Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Intelligence Led-Policing Essay Example for Free

Intelligence Led-Policing Essay The police institution has undergone major changes aimed at rebuilding its public. These changes date back to aggressive cops to the modern day police whose are guided by the rule of law (Ratcliffe, 2003, p 3). Introduced in the late 20th century, community policing focused on restoration of police legitimacy through community participation. It aimed at re-connecting the police institution to the public (Ratcliffe, 2003, p 4). Various researches indicate that it failed to provide measurable results. Consequently other models including problem oriented policing, Compstat and most recently, intelligence based policing (ILP) have emerged. Problem oriented policing involves use of statistical trends in identification of areas of interest. Compstat on the other hand focuses on empowerment of middle level officers to rapidly respond to crime. Basically it involves crime mapping, viewing and discussion. The most recent, ILP is an initiative at making the police smarter. It is founded on the use of criminal intelligence by the police in fighting crime (Ratcliffe, 2003, p 6). Emerging as a rare and unique initiative that attempts at understanding criminal environments and thus predict its occurrence and trends, the initiative is increasingly gaining popularity. Unlike the other models, ILP does not favor the popular reactive and investigate approaches in fighting crime but rather focuses on early identification hence prevention (Ratcliffe, 2003, p 6). It ensures that police actions are based on intelligence rather than intuition. ILP emerges as an alternative in organizational restructuring towards crime eradication. It is a result of changing crime faces and the transnational crime emergence alongside globalization, electronic financial transactions and internet in addition to police demand gap and failures of the existing policing models (Ratcliffe, 2003, p 6). The major similarity of this model to the previous models is the cause. Each aims to reduce crime marginal through either prevention or reactionary techniques. However, the approaches the take differ enormously. While the earlier models focused on either reacting to crime or cause identification, this model focuses on understanding the crime and the criminal mind as the basis for criminal fight.

Monday, January 20, 2020

The Patriot Act Essay -- USA Terrorism Surveillance Wire Tapping

The Patriot Act In the wake of September 11, many things happened very quickly. Along with the beginning of a 'war' against terrorism, an act was passed to help prevent future terrorism in the USA. The name of this is the USA Patriot Act. The act legalizes many surveillance techniques that were once prohibited. The act has been passed without debate, and the new privileges given to our government have not been thoroughly examined. The law enforcers of our country are now capable of monitoring the citizens in ways most people are not aware of. Some of the surveillance laws are self-terminating after four years, but many of the more important laws are permanent. What will these new surveillance laws be used for after the war on terrorism is over? Lee Tien, the Electronic Frontier Foundation staff attorney, suggests that the new rights can be used to put America into a 'police state'. There is a need for checks and balances in the USA Patriot Act to protect the American citizens. There are two hundred ninety pages in the USA Patriot Act; many of these pages are discussing subjects that change the rights of American citizens forever. The act was passed in a little over a month, which suggest that few, if any, congressmen thoroughly read this detailed act. In times of crisis, history has proved that United States citizens willingly compromise their right of privacy without considering the consequences. Many people have openly accepted this act without knowing what it is, most people have never even heard of the USA Patriot Act. The USAPA (USA Patriot Act) has not gone under the scrutiny that any normal act would have, yet this could be more important than any other act to date. The USAPA allows national or domestic law enforces (from the NSA, FBI, and CIA all the way down to the local police) to tap your computer or voice mail with a simple search warrant issued by a judge. Only one out of ten thousand of these search warrants requests are rejected. The law enf orcers are also allowed to tap electronic devices without telling the victim about the warrant or that they are being monitored. Also, the CIA and other foreign agencies are allowed to share information with the domestic law enforcement. This means that agencies that were once not allowed to intervene in the affairs of the USA can do so without punishment. These are few of the many la... ...dly, there should be a report on if the information acquired is used in court. This is a check on the usefulness of the information gathered by the law enforcers, and a way to monitor the proper use of the search warrant. Fourthly, a check on how the information attained is to be shared with other law based government agencies. It is a way to protect the privacy of the victim, so people do not needlessly read private documents. Finally, the public should be aware of the success or failure of the system. The people should be informed if their loss of privacy has done what it is intended to, which is to protect the country. These checks and balances of the USA Patriot Act are needed if the men and women of the USA want to feel safe. Thus, the USAPA must have many checks as well as balances if the people of the United States are to be happy with it. Until then, people remain concerned that Congress has passed such extensive declines in the right of Americans to be liberated from dominating government observation. But having done so, it is essential that Congress where feasible, shares with the American nation basic information about how these wide new powers are being used.

