The Accident Essay Example for Free

The Accident Essay One day I witnessed one of the worst accidents ever last winter. This accident was like no other. You could see the worried looks on everyones face. The smell in the air was foul. You could hear the traffic in the streets, a baby crying, and dogs were barking, while people whispered about this accident they were witnessing before their very eyes. The taste of peppermint and chocolate was still on my tounge from the hot chocolate I had just finished drinking. The air was very cold, a slight breeze blowing in from the west. Then right there on the corner of 3rd and Quesada the accident occurred. As the accident happen it was like a spot light was on it. Everyone turned their heads straight towards it. Their face changed with every glance. Some look worried, some disgusted with the situation, and some actually looked a lil remorseful. You could see the area of the accident being cover with spot by spot wondering if it was ever going to end. Cars were slowing to see what was happening, only to cause traffic. It was just too hard to look at anything else. Impossible even The smell was very foul, im guessing from the leakage.It smell almost sickening and the wind would blow it right in your face. It was strong and could burn your nose if you inhaled too hard. It almost made me sick. The mixture of the smell and the taste of hot cocoa wouldve been deadly. The accident wasnt the only thing they wouldve seen. My lunch was going to be everywhere but i was able to keep my composure. I had to see what was going on. This was going to be a memory Id never forget. I could feel the cold air creeping up. It was mid December so you know the air was cold. Our surroundings were pretty noisy. Dogs barking, the sounds of cars passing and people hit their squeaky breaks. Kids crying, probably because their mom wasnt paying them no attention, and all the ooos and awws that was referred to the accident. Then Right there in front of our very eyes, a homeless man holding a sign saying hungry, plz anything countz, peed on himself. Nobody could believe it as the spot in his gray sweat pants got bigger. As the foul smell started to seap. When the taste in my mouth and the smell combined to make me sick, and the sounds of the different reactions surrounded me. I couldnt help feel sorry for the man. He looked like he hadnt eaten in days, nor would he had tried if i wouldve given him some money. He couldve been a crack head or wine-o of the sort. Still the mater of fact was i had to help this man in some kind of way. I started digging in my backseat of my car. To find exactly what I was looking for, My sweats from practice. I went and gave them to him. I let him know it was ok to take them. Maybe if it wasnt 30 degrees outside I wouldnt have given him the pants. But hey, the only thing worst then warm piss on your ass, is cold piss.

Affirmative Action: A Counter Productive Policy :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  By definition, racism is the discrimination of prejudice against race. Discrimination, by definition, is treatment or consideration based on class or category rather than on individual merit. In 1961, when President John F. Kennedy issued Executive Order 10.925, he was indicating that individual businessmen should take affirmative action to ensure applicants and employees are treated â€Å"without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin.† His executive order implied equal access and nothing else. The system that has evolved since is a perversion of the original intent of affirmative action. The stipulations that make up affirmative action today are too narrow to effectively help in the fight against racism and discrimination.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Affirmative action has the capability of causing reverse discrimination. Discrimination against white males is just as bad as discrimination against any minority. Some people say that affirmative action is justified as a way of making up for past discrimination. Although discrimination still exists in the United States today, as it does in the rest of the world, most African Americans entering the job market today, were born after the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Because of this, most African Americans have suffered little or no oppression in terms of slavery. When the Civil Rights Act was passed, its spirit was not one of reverse discrimination, but of getting employers to consider applicants candidly in filling jobs within their companies. Hubert Humphrey, a major sponsor of the Act, was quoted during a 1964 interview swearing that he would â€Å"eat the bill if it were ever used for discrimination of any sort.† Yet, it has promoted just that, discrimination . The past cannot be changed, and society should stop compensating people who were never hurt at the expense of people who have done them no harm.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This unwarranted discrimination bothers most employers as well as most employees who do not qualify for affirmative action. The employers feel they have ended up with a lesser quality worker, because of unfair and unwanted employment regulations. Here is yet another disadvantage of affirmative action, namely that every employee from a social minority that benefits from affirmative action can bear a mark of not being the best pick, but only the best pick from a limited group, even if the person is selected for being the best available on the complete job market. The bypassed employees can feel tricked by the government or the minority.

