Abstract
The following paper will briefly describe the commonplace juvenile school gangs in Florida, their trademark colors, some of their characteristics, and what schools can do to thwart their influence. In the end, things as simply as giving young people a sense of empowerment (preeminently by teaching them much-needed skills) can guide them away from the gang life.

From the Paper
School Gangs in Florida: What They Are and What We Can Do about Them The following paper will briefly describe the commonplace juvenile school gangs in Florida, their trademark colors, some of their characteristics, and what schools can do to thwart their influence. In the end, things as simply as giving young people a sense of empowerment (preeminently by teaching them much-needed skills) can guide them away from the gang life. To start with, we all know that gangs have their own unique colors that indicate the individual wearing them is a member of the "family" or organization; it also appears as though colors (and symbols) represent the gang's ideal representation of itself (Florida Department of Corrections,

Tags:florida, gangs, schools

Abstract
In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, it was commonplace to think that "civilization" in its most desirable form was western civilization; in other words, a civilized culture was one that bore the features or the imprimatur of western influence. Despite this, many of the Asian elites who championed the cause of civilization were actually staunch nationalists - even jingoists and racists. The following paper will examine the relationship between claims of a universalistic conception of "civilization" and "particularist" nationalism and assert that Asian countries determining that it was in their best interests to embrace western civilization (or at least parts of it) did so on the grounds that they wanted to empower themselves in a fashion that would enable them to assert their sovereignty from external (especially western) threats. However, it does not automatically follow that the thinkers who embraced (partial) adoption of western civilization were motivated chiefly by nationalistic sentiments - though they certainly were motivated, in some cases, by jingoism. Rather, some leading thinkers and opinion-shapers of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century were animated by a pan-Asian vision in which the countries of Asia would unite against the western threat. In other variations of this, at least some Japanese thinkers took things one step further and insisted that Japan would rise up against the west and liberate Asia from the oppression of the western lands. In any event, the key thing to be taken away from this paper is that "universalistic (western) civilization" was a concept that Asian nations embraced, at least in part, because it meant that they would be able to use the ideas of the west to arm themselves.

From the Paper
The Uneasy Relationship between Notions of a Universal Modern Civilization and Particularist Nationalism In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, it was commonplace to think that "civilization" in its most desirable form was western civilization; in other words, a civilized culture was one that bore the features or the imprimatur of western influence. Despite this, many of the Asian elites who championed the cause of civilization were actually staunch nationalists - even jingoists and racists. The following paper will examine the relationship between claims of a universalistic conception of "civilization" and "particularist" nationalism and assert

Tags:particularist, universalistic, civilization

Abstract
This proposal outlines a form of gendered violence which occurs every day in various parts of the world that is especially troubling - honor killing. Specifically, I will argue in my final paper that honor killing is more commonplace than people think and that it afflicts societies - such as Brazil and Germany - that we do not associate with having a problem in this regard. More importantly, I will suggest what needs to be done if we are to curb this troubling phenomenon and spare the lives of young women around the globe.

From the Paper
Religion and Gendered Violence: The Troubling Epidemic of Mercy Killing and What Can Be Done about It This proposal outlines a form of gendered violence which occurs every day in various parts of the world that is especially troubling - honor killing. Specifically, I will argue in my final paper that honor killing is more commonplace than people think and that it afflicts societies - such as Brazil and Germany - that we do not associate with having a problem in this regard. More importantly, I will suggest what needs to be done if we are to curb this troubling phenomenon and spare the lives of young women around the globe.

Tags:honor, killing, religion

Abstract
In this article, the writer discusses HIV/ AIDS concentrating on how this effects the elderly. The writer looks at treatment, ethics, recommendations and barriers to solutions.

From the Paper
"HIV AIDS is becoming more commonplace in the elderly of all ethnicities and races. At-risk for HIV AIDS groups of the elderly include the homeless, the chronically mentally ill, the developmentally disabled and those with co-occurring mental health issues to include substance abuse who are sexually active. Despite the growing efforts to prevent this disease the elderly have not been a specific target of this campaign. Information and studies regarding the plight of the elderly as it relates to ..."

Tags:hiv/aids

Abstract
The paper discusses how magic evolved from a commonplace belief to something that was inextricably bound up with the notion of heresy, and, the most commonplace calamities, such as crop failures, could be attributed to magic in an era that lacked scientific knowledge. Thus, the paper shows how over and above the organized sects of doctrinal heretics, many other innocent people were also subjected to the brutality of a Church intent of maintaining power and control. In all, it is shown that no one was safe from the Church as it strove - often by the most brutal means, such as torture and murder - to maintain its power.

From the Paper
"The story of magic, heresy, and the medieval Church is a tale of a period of several centuries in which the orthodox Catholic Church strove to maintain its power at the expense of many thousands of innocents. As will be shown, magic evolved from a commonplace belief to something that was inextricably bound up with the notion of heresy. Moreover, the most commonplace calamities, such as crop failures, could be attributed to magic in an era that lacked scientific knowledge. Thus, over and above the organized sects of doctrinal heretics, many other innocent people were also subjected to the brutality of a Church intent of maintaining power..."

Tags:middle, ages, church

Abstract
The paper asserts that the articulation of identity through the maternal line is a commonplace of women's literature today. The paper discusses how in the Caribbean context, however, this commonplace assumes radically different orientations as the establishment of identity through a maternal line involves not only issues of female identity and patriarchy, but also broader questions of post-colonial identity, resistance, and the conflation of multiple identities which is characteristic of syncretic Caribbean culture. As this paper argues, when Caribbean women writers conceptualize mothers in their works, they almost invariably draw in linkages to the multiple "motherlands" which are the multicultural heritage of Caribbean women. With reference to Cristina Garcia's "Dreaming in Cuban" and the poetry of Lorna Goodison, in "Guinea Woman: New & Selected Poems", the paper shows how this articulation of identity by Caribbean women writers is extraordinarily complex and often informed by alienation and ambivalence.

