explains how the Barbie doll became a wide spread phenomenon is the late 50’s. The doll inspired the interest of many young girls because she was an adult doll instead of the typical baby doll. Barbie also gave young girls an idol, considering the doll radiated independence and popularity (57). As Barbie’s popularity spread, it seemed like a good thing at first, since women now had the mindset th at they could do anything. However her reputation quickly became something that was not necessarily a good thing for the body image of young girls. Barbie became a pop culture icon and has been for over 40 years but she has been studied as â€Å"a damaging symbol to young females† (49). Yet, women would go to extreme lengths to look like her. This need toShow MoreRelatedBeauty and the Beast...of Media1237 Words   |  5 Pagesdisplayed on billboards, commercials, Facebook, Twitter and Youtube. It influences people to purchase certain things or even vote for a certain presidential candidate. Media tells us who we are and who we should be. Although media has its positive effects, like spreading the latest news quickly, it also has many downfalls for teenagers, specifically teenage girls, who are hounded with a stream of media related to body image. 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As Andrew Delbanco explains in his work, The Real American Dream, consumer culture has the power to â€Å"evacuate the self† (105). This is exactly what is happening in today’s world due to media influence. Young women are idolizing media images and trying to imitate them. This in turn isRead MoreAnalysis of Eating Disorders Essay2697 Words   |  11 PagesInfluencing Body Image in Teens and Young Adults†, published October 2008 in Self Help Magazine, argues Facebook has become the l eading social network for teens and young adults aging 17 to 25 years of age, and is also the age range that has significant increases in Anorexia and Bulimia Nervosa in women. Foster accomplishes her purpose, which is to draw the parents of teen’s attention to the loosely regulated advertisements on Facebook and Facebook’s reluctance to ban negative body image ads. FosterRead MoreAesthetic Plastic Surgery: The Medicalization of Appearance2440 Words   |  10 Pagesadvance in medicine’s control over the human body† (Ferrante Ch. 6). This may not seem like a serious problem, but as medicalization increases so does the chances of danger towards people’s lives. If reports stated in Neto and Caponi’s article claim data â€Å"can’t be found in medical literature describing the anatomic details that make the body parts beautiful† Neto and Caponi 5), then why is society make it seem like there are strict standards for body type? â€Å"Beauty is the combination of qualities

Financial Reporting Disclosures for Property Plant- myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about theFinancial Reporting Disclosures for Property Plant. Answer: Synopsis Every company whether it is newly incorporated company or the older company, the financial results of the operations of the company is required to be presented. These results are presented in the financial statements of the company comprising of the statement of the comprehensive income and the statement of the balance sheet and the statement showing the cash inflows and the cash outflows. Through this report, the importance of the financial statements has been sighted majorly on one component only which is the Property plant and equipment. The company that has been selected for conducting of the business research is the Wesfarmers Limited. The report has been started describing the requirements and the importance of the general purpose financial reporting and the features that the conceptual framework of accounting possesses. Secondly, the requirements of the disclosure as made by the accounting standard on the property plant and equipment has been discussed and whether the company has complied with the same have been reported. Thirdly, the features of the useful information has been discussed in connection with the conceptual framework of accounting and lastly the analysis has been made in the critical manner and the report has been closed with the appropriate suggestion if any for improvement. General Purpose Financial Reporting And Conceptual Framework The concept of the general purpose financial reporting has been explained and described in the statement of concepts. Firstly, the general purpose financial reporting has been discussed. The statement of concepts number two has defined the general purpose financial report as the reports which has been made and made available for the users of the financial report in the situation where the user does not have control over the presentation and the preparation of the financial reports (AASB, 2001). The users of the financial reports includes the accounts receivable and the accounts payable, to whom the goods have been sold and from whom the goods have been purchased and etc. Secondly the term of the conceptual framework of accounting is dealt with the structure or the layout within which the financial reports of any company is developed and presented. This framework is consists of the layout as prepared in accordance with the Australian accounting standards, international financial reporting standards and the corporations act, 2001. The conceptual framework of accounting has been explained in the statement of concepts number eight. The main objective of having the conceptual framework of accounting is that the financial statements shall be prepared in such manner so that the uniformity shall be available across the globe in the preparation and the presentation of the financial statements. As per OB 1 of the statement of concept