International Bank Entry Driven Home Host Country Factors Finance Essay - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 956 Downloads: 1 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Finance Essay Type Narrative essay Did you like this example? Many international banks were under funding stress due to financial crisis. Some funding strains led international banks to put greater emphasis on home office funding needs and on funding foreign credit extension in local markets. In recent year, financial services have become increasingly important. From many surveys done by (Gray Gray, 1981) (Dunning, 1977) etc it was found that many banking institutions are becoming international. In last few decades it has been seen that many foreign banks are entering markets, especially in developing countries, to provide a broad range of financial services locally. This has been driven by domestic deregulation, e.g., the removal of entry barriers, technological advances, increased financial integration and more generally heightened globalization.  [i] Now with increasing technological advances and good communications, banks are now increasingly able to provide many types of financial services across borders to non -financial firms foreign affiliates without needing to establish affiliates in foreign markets. It wont be wrong to say that banks follows their customers to provide them with financial services abroad, especially trade and project finance, and thereby increase their businesses and profitability. Bank profitability is mainly affected by domestic and foreign economic activity. In the period to early 1994, the declining interest rates, which made the possibility of higher rates of return in emerging markets attractive or the technological advances and innovations in financial instruments have made it easier to buy into emerging markets.  [ii] According to Cerutti, DellAriccia, Maria Soledad MartÃÆ'„ ±Ãƒâ€šÃ‚ ´nez PerÃÆ'„ ±Ãƒâ€šÃ‚ ´a, Among the host country factors, they consider important factors like legal restrictions, entry requirements, and corporate taxes on foreign bank operations. In addition, they also examined about what responsibilitie s of parent banks have vis-à  -vis the liabilities of their branches and subsidiaries, by looking at the impact of measures of host country economic and political risks. Moreover the national governance or legal environment is also somewhat responsible for the banks profitability. As described in Anon., (2005), a foreign bank can enter a given market in one of the following four organizational forms: representative offices, agencies, branches and subsidiaries.  [iii] According to the survey on global industry profit conducted by The McKinsey Company in 2006 (see Figure 1), Dietz et al. (2008) indicates that the revenues and profits in the banking industry amounted to 788 billion that is the highest in comparison to other industry. As Figureshown, it is noted that from 2000 to 2006 developing countries grew significantly faster profits than those in the world. This can be easily proved from question no.1; the above table shows that developing countries were making more profi t than developed countries this proves that banking sector was growing vigorously. This also indicates that the banks were taking interest in setting up there branches in developing countries.  [iv] Claessens and Horen developed a measure of competitive advantage for each source-host country pair based on assessments of countries institutional environments. They used difference-in-difference model to explain bilateral banking FDI and controlling for other factors, after that they found that in driving foreign banks location decision especially for mergers and acquisitions institutional competitive was one of the important and advantageous factor. Basically the important factors which attracts the bank to go international are The ownership advantages which not only involves asset advantage but transaction advantage of a bank The locational advantages of a market which involves the attractiveness of the host country market seeking and host country competition. The fi rms internalisation advantages i.e. the benefits which are generated due to the reduction of the transaction cost. the host country regulation (regulatory barriers, government attitude and politics, information cost and institutions) Liquidity Management: The management of cash flows across an institutions balance sheet (and possibly across counterparties and locations) can be known as liquidity management. It involves the control of maturity/currency mismatches and the management of liquid asset holdings. Funding: The sourcing of liabilities can also be known as funding. The funding strategy is used to know how a bank intends to remain fully funded at minimum cost consistent with its risk appetite. Such a strategy is not used for balance cost efficiency and stability but is also used to target a broader funding which provides more stability reliable funding. Internal determinants: Internal determinants are factors that are mainly changed by a banks management dec ision and policy destination. Such profitability determinants are related to the level of liquidity, provisioning policy, bank size, capital adequacy and expenses management. External determinants: On the other hand, the external determinants, both industry-related and macroeconomic, are factors reflecting the legal environment and economic where the financial institutions operate. The micro economic factors relative to the target bank in the host country (efficiency and profitability). BLOMSTERMO, A., SHAMA, D. D. SALLIS, J., (2006) provide the definitions on the high and the low control entry modes. They specify that for high control entry modes (e.g. wholly owned subsidiary, majority owned subsidiary, etc.) there is a need of more resource commitment in the host country, and the company investing abroad are insecure. The low control modes (e.g. licensing, different types of contractual relationships, etc.) employ a reduced volume of resources, thereby reducing the risk the investing company is facing. On one hand, the high control entry mode provide high integration and control, while on the other hand, the low control entry mode, give low control and intergration (i.e. cooperative agreements), reduced risk. Foreign-owned banks located in developing countries tend to be more profitable as predicted by skilled management, but less profitable compared with domestic banks. Even though GDP at host country have significantly negative effect on NIM (net interest margin), foreign banks show extremely profitable in comparison to domestic ones. In addition, host country with higher inflation level would largely increase bank NIM (net interest margin).  [v] Don’t waste time! 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Legalizing Prostitution The Pornography Industry Essay

