The Centralia Mine Essay Example for Free

The Centralia Mine Essay The Centralia Mine opened in 1907 and remained free of fatal accidents for decades (Walker, 2006). By the 1940’s mine inspectors began reporting excessive coal dust in the mines and also provided recommendations. In March 25, 1947, the Centralia No. 5 coal mine exploded near the town of Centralia, Illinois, killing 111 people. The explosion was caused when an under burdened explosive detonation ignited coal dust. The explosion of this mine should not have been a surprise to anyone. Driscoll Scanlan, who was a state mine inspector, notified public sector safety professionals from state and federal agencies of the hazards as a result of inspections. There were also union complaints and letters to state officials. Various officials of mine safety agencies and the mine company were notified on more than one occasion. Scanlan as well as the mine’s union had also pushed to have the hazards corrected. The lack of the federal and state officials to take action, along with the ignition of built up coal dust, resulted in the death of 111 coal miners. Identify and explain four (4) logistical alternatives Scanlan could have addressed. In 1941, Illinois Governor Dwight Green appointed Driscoll Scanlan, as one of the states 16 mine inspectors. Scanlan was highly recommended by a state representative (Martin, 1948). He was appointed as the inspector of the district which included Centralia Mine No. 5. State inspectors jobs include making sure mine operators comply with the state mining law (Stillman, 2010). His first inspection of Centralia No. 5 was in 1942. In his first report, his recommendations included cleaning and sprinkling the haulage roads. Scanlan inspected the mine several times in the years before the explosion. At the end of each inspection he sent his report to the Illinois Department of Mines and Minerals. Several of his reports throughout 1942-1944 repeated his previous recommendations and added new one. In one of the latter ones, he recommended that the mine be rocked dusted (Stillman, 2010). In follow up to his reports, he should have inquired with the Director for the status of his recommendations. When he found that none of them were taken care of, he could have let the miners know what the issues were and helped fix the areas in which there were problems. Scanlan could have also worked with the union to push fixing the mine or shutting it down until repaired. When he made the threat to shut them down, the company started to fix some of the problems that were indicated in his reports. The changes that the company made to the mines were only temporary. His only other option would be to try to sprinkle the roads and help with the rock dusting. Analyze and discuss Scanlan’s motivation toward the Constitution (the law), bureaucracy (as a public administrator responsible to the public), and obligation. Scanlan carried out the duties of inspecting the mines. He reported his findings to the Department of Mines and Minerals and the State Mining Board (Stillman, 2010). Scanlan was truly an advocate for the miners. He, unlike some the other inspectors, did not get involved in the political aspects with the companies. Many of the inspectors would have drinks with the company officials and provide brief inspection reports. Scanlan was quite different. Scanlan talked to the miners and made sure that their complaints were included in his inspection reports (Stillman, 2010). The local union expressed their concerns to the State of Illinois in response to the findings of the special investigation commission (Stillman, 2010). They also followed up with a letter to Governor Green, thanking Scanlan for taking the issues to Prudent the Superintendent and local officials on their behalf (Stillman, 2010). Scanlan made 13 inspections and reports, each were reported to the Department of Mining and Minerals. Most of his reports were dismissed and responded to as not being as serious as it seems. Take a position on two (2) possible paths of action for Scanlan and defend your choices. Business and political gain played a critical role in the conditions that led to the accidents. Although Scanlan provided numerous reports, his superiors down played the seriousness of his recommendations. They seemed to be more concerned about keeping the officials happy. The lack of attention given to the seriousness of the inspection reports provided by Scanlan proved to be detrimental to the miners. His inspection reports were ignored by state mining officials and mine company supervisors. Scanlan’s first course of action should have been to shut down the mine. Being a state inspector, he had the authority to shut down a mine if there were violations that had been brought to the company’s attention, but not addressed in a reasonable amount of time. This action, in my opinion, would have been the best course of action. An alternative course of action would have been to go the officials that are higher than the state and federal officials that he was dealing with. He had performed enough inspections, over the course of 3 years, and found that if the mining conditions were not improved, that fatalities would eventually occur at this mine (Saleh, 2011). The state and federal officials were more concerned about continuing business. They did not take into consideration the seriousness of the inspection reports that Scanlan was continually providing them with. The lack of their follow through and the dismissing of his recommendations would have been taking more seriously by someone at a higher level. I feel that they would have stepped in and taken action that may have saved the lives of the miners. This disaster followed by another mining disaster in 1968 caused Congress to become more aggressive with mining companies by passing the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act in 1969 (Ward, 2007). Unfortunately it took another terrible mining incident to get them to notice how important it is for higher officials to make companies follow the recommendations of mining inspectors.