number eight the general purpose financial reports acts as the platform or the base on which the conceptual framework of accounting has been constructed and developed. The aims for having the general purpose financial reports in t he system has been detailed under the paragraph number beginning from the OB 1 and ending to OB 21. The main objective of having the general purpose financial reports is to provide the understanding to the users of the financial statements about the result of the company both in the meaning of the financial position and as well as in the meaning of the financial performance. The users then will be able to take the decision on an effective basis after analyzing the financial results of the company. The users decision will be in total based on the type of interest like customers will like to have the information as to whether goods shall be purchased from the particular vendor or not and the supplier will to have the information like whether it will be useful to sell the goods to the particular vendor and also even in case of the requirements of funding from the banks, the first step that the banks usually takes as to whether the company has the required creditworthiness and so on. The second main objective of the preparation of the general purpose financial reports is that to ascertain or estimate the cash inflows of the company that will be generated in the future. This is because only on the basis of the estimation and judgments applied by the management of the company in respect of the cash flows that will be generated in future, many investors wants to invest in the company and thus becomes the potential investor of the company as the same will help them in knowing whether the company will increase the wealth of their investment so made in the company or likely to be made in the company. Along with the objectives of the general purpose financial reports, there exists the features of the conceptual framework of accounting that has been listed and mentioned in the paragraph number beginning from QC 1 and ending with QC 39. It contains two basic features of the conceptual framework and these are the relevancy and second one is the faithful representation (AASB, 2010). Apart from these features, in order to enhance or increase the usefulness of the financial information, three more features have been prescribed and these are comparability, understandability and verifiability. These have been mentioned in QC 4 of the statement of concepts number eight. Disclosure Of Property Plant And Equipment The disclosure of the property plant and equipment shall be made in accordance with the Australian accounting standard number 116. For continuing the discussion, the company has been selected from the Australian stock exchange list which is Wesfarmers Limited. The company is into the business of having super market chains all over the Australia and New Zealand. In accordance with the seventy fourth paragraph of the relevant standard the company shall disclose the following in their financial statements (AASB, 2010): The accounting policy for the measurement of the asset both initially and subsequently. The basis for calculation of the cost of the asset and the net carrying amount The basis for calculation of the depreciation and the basis for choice of having the particular depreciation method The basis for estimation of the useful life of an asset The proper statement showing the reconciliation of the carrying amount and the net carrying amount for the period under consideration and for the period immediately before that period. After analyzing the note number seven of the annual report of the company, it has disclosed all the matters in the annual report of the company and have given the slab for the useful life of an asset like twenty to forty years for the different kinds of the plant and equipment and the proper statement reconciling the two years balances and thus showing the net carrying amount of ten thousand million dollars approximately (Company official Website, 2017). In this way the company is complying with the requirements of the accounting standards. Features Of Usful Financial Information The conceptual framework of accounting as per statement of concept number eight has prescribed that there is one fundamental feature which is known as the faithful representation. It includes within itself three concepts which are complete, free from error and neutral. All the three concepts have the role in establishing the faithful representation of the financial statements. In the given case, the company has mentioned all the things in the note number seven of the financial statements which indicates and establish that all the features are present therein as the information provided is totally complete and the auditors report has further clarified that the financial statements are error free and is not prepared on the basis of the personal bias or similar interest. The feature that further increased the usefulness of the financial information is that the financial statements has made the results easily understandable by any one and due to the application of the uniform accounting policies and the accounting standards that are globally acceptable, the company has facilitated the two other features which are comparability and the understandability. Financial Reporting Objectives The extent of the disclosures so made by the company in its annual report for the year ending 2017 is as per the requirements of the accounting standards and the accounting concepts. The information so provided by the company is not only meaningful but also very useful for the users of the financial statements to take the decision accordingly. As the general purpose financial