Conflicts In The Nile Basin History Essay

Conflicts In The Nile Basin History Essay The Nile is the longest river in the world, it is 6860 km long, it is supplied by two great river systems, the 1st one is the White Nile (in the Lake Plateau) which is surrounded by Kenya, Uganda, Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania, an Burundi; and the other one is the Blue Nile (in Eritrea and the Ethiopian highlands); while in the north there are Egypt and Sudan that receive their water from the previously mentioned sources. The Nile River had a great role in making history on its banks, a lot of civilizations and nations were made on them; The Nile Basin consists of 10 nations which are: Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo and Burundi with a total population of three hundred millions and it is expected to be doubled in the next twenty five years, the basin itself is 3,000,000 Km square that covers about 10% of the African continent area; There is no doubt that with the increasing of population, the water requirement is also increased in addition to the water that is needed for agriculture and energy production. It is may also be important to know that all the basin nations are really poor maybe the poorest in the world (except for Kenya and Egypt) and that poverty increases rates of disease and starvation. According to the terms of the agreement that was made in 1929 between Britain (the colonial power of Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya, Egypt and Sudan have the absolute right to use 100% of the Niles water, while in 1959 there was another one between Sudan and Egypt. Since 1992 a lot of efforts were exerted to push the basin nations towards development and cooperation, and finally in 1999 there was the establishment of the NBI (Nile Basin Initiative), it was developed by the World Bank, Canadian International Development Agency and the United Nations Development Programme, it was established to decrease the tension between those nations and to help them to develop and gain regional stability by controlling and planning the water resources all together. Any management of any river basin in the world is complex, while the Nile Basin may be considered to be the most complex one because of its history of poverty, sacrifices, wars and insecurity, and on the other hand, the rapid and non-stoppable population growth on its banks that surely increases water and energy requirements, and that is why the NBI must have a great role in managing all those challenges and ensure the cooperation between all the nations. Recently the conflicts became even more aggressive between the Nile basin nations when 4 Nile nations which are Tanzania, Ethiopia, Rwanda, and Uganda have together signed an agreement that allows them to use more amounts of Nile waters in development projects and irrigation, meanwhile Egypt and Sudan didnt agree and they convinced Burundi, Eritrea, Democratic Republic of Congo and Kenya of not signing on that agreement. Discussion: The Challenge: The Nile Basin consists of 10 nations which are: Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo and Burundi with a total population of three hundred millions and it is expected to be doubled in the next twenty five years, the basin itself is 3,000,000 Km square that covers about 10% of the African continent area; There is no doubt that with the increasing of population, the water requirement is also increased in addition to the water that is needed for agriculture and energy production. The River Nile is 6672 km long and it is the second longest river in the whole world, and it is supplied by 2 main sources, the first one comes from Lake Victoria and forms the White Nile that passes through Uganda and ends in Sudan while the second source is in the Ethiopian highlands and forms the Blue Nile that meets the White Nile at Khartoum then it continues northward to pass through Egypt and ends into the Mediterranean Sea. The River Nile for Egypt is everything; People in Egypt has always been connected to the Nile from the day of their birth till the moment of their death; Historically, in the fifth century B.C. Herodotus described Egypt as the gift of the Nile, and after Nasser built the dam at Aswan, the connection was reinforced more and more, Egypt depends mainly on the River Nile as a water supply and with the rapid increase in population, the water demands become more. In 1929 an agreement was held between Britain and Egypt and another one in1959 that was held between Egypt and Sudan, both have given the downstream nations their natural right of the Niles waters, construction of dams was approved and the water was divided as follows: Egypt has forty eight billions cubic meters, Sudan has four billions, and thirty two million will end into the Mediterranean Sea; now that was acceptable then because the rest of the upstream countries were not developed, and their population was relatively low, today those countries need to develop and they need to develop new projects and construct dams and that would be a high threat to the downstream nations as the downstream nations want to renegotiate about the old treaty, on the other hand, Egypt has refused to renegotiate and considers its share of water a natural right and became prepared for any military action as Egypt is known as the most powerful military power in Africa. Egypt receives 97.5% of the Niles water and Sudan receives 77%, however, it is very important to make clear that the water distribution between the Nile