Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Should everyone pay income taxes and all other taxes?

            Taxes are one of the main sources of income for the government. They contribute to the development of infer-structure facilities, to ameliorate economy of the country, and to reduce gap between rich and poor. Therefore, everyone must pay income taxes and all other taxes.
             Firstly, the government services public to the development of infra-structure facilities. When someone pays his or her electricity or telephone bills, some amount of each bill goes to taxes. That amount will help to authorities to widen the networks to a large area. Moreover, when communication and power supply are well provided, those areas also develop having new roads, highways along with proper gully systems. Hence, with the help of taxes, the government can develop infra-structure.
              Secondly, the government makes use of money come from tolls to ameliorate the economy of the country. As Sri Lanka is in critical economic crisis, taxes are used to pay debts which are given at high interest rate. It helps to reduce the prices of consumer items, and to decrease the interest rate of loans for novel entrepreneurs. Emerge of new successful businesses are the roots of a successful economy. Thus, the economy will be better when we pay taxes.
            Thirdly, the authorities can use taxes to reduce the gap between rich and poor. The revenue come from all kinds of taxes uses to give loans at low interest to destitute to form new means of making money. It paves the way people to make more revenue in order to live a better life. Furthermore, the government provides public with free education and medication on public schools and hospitals, respectively. Consequently, poor children can be successors with the help of free education achieving best levels in education. Moreover, anyone can take free medication according to patients’ need. Accordingly, taxes help to reduce the gap between rich and poor.
                In brief, everyone must pay income taxes and all other taxes in order to improve infra-structure facilities, to make a better economy status, and to lessen the gap between rich and poor. Therefore, taxes pays a vital role in the development of a country. 

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Differences and Similarities of Natural and Artificial Feeding Methods

The father’s face filled with a fruitful and delighted smile when his first baby came to his hands while the mother was trying to feed the child with her breast milk. When the child is growing up, mother receives advice to nourish the kid with bottle milk. However, there are similarities and differences between bottle feeding and breast feeding.

First, we consider breast feeding. As we all know, breast milk comes from mother’s breast to feed her offspring turning red blood into purified white milk. It consists of perfect balance of nutrients of high levels of standards. A child can easily digest and absorb. It always keeps the perfect temperature. Moreover, milk is available at any time and any place exclusive of any preparation time. However, the mother should always be with the kid in order to nourish the child. Furthermore, mother should have to interrupt some certain medicine that can be harmful to baby. The most important fact is that it is totally free. Besides, it improves the love and bond between offspring and mother.

Second, we have a look at the account of bottle feeding. Mother has to prepare bottle milk from water and milk powder. It’s not as efficiently utilized as breast milk. The nutritional content depends on proper preparation. Unlike breast milk, some babies have difficulties with tolerating certain nutrients. On the contrary, anyone can feed the baby other than the mother. It takes some time to prepare the bottle full of milk; mother must be careful about warming formula also. In addition, bottle milk ranges some amount per month.
Breast feeding and bottle feeding methods also have some facts in common too. Breast feeding as well as bottle feeding provides a child with proper nutrients and helps in the growth of the child. Although it is hard to child to get used to bottle milk, he or she will love it by the influence of time.
In conclusion, even though there are many differences between bottle milk and breast milk feeding methods, there are similar points too to illustrate the connection.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Comparison of ancient Mesopotamian belief about the afterlife with those the ancient Egyptians.


            “The  land  between  the  rivers”, which  is  known  as  Mesopotamia  lies  in  between  Tigris  and  Euphrates  rivers  around  5000  B.C.E.  The  basis  of  Mesopotamia  is  on  the  Fertile  Crescent  where  now  recognized  as  the  Iraq . And  the  Egypt  was  built  in  the  fertile  area  on  both  sides  of  Nile  River.  As  the  both  of  the  civilizations  based  on  a  river  valley,  there  are  many  similarities  and  differences  between  Mesopotamians  and  Egyptians.   Some  of  the  similarities  both  civilizations  had  were  belief  in religion, unit  of  time  and  measurement . Both  believed  in  God. There  are  many differences  in  Mesopotamians  and  Egyptians  more  than  similarities.  Among  them, the  social  structure,  the government, architecture  and  engineering  skills,  geography,  degrees  of  exposure  to  outside  invasions  and  beliefs.  Among  the  differences  they  had,  the  belief  about  the  afterlife  plays  a  vital  part  because  they had  completely  different  attitude  about  the  afterlife.