Legalizing prostitution will expand the pornography industry. First of all, prostitution and pornography has the relationship in the sex industry activity. This relationship will share the same three factors: a seller (pimp/producer/manager), a person being sold (prostitute/porn actress/stripper) and a buyer (john/porn viewer/club patron). So what kind of relationship between pornography and prostitution? Has it to be the cause and effect relationship? It s impossible to say definitively that watching pornography causes prostitution use, but it s definitely watching pornography is a part of a cluster of variables that are promoted and connected with men s assumption that they are entitled to use women sexually whenever they want. One of research studied 110 men who bought sex in Scotland and found that they were more likely buying sex higher than after they have viewed pornography. Also, Melissa Farley, a researcher and clinical psychologist at Prostitution Research Education, a non profit California-based organization dedicated to research and education surrounding trafficking and prostitution, confirmed that: â€Å"Pornography teaches men how to be johns. It is cultural propaganda, which drives home the notion that women are prostitutes. In sum, pornography is pictures of prostitution.† So that, watching porn is one of main factors that affect johns’ determine to due with prostitute. When prostitution expand after we legalize it, then learning about the sexual skills ofShow MoreRelatedLegalizing Prostitution Essay1748 Words   |  7 PagesProstitution has been a part of our worlds culture since the beginning of time, and is the worlds oldest profession. Prostitution is defined by the Webster dictionary as â€Å"the act or practice of engaging in promiscuous sexual relations especially for money.† If prostitution were legalized, there would a reduction in sex crimes, American citizens would have the freedom to choose any profession within the sex industry and it would provide economic benefits for the local and federal governments, asRead MoreRegulation of Oldest Profession Essay1243 Words   |  5 PagesPornography and Prostitution have much in common, both include compensated consenting adults engaging in sexual activity; however, pornography is legal, and prostitution is not. Webster’s dictionary defines prostitution as â€Å"the act or practice of engaging in promiscuous sexual relations especially for money†. Although pornography is somehow widely accepted, it is essentially the same concept as prostitution, both involving consenting adults paid to perform sexual acts. While prostitution is controversialRead MoreEssay on The Truth about Prostitution876 Words   |  4 PagesThe Truth about Prostitution Prostitution is a major problem in the United States today. The way we treat these victims as criminals is simply unacceptable. Found in â€Å"Business Insider† a study of San Francisco prostitutes showed that as many as 68% of them have been raped and an astounding 82% had been assaulted. Also found on Business insider is a study conducted on the prostitutes in Colorado Springs which showed that prostitutes are 18X more likely to end up murder victims than those who do notRead MoreShould Prostitution Be Legalized? Essay example858 Words   |  4 PagesLegalizing prostitution would be beneficial to the government and sex workers by creating tax revenue, bettering medical care, and protecting prostitutes against violence. Prostitution is viewed differently throughout society and holds a lot of negative opinions but no one really discuss’ the benefits of prostitution being legalized throughout America. Many people believe in legalizing Marijuana not knowing its positivi ty and negativity. When legalizing prostitution you should look at the overallRead MoreThe Legalization Of The Prostitution1040 Words   |  5 Pages Prostitution has long been called the world’s most ancient profession. Many records proof that people used sex selling as a sort of payoff. Whenever the settlers were running around killing the natives, they were also enjoying the pleasures of regional prostitutes. Appolodprus, a Greek philosopher and historian declared For we have courtesans for pleasure, and concubines for the daily service of our bodies, and wives for the production of legitimate offspring and to have a reliable guardianRead MoreShould Prostitution Be Legal?1230 Words   |  5 PagesProstitution is one of the ‘world’s oldest professions’ that continues to survive centuries of stigma and denunciation. In, Australia, being involved in a paid sexual encounter is not illegal, however each state has its own individual jurisdictions that criminalise particular areas of prostitution. Today, states including NSW, VIC, QLD and ACT have laws that primarily decriminalize prostitution. Whilst NT , TAS, SA WA have an almost criminal approach. Such laws were established to uphold society’sRead MoreShould Prostitution Be Legal?1292 Words   |  6 PagesLegalize Prostitution A prostitute made plans with a man online to meet him and sell her wares. When they met, she asked to see the money. Instead of pulling out cash, he pulled out a knife and attempted to rape her. There was a brief struggle, and the man slashed her hand. She escaped and found shelter in a church while the pastor contacted the police. The person who assaulted the victim was sentenced to twenty-two years in prison (Riley, 2015). This is simply one of many cases of violenceRead MoreProstitution Is A Big Controversy Around The World1033 Words   |  5 PagesProstitution is a big controversy around the world. Many debate about whether prostitution should be legalised due to the person being old enough to make the right decisions for themselves and for their body. Many choose this career as a way to make a living because they choose its right to. Others on the other hand do not agree. The opposing side say that prostitution should not be legal due to so much violence and abuse that a prostitute goes through. Many do not choose the lifestyle to becomeRead MoreProstitution Laws On Judeo Christian Morality1826 Words   |  8 Pagescountries like the United States base many of their prostitution laws on Judeo-Christian morality, which discourages the act of selling sex due to the belief that sex is sacred in creating life, however many theorists disagree due to its singular concern. With Fondation Scelles report ing that 80% of prostitutes in the world are women aged between 13 and 25, and the political inclusion of the right to an individual’s personal liberty, the debate of prostitution serves to be a pluralized issue in considerationRead MoreProstitution Should Be Legal Essay2496 Words   |  10 PagesProstitution and human trafficking are taking place all over the world despite the legal restrictions put upon them. According to Ronald Weitzer, â€Å"The sex industry refers to the workers, managers, owners, agencies, clubs, trade associations, and marketing involved in sexual commerce, both legal and illegal varieties† (1). There are many questions that arise when discussing the sex industry. Should prostitution be legalized? If it were to be legalized, would anything change? Is prostitution morally

Wealth and Greed in Society free essay sample

An argument that the desire for personal wealth can contribute to the destruction of our culture. This paper presents the argument that the desire for wealth can distract us from the truly important things in life. The paper looks at those who promote values other than wealth and discusses the danger of material greed. The paper argues that the race for wealth promotes a dog eat dog attitude that can destroy friendships, families and business relationships. According to this paper, if we ever become a society in which the search for wealth becomes the most important thing to us, people would stop helping others, we would stop applauding effort and those who have other qualities such as compassion and kindness would be left in the dust. We live in America, which is known as the land of opportunity. We have seen poverty stricken people strike it rich and we have watched the wealthy lose it all. We will write a custom essay sample on Wealth and Greed in Society or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Each person and each family in this nation has the same opportunities to succeed. Material wealth seems to be the driving force behind our system of capitalism. Material wealth is something that we can measure in tangible yardsticks therefore we tend to value it. The true value of a society however cannot be found in striving for wealth. The search for wealth or the fear of not having it can lead to the destruction of the culture that we live in. We go to work each day and we come home and when we get paid we buy things. This is the American way. It is something that has attracted millions of immigrants to the United States and it is the dream many risk their lives to get here and share. But is it really about material gain? Is the wealth what is going to keep this culture going when all is said and done or is the drive to attain material wealth going to eat this culture like a cancer from the inside out. Wealth is not the root of all evil but the desire for wealth can distract us from the truly important things in life.