Nations is fair because of the following: The 7 upstream nations are located in humid areas they have rainfall average range from 1250 to 1500mm annually, on the other hand it is 500mm in Sudan and Eritrea while it is not more than 15mm in Egypt annually. Egypts climate is hyper arid with high temperature that will cause rapid evaporation and will definitely cause marked losses of water resources in Egypt. The upstream nations receive about 1500 billion cubic meters every year while on the other hand Egypt receives only 85 cubic billion meters every year and that equals 5-7% of the total water resources. The Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) In 1999 the Nile Basin Initiative was established and developed by the World Bank, CIDA, and the UNDP, it was established in order to decrease the conflicts and the tensions between the Nile basin nations and help them to cooperate and develop the water resources of the Nile. It was supported by a lot of donors including Denmark, Canada, Germany, Japan, Finland, Italy, Norway, the UK, the Netherlands, the US, Swede, the African Development Bank, GEF, FAO, the World Bank and UNDP. The NBI has stated that they can make successful 100% development that will definitely lead to more food and energy production, development of industry, development of transportation, and other regional activities development. The projects of the NBI include fishing projects, management of water, management of the floods, reduction of the pollution, and finally controlling the waterborne diseases. Management of water resources is considered to be a very complex process in any river basin, and if you realized that the Nile basin has always been characterized by poverty, water scarcity, huge population, and long history of wars and insecurity then you will understand how complex and difficult it can be. NBI knew that cooperative development is the only way for the greatest results and maximum benefits to all of the Niles basin nations, the NBI provides the shared vision and a base for cooperative development, and its primary objectives are: Developing the water resources of the Nile Basin in an equitable way in order to ensure: Security Prosperity Peace Ensure the optimal use of the Nile Basin water resources Ensure joint action and cooperation between all the Nile Basin nations Eliminate poverty and enhance economic renaissance Transforming the plan into action and the dream to a fact Conflict in the Nile Basin In Entebbe, Uganda, 14-2-2010, 4 upriver nations which are Ethiopia, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Uganda have started and signed an agreement that allows them to have more management of the Nile waters to use them in development projects and irrigation. That agreement was made while the negotiations with the downstream nations were standstill; on the other hand the reaction of the downstream nations was not sending any delegations but they have used diplomacy in convincing Burundi, Kenya, Eritrea, and Congo not to sign on that agreement. The 7 upstream nations now consider the old treaties unfair and demand more water to be used for irrigation and development projects. Egypt cleared that cooperation between the Nile Basin nations is the only way to achieve maximum benefits and that the upstream nations can make better use of the water resources they already have (rainfall), however, the upstream nations are threatening that they would sign another agreement that will exclude Sudan and Egypt and distribute the Nile waters in a new way; that agreement is considered to be a death sentence to all the Egyptians, and that was what made Egypt announce that it will take whichever action may be found necessary to secure its share in the River Nile. Another important fact to be mentioned is that Israel is participating in building dams in Uganda on the Nile waters and that increases the worries and the tension of the Egyptians. It is matter of time for Sudan and Egypt to specify their reaction against that new agreement, and they have to make a serious act to protect their rights of the Niles water; every country has to pay everything to protect its national security. Solutions and recommendations: Basin nations are depending on each other, they are all linked to the River Nile, if Nile nations have cooperated and managed Nile waters all together, synergy will be created between them and conflicts between them will be resolved, and regional stability and development will be achieved; That could only happen if all the Nile nations have reached a legal agreement between all of them based on trust, shared interest, and common bond. Collaborative management will help in reaching peace between all the Nile nations, because if we managed to share water, the struggle for life will disappear, and battles between tribes, clans, families, neighbors and nations will also disappear. The Basin Nations must know that natural resources (water) can bring peace and cooperation instead of fighting each other, they can use that water to build new culture and new developments. Another useful solution is to take into consideration the opinions of the public including farmers, women, different organizations, and fishers. Finally there must be management schemes that determine the rightful share of water for each country according to its needs and in order to help all the Nile nations to use the Niles water today and in the future with easy accessibility and based on the shared interests and the broad participation. Conclusion:

SYMPTOMS Signs and Symbolism in Medical Discourse :: Essays Papers

SYMPTOMS Signs and Symbolism in Medical Discourse Whether it is regarded as disease or illness, whether it occurs in a society practicing biomedicine or a culture practicing indigenous medicine, sickness is universal. Diseases and illnesses of all types plague each and every society throughout the world. Central to the idea of sickness is the diagnostic element of the symptom. Although many cultures have unique ideologies regarding sickness, healing, and efficacy, these cultures use the symptom as the primary instrument to maintain their culturally constructed idea of health. Regardless of the healing system or society, globally, people tend to use the symptom as a tool to communicate illness to the appropriate medical practitioner. In seeking the healing action of practitioners and the advice of friends and family, the sick communicate their symptoms as a way of receiving social legitimization for their illness. Thus, symptoms are also used by the sick to gain legitimization of the sick role from society. Just as culture is integrated in the beliefs and behaviors of every society, symptoms are deeply embedded in the concept of sickness and healing. Symptoms add clarity to the complex ideas of sickness and healing in such a way that it is difficult to discuss either process without touching on these symbols. The symptom is regarded as a vital part of the illness experience because it offers insight into the physiological and psychological aspects of the patient’s body. In this way, the symptom symbolizes the roots of a tree, anchoring a societal understanding of medical knowledge and healing etiologies. Therefore, it is the purpose of this paper to explore the significance of symptoms and determine their centrality to a culture’s ideas of sickness and healing. Related topics such as the symptom’s significance in the process of social legitimization of illness and its symbolic nature will serve to supplement and support the argument that symptoms ar e, in fact, central in the process of healing. Definition and Importance of the Symptom Due to the intricacy of the symptom, it is difficult to construct a simple definition. Illness symptoms are â€Å"differently labeled by individuals in dissimilar social situations† (Browner 1983: 494).

Kings :: essays research papers

Sex Education Messages In The Media   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The media should not be blamed for the sexuality of american youth.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  First concern in sexual activity is too much media. Television is something that kids watch all the time. Television shows that show sexual activity and children pick up on those events quickly. Teenagers dream about marrying someone who is good looking and has money and then starting a family with them. A lot of teens watch soap operas and romantic shows. Teens see kids, their age, having sex and getting pregnant and they think they can do it, too. Parents should watch what types of TV shows and movies that their children are watching. TV commercials are explicit when it comes to showing sex. Teens can pick up ideas about sex from commercials. Such as, the Trojan Man and the Durex commercials shown frequently on MTV and other stations. The media could be more discrete about that sort of material on the airwaves. In light of these statistics, it would appear that the nonjudgemental/safe-sex approach can add up to a dangerous combination. Dr. Theresa Crenshaw, a past president of the American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors and Therapists, in testimony before a House subcommittee in February 1987, said, â€Å"To say that the use of condoms is ‘safe sex’ is in fact playing Russian roulette. A lot of people will die in this dangerous game.† Yet despite warnings like this, schoolteachers routinely present homosexuality to their students as just another option about which they must decide for themselves (Kilpatrick 598). On the other hand, with the popular television show, Ellen, the main character and the actress who played her, Ellen Degenerous, was an open lesbian. This views homosexuals as nice, fun loving people and not the hated figures that some community activists portray them as. In turn, the media can be a blessing to the gay community because they show the lighter side of their sexual preference. Then again, some parents view this as a wrong statement and refuse to let their children watch this display. Another show is Will and Grace, Will is a gay man living with his friend Grace. This show was aired after the Ellen show was cancelled because of it’s bad ratings after she came out into the limelight with her â€Å"secret†.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Second concern in the media. All sorts of teen’s and women’s magazines that are in stores today are filled with sex and what types of protection to use. Parents should watch what their kids are reading.