Ancient Greece :: Ancient Greece Essays

I found chapter two particularly interesting because it deals with the ancient Greek culture and life. It is so different than the American way of living, yet there are some similarities that are strikingly close. I feel this is especially relevant in their religion. They had oracles, who were these people who delivered messages from the Gods. I think that is kind of like a priest or minister of some sort, but in the Greek world the oracles were the say all ? be all. Apollo was one of the most well known and respected Oracles. I interpreted this as him being like the pope. Everyone respects what the Pope says, and everyone in the ancient Greek world respected what Apollo said. They also had decorative doors to the religious places. Today, many doors to churches are very decorative or have symbols. The way the Greek people justified the world was through their gods and goddesses. They had a god or goddess for everything ? love, war, trouble, sun, the world, the moon, and many other s. My favorite goddess is Pandora. You always hear about Pandora?s Box when someone is about to get into some trouble. To me, she was the rebel goddess. The ?black sheep? if you will. I feel like everyone can relate to her in some way or another. I know there are many times I feel like the odd one out. Or that I am always getting in trouble. Poetry and really good fiction started to flourish in the times of the Greeks. They were very into the whole entertainment thing. Some great pieces of literature came from their time period. For example The Odyssey, The Iliad, and the Trojan War. Homer is the most well known author from the era.

Beauty is not caused. It is. (Emily Dickinson)

Numerous documents and articles criticize and downplay physical beauty. Credible, educated sources encouraging physical beauty are few and far between. Society fetishly discredits standards and beliefs Marilyn Monroe established. Media reporters emphasize Marilyn wore a size 16. By today’s standards, a size 16 is obese. These reports fail to inform audiences a size 16 at that time is comparable to a size 3 today. Health warnings accompany hair bleaching, tanning, and weight control. Political influences attempt to change opinions regarding physical beauty.Political correctness regarding physical beauty standards controls words used by the media. Words used by the media have no impact on reality. Looks do matter. Physical attractiveness and weight management opens realities regarding career, relationships, luck, court decisions, and better health care. Physical appearances determine first impressions. Vision senses override audible senses. Political influences imply obesity is socially acceptable. An overweight person gives the impression of increased risk for injuries and insurance claims in the workplace.Before job applicants say the first words, an unchangeable opinion formed in the interviewers mind. Political correctness portrayed by media reporters or women’s groups does not change perceptions of an obese person. Blonds attract more attention, therefore more customers. People seeking potential dates or marriage partners gives priority to their identity, not research. Individuals are perceived by the appearance of his or her mate. Personal priorities determine individual opinions of physical beauty. Contradiction describing physical beauty is everywhere.Career objectives, goals of attracting certain marriage partners, and other life decisions determine which research and statistics regarding physical attractiveness accepted. External physical appearances visually display personal lifestyle choices. People who prioritize excellent or improved h ealth disregard research stating extra body weight is healthier than being thin. Proportionate weight results from selecting healthy food choices and participation in effective cardio exercise. People walking around with 12% body fat and visible muscles live a significantly different lifestyle than someone weighing 115 pounds.Athletic people avoid restaurants, eat clean foods, and organize his or her life around exercise and proper nutrition. Someone concerned with weight management and general health keeps his or her calories low and exercise moderately. Athletic lifestyles are too intense for ordinary individuals with average goals. Friends are selected or rejected based on their visible lifestyles. A person’s weight is an advertisement of daily living habits. Society views weight as a measure of physical appearance. Body image acceptance is often translated as a measure of self esteem, happiness and self-worth.People wishing to change his or her weight desire to change the ir priorities. Anorexia nervosa inevitably shows up every time physical appearance is mentioned. Anorexia nervosa is a mental illness. Physical appearance plays very little part in anorexia. People obsessively refusing to eat are acting out a fear relevant to obesity from his or her past. Perhaps someone remembered from childhood developed a drug problem. Weight gain triggered the drug problem. Depriving the physical body of food has nothing in common with dieting down to 95 or 100 pounds.The media and psychologists attempt to associate the two behaviors. They have nothing in common. Media, psychologists, and investigative reporters imply eating disorders is a desire to become thin. Society pushes theories implying thinness is unattractive. Physicians and dieticians emphasize weight is determined by genes and hereditary. These findings are to discourage eating disorders. Verbally, this logic may be accepted. In actual behavior, the idea is rejected. A self confident person remains u nchanged by outside influences.Self confidence encourages behavior resulting in pleasant physical appearance. No one obtains above average looks by accident. Extremely attractive people stir up negative emotions from others. â€Å"Beauty draws as much hostility as it does desire. Other women hate you. If you are not available or interested, men hate you too. Beauty makes other people who are insecure about their own looks resentful, which erects a barrier that can be difficult to bridge† (Shriver, 2006). Beautiful women constantly receive make-up tips, suggestions to change their hair or fashion advice.Secure people ignore such suggestions. Self esteem is hardly affected by advice, insults and any media program. Fitness industries would close. Society’s opinions are ever changing regarding perception of physical beauty. Changeable opinions are verbal. Reactions physically attractive people receive remain focused. Reactions to physical attractiveness are never planned. Gentlemen offering their seat to an attractive lady, smiles, heads turning, stares, insults, envy, and unplanned facial expressions are true constant perceptions of physical beauty.Marilyn Monroe symbolizes beauty. Extremist groups continuously seek ways to alter the perception of Marilyn Monroe’s physical characteristics. Research attempts to alter behavior emphasizing health risks. Health scares do not change actual behavior. The reality to change what is accepted as physical beauty never changes. Notes; Lionel, Shriver, (8/16/2006) The Curse of Beauty, Daily Manuel. http://search. ebscohost. com/login. aspx? direct=true&db=nfh&AN=21963650&site=ehost-live