            First, focusing on land between Tigris and Euphrates rivers, Mesopotamians were pessimistic people because they believed that the God will punish them if they don’t obey and respect to the God. Mesopotamians were influenced by the God as well as Egyptians, but Mesopotamians thought that afterlife would be a bleak, dismal existence in the lower dark world. They had felt that they had nothing to look forward to in their after lives. Even there had been a popular saying among Mesopotamians as “life is hard and then you die”. It shows that they don’t have any hope for afterlife. Written evidence can be provided about the afterlife from the Epic of Gilgamesh (circa 2000 BCE): After death, the human person goes to the netherworld as an etemmu (ghost or shade). In this,  The “shade” is a ghostly double of the human person, and the netherworld is a gloomy subterranean realm. It shows that they have some tiny image about afterlife as a shade.



The epic of Gilgamesh provides many details about the Mesopotamian civilization. Once, Enkidu, Gilgamesh’s best friend has stated, "'There is a house whose people sit in darkness; dust is their food and clay their meat. They are
clothed like birds with wings for covering, they see no light, they sit in darkness. . . .I saw kings of the earth, their crowns put away for ever. . . .now like servants...'" (92).
This conveys that Enkidu’s grim view of the afterlife. Moreover, Gilgamesh had said that only thing he couldn’t defeat was the dead.” Gilgamesh,whither rovest thou? The life thou pursuest thou shalt not find, When the Gods created mankind, Death for mankind they set aside……..   Unlike Egyptians, Mesopotamians concerned themselves more with literary records of their spiritual beliefs. And also Mesopotamians had a concept of hell, while Egyptians only had seen the gloomy side afterlife.
Second, looking at ancient Egyptians’ attitudes towards the afterlife, we can find out that they had many ideas about the afterlife. They were also very obedient and respectful to the God like Mesopotamians. Every Egyptian believed in life after death. They thought that life was more abnormal than the death, and they knew that only human species are only aware of that the physical life must end. Egyptians practised the art of body preservation which is also known as the mummification. The reproductive cycle made them believe about the life after death.
A lot of tombs were created to continue Egyptians’ present life after death also. They build pyramids to keep mummies with the all equipments they need to spend a better life after death. It shows the great creativity of Egyptians. Even today engineers can’t find how they made pyramids which are the most powerful structure. Getting into the afterlife required a lot of work. The gods were demanding of good and righteous
behavior. Therefore, in every tomb was placed the Book of the Dead. This was a collection of spells and prayers that supposedly helped the dead through the many dangers on the way to the afterlife. It also contained instructions for proper conduct before the gods in the afterlife.
Egyptians used body preservation art expecting to continue their present life with happiness without obstacles. Therefore, dead bodies were turned into mummies. There were many religious beliefs about the after death among ancient Egyptians. They had said “ If you are an Egyptian, you don’t have just one body and soul”. And also they believed that to be immortal the memory and name also should be eternal. Furthermore, they believed that the visible body which is known as the “khat” needed to be mummified for the rebirth.

They had many words regarding life after death. The spiritual partner of the body is called as “sahu”. The shadow is called as “khaibit”. Moreover, the heart ab  was the seat of intelligence while soul is called as “Ba”. The animated sprit by the emotions, imbue, represented by the head of the deceased on the body of a bird. Furthermore, it is said that a higher spiritual aspect, Akh, is the divine spirit in each one of us represented by three sacred ibis which separated from the body after death and dwelled among the stars.
One of the most famous concepts in Egypt ancient belief is the “ka”, or the double of the man. It is similar to a ghost. It is the image if the person, how they visualize a human being after death. They never guaranteed the eternity or immortality because they had to follow the Maat which is called as the natural order. Maat cannot be changed as it is up to the  God. And also they believed when a pharaoh died, he became a Osiris who is known as the God of the death. After death, Ka had to report to the Osiris for the final judgement whether the death person should be given an eternal reward or a punishment. Most anticipated reward, and since the ka could not exist without the body, after death, the people worked hard to preserve the dead body. The eternity had seen as
"an endless procession by the ka of the deceased through the heavens and the gods' abodes there. In
the company of friends and family, watched over by the protective and benevolent gods . . .There was
no need to work and no suffering. Such was heaven." (Adler 27-28).