The problem of knowledge Essay Example For Students

The problem of knowledge Essay There is a physical sound present, but there is no sound experience. It is logical to think that things occur even if there is nobody to see/hear/taste them since changes can be observed (If you leave a burning paper and come later, it will be burnt) The tables in the classroom Do tables dance when nobody is around? It is improbable for such a thing to exist, therefore it is considered false, since it is impossible to prove. Theories of reality Common-sense realism the world is the way we perceive it (What you see it what is there) Scientific realism The world exists independently but is different from what we perceive it as (Atoms in the void) Phenomenalism We can only know what we perceive (to be is to be perceived Most theories suggest the existence of an independently existing reality (Things happen also without people). We will write a custom essay on The problem of knowledge specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now Reason Using reason we gain knowledge that is beyond the immediate evidence of our senses. Rationalism school of philosophy according to which reason is the most important source of knowledge even more than experience Premises The assumptions in logic, conclusions follow from them Fallacies invalid patterns of reasoning Deductive reasoning i Moving from the general to the particular. Syllogisms A kind of argument that includes: Two premises and a conclusion Three terms, each occurring twice Quantifiers (all, some, no) Truth = a property of statements Validity = a property of arguments An argument is valid if the conclusion follows logically from the premises and invalid when it doesnt. Trueness is independent on validity. The structure of arguments Validity of a syllogism doesnt depend on the words used but on the structure. It is possible to substitute the elements for anything else and the validity wont change. (A - B is the same as seeds-plants when speaking of validity). A fallacy called brief bias is based on concentrating not on the structure but the words themselves which may lead to false conclusions. Venn diagrams are a useful tool when deciding whether a syllogism is valid. However, Venn diagrams contain extra information which should NOT be considered as given in the first place. Deductive reasoning preserves truth if the premises are both true then the conclusion must be true. Enthymeme = an incomplete argument (e. g. Jenny goes to Oxford so she must be intelligent) All deductive reasoning is based on inductive reasoning experience Inductive reasoning i Moving from the particular to the general Is based on experience and observation which allows to draw conclusions Deduction and induction compared Deduction Reasoning from general to particular All metals expand when heated A is a metal -A expands when heated More certain, less information than Induction How reliable is inductive reasoning? Sometimes we make hasty generalizations. Sometimes, even well supported inductions are proved wrong. Confirmation bias people only see things supporting their theories and ignore exceptions. Good generalizations 1) Number need to look at a large number of examples to be able to make a generalization 2) Variety variety of circumstances different types 3) Exceptions actively look at counter-examples 4) Coherence more evidence for unlikely things 5) Subject area some areas are more certain than others (mathsbiology) Informal Reasoning The ten deadly fallacies: Ad ignorantiam Hasty generalization Post hoc ergo propter hoc Ad hominem Circular reasoning Special pleading Equivocation False analogy Claiming something is true because it cannot be proved false Generalizing from insufficient evidence Confusing a correlation with a causal connection Attacking/supporting the person rather than the argument. .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386 , .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386 .postImageUrl , .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386 , .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386:hover , .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386:visited , .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386:active { border:0!important; } .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386:active , .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386 .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u03b68e5b510e46073a2dfdef39ea1386:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Snow Goose Overpopulation EssayAssuming the truth of what you are supposed to be proving Using double standards to excuse an individual or a group Using language ambiguously Assuming that because two things are alike in some aspects, they are alike in others Assuming that only two black and white alternatives exist A question that is biased because it contains a built in assumption Post hoc ergo propter hoc The fact that two things follow after each other doesnt necessarily mean that one is the cause of the other. (e. g. Day is not the cause of night) Ad hominem fallacy (against the man) Not arguing attacking/supporting the person. (e. g. What do YOU know about it? Youre just a child! / Obama says it so it must be right) Circular reasoning (vicious circle / begging the question) Arguing with the thing that needs to be proven. (e. g. God must exist because dictated wrote the bible) Special pleading Exceptions for certain people (e. g. politician immunity) Equivocation Word used in two different ways in an argument (A hamburger is better than nothing and nothing is better than good health = hamburger is better than good health) Argument ad ignorantiam Saying something is true on the basis thet it cannot be proved wrong. God exists. Do you have any proof that he does? Do you have any proof that he does not? So he must. False analogy Using analogies that are not logically correct only a rhetorical device (e. g. comparing rain to human problems) False dilemma Only putting something as black and white suggesting binary thinking when there are other options as well (e. g. You either climb that tree or you will NEVER conquer your fear! ) Loaded questions Questions that contain suggestions and cannot be answered in a yes/no manner while not telling anything. (e. g. Do you always cheat on your exams? ) Causes of bad reasoning The main reasons are ignorance, laziness, pride and prejudice. We misuse rhetorical skills in order to persuade people sometimes we even argue about things which we know are wrong rather than coming to the correct conclusion. Reason and certainty Laws of thought: The law of identity If A then A. The law of non-contradiction If A is A then it is not non-A The law of the excluded middle Everything is either A or non-A. Nothing is both. Can deductive reasoning be doubted? Reason is a matter of faith Some things are unsure and unable to be categorized properly (day/night) Everything is constantly changing? Can inductive reasoning be doubted? Induction is hard to apply for all rather than all observed Prison of consistency When you take a position on something, it is difficult to change it without losing face or to look at it from a different perspective. (It is hard to find errors in my own test) .