Spanish Expressions of Frequency

How often do you study Spanish? Never? Once a day? Always? Regardless, sooner or later youll need to be able to answer such a question. Here are some, but certainly not all, of the common ways that Spanish indicates how often an event occurs: nunca, jamà ¡s (never) Examples: Nunca te olvidarà ©. (I will never forget you.) En mi casa jamà ¡s comemos carne. (In my house we never eat meat.) casi nunca, casi jamà ¡s (almost never) Examples: Casi nunca te he dicho que eres bella. (I have almost never told you that youre beautiful.) En el norte de Chile, donde casi jamà ¡s llueve, la situacià ³n es diferente. (In northern Chile, where it almost never rains, the situation is different.) raras veces, raramente (seldom) Examples: Estos efectos secundarios raras veces son severos. (These secondary effects are seldom severe.) Raramente pensamos en lo que tenemos. (We seldom think about what we have.) de vez en cuando, ocasionalmente, a veces (occasionally, at times, sometimes, from time to time) Examples: Es posible que de vez en cuando nuestras pà ¡ginas tengan enlaces a sitios de terceros. (It is possible that sometimes our pages have links to third-party sites.) Le recomendamos que visite esta pà ¡gina ocasionalmente para verificar si està ¡ disponible. (We recommend that you visit this page occasionally in order to verify that it is available.) A veces ocurre. (Sometimes it happens.) a menudo, frecuentemente, con frecuencia (frequently, often) Examples: El cà ¡ncer de piel mà ¡s mortal a menudo no se diagnostica. (The most deadly type of skin cancer is often not diagnosed.) La oficina de correos de Jerusalà ©n recibe frecuentemente cartas dirigidas a Dios. (The post office in Jerusalem often receives letters sent to God.) Estos medicamentos con frecuencia se vuelven menos efectivos con el paso del tiempo.) (These medicines often become less effective over time. cada ____ (each ____ ) Examples: Te ofrecemos cada dà ­a 25 fotos. (Each day we offer you 25 photos.) Este sitio se actualiza cada semana. (This site is updated each week.) todos los ____, todas las ____ (every —) Examples: La vacuna se prepara todos los aà ±os. (The vaccine is prepared every year.) Todas las noches yo estaba listo. (Every night I was ready.) casi siempre (almost always) Example: Casi siempre estoy pensando en ti. (I am almost always thinking about you.) siempre, en todo caso (always, in every case) Examples: Siempre vamos a estar con ellos. (We always go to be with them.) En todo caso, los nià ±os debe hacer el deporte que mà ¡s le guste. (Children should always do the sport they like best.)