When comparing and contrasting the ancient Mesopotamian belief about the afterlife with those the ancient Egyptians, we can say that Mesopotamians didn’t have a good idea about after death. It’s because of the sudden floods of Tigris and Euphrates.  Those uncertain floods damage farming and people. Therefore, they didn’t have a certainty about their lives, but the Egyptians didn’t have the sudden floods because the Nile River overflowed only in predictable time period of the year. Therefore, they can ready for floods to minimize the destruction. Due to many reasons, Mesopotamians and Egyptians had adopted different attitudes about the death and life after death.
















Sources:
·         The text book of “Civilization past and present”
·         Life after death: A History of the Afterlife in Western religion by Segal, Alan F.


My favorite location to be when I want to be alone to study

             How lucky I would be, if I had calm, open, and natural environment at one place to focus on my studies without any cost. I love calmness and silence. And I like open, and wide areas where I can see the unlimited sky. Similarly, I love to stay in touch with nature. Therefore, the best place I found to be alone to study is the second floor roof garden of my home.
            The silence and tranquility are the most leading features that I consider when I choose a place to study. As the roof garden is away from the ground, there is no one is there to shout.It is silent even the sound of a nail falling can be heard. I love that place especially because I can maintain concentration for reading with less disturbances.
            When there is open area to the unlimited sky, the limit of free and creative ideas and thoughts are also unlimited. I feel free like a bird. As my favorite color is blue, I love to be where there is a background of blue. The clean, fresh air touches me smoothly.Furthermore, it makes me feel happy and enthusiastic. Therefore, it encourages me to study.
            A connection with the nature helps to relax the mind. The roof garden consists of roses of many colors, Jebras, Anthuriums and some vegetables grown on the roof garden. One of the most common sights in my garden is butterflies who are moving around flowers searching for their food. It's obvious that when we are with nature, we forget  all the burdens that we have. Same theory is applicable for studying also. Moreover, it helps to focus on studies.
            In brief, I love my roof garden as a place where I can study because it connects me with the nature; It brings me tranquility and silence; It also provides me attractive blue background along with the sky, 

How to reduce anger.....(presentation)

Seeing the Light through Darkness

       Having a human life is like finding a gem from manure according to the Buddhism. Bad friends who meet in our life can lead one’s valuable life to dark. Drugs also can be a main cause someone to get lost his or her path. Family backgrounds can misguide a person. Bad friends drugs, and family backgrounds are the main reasons to misdirect person’s life.
            First, associating with bad friends can mislead one’s life. If a child has a friend who misses his schoolwork, the child also learns to neglect them. Psychologists have said that children learn imitating people around them, especially friends. Therefore, the child must have a good companionship.  Similarly, the lord Buddha also has preached that there are 4 kinds of friends to associate with who have good characteristics, and there are another 4 kinds of friends who lead us towards the sin. If anyone can’t get rid of bad friends he or she will have to sing “We real cool. We left school. We……”
            Second, addicting to drug is one of other major causes to a person to be misled. As we all know, in Sri Lankan, when a man drank overdose, the man with 2 legs will come back home with 4 legs in the night. He never can save money for himself. In many countries, some young crowd have addicted to drugs such as heroine. It causes them to have mental illnesses and weird behaviors such as having half opened yellowish eyes, sleepy, but sometimes they seem to be active unusually. They don’t work for themselves to successful. As I’ve heard, most of time, they will have to count grills.
            Third, the family background plays a vital role in one’s life to protect from misdirection. When a child’s parents quarrel, it will affect their child’s mind to be a violent person. Researchers have shown that even the child is in the cot, he will feel when his mother is sad. Children always take their parents as the role models. For instance, my brother never takes any kinds of drugs taking my father as an example. Mainly, a child is misguided when he or she doesn’t get the love he expects from the family. As a result of not having a pleasant family environment, a person can go on stray in search of love from outside, and most of time, he will be in trouble.
             In conclusion, I think that associating bad friends, drug abuse and unpleasant family background are the major reasons to one’s misdirection. Although it is hard to make understand that particular person that he is misguided, we can help them to recover when they understand it one day to make a happy life for the.
           