How Black Women Are Portrayed in Music Videos free essay sample

One group member will present how Black Women are depicted in music videos. The objective is to analyze the words being sung and how they impact black consciousness in this regard. The criteria for this admitted extremely limited case study research was that the artists chosen for examination had to have been recognized as in the top 25 in terms of popularity at the time. This status was determined by consulting the national music charts such as Billboard Top 100 or Soul Train Top 100 merchandising surveys. Topic: How Black Women are Depicted in Music Videos At first glance, music videos may appear to be a harmless entertainment outlet that promotes the sale of popular music. But closer inspection reveals hat it is indeed a cultural phenomenon that has an impact far and beyond music sales. Since the beginning of Black Entertainment Television (BET), Music Television (MAT), and Video Hits One (VHF-I) in 1 980, 1981, and 1985 respectively, music videos have been a dominant factor in American culture, as well as a platform from which current American attitudes, values, and preoccupations can be readily accessed. We will write a custom essay sample on How Black Women Are Portrayed in Music Videos or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Together with the songs melody and lyrics, music videos are powerful tools that impact minds with images that shape a persons attitude. Throughout the ninetieth century, music ideas have influenced various perceptions on the images of women. No matter what the women in the music videos are singing about, or what actions they are doing in the videos, there is almost always a sexual overtone. For women to be portrayed in this way has many consequences, for the images that we view in everyday life shape the way we think. Viewing a music video that has a woman being portrayed in an overtly sexual manner once may not have a very serious affect on a person, but seeing many different music videos all portraying women sexually, and seeing these videos over and ever, does indeed shape a persons mind to view women with much less respect than they would otherwise. This therefore, is where the problem lies. In analyzing current video themes, it is helpful to review historical stereotypes and themes of women.An examination of historical portrayals of black women reveals a staggering semblance to that of the present day media presentations. One of the most common and enduring stereotypes of black women in American culture is that of the Siebel -the hyper-sexual, promiscuous, and lewd black female, depicted wearing little or no clothing. According to Ferris State Professor David Pilgrim, Siebel images from the Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia depicts the common attitude regarding Black women that permeated American culture from slavery down through the Jim Crow period of the sass.He explains, everyday items . .. Depicted naked or scantily dressed Black women, lacking modesty and sexual restraint. (Pilgrim )To say the least, common household and utility items such as drinking glasses, ashtrays, sheet music, and fishing lures, speak to the objectification and deeply entrenched defamation of Black women and their humanity within American culture. Siebel is a name that survived down through the centuries, in various cultures to denote the wicked and immoral hussy. The historical stereotype of Black women as Siebel in American culture continues today in many aspects of modern media presentations, particularly the role of the hip hop music video siren that will be discussed later in further detail. To be sure, Black women have been a willing and available participator in popular hip hop music videos. Black females that make up a major portion of participants as well as audience Of these videos and the like have fully bought into the notion that their value is reduced to he bump and grind of their hips and buttocks.The deconstruction and analysis of the following top hip hop videos demonstrate the power of stereotypes in not only shaping cultural attitudes, but in the perception of self as well. To take a case in point, in the music video, Sexual Seduction, Snoop Dog is portrayed as a pimp, surrounded by black women, dressed in either leather or lace negligees, in scene after scene of various sexual poses, bending down at his feet, finger in mouth, crawling seductively on the floor, posed on his revolving bed, eagerly anticipating his every sexual desire.This died pales in comparison to his 2003, P. I. M. P. collaboration with fellow rapper Fifty Cent. In this video, F-fifty Cent wakes up with three women in bed, who clean and dress him for the day. He is then escorted to the Pimp Headquarters where Snoop Dog and veteran pimps, including Chicago Magic Don Juan, initiates him into the pimp hall of fame. The following pool party features beautiful and scantily clad women sitting around in celebration as a dark skinned model in earth tone bikini and heels gyrate to the camera angled underneath her crotch.Two submissive female models in negligees ND wearing dog cuff and chains are escorted by a slick dressed female pimp, showing that exploitation can also be a female game. Slow motion frames of jiggling female flesh and body parts and seductive facial shots with lips slightly parted, further demonstrates the objectivity of female sexuality. True, men are writing and producing these songs and videos, however all the blame cant be placed on their shoulders. If there werent the 50,000 women going to audition for these rolls in the videos, then the producers and rappers wouldnt be able to produce the videos, because they wouldnt have the image of sex to sell. Shimmed Videos published an article on Violoncellist. Com specifically talking about the way women are portrayed in music videos. Videos makes a statement and poses these questions: I often wonder, do they realize how they are the exploiting themselves? Are they cognizant of the history of the devaluation of Black womanhood? The women in these videos need to realize the image that they are presenting to the world, and the preconceived notions and stereotypes that they are reinforcing. I believe that the main thing on the womens minds is the paycheck that they will receive at the end of shooting their video. Bell Hooks rites in Anti A Woman, that since woman was designated as the originator of sexual sin, Black women were naturally seen as the embodiment of evil and sexual lust. This is reenacted today in the current music videos. Videos also expresses how essential it is that women of all ages start exploring self loving practices. Which will teach women how to love and embrace, love and respect their bodies. There are artist out there that try to empower the spirits of women through their lyrics. For instance, India Aria wrote a song titled l am not my Hair. This song and video successfully gives off an empowering message to women. India is basically reaching out to Women and telling to embrace themselves as god created them. That there isnt a need for the superficial things to be considered a strong beautiful woman. Our generation is in a great need for artist that are willing to send out messages positive empowering messages. In browsing through Youth, I found a rapper that is using mediums like Youth, and other free online posting sites, to spread his powerful truthful message. Frenchman wrote and rapped a song titled Black Queens, as a tribute to all black women, but mainly to strong powerful Black Women in history. He pays respect to several people: Correct Scott King, Sojourner Truth, Lena Horn, Billie Holiday, Nina Simons and Harriet Tuba to name a