Sunday, January 12, 2020

Let your life speak Essay

Questions for Reflection During which moments/activities do you feel most alive? What are your feelings about someone doing the right thing for the wrong reason? In what ways do you hear from God? What kinds of things most drain you? Stress you? What activities give you the space to reflect on what is going on inside you? How often do you do them? Consider the aphorism â€Å"Your greatest strength can also be your greatest weakness.† What is the connection between your strengths and your limits? Suggested Activity Pray through St. Ignatius’ Prayer of Examen. See www.marshill.org/groups/hc/ Select the link titled Prayer of Examen in the Practices section. Parker Palmer Let Your Life Speak Chapter 2-Now I Become Myself Quotes to think about â€Å"What a long time it can take to become the person one has always been. How often in the process we mask ourselves in faces that are not our own† [p. 9]. â€Å"We ourselves, driven by fear, too often betray true self to gain the approval of others† [p. 12]. â€Å"But inspected through the lens of paradox, my desire to become an aviator and an advertiser contain clues to the core of true self†¦clues, by definition, are coded and must be deciphered† [p. 13]. â€Å"If you seek vocation without understanding the material you are working with, what you build with your life will be ungainly and may well put lives in peril, your own and some of those around you† [p. 16]. â€Å"In the tradition of pilgrimage†¦hardships are seen not as accidental but as integral to the journey itself† [p. 18]. â€Å"I saw that as an organizer I had never stopped being a teacher-I was simply teaching in a classroom without walls. Make me a cleric or a CEO, a poet or a politico, and teaching is what I will do† [p. 21]. â€Å"People like me are raised to live autonomously, not interdependently. I had been trained to compete and win, and I had developed a taste for the prizes† [p. 22]. â€Å"Because I could not acknowledge my fear, I had to disguise it as the white horse of judgment and self-righteousness† [p. 28]. â€Å"Self care is never a selfish act-it is simply good stewardship of the only gift I have, the gift I was put on the earth to offer to others† [p. 30]. â€Å"They decide no longer to act on the outside in a way that contradicts some truth about themselves that they hold deeply on the inside† [p. 32]. â€Å"Some journeys are direct, and some are circuitous; some are heroic, and some are fearful and muddled. But every journey, honestly undertaken, stands a chance of taking us toward the place where our deep gladness meets the world’s deep need† [p. 36]. Questions for reflection What role does gaining the approval of others play in how you live your life? As Palmer recalls his childhood, he is able to uncover clues to his true self. Parents, siblings, and even spouses are great sources of information to find out what you were like when you were younger. What were your childhood fascinations? Were you an artist? Were you building forts in the woods? What sorts of things held your attention? Are there connections between the things that fascinated you then and the life that you want to live now? Half-truths go hand in hand with fear. In our fear, it is much easier to look at another person, institution, or situation and point out shortcomings than it is to look at our own. Fear may motivate us to do the right thing for the wrong reasons. What are some of the fears that â€Å"trigger† you to lash out at others? Palmer says that â€Å"self care is good stewardship of the only gift I have, the gift that I was placed on earth to offer others.† He goes on to say that a lack of self care hurts not only the individual but others as well. What does â€Å"self care† look like for you? What restores you? What are the things in your life that make your soul tired? Who are the Martin Luther King Jr.’s, the Rosa Parks’, and Gandhis: of your life? Who are the people that you admire so much that you seek to model aspects of your life after them? Why these people? Learning who you are doesn’t simply mean learning your strengths but also your limitations. â€Å"Who are you?† is a very broad and difficult question to answer. I may not be able to tell you â€Å"who I am,† but I’ve got a list of stories to tell you who I am not! Finish the sentence â€Å"I could never_____ it’s just not me.† Suggested Activity Palmer says that â€Å"clues are coded and must be deciphered.