My Favorite Season of the Year

My favorite season of the year is autumn. There are three main reasons why it is my favorite of the four seasons. During this season nature is an absolute wonder to see, Thanksgiving holiday occurs at this time, and the weather is perfect for many outdoor activities. The first reason I enjoy autumn so much, especially down here in the South, is because nature is such an absolute wonder to see during this time of the year. There are many animals that are preparing for the cold winter. A good way for me to get out in the wilderness and watch these spectacular events take place in nature is to go hunting.It really is a great experience for me. While hunting in the woods, I am enjoying listening to the different sounds that the birds are making. Then, out of nowhere, I hear the sound of dead leaves rustling all around me. I look around to see what is making the noise, and then I see them. Two squirrels are digging around for food. Then, all of a sudden they begin running, and they shoot straight up a tree one behind the other. After they get close to the top, they begin jumping from limb to limb and from tree to tree, one still following the other.Then they eventually disappear. I have seen this happen quite often with both chipmunks and squirrels. They like to sneak and hop around on top of the dead leaves, quickly searching and competing to gather the most nuts and acorns for their families for the winter. Something else I get to see in nature while hunting in the woods is the different beautiful colors of the leaves both up in the treetops and down on the floor of the woods. Some of the leaves are variations of red, golden yellow, or maybe even a combination of the two.Another way I like to see the beautiful leaves that autumn has to offer is to just ride around and take in all the wonderful sights. Seeing the different colors of the leaves is my favorite part of nature during autumn. The leaves really are quite a sight to see. The second reason autumn is my fav orite season is because Thanksgiving occurs during this time. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of the year. It is the holiday for giving thanks to all of those in my life whom I love and care for. There are many things I like about the Thanksgiving holiday.One thing I like is the road trip my family and I take every year to visit our families. My family includes me, my dad and stepmom, my two younger brothers who are seventeen and twelve, my little sister who is nine, and my cousin who is fourteen. On the way traveling to Madisonville, Tennessee, we get to see nature at its prettiest. The treetops are absolutely beautiful with their different shades of red and yellow. It takes us about two hours to get to where we are going, so we have to figure out things to do to entertain ourselves while enjoying the beautiful scenery.One way to spend the time is to talk. We all discuss what has been going on in our lives, such as school, work, politics, and many other areas of life. Something else we do along the way is to play different games like I Spy. We see who can spot the most cars of a certain brand or color, or we play trivia games. Another favorite activity we like to do is to sing songs and just have a grand ole time. For me a road trip like this is a great way to spend quality time with the family. The second reason why Thanksgiving is so appealing to me is because of our great family reunion we have every year.It is a very good time for family members who have not seen one another in a year or more to reunite for Thanksgiving. Some family members who usually show up are the following: of course my great aunts and uncles and my cousins and their sides of the family who live there in Tennessee where we have our reunion, my family from Georgia, including my grandfather and my aunt and uncle, and my aunt and uncle and their children who travel all the way from Texas. It is quite a pleasure for me to see everybody talking and laughing and just having a great tim e enjoying one another’s company.Third, and probably my favorite part about Thanksgiving, is the massive amount of deliciously fulfilling food I get to eat on this wonderful holiday. I probably gain around ten to fifteen pounds throughout the Thanksgiving weekend! Let’s start with appetizers. We have nice, juicy, mouth-watering turkey and chicken, homemade mashed potatoes, green beans, corn on the cob, those sweet English peas that just dissolve in my mouth, homemade macaroni and cheese, all different kinds of pastas and veggies, and one of my favorites, the freshly baked, sweet-smelling, buttered rolls. Mmmmm!I am becoming hungry just thinking about them. Then there are the delicious desserts. My favorites are that creamy banana pudding my aunt makes, pineapple upside down cake, and the sweet, moist strawberry shortcake. But do not be mistaken. We have brownies, different kinds of cakes such as red velvet, German chocolate, regular chocolate, and cheesecake. Oh, and w e have many varieties of tasty pie. So those are some good reasons I enjoy Thanksgiving so much, making autumn my favorite season. The third reason autumn is such an awesome season is that it provides excellent weather for several outdoor activities.I really can appreciate the perfect weather fall brings along with it. Taking a weekend hiking and camping trip with my friends or family out in the wilderness of the mountains is always fun. This is especially true when the sun is out, the temperature stays around fifty to sixty degrees, and the winds are calm throughout the day. On this trip I spend with my friends, we fish from the ice cold river or creek to catch lunch and dinner with the warmth of the sun on our backs. Later, during the evening when the temperature drops, we get the fire started and everybody sits around it and sings, talks, tells stories, and just has a grand ole time.Sitting next to the hot fire, I can feel the heat from the flames warming my face, and my nose bec omes filled with the sweet smell of wood burning. There are other things I like to do as well. I like to go cycling or running and feel the nice cool air blow over my skin to cool my body down. These two activities have three advantages to them. It is good exercise, I can do it almost anywhere, and it is a good way to enjoy those cool days fall has to offer. It’s a three for one deal, baby! All of these are enjoyable activities for me to do with my friends or family, but sometimes I like to do them alone.Mainly, these are some activities that bring people closer together and are enjoyable to do during the fall because the weather is perfect. Autumn is neither too hot nor too cold. It is a season that keeps me active. In conclusion, these are three positive traits about the season of autumn I enjoy the most. Nature is an absolute wonder to see during the season of autumn, Thanksgiving occurs, and the weather during this season is perfect for many outdoor activities. All in all , autumn is the best season of the year and my favorite for these three reasons.