How to deal with ANGER


            When I entered my room, it was messy, spreading my pillows everywhere. I asked my mother what happed. She said that my brother got angry and that he reacted by going crazy. Then I decided to write an essay for him when he was calm on how to not to lose his temper as there is no point in telling him.

            First, count one – ten a few times ascending and descending. One of the simplest steps to lessen anger is counting. It lets you breathe well. Then, the new air enters to your lungs helps to purify hot tempered blood vessels. It also leads to a fresh feeling to smile forgetting anger.
            Second, if the first step doesn’t work, you can move to another action; it is thinking of something that you love to recall. For instance, you can remember the most romantic walk you had with your lover. It will bring a blushing delighted face to you. We are always cheery when we have our favorite memories in our minds. Therefore, it can use to overwhelm outrage.
            Third, if all of the above methods don’t work, I’m pretty sure that listening to music or watching a movie will be successful. In other words, we can name it as entertaining our minds. If you watch your favorite movie once again when you are irritated, it adapts a completely different attitude than you were a few minutes ago. Moreover, you can listen to your favorite song. It will remind you of the facts that mean to you in the song. Hence, entertaining your mind is one of the most triumphant remedies for being angry.
            In conclusion, if you follow these steps carefully and practice them in the long run, you will get rid of having lose your temper and decorate your face with a cute smile as long as possible. As a result, according to the saying, you will be handsome as you are not getting angry. Otherwise, your beautiful face will be ugly and you have to be in unpleasant mode at the present of others.

Westerners in China: Opportunities they don’t find elsewhere: Impression of China


China is one of the immensely emerging most powerful countries in the world. As a result, many young move to China seeking opportunities. The article “A Tale of Two Expats” in the Economist and CCTV interview convey lots of details about young expats. Accordingly, young expats who migrate to China find many opportunities that they can’t see anywhere else.
                Firstly, they find number of job opportunities in many aspects. According to the sayings of Alison Friedman in the interview, she says that she has got the chance to explore new creations which nurture modern dancing along with Chinese influence. Also it has paved the way for her to start her own business to get in to competitive economy of China. Expats get many random brass rings due to family networking in trade. For instance, Rachel started acting in soap operas because of a stranger. In addition, the article claims that expats can widen their businesses as they always get opportunities to move forward in a society with less expats. Hence, these youth live better lives having interesting earning methods.           
Secondly, expats have comfortable life styles rather than in their homelands. As the article notes, Most of foreign workers in China are well paid. They can hire maids to help their day-to-day work. Thus, they spend time in a luxurious way in China. In addition, expats work with the most skillful staff which helps them handle responsibilities easily. Similarly, they are able to have delicious Chinese food apart from their usual meals. Moreover, Zha Jianying explains in the interview about how Chinese treats one of her American friends who lives in Asia in a highly reputed manner. They easily emerge from society as important.  Therefore, China is a paradise for expatriates to live like kings.
                Thirdly, juveniles have their education in a pleasant culture through globalization. As a result of globalization, a large number of youth arrive at China to learn about Chinese culture and many other subjects. They laud the development in trade, transport and currency. They also convey that the tremendous transformation in economy and information leads them to come to China for education. Many appreciate the community for being helpful to them. For example, Alison shares her experiences when she first comes to China how one man is grateful to her. Moreover, many students express their ideas about how globalization affects life in China what makes them come to China. They say that China is a great destination to learn about different cultures, international affairs and economy.
                In brief, young expats in China experience many advantages improving their impression for China by achieving a lot of means of earnings, learning possibilities, and having comfortable life styles rather than in their motherlands.  Hence, China is one of the best destinations for young expats.