† Turn a blank sheet of paper on its side and draw a straight line from the left side to the right side. The line will serve as a chronological timeline of your life from birth until now. Place significant experiences and events that have shaped who you are today on the timeline. Examples: family of origin, deaths, births, school and work experiences, relationships, spiritual journey, great moments of joy, or great moments of sadness. Take time to share with one another about what is on your timeline and why it is significant. Parker Palmer Let Your Life Speak Chapter 3-When Way Closes Quotes to think about â€Å"There is as much guidance in what does not and cannot happen in my life as there is in what can and does-maybe more† [p. 39]. â€Å"If you are like me and don’t readily admit your limits, embarrassment may be the only way to get your attention† [p. 42]. â€Å"As Americans†¦we resist the very idea of limits, regarding limits of all sorts as temporary and regrettable impositions on our lives†¦We refuse to take no for an answer† [p. 42]. â€Å"When I consistently refuse to take no for an answer, I miss the vital clues to my identity that arise when way closes-and I am more likely both to exceed my limits and to do harm to others in the process† [p. 43]. â€Å"There are some roles and relationships in which we thrive and others in which we wither and die† [p. 44]. â€Å"It took me a long time to understand that although everyone needs to be loved, I cannot be the source of that gift to everyone who asks me for it† [p. 48]. â€Å"When I give something I do not possess, I give a false and dangerous gift, a gift that looks like love but is, in reality, loveless-a gift given more from my need to prove myself than from the other’s need to be cared for† [p. 48]. â€Å"Our strongest gifts are usually those we are barely aware of possessing. They are a part of our God given nature, with us from the moment we drew first breath, and we are no more conscious of having them than we are of breathing† [p. 52]. â€Å"Limitations and liabilities are the flip side of our gifts†¦a particular weakness is the inevitable trade-off for a particular strength. We will become better teachers not by trying to fill the potholes in our souls but by knowing them so well that we can avoid falling into them† [p. 52]. â€Å"If we are to live our lives fully and well, we must learn to embrace the opposites, to live in a creative tension between our limits and our potentials. We must honor our limitations in ways that do not distort our nature, and we must trust and use our gifts in ways that fulfill the potentials God gave us† [p. 55]. Questions for reflection Can you identify a moment in your life when God used a â€Å"closed door† instead of an â€Å"open door† to guide your life in the direction it needed to go? Discuss your experience.  Palmer says that embarrassment is sometimes the only way we become aware of our limitations. Identify and discuss an embarrassing moment that helped you become aware of your limitations. How does humor get used to avoid dealing with our shortcomings? In American culture, weaknesses and limitations are often viewed as things that need to be turned into strengths. Palmer seems to argue that in trying to turn our weaknesses into strengths we become something that we are not and end up living outside of ourselves. How does the idea that weaknesses should be identified and honored rather than turned into strengths strike you? If our strongest gifts are usually the ones that we are most unaware of, what types  of things do people tell you are your strengths that you feel unaware of? Suggested Activity Identify and write down two recent moments in your life. 1. A moment when things went so well that you felt confident that you were born to do whatever you were doing at the time. 2. A moment when something went so poorly that you never wanted to repeat the experience again. Break into groups of two or three people and share these moments. In the groups, begin by helping one another see the strengths that made the great moment possible. After doing that, reflect with one another about the moment that went poorly. Instead of offering critiques, think about the strengths discussed in the first moment. Knowing that our strengths and weaknesses are often opposites, help each other identify if there is a connection between the strength of the first moment and the weakness of the second moment. How are they two sides of the same coin? When everyone has finished gather back together as one group and discuss what you discovered. Parker Palmer Let Your Life Speak Chapter 4: All the Way Down *Before your discussion of chapter 4, it is very important to lay a framework for your discussion. Anytime people are discussing their brokenness, it must be done in a place of safety and confidentiality. Ask the group to be attentive to not try to â€Å"fix† one another as you