few. How Black Women Are Portrayed in Music Videos free essay sample Three different time periods were chosen representing approximately three different generations of black music (40 years apart- sass, sass and sass). Members of the group have researched literature on black music In these specific periods of time, choosing the songs by either black male or female artists to examine in terms of the messages transmitted through their work about the relationship between men and women of the Black Diaspora.One group member will present how Black Women are depicted in music videos. The objective is to analyze the words being sung and how hey impact black consciousness in this regard. The criteria for this admitted extremely limited case study research was that the artists chosen for examination had to have been recognized as in the top 25 in terms of popularity at the time. This status was determined by consulting the national music charts such as Billboard Top 100 or Soul Train Top 100 merchandising surveys. We will write a custom essay sample on How Black Women Are Portrayed in Music Videos or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Topic: How Black Women are Depicted In Music Videos At first glance, music videos may appear to be a harmless entertainment outlet that promotes the sale of popular music. But closer Inspection reveals that It Is ended a cultural phenomenon that has an impact far and beyond music sales. Since the beginning of Black Entertainment Television (BET), Music Television (MITT and Video Hits One (VHF-I) in 1980, 1981, and 1985 respectively, music videos have been a dominant factor In American culture, as well as a platform from which current American attitudes, values, and preoccupations can be readily accessed.Together with the songs melody and lyrics, music videos are powerful tools that impact minds with images that shape a persons attitude. Throughout the twentieth century, music ideas have Influenced various perceptions on the images of women. No matter what the women In the music videos are singing about, or what actions they are doing in the videos, there Is almost always a sexual ove rtone. For women to be portrayed In this way has many consequences, for the Images that we view In everyday life shape the way we think. Beveling a music video that has a woman being portrayed In an overtly sexual manner once may not have a very serious affect on a person, but seeing many different music videos all portraying women sexually, and seeing these ideas over and over, does indeed shape a persons mind to view women with much less respect than they would otherwise. This therefore, is where the problem lies. In analyzing current video themes, it is helpful to review historical stereotypes and themes of women. An examination of historical portrayals of black women reveals a staggering semblance to that of the present day media presentations.One of the most common and enduring stereotypes of black women In American culture Is that of the Sizeable -the hyper-sexual, promiscuous, and lewd black female, depicted earring little or no clothing. According to Ferris State Professor David Pilgrim, Sizeable Images from the Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorable depicts the common attitude regarding Black women that permeate d American culture from slavery down naked or scantily dressed Black women, lacking modesty and sexual restraint. (Pilgrim )To say the least, common household and utility items such as drinking glasses, ashtrays, sheet music, and fishing lures, speak to the objectification and deeply entrenched defamation of Black women and their humanity within American culture. Sizeable is a name that survived down through the centuries, in various cultures to denote the wicked and immoral hussy. The historical stereotype of Black women as Sizeable in American culture continues today in many aspects of modern media presentations, particularly the role of the hip hop music video siren that will be discussed later in further detail.To be sure, Black women have been a willing and available participator in popular hip hop music videos. Black females that make up a major portion of participants as well as audience of these videos and he like have fully bought into the notion that their value is reduced to the bump and grind of their hips and buttocks. The deconstruction and analysis of the following top hip hop videos demonstrate the power of stereotypes in not only shaping cultural attitudes, but in the perception of self as well.To take a case in point, in the music video, Sexual Seduction, Snoop Dog is portrayed as a pimp, surrounded by black women, dressed in either leather or lace negligees, in scene after scene of various sexual poses, bending down at his feet, finger in mouth, crawling seductively on the lour, posed on his revolving bed, eagerly anticipating his every sexual desire. This video pales in comparison to his 2003, P. I. M. P. collaboration with fellow rapper Fifty Cent. In this video, Fifty Cent wakes up with three women in bed, who clean and dress him for the day.He is then escorted to the Pimp Headquarters where Snoop Dog and veteran pimps, including Chicago Magic Don Juan, initiates him into the pimp hall of fame. The following pool party features beautiful and scantily clad women sitting around in celebration as a dark skinned model in earth tone bikini and eels gyrate to the camera angled underneath her crotch. Two submissive female models in negligees and wearing dog cuff and chains are escorted by a slick dressed female pimp, showing that exploitation can also be a female game.Slow motion frames of Jiggling female flesh and body parts and seductive facial shots with lips slightly parted, further demonstrates the objectivity of female sexuality. True, men are writing and producing these songs and videos, however all the blame cant be placed on their shoulders. If there werent the 50,000 women going to audition for Hess rolls in the videos, then the producers and rappers wouldnt be able to produce the videos, because they wouldnt have the image of sex to sell. Chimes Voided published an article on Violoncellist. Mom specifically talking about the way women are portrayed in music videos. Voided makes a statement and poses these questions: l often wonder, do they realize how they are the exploiting themselves? Are they cognizant of the history of the devaluation of Black womanhood? The wome n in these videos need to realize the image that they are presenting to the roll, and the preconceived notions and stereotypes that they are reinforcing. I believe that the main thing on the womens minds is the paycheck that they will receive at the end of shooting their video.Bell Hooks writes in Anti I A Woman, that since woman was designated as the originator of sexual sin, Black women were naturally seen as the embodiment of evil and sexual lust. This is reenacted today in ages start exploring self loving practices. Which will teach women how to love and embrace, love and respect their bodies. There are artist out there that try to empower the spirits of women through their lyrics. For instance, India Rare wrote a song titled l am not my Hair. This song and video successfully gives off an empowering message to women. India is basically reaching out to women and telling to embrace themselves as god created them. That there isnt a need for the superficial things to be considered a strong beautiful woman. Our generation is in a great need for artist that are willing to send out messages positive empowering messages. In browsing through Youth, I found a rapper that is using mediums like Youth, and other free online posting sites, to spread his powerful truthful message.