From the Paper
"The articulation of identity through the maternal line is, it may be argued, a commonplace of women's literature today. In the Caribbean context, however, this commonplace assumes radically different orientations as the establishment of identity through a maternal line involves not only issues of female identity and patriarchy, but also broader questions of post-colonial identity, resistance, and the conflation of multiple identities which is characteristic of syncretic Caribbean culture. As this paper will argue, when Caribbean women writers conceptualize mothers in their works, they almost invariably draw in..."

Tags:women, literature, resistance

Abstract
This paper reviews Christopher R. Browning's "Ordinary Men," and its analysis of Nazi soldiers that murdered innocent civilians in the holocaust. The paper shows the methods used by the soldiers to rationalize their actions even though many of them were morally opposed to what they were ordered to do.

From the paper:

"It is understandably commonplace to refer to Hitler as a monster, as inhuman. It is also, by extension, equally commonplace to refer to the Nazis who obeyed him as monsters as well. Yet before the implementation of the madness that was the "Final Solution" in Germany and Eastern Europe, these Nazi soldiers were human beings like ourselves, individuals who lived in a world only a half-century or so before ours. They made ethical decisions on a day-to-day basis. They were ordinary men, according to Christopher R. Browning, who committed acts of extraordinary cruelty. The thesis of his book, appropriately titled 'Ordinary Men,' provides a less comforting view of the foot soldiers of the Holocaust than is tempting to take. But it is ultimately more ethically illuminating these men were not monsters, Browning suggests, they were ordinary men who provide an example for us all how low we can sink if we are not vigilant in resisting the evil that exists around us."

Tags:Nazi, Germany, Jew, holocaust, World War II

Abstract
The paper questions how Mao Zedong managed to take control of the Chinese Communist Party, establish the Peoples' Republic of China and rule the most populous nation in the world with an iron fist until his death when he came from commonplace beginnings. The paper examines this question from the point of view of Freudian psychoanalytic theory. The paper explains that Mao dreamt of death and destruction as much as he dreamt of life and liberation, making him an extraordinary man. The paper maintains that this explains to some extent how this commonplace boy was able to change the world.

From the Paper
"The only thing these two responses have in common is passion. Anyone who can inspire such very different responses is clearly a most remarkable person. Another authority refers to Mao's megalomania, his reckless fearlessness, and his "idiosyncratic self-assertion [which] became deeply ingrained in the collective experience of the CCP and ... profoundly shaped the communal awareness of the Chinese intelligentsia as a whole" (Wei-Ming, 1996, p. 156). Moreover, as we know, the CCP on which Mao stamped his personality was collectively responsible for millions of deaths, to the point that one authority sees the "destruction of lives, property, institutions, and values" as "a defining characteristic of modern Chinese history" (Wei-Ming, 1996, p. 149). As far as "motiveless malignities" go, Mao had Iago hopelessly outclassed."

Tags:death, destruction, life, liberation, dreams, China, violence

Abstract
The paper discusses how, in an age where powerful corporate sponsors have come to inundate high school environments with fast food chains and high calorie snack foods, in cafeterias and vending machines, the need for healthier diets and healthier lifestyles amongst teenagers has never been greater. The paper shows how recent trends towards obesity in adolescence have reached a point of crisis, while the early onset of what has traditionally been referred to as 'adult onset' or 'late life' Type 2 Diabetes has become progressively commonplace. The paper studies the reasons behind these health issues and what can be done to prevent them.

From the Paper
"In other words, despite the evidence for a crisis currently unfolding in the high schools, teachers, educational administrations, and governmental bodies alike have been slow to react to these trends. Nonetheless, their efforts remain essential in any attempt to counteract the devastating impact of eating disorders on today s youth. Those efforts could be productively channeled towards advertising campaigns, the development and distribution of important textual resources on the issues at hand, the cultural promotion of a healthy fitness regime, and even formal classroom instruction, all of which might work to better educate teenagers on the realities of eating disorders, and also the effects of these disorders on an individual s long-term physical and emotional health."

Tags:adolescence, obesity, diabetes, type, 2, health, fitness, education

Abstract
This paper is an analysis of themes prevalent in Ernest Hemingway's novel, "For Whom the Bell Tolls". Themes included are loyalty, bravery, and gender roles. This novel , traces the life of protagonist, Robert Jordan for three days during the Spanish Civil War. Bravery is characterized by one?s response when faced with death. Courage, trust, and sacrifice outline loyalty. As it is commonplace to focus attention on detailing language when reading Hemingway, one need read closely to conjure the gender-role issues underlying this novel.

From the Paper
"Ernest Hemingway served the North American Newspaper Alliance covering the Spanish Civil War from 1937-38. Upon his return to the United States on his way to a 1953 Pulitzer Prize and a 1954 Noble Prize for literature, he traces the life of protagonist, Robert Jordan for three days during the Spanish Civil War in his writing of ' For Whom the Bell Tolls'. Through Jordan's interaction with other supplementary characters and the use of language, Hemingway addresses the importance of bravery (facing the fear of death/dying), loyalty (trust of others/self), and gender (roles/stereotypes). Bravery and loyalty are complementary and often intertwined characteristics as well as themes. The comprehension and acquisition of these thematic issues and traits is essential before one's sudden, last fatalistic day."

Tags:Eernest, Hemingway, novel, theme, loyalty, bravery, gender, roles, Spanish, Civil, War