interact. If you sense this beginning to happen, remind everyone that you are not trying to fix one another but to help one another hear. Also, be sure to communicate how important it is that what is discussed remains confidential. Quotes to think about â€Å"I had no choice but to write about my own deepest wound†¦I rarely spoke to him about my own darkness; even in his gracious presence, I felt too ashamed† [p. 57]. â€Å"Second, depression demands that we reject simplistic answers, both  Ã¢â‚¬Å"religious† and â€Å"scientific,† and learn to embrace mystery, something our culture resists† [p. 60]. â€Å"I do not like to speak ungratefully of my visitors. They all meant well, and they were among the few who did not avoid me altogether† [p. 61]. â€Å"Depression is the ultimate state of disconnection, not just between people but between one’s mind and one’s feelings. To be reminded of that disconnection only deepened my despair† [p. 62]. â€Å"I heard nothing beyond their opening words, because I knew they were peddling a falsehood: no one can fully experience another person’s mystery† [p. 62]. â€Å"One of the hardest things we must do sometimes is to be present to another person’s pain without trying to â€Å"fix† it, to simply stand respectfully at the edge of that person’s mystery and misery† [p. 63]. â€Å"Functional atheism-saying pious words about God’s presence in our lives but believing, on the contrary, that nothing good is going to happen unless we make it happen† [p. 64].  Ã¢â‚¬Å"First, I had been trained as an intellectual not only to think-an activity I greatly value-but also to live largely in my head†¦Ã¢â‚¬  [p. 67]. â€Å"I had to be forced underground before I could understand that the way to God is not up but down† [p. 69].  Ã¢â‚¬Å"One of the most painful discoveries I made in the midst of the dark woods of depression was that a part of me wanted to stay depressed. As long as I clung to this living death, life became easier; little was expected of me, certainly not serving others† [p. 71]. Questions for reflection Identifying our wounds is a critical part of the inward journey. Think back to the timeline you drew in the Chapter 2 activity. What are the wounds you have suffered? In what ways does shame cause you to hide who you are from others? Discuss the following statement: Sometimes not having answers to some of life’s questions can be comforting. Do you agree? Why or why not? Do you feel it is important to â€Å"show up† when others experience hardship or tragedy? Why or why not? Discuss Palmer’s suggestion that no one can fully experience another person’s mystery and misery. How is the phrase â€Å"I know exactly how you feel† a positive statement between two people? How is it a negative statement? How do you see â€Å"functional atheism† in the world around you? In your life? What does â€Å"the way to God is down† mean to you? Palmer says â€Å"part of me wanted to stay depressed.† Why do you think we hold onto our pain despite the fact that we want it to stop? Suggested Activity Have someone read Job 2:9-13. What can we learn about how Job’s friends respond in these few verses? Read Job 4:8 and then Job 13:5. What is Eliphaz suggesting about Job in 4:8? What can be learned from Job’s response in 13:5? Parker Palmer Let Your Life Speak Chapter 5-Leading from Within Quotes to think about â€Å"I lead by word and deed simply because I am here doing what I do. If you are also here, doing what you do, then you also exercise leadership of some sort† [p. 74]. â€Å"Why must we go in and down? Because as we do so, we will meet the darkness that we carry within ourselves-the ultimate shadows that we project onto other people. If we do not understand that the enemy is within, we will find a thousand ways of making someone â€Å"out there† into the enemy, becoming leaders who oppress rather than liberate others† [p. 80]. â€Å"But why would anybody want to take a journey of that sort, with its multiple difficulties and dangers? Everything in us cries out against it-which is why we externalize everything. It is so much easier to deal with the external world, to spend our lives manipulating materials and institutions and other people instead of dealing with our own souls† [p. 82]. â€Å"Why would anyone want to embark on the daunting inner journey about which Annie Dillard writes? Because there is no way out of one’s inner life, so one had better get into it. On the inward and downward spiritual journey, the only way out is in and through† [p. 85]. â€Å"But extroversion sometimes develops as a way to cope with self-doubt: we plunge into external activity to prove that we are worthy-or simply to evade the question† [p. 86]. â€Å"the knowledge that identity does not depend on the role w e play or the power it gives us over others. It depends only on the simple fact that we are children of God, valued in and for ourselves† [p. 87]. â€Å"A few people found ways to be present to me without violating my soul’s integrity. Because they were not driven by their own fears, the fears that lead us either to â€Å"fix† or abandon each other†¦Ã¢â‚¬  [p. 93]. Questions for reflection Palmer suggests that anyone who is alive is a leader. He broadens the typical definition of leadership to include things like family dynamics and relationships. Discuss your thoughts on this.  