An Existentialist View of The essays

An Existentialist View of The essays An Existentialist View of The Sweet Hereafter Jean-Paul Sartres concepts have always fascinated critical thinkers and creative artists alike. In this paper I am going to evaluate his many topics and schools of thought as explained in the book Ten Theories of Human Nature by Leslie Stevenson. I intend to specifically explore the concepts of good and bad faith using examples from Atom Egoyans film, The Sweet Hereafter. I shall draw existential parallels between Sartres concepts and Egoyans in order to point out certain motivations that are found within the characters of Egoyans film. I will especially focus on the films main characters and how the concept of community versus outsiders affects them Jean-Paul Sartre defines the universe as being absurd and without God. He denies the existence of God merely because he feels that the responsibility of a mans life belongs in the hands of himself and nothing else. Sartre believes that if man believed in the existence of God, he would not try to make his life meaningful knowing that he had God as a safety net. Therefore, once man denies the existence of God and realizes that he has to depend on himself and only himself for his survival, he will be forced to take his existence into his own hands and make it meaningful. In Atom Egoyans film, The Sweet Hereafter, the small town community of Sam Dent is faced with an existential crisis. After a school bus accident kills nearly all of the towns children, a lawyer is called in to represent certain families who wish to receive monetary compensation for the loss of their children. This creates tension between the families that wish to seek legal mediation and those who wish to solve the pro blem within the community, with no outsiders, like always. The lawyer, Mitchell Stevens, is this outsider that plagues many characters in the film. Before the bus accident, the members of the town of Sam Den...

Strategic Management project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5500 words

Strategic Management project - Essay Example Fahad Al-kaabi, has various objectivities that he is seeking to achieve from the business. The group decided to do an interview with the owner to identify the various objectives he has for the business. The interview was useful in the analysis of the business’s strategic plan and in acquiring the data needed for completion of project. The Maganees cafeteria lacks some official statements such as mission, vision, values, and objectives because it is a new entity in the market. Subsequently, the group developed appropriate statements by matching what the owners said about the business, which guided the project team in building the statements. In addition, food industry in Qatar is characterized by high levels of competition whereby each competitor want to get the largest proportion of the market share; hence, significant for an entity to study the industry by evaluating each competitor in the market. Competitors in the industry include Tea Time cafeteria, Chapati, and Karak, which were selected and compared with Maganees cafeteria in in reference to various business aspects. Maganees cafeteria has strengths such as the innovation of products, providing high salaries for the employees and financial aids to motivate its workers leading to competency within the business. However, the firm is facing a number of challenges including the lack of advertisement, promotional campaign, inexistence of official website, and unable to deliver the products to the customers house. Based on the external environment, the cafeteria has opportunities like the low rent of outside areas and the preferences of customers for the traditional foods. In the other hand, it faces some threats such as the high level of competition in the market. In reference to market competitiveness and market position, Maganees cafeteria adopted focused differentiation method because it offers unique products, which are the traditional foods of Qatar for specific customers living in the northern

Infusing Technology in the Classroom Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Infusing Technology in the Classroom - Essay Example At the departmental meeting a group of teachers presented on more effective means of constructing ‘word walls’ – these are walls of relevant terminology that go up in all the classroom. They opened their presentation with an attention grabbing video and then proceeded to demonstrate ways world walls could be constructed daily through videos instead of the traditional way. There are also other development opportunities. There is even now a site called TeacherTube that is formatted much like YouTube, except that the uploaded videos are a related to teacher development. Many teachers report personally using this for professional development purposes on a number of occasions, and believe that its pool of communal knowledge could be implemented by teachers throughout the nation in developing more efficient means of instruction. Other uses of educational technology through the internet have occurred in the growing use of Social Networking Sites (SNS) among students and teachers. The institution has implemented Ning.com in a number of projects. Ning is a social networking tool that allows students and teachers to create their own social networking site and designated whether it will have a closed or open invitation policy. This technology has been used with great success in a number of classrooms. In some of the humanities classrooms throughout the nation, it has been implemented extremely effectively as students are required to develop a site that corresponds to a particular character, for instance, Hamlet.

Making Solar Energy Economical Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Making Solar Energy Economical - Essay Example With the realization of this inefficiency, current manufacturers are manufacturing solar cells with an improved efficiency through laying the cells into multi-layers that has the ability to push the efficiency to about 35%. Using nanotechnology, engineering of solar energy generation devices can make structures on sizes that are comparable to molecules and atoms that are measured in nanometers whereby nanocrystals from the elements selenium and lead are utilized (Beard et al. 2506). The technology improves the inadequacy presented by standard cells that produce useless excess heat and less impact while the Lead-Selenium nanocrystals release further electrons rather than heat thus boosting the output, which can also be replicated in Silicon. With the use of nanocrystals technology, the efficiency of the generation of solar energy can use efficiencies of up to 60% and therefore engineering technologies are required to integrate nanocrystal cells in transmitting energy in a circuit (Bea rd et al. 2512). How to Make Solar Energy Economical The use of new materials for solar cells can help in the reduction of fabrication costs that has a positive impact in reducing the costs of solar energy and making its implementation for generation of electricity economical (Lewis 799). The purity of the material is important, as modern solar cell designs require higher purity content in order to make the flow of electric charges be seamless. To achieve this, manufacturers will be required to use thick materials in one dimension to absorb sunlight and thinner materials in another direction to transmit the charges which would require that the solar cells are made of nanorods or tiny...This essay outlines the growing importance of the solar energy among other sources and determines the factors, that will ensure larger electrical generation based on solar energy conversion. Solar power is usually generated by collecting the light spectrums from sunlight and converting them to energy in the form of electricity using solar panels that have cells in them. Solar energy forms an integral part of the supply of energy to human beings and the earth in general. The contribution of the sun to the energy requirements of the earth is substantial despite the fact that it has not been taken up by most people and forms only a fraction of the energy consumption market. In order to make solar energy economically competitive, there is need for those tasked with the manufacture of solar technology devices to improve the efficiency of the cells in commercial solar cells as well as lower their costs of manufacture. The use of new materials for solar cells can help in the reduction of fabrication costs that has a positive impact in reducing the costs of solar energy and making its implementation for generation of electricity economical Despite the fact that technology may help in the production of solar cells that generate cheap and efficient electricity, it would be uneconomical if the solar energy generated is not stored. The need for storage of electricity generated from solar has been necessitated by the fact that not all the days will the earth receive sunlight as this may be blocked by clouds or darkness at night.