Jonathan Swift on Style - Keeping It Simple

Other writers agree: that wise guy of English prose, Jonathan Swift, knew a thing or two about good style: Swifts style is, in its line, perfect; the manner is a complete expression of the matter, the terms appropriate, and the artifice concealed. It is simplicity in the true sense of the word.(Samuel Coleridge, Lecture on Style, 1818)No better style in English prose was ever written, or can be.(William Dean Howells, Preface, Gullivers Travels, 1913)Swift, the greatest writer of English prose, and the greatest man who has ever written great English prose.  (T.S. Eliot, The Varieties of Metaphysical Poetry, 1926) So when the author of Gullivers Travels and A Modest Proposal offers some free advice on writing, we probably ought to pay attention. Lets start with his famous definition of style as proper words in proper places. Short and sweet. But then, we might ask, whos to say whats proper? And just what does Swifts maxim really mean? To find out, lets return to the source. Swifts cryptic definition of style appears in the essay Letter to a Young Gentleman Lately Entered Into Holy Orders (1721). There he identifies clarity, directness, and freshness of expression as the chief qualities of a proper style: And truly, as they say a man is known by his company, so it should seem that a mans company may be known by his means of expressing himself, either in public assemblies or private conversations.It would be endless to run over the several defects of style among us. I shall therefore say nothing of the mean and paltry (which are usually attended by the fustian), much less of the slovenly or indecent. Two things I will just warn you against: the first is, the frequency of flat unnecessary epithets; and the other is, the folly of using old threadbare phrases, which will often make you go out of your way to find and apply them, are nauseous to rational hearers, and will seldom express your meaning as well as your own natural words.Although, as I have already observed, our English tongue is too little cultivated in this kingdom, yet the faults are, nine in ten, owing to affectation, and not to the want of understanding. When a mans thoughts are clear, the properest words will generally off er themselves first, and his own judgment will direct him in what order to place them so as they may be best understood. Where men err against this method, it is usually on purpose, and to show their learning, their oratory, their politeness, or their knowledge of the world. In short, that simplicity without which no human performance can arrive to any great perfection is nowhere more eminently useful than in this. Always think of your audience, Swift advises, and dont baffle them with obscure terms and hard words. Lawyers, surgeons, clergy, and especially academics should avoid using jargon when communicating with outsiders. I know not how it comes to pass, he says, that professors in most arts and sciences are generally the worst qualified to explain their meaning to those who are not of their tribe. One of the wittiest writers in the English language, Swift understood that his gift was rare: I cannot forbear warning you, in the most earnest manner, against endeavoring at wit in your sermons, because by the strictest computation it is very near a million to one that you have none; and because too many of your calling have consequently made themselves everlastingly ridiculous by attempting it. In other words, dont try to be a joker if you cant tell a joke. And at all times, keep it simple. Sound advice, right? But keeping it simple—putting proper words in proper places—is a lot harder than it sounds. As Sir Walter Scott once said, Swifts style seems so simple that one would think any child might write as he does, and yet if we try we find to our despair that it is impossible (quoted in The Cambridge History of English and American Literature).