What monsters do you need to â€Å"ride all the way down?† What might that look like?  What activities have you been part of in order to prove your worth or value? Palmer finishes the chapter by saying that it is possible for communities to be with one another in a way that is safe and honoring. What do you think makes communities feel unsafe? We are meant to support and journey with one another. What alternatives are there for journeying together beyond â€Å"fixing or abandoning?† Suggested Activity  Read Matthew 15:2,10, and 11.  Have someone wrap an empty box as you would a birthday or Christmas gift. Decorate the exterior with ribbons, bows, and other gift decorations. Set the gift in the middle of the room and ask people to make observations about the wrapping: What can we tell about the person who wrapped the box based on the wrapping? After several minutes of observation, have someone open the  gift to reveal the empty box. Jesus observes that the Pharisees are so concerned with the exterior that they neglect what is inside. How is this true in our lives? Parker Palmer Let Your Life Speak Chapter 6-There Is a Season Quotes to think about â€Å"Animated by the imagination, one of the most vital powers we possess, our metaphors often become reality, transmuting themselves from language into the living of our lives† [p. 96]. â€Å"We do not believe that we â€Å"grow† our lives-we believe that we â€Å"make† them† [p. 97]. â€Å"We are here not only to transform the world but also to be transformed† [p. 97]. â€Å"In my own experience of autumn, I am rarely aware that seeds are being planted† [p. 98]. â€Å"In retrospect, I can see in my own life what I could not see at the time-how the job I lost helped me find work I needed to do, how the â€Å"road closed† sign turned me toward terrain I needed to travel, how losses that felt irredeemable forced me to discern meanings I needed to know† [p. 99]. â€Å"There is in all visible things†¦a hidden wholeness† [p. 99]. â€Å"Until we enter boldly into the fears we most want to avoid, those fears will dominate our lives† [p. 103]. â€Å"If you receive a gift, you keep it alive not by clinging to it but by passing it along†¦If we want to save our lives, we cannot cling to them but must spend them with abandon† [p. 105]. â€Å"Authentic abundance does not lie in secured stockpiles of food or cash or influence or affection but in belonging to a community where we can give those goods to others who need them-and receive them from others when we are in need† [p. 108]. â€Å"Community doesn’t just create abundance-community is abundance. If we could learn that equation from the world of nature, the human world might be transformed† [p. 108]. Questions for reflection  What season do you feel that you are currently in? Why? In your mind, what is the weirdest most obscure animal in all of God’s good creation? Why do you suppose God is so detailed and extravagant with his creation? What things contribute to the loss of imagination? In what ways do you â€Å"make your life† rather than listen for what God desires to make of your life? God asks that his people join him in redeeming and restoring the world. How are you joining God to redeem and restore the world? Remember that God is about details and extravagance. We can sometimes feel that the way we join God is small and insignificant compared to the way others do. But it isn’t. God created you to be a gift to Him and to the world and you have something to offer. What is it? How is this process transforming you? The way of Jesus, which is the way of the cross, compels us to use our freedom and abundance for the benefit of others. What does it look like for you to live for the benefit of others? What does it look like for your community? Suggested Activity After discussing what it might look like for your community to live for the benefit of others, finish by holding hands in a circle and reciting the Lord’s Prayer. [Matthew 6:9-13].

Saturday, January 4, 2020

Sherman Alexie’s The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in...