prejudice in to kill a mockingbird :: essays research papers

Prejudice is arguably the most prominent theme of the novel. It is directed towards groups and individuals in the Maycomb community. Prejudice is linked with ideas of fear superstition and injustice. Racial prejudice consumed the mob (pg 166), which wished to prevent Tom even gaining a court hearing, the most basic form of justice. This is probably the fiercest form of prejudice in the novel. The abolition of slavery after the civil war gave blacks the same legal position as many whites in America. This initially made Blacks ´ lives harder because now the Whites saw them as competitors for jobs during the 30s depression. Fear and paranoid led to the Whites believing that the Blacks desired all the whites had, including their women. Aunt Alexandra ´s attitude to Calpurnia The Missionary tea ladies ´ comments about the Blacks Segregation of White and Black in Maycomb Dolphus Raymond - White man living with Black woman Class & Family Group is recognised by Jem on page 249 â€Å"There are four kinds of folks in the world†¦Ã¢â‚¬  -  · Finches & neighbours: White middle-class  · Cunninghams: Badly hit farming community  · Ewells: Lowest class of whites ‘White Trash ´  · Blacks: Seen as bottom of social strata Due to the abolition of slavery there was no longer a clear-cut line between the Ewells and the Blacks; skin colour did not make them any better. When Tom said in the trial that he felt sorry for Mayella (a crime worse than rape in the jury ´s eyes) - the lowest class showing superiority for a class above themselves. The white community was frightened for their own position in society; the only reason Tom was found guilty was to maintain the traditional hierarchies. Alexandra is obsessed with heredity and educating Scout and Jem of their superior family background - she will not allow Scout to bring home a Cunningham to play, nor will she allow her to visit Calpurnia at her home. Everyone in Maycomb has a particular â€Å"streak† (pg 143), mean streak, drinking streak etc. There is a lot of pigeon holing families (pg 145). Gender - At the time the novel is set, women were still regarded as unequal to men. Scout learns this from:  · Miss Maudie in terms of religion (pg 50)  · Atticus in terms of the law - no women on juries  · Alexandra in expected terms of dress and behaviour However, there was an idealised view of women held at the time - the Southern Gentleman was excepted to be chivalrous to Southern Belles and that these women were to be protected and almost worshiped.