reports targets the potential community of the customers, suppliers or investors, etc, the large benefit have been enjoyed by them. It is because the company in current situation is the competitor for the largest company Woolworths Limited and operates across the country of Australia and New Zealand. Thus, then objectives of the general purpose financial reports have been achieved in great manner. Conclusion The conceptual framework of accounting carries the fundamental features of the financial information and also the features that will enhance the usefulness of the information. On the other hand general purpose financial reports acts as the base on which the conceptual framework is developed. These two are the pillars which ensure the compliance with the provisions of the accounting standards, accounting concepts and the law of the governing state. The company Wesfarmers Limited has provided all the disclosures in accordance with the accounting standards and other related statutes. Apart from all the compliances, the company shall strive for improving the financial information quality so as to ensure the comparability across the globe. References AASB, (2001), Objectives of General Purpose Financial Reporting, available at https://www.aasb.gov.au/admin/file/content102/c3/SAC2_8-90_2001V.pdf accessed on 25/09/2017. AASB, (2010), Conceptual Framework, available at https://www.fasb.org/jsp/FASB/Document_C/DocumentPage?cid=1176157498129acceptedDisclaimer=true accessed on 25/09/2017. AASB, (2010), Property Plant and Equipment available at and https://www.aasb.gov.au/admin/file/content102/c3/AASB116_07-04_ERDRjun10_07-09.pdf accessed on 25/09/2017. Company official Website, (2017), Annual Report 2017 , available at www.wesfarmers.com.au/

Paul Henderson Essays - Politics And Sports,

Paul Henderson For this project I chose as the quintessential Canadian, Paul Henderson. He is representative of the entire 1972 Team Canada. Before this famous series, it was assumed that Team Canada was unbeatable, but it soon became clear that Canada would be the underdogs and have to fight back. In the end, it was the little known player, Paul Henderson, who became the star and restored pride in the hearts of all Canadians. He is truly a "quintessential" Canadian. The 1972 Summit Series represented what was going to be a test of the best, to see who was the best "Hockey Country," Canada or the Soviet Union. Canada put their superstars up against the Soviet Union in an eight game Series where four games would be played in Canada and four in the Soviet Union. The games in Canada were played in Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg and Vancouver while in the Soviet Union, they were all played in Moscow. The superstars for Canada included Bobby Orr, Ken Dryden, Tony and Phil Esposito, the Mahovolich brothers, Jean Ratelle, Yvon Cournoyer, Rod Gilbert, Dennis Hull, Brad Park and Pat Stapleton. Canada seemed to have a stacked team, but the Soviet Union was not about to quit. In fact, they dominated Team Canada in Canada taking two of four, losing one and tying one. Canada was embarrassed! Losing game one in Montreal 7-3 Canada had given the mental edge to the Soviet Union, but took it right back in game two in Toronto with a 4-1 win. Game three in Winnipeg was anyone's game, but neither team could get a definite lead and the final was 4-4. The series was now 1-1-1 for both teams. Convinced that they could not go to the Soviet Union trailing in the series, Canada needed a big game, but to no avail as they lost in Vancouver 5-3. Team Canada left the ice to the sound of boos. When the game was over, Phil Esposito said that they (Team Canada) were going out every night and playing their butt's off and all the selfish Canadian fans can do is boo them off the ice. He thought it was a disgrace. They were giving it 150 percent every night for one reason, because they loved their country. After that interview, 3,000 fanatic fans bought tickets to see Canada in Moscow. Down two games to one, Team Canada needed three out of four to win the Summit Series and prove that Canada was the best. Unfortunately, Canada lost the first game in the Soviet Union, and were down 3-1-1. Canada was in a state of desperation and that is when Paul Henderson stepped up. Game six in Moscow was the first of the three crucial games in Canadian history. Henderson, with one minute left in Game six, slipped the puck past a sprawling Vladislav Tretiak to get the 3-2 win. In game seven, Henderson was again the hero scoring the winning goal in a dramatic 4-3 finish. Game eight was THE biggest game in Team Canada history. This Summit Series started with Team Canada as the favorites, and that changed to the Soviet Union being the favorites and the Canadians being the underdogs. Now Game eight was here and Canadians all over the world were watching. With the series tied 3-3-1 Canada needed the win to prove they were the best. With the score deadlocked at 5 and one minute to go, Henderson made Pete Mahovlich get off the ice to let him on. With 40 seconds left, Cournoyer sent the puck ahead to a speeding Henderson. Henderson slipped and fell into the near boards. Esposito intercepted the clearing attempt by the Soviet Union and banged it towards Tretiak who made the save but left the rebound loose. Henderson, alone in front, took two whacks and on the second whack it went in to the right of Tretiak with only 34 seconds left on the clock. Canada had won the game. Paul Henderson, is the true Canadian hero and the perfect definition of the "Quintessential Canadian". Canadians all over the world were filled with a sense of pride at that moment in time. At that time, Hockey was the one thing that helped identify us as Canadians. It