Imagine a world without hope, diversity, uniqueness, heroes and role models. Everybody would have the same height, shape, voice, skin color, eye color, hair color, clothes, job, interests and so on. They would most likely live in the same type of home, own the same things, speak the same language and eat the same food. If a person tried to be unique, the society would try to drag that person down to society’s hopeless status. Personally, I couldn’t stand a minute in a world like that. Unfortunately, worlds like these exist. In Sherman Alexie’s The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven, Alexie writes about a typical Indian reservation in the United States without hope, diversity, uniqueness, heroes and role models. A large†¦show more content†¦It wasn’t until that summer I walked across a bright yellow home. Through the windows, I could see an Asian woman was playing a beautiful song on her black grand piano. The sound of her music was like a stream of water running quietly through the green forest. From that moment, I became inspired to learn how to play the piano. I decided to take piano lessons with her and made it a goal to learn how to play the piano. My piano teacher, Ms. Li, was my role model because she showed me that there are unique and fascinating things people can learn to do in this world. As days turned to months and months turned into years, I continued to strive to become my inspiration. Many times, I felt like the Indians on the reservation and just wanted to give up because I felt it was too hard to make it to the top. Eight years later, I’ve completed my piano training. Today, people would always compliment my style of playing when I would play the piano. Sometimes I would come across a very young boy or girl who wanted to learn how to play the piano after they heard me play. I told them, â€Å"If you put your mind to it, you can do anything.† My piano teacher has been and will always be my inspiration and role model. Today, I have become a role model and inspiration for many people who want to learn how to play the piano. Role models and heroes are important in shaping people’s personalities and qualities because they provide people with goals to strive for.Show MoreRelatedThe Lone Ranger And Tonto Fistfight In Heaven Analysis993 Words   |  4 PagesThe Wrong American Dream: Struggling to Assimilate in â€Å"The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven† â€Å"Kill the Indian and save the Man,† sounds more like something out of a dystopian novel than an educational campaign slogan, but in 1887 those were the words chosen by Army Lt. Richard Henry Pratt to garner public support for government’s attempt to forcefully â€Å"Americanize† Native Americans. Native Americans that survived violence were coerced into wearing white man’s clothes, cutting their hairRead MoreSherman Alexie s The Lone Ranger And Tonto Fight984 Words   |  4 Pages In Sherman Alexie’s, The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven the author grabs the attention of the reader when he focuses on moments of racism and discrimination of Indian characters, these situations can be applicable to modern day American society. In the collection, Alexie depicts the life of several Indian’s lives, living on the Spokane Indian reservation many of whom face discrimination on a daily basis. The ideas behind the bigotry in the assortment of stories are backed by Alexie’sRead MoreAnalysis Of Sherman Alexie s The Lone Ranger And Tonto Fistfight 1233 Words   |  5 PagesThroughout â€Å"The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven† the theme of resilience is deliberately presented. Native Americans past and present continue to face stifling issues such as racism, alcoholism, isolation and suicide. Sherman Alexie makes it his obligation in his stories and poems to show Native American resiliency through humor. By using his characte rs to show resiliency through humor Alexie presents humor as an integral part of Native American survival. In Sherman Alexie’s best work toRead MoreEssay Sherman Alexie1140 Words   |  5 PagesSherman Alexie The odds were against Sherman Alexie on that day in October 1966. Not only was he born a minority, but he was also hydrocephalic. At the age of 6 months, he had a brain operation, but was not expected to live. Though he pulled through, doctors predicted he would be severely mentally retarded. Fortunately, they were wrong, but he did suffer through seizures and wet his bed throughout his childhood (What 1). Rather than being called Native American, which he feels is a guiltyRead MoreAn Analysis Of Sherman Alexie s The Lone Ranger And Tonto Fight Heaven 1119 Words   |  5 PagesMake It Out Alive In Sherman Alexie’s ‘The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven’ (2005 edition) alcoholism plays a huge role throughout the book. Particularly in the short stories ‘Amusement’, ‘The Only Traffic Signal on the Reservation Doesn’t Flash Red Anymore’ and ‘A Train is an Order of Occurrence Designed to Lead to Some Result’. Kids on the reservation always start off good with school and sports keeping them busy, but somewhere along the way they always seem to fall off track. That is