Restoration of Rauza Sharif, Sirhind, Punjab

RESTORATION OF RAUZA SHARIF, SIRHIND, PUNJAB Abstraction:Sacred memorials such as Mausoleums, Shrines, and Dargahs of Sufis represent the traditional grave architecture. Among the major such Mausoleumsâ€Å"The Rauza Sharif of Mujaddid Alfisani†at Sirhind, Punjab is like one of these memorials holding great historical, spiritual and cultural significance. Hence our purpose is to document the present conditions of the impact zone, in footings of Architecture, planning, stuffs and engineering and place the lack on assorted foreparts, based on this analysis of the impact zone, place the potency of architectural intercessions and consequently propose appropriate design solution to turn to the concerns of today and tomorrow. Keywords:Sacred memorials, Dargahs, congestion, climatic impact, climatic control, invasions, atmosphere, holiness, repose. Introduction: Brief history: The sacred â€Å"RAUZA SHARIF† at Sirhind, Punjab is the topographic point of historical significance and besides spiritual and cultural significance.RauzaSharifor Dargah ofShaikh Ahmad FaruqiSirhindi( popularly known as Mujaddid, Alf-Isfani )is situated on theSirhind–Bassi PathanaRoad at a little distance to the North ofGurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib. Sheikh Ahmed Farooqi lived at this topographic point during the times ofAkbarandJahangirfrom 1563 to 1624. TheUrsjubilation ( decease day of remembrance ) of the Mujadid are held here for more than 300 old ages and are mostly attended byMoslemsfromIndia,Pakistan,Afghanistan,Dutch east indies,Bangladeshand other Muslim states. There are a figure of other graves in the compound largely of the members of Shaikh Ahmad ‘s house. The mausoleum is a all right edifice made of bricks partially overlaid with rock and marble. Near to it there is the mausoleum of Rati-ud-Din, an ascendant of the Mujadid. Not far here are the rauzas of Mujaddid’s boies Khawaja Muhammad Sadiq and Khwaja Muhammad Masum. The rauza of latter is sometimes called rauzachini on history of its first-class mosaic work. In its premises are many other Gravess of the members of the house of the said reformist and some members of the governing household ofKabul. There is a expansive mosque with a cellar and a little armored combat vehicle for executing ablution before the supplications. The shrine has since been taken over by Government of India as a historic memorial and regular employees have been kept here for its care, up maintain and care. The point of position of every person with regard to the sacredness of a holy topographic point varies. most of the trusters follow the lone imprints of their ascendants and give no importance to the atmosphere and holiness of the topographic point which if non given consideration will eventually ensue in a topographic point holding merely crowd of trusters sitting in a topographic point of heavy via medias in footings of infinite quality and kernel of the sacred feel. For illustration. KALIYAR SHARIF. One gets a cheerless feeling if he/she visits the topographic point for the first clip. Though the program is really much celebrated and one becomes eager to see it when he hears its name. In the same manner â€Å"The Rauza Sharif† at Sirhind, should be given the attending so that in the class of clip the increase in the figure of multitudes sing this topographic point do non present any sort of menace to its atmosphere. PRESENT AREA OF STUDY The present country of site of Rauza Sharif covers an country of approximately 12 Estates, embracing 7 shrines with the chief shrine of AL MUJADID as per our first visit we found following factors which should be thought of and their solutions should be incorporated in the design proposal for the development and preservation of this heritage site.The ancient constructions of the site such as the guestrooms, ablution pool etc. should be maintained and given due importance the guestrooms doors open towards the chief entryway ambulatory plaza disturb the privateness of its invitees, apart from this there is excessively much congestion in these suites. The solution of this will be that the burden of these suites must be reduced and some more guest suites should be made away i.e. out of the direct sight of the visitants come ining the chief entryway gate.There is invasion in the composite by the staff houses which spoil the atmosphere of the Rauza Sharif, and should be screened off wholly from the chief shrine by relocating them someplace else on the site and by making landscape gardening.In summers noon clip one thinks of rapidly running off after sing the topographic point due to heat and tiredness, hence the countries bring forthing the plentifulness of heat such as cardinal plaza without any verdure or any shading shelter should be thought off.The shrine composite has got a plentifulness of agricultural land which can be utilized for seting fly-by-night trees apart from using them for the intent of agribusiness besides. Another thing is that there is no proper connectivity between the chief shrine and the shrines of the predecessors of Al Mujaddid as a consequence of which one leaves them unvisited, by and large during their first visit, therefore there should be a proper ocular and prosaic connectivity. Their care will besides so be given importance.The paths in the composite should be planned such that the Sub shrines should besides be visited by the visitants . These complecting tracts shall hold street furniture and besides the rock pieces holding engraved on them the history of the topographic point, thereby doing the visit more enlightening and synergistic.The pool which is unmaintained soon should besides be maintained and reopened as it will assist in cut downing the heat of the premises and will besides function the intent for which it was ab initio built i.e. ablution.Cosmic Coherence: The cosmic coherency of the premises should besides be analyzed and a layout program which coincides and lucifers with the coherent forces should be implemented in the new proposal of the shrine composite so that an environment of holiness and repose is maintained, which should decidedly be the property of the sacred infinite, as the sacred edifice is a topographic point that contains certain qualities similar to those arising from nature in harmoniousness with its milieus. Methodology:Limit of all the shrines within the country of survey of the site, placing other heritage constructions which fulfill the supportive maps for illustration the invitee house, pools etc, which are to be retained and restored.Identify the constructions presenting hinderance to the position of the heritage construction, deteriorating its atmosphere and magnificence and pulverizing them for illustration houses and quarters of the workers.The constructions which can’t be demolished should be subdued by taking one upper narrative and adding the elements which compliment the original heritage construction.Taking clime into consideration implement/provide some shading devices for illustration canopies, arbors along the paseos which will assist in cut downing heat for the visitants every bit good as staff.The prominence of the sellers selling tea, java, bites and juice should be reduced by cut downing or curtailing the size of the stall. It could be done by doing a standard faculty of the peddling stables.Planing the proper path for the prosaic traffic coming to the shrine composite such that no visitant accidentally leaves the other shrines unvisited. All the shrines within the composite should be decently maintained by carefully analyzing these constructions and taking the multiple beds of white wash applied over their surface one over the other in due class of clip thereby uncovering the original masonry construction and eventually cleansing and using the transparent varnish over its surface to protect it against the gnawing conditions.Peoples populating in the premises besides rear cowss. They should be besides given due consideration and should be planned carefully.Decision: The heritage site under survey should be restored in such a manner that it is free from ugly invasions or instead free from the invasions of peripheral importance to supply positions and views in the site, taking to and from the heritage edifices to the public topographic points ( remainder houses, Parkss, sitting countries etc. ) . the street flower stalks should be provided such as street furniture and canopies etc. to cut down the heat generated during the hot conditions and all the heritage edifice within the composite should be readily seeable with regard to each other and the peripheral or the supportive services such as, guest house, ablution country, staff quarters and lavatories etc. should be visually segregated and physically accessible with easiness to its users. Mentions:Heritage site visit of RAUZA SHARIF, Sirhind.Internet, Wikipedia.Creative infinite diary ( January 2014 publication ) .Meeting with Prof. Kiran Joshi, Prof. S.S. Bais on 4ThursdayJune 2014