Causes Of The Genocide In Bosnia

Causes Of The Genocide In Bosnia In 1980, the president Josip Tito of Yugoslavia died. After the loss of their president, Yugoslavia had political and economic chaos. Slobodan Milosevic became the leader of Serbia in 1987. He was a strong Serb nationalist and encouraged his beliefs in Serbia and in other republics with large Serb communities. The Serbs in Bosnia were not happy feeling like they were now part of Milosevics Greater Serbia. The Yugoslavian Army mostly had Serbs. Radovan Karadzic led Serbs who built their own Republica Srpska in the East, while a Bosnian Serb army was in control of the other  ¾ of the country, driving out most of the Bosnian Croats. Then the European Union tried to help both sides, and failed. The U.N. didnt want to get involved, but helped a little by providing some troop convoys for humanitarian aid. They later decided to help more by providing six safe areas. The Serbs invaded five of the six safe areas and ethnically cleansed them. The Background: Bosnia is one of the several small countries that emerged from the break-up of Yugoslavia, a multicultural country created after World War One. Yugoslavia was composed of ethnic and religious groups that had been historical rivals, including the Serbs (Orthodox Christians), Croats (Catholics) and ethnic Albanians (Muslims). During World War Two, Yugoslavia was invaded by Nazi Germany and was separated. Following Germanys defeat, Tito reunified Yugoslavia by merging many countries. Tito, a Communist, was a strong leader who maintained ties with the Soviet Union and the United States during the Cold War, playing one superpower against the other while obtaining financial assistance and other aid from both. After his death in 1980 and without his strong leadership, Yugoslavia quickly plunged into political and economic chaos. Organizers: In the late 1980s, a new leader by the name of Slobodan Milosevic came to power in Yugoslavia. He used religious hatred to control the people by sparking old tensions between the Serbians and Muslims. He took advantage of complaints from the Orthodox Catholic Serbs by taking control of the country Kosovo, where the Serbs were the minority. Milosevic then turned his focus to Croatia, a country with 12 percent Serbs. With the assistance of Serbian guerrillas, Milosevic invaded the small country under the pretenses of protecting the Serbs. Milosevics motives for this genocide were strongly based on retaliation. Many Serbian citizens had been subject to genocide during World War Two and they finally had a chance to get even with their enemies. After 13 years at power, the Yugoslavian nations revolted and a national strike followed. Milosevic was tried on the following counts in 2002: genocide; complicity in genocide; deportation; murder; persecutions on political, racial or religious grounds; inhumane acts/forcible transfer; extermination; imprisonment; torture; willful killing; unlawful confinement; willfully causing great suffering; unlawful deportation or transfer; extensive destruction and appropriation of property, not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly; cruel treatment; plunder of public or private property; attacks on civilians; destruction or willful damage done to historic monuments and institutions dedicated to education or religion; unlawful attacks on civilian objects. Mi losevic died on March 11, 2006, at the U.N. war crimes tribunal detention center. Victims: In the Bosnian genocide, hundreds of thousands of people were victimized. About 80% of these people were Bosnian Muslims. After The Yugoslav Republic of Bosnia declared its independence, Bosnian Serbs along with the Yugoslav army attacked the Bosnian and Croatian civilians. Between 1992 and 1995, Serbia decided to ethnically cleanse the Bosnian land by removing all Bosnian Muslims systematically. Many were forced into concentration camps. The Muslims were tortured, starved, and eventually murdered. Over the war, about one million Bosnian Muslims were forced out of their homes. In 1993, the Security Council in the United Nation had Sarajevo, Srebrenica, Goradze, and other Muslim territories in safe areas that were protected by United Nation peacekeepers. At a safe area in Srebrenica, Serbs held a very large massacre. Many of the Muslims escaped the fighting by running away. The men that were able to fight were kept behind and killed. The elderly, women, and children were taken to a Muslim controlled territory on busses. Once the massacre ended, the bodies were moved by bulldozers by the Serbs in attempts to conceal the evidence. World Response: As a result, U.S. President George Bush chose not to get involved militarily, instead recognizing the independence of Slovenia and Croatia. In April 1992, the U.S. and European community recognized Bosnias independence. Even though media showed the secret camps, mass killings, and destruction of historic architecture in Bosnia, the world community remained mostly indifferent. The United Nations finally responded by imposing economic sanctions on Serbia and the U.N. also deployed its troops to protect the distribution of food and medicine to dispossessed Muslims, however, the U.N. strictly told troops not to interfere with military against the Serbs. Through 1993, the U.S. and European Community still hadnt taken any military action until August 30, 1995. On this day, The U.S. led a massive NATO bombing campaign in response to the killings. Aftermath: Top of Form Peace negotiations were held in Dayton, Ohio, and an agreement was signed in December 1995. Bosnia is now divided into a Croat-Muslim Federation and Republika Srpska. A NATO peace-keeping Implementation Force of 60,000 was deployed; it was later replaced by a NATO Stabilization Force. The war in Bosnia led deaths of tens of thousands men and boys that left the country without enough workers to keep their economy stable. Bosnian Croats and Bosnian Muslims who make up the Federation of Croats and Muslins are not getting along because of their political and economic differences. There is a rotating presidency of a Bosnian Croat, Bosnian Serb, and a Bosnian Muslim every three years that many experts consider to be dangerous. The ethnic differences between Muslims, Croats, and Serbs are still keeping the nation of Bosnia-Herzegovina from being one, because they all want more governmental control over the other. The effects of the Bosnian Genocide still float in the background for this troubled country. Because there is still ethnic disturbance in Bosnia, there is fear that genocide could occur once more in the torn country. By now, over 200,000 Muslim civilians have been systematically murdered. More than 20,000 are missing and feared dead, while 2,000,000 have become refugees.