Competency Goal Essay

I promote physical activities in my classroom daily. We do music and movement different songs like Pirate Ship, Bear Hunt and the Dancing Machine. All provide a wide range of movement to promote physical health. During outdoor play children are given opportunities , to play with balls, climbing up and down the stairs to the slide, hopping, skipping, jumping and balancing on a rail. Children need opportunities to develop their body strength. Pulling themselves up and down, rolling balls, swinging, throwing things such as bean bags, can strengthen their upper bodies. Running, jumping, balancing, can help strengthen their lower bodies. As they process and these activities they are working on their gross motor skills. Painting, coloring, drawing, encourage fine motor development. Functional Area 5: Cognitive I help children develop cognitive skills by encouraging them to hypothesis and try things out. In my classroom I allow the children to explore toys and objects on their own. I ask open-ended questions to allow them to think critically and imaginatively. Singing, One-to-One Correspondence, Classifying, creating things, and identify items objects gives the child opportunity to discover the purpose for the require skills. Science and media interrelate with visual stimulation and measurement skills. Functional Area 6: Communication In my classroom I help children learn, understand, and use words to communicate. This is done by encouraging conversations throughout the classroom. I ask children about what they are doing and prompt them to explain in detail. Children are reminded to use their words to express themselves when they are having a difficult time communicating.

The Social Reality of Violence and Violent Crime

The book â€Å"The Social Reality of Violence and Violent Crime† by Henry H. Brownstein concerns a very critical and disturbing aspect of life of our modern society. Indeed, some of the most hotly debated topics today are in one way or another connected to violence, be they issues of adolescent crime, the high percentage of violent behavior at the workplace, in families, violence by drug addicts, etc.To put it simply – it must be acknowledged that the anxiety about violence as such within our society has become one of the most prominent elements of our world view. In this regard, the mentioned book by Henry H. Brownstein aims to accomplish a truly important task of uncovering the role that violence and violent crime play within our perception of the social reality that surrounds us.In accordance with this task and considering the complexity of the field of his study, the author of this work decided to maintain a live connection with his audience by means of collecting s tories from real life, which helps to characterize violence and violent crime in the United States from points of view of both individuals and social groups.This approach of the author is really important as in this way he manages to convincingly show how violence may be perceived differently by different people, and how those differences in perception of violence have developed in our society during the last century.Thus, the author`s views on the perception of violence are to a large degree based on the principles of social constructivism which state that our knowledge is not completely objective, but rather is to a certain degree subjectivity constructed by existing social influences (Brownstein 1999, p.3).I think that the useful tool that helped the author to achieve his aim was his ability to meld together his personal narratives and experiences of other people related to violence with excerpts from reports of media, official statistics, and research.As the author opens each ch apter with some story that helps readers properly understand what forms violence may take, where it exists, and what are probable reasons of its existence, readers can begin to see how all those complex and often seemingly separated from real life sociological concepts in fact stem from concrete historical and cultural conditions of our society.Indeed, even though it might sound quite sad, it seems that for many of us who were lucky to avoid personal encounters with violence it takes only shocking stories of real victims of violence and violent offenders to be able to see violence not as a merely dry statistics but as a terrible reality.At the same time, I think that one of the merits of Brownstein is that along with his personalized approach to interpretation of place of violence in our lives he nevertheless does not forget about more general social considerations and at the end of every chapter also discusses relevant social policies.This allusion to the realm of political decisio n-making is valuable as such because of the competence of the author, and at the same time it helps complete the picture of how violence is socially constructed, because policies towards violence too often impose upon us some fixed and almost compulsory perception of it.Finally, I feel that aside from his academic talent, Brownstein managed to convey to readers some fine nuances of his personal, even intimate, perception of violence. This is done in a very subtle way through his writing style and his ability to depict moods of people and his personal experiences. For example, he begins his book with a very impressive description of his visit to the infamous Sing Sing prison, and as he described his slow advance thought a series of security points and bars, I felt as if coming closer and closer to something truly terrible. However, the story of the man whom Brownstein interviewed in Sing Sing left me somewhat baffled due to its ambiguity.On one hand, the author described the case of a dangerous murderer, but on the other hand left me wondering whether the circumstantial evidence against him based on his cocaine usage was sufficient to be sure in his guilt. This story vividly illustrates the power of stereotypes that shape our perception of violence, and serves as a good start for the author`s endeavor to shed light on this complex phenomenon.SourcesBrownstein, H., H. (1999). The Social Reality of Violence and Violent Crime. Allyn & Bacon.