To what extent do pressure groups undermine democracy

It is a varied opinion in society that pressure groups undermine democracy: some people believe strongly, some people don’t. It is hard to begin to analyse whether this is the case or not, as there are a varying amount of factors that need to be considered before a final decision and be made. In the first instance of answering this question, we need to find out the two types of pressure groups; elitist pressure groups and pluralist pressure groups.Elitism is the theory that political power is concentrated in the hands of a few, which therefore sort of emphasises a dictatorship in some instances. Whereas the other type of pressure group ideology is the theory of the distribution of political power that holds that power is widely and evenly dispersed in society, rather than concentrated in the hands of an elite or ruling class, which from an outside point of view, would look like it promotes democracy.Supporters of pressure group would lead this on to say that pressure groups en hance this sense of pluralism in our democracy and make our democratic system much more effective. Although the opposite argument to this is that people claim that many organized groups can undermine the policy making process because they are dominated by people with vested interests concerned only to improve the position of certain groups within society, not the welfare of the whole country.Pressure groups also help to promote democracy because they widen the distribution of political power because pressure groups compete against one another and this ensures that no group can remain on top of all the others, so prevents an elitist situation whereby the ideologies pluralism is completely outcast from the situation. However as one group begins to turn more influential, other groups come into existence to combat them and offer rival viewpoints.Due to this, public policy is created through an ongoing debate between rival groups that ensures that political influence is widely and evenly dispersed. However, as we already know, a healthy democracy needs a high level of political participation in order to function correctly. Pressure groups are thought to have a positive effect on political participation because pressure groups support single issue politics because most pressure group are seen to be fighting for one issue, and people like this sense of working to one targeted issue and it has become popular amongst young people  to join in with the grass-roots activism that pressure groups are promoting, so supporters of pressure groups say that they increase political participation.Evidence for this increase in political participation is that in the 2005 general election the turnout was 61. 4%, however the 2010 general election saw a 2 million increase in the electoral turnout to 65%: from 2005 to now, there has been an ever-increasing number of pressure group memberships, so this may show a positive correlation between pressure group memberships and political par ticipation.Supporters of pressure groups would also say that pressure groups are good for democracy as they educate the electorate. Pressure groups promote political debate and argument and in doing this, they give birth to a more educated voter and this then leads to and improved quality of public policy. Without this education, it would be simply down to the media to educate the electorate on this issue, which is a very flimsy way of doing so. Pressure groups also offer alternative view points and widen information available to the public.For example the NSPCC offers a huge education programme on their website in order to educate their members on the wider issues of child cruelty. In many ways, pressure groups are able to raise the quality of political debate by introducing specialist knowledge and greater expertise. However pressure groups do hinder democracy in the sense that they sometimes hold a disproportionate influence over the government due to the power which particular g roups hold. For example the BMA represents only a small proportion of the country.Yet it has great influence over the government because its members provide an important service. A further example of this factor is the NFU. Again, they represent a small proportion of the country, but retain a huge influence over the government as they provide Britain's food supply. Another undemocratic feature of pressure groups is the way in which their influence can rely on financial clout rather than the proportion of public support. This theory applies to many of the protection groups whom have greater capital than many well supported causal groups.An example is Bernie Ecclestone who used to have connections with Tony Blair to arrange a meeting in which the prime minister agreed to extend the deadline for the removal of tobacco advertising in formula one racing by 5 years, a few months later Ecclestone made a 1 million pound donation to the labour party, so connections like this from pressure gr oup members to high profile people, lead to undemocratic things like this occurring. In addition to this, power held by pressure groups can depend on the size of the membership.Initially, this many seem more of a democratic factor rather than a undemocratic feature; surely if a group has a large membership it represents more of public opinion than one which has fewer members. An example which proves this is that of Anti-vivsection. The anti vivisection group has a reasonably large membership, yet the vast majority of the public support animal testing for medical purposes. In fact, up until 2005 no pressure group which opposed the views of anti vivisection even existed. If we were to go purely by the membership of these group prior to 2005, the data would indicate that 100% of the pubic supported anti vivisection.One of the main reasons as to why the pluralist image of group politics is bad, is that it doesn’t simply just disperse power more widely and empower ordinary citizen s, pressure groups simply tend to empower the powerful even more and it therefore increases political inequality. Pluralists argue back and say that political in equality is broadly democratic, in that most successful groups are the ones with the large membership base however in reality, the most powerful pressure groups are the one which have the most money, so this is another reason as to why pressure groups undermine democracy, because they increase political inequality.In conclusion I believe that there are several ways in which pressure groups do undermine democracy, however I agree with the pluralist view that allowing a wide range of beliefs and ideologies to flourish promotes democracy, mainly by educating the public into making informal judgements on current affairs.

Zoe’s Tale PART III Chapter Twenty-Four

I entered the storage deck of the other Obin ship. â€Å"So this is the human who has an entire race to do her bidding,† said the Consu waiting there for me. It was the only place on the Obin ship where he would fit, I guessed. I smiled in spite of myself. â€Å"You laugh at me,† the Consu said. It spoke perfect English, and in a light, gentle voice, which was weird considering how much it looked like a large and savagely angry insect. â€Å"I'm sorry,† I said. â€Å"It's just that it's the second time in a day that someone's said that to me.† â€Å"Well,† the Consu said. It unfolded itself in a way that made me want to run screaming in the other direction, and from somewhere inside its body a creepily humanlike arm and hand beckoned to me. â€Å"Come and let me get a look at you.† I took one step forward and then had a very difficult time with the next step. â€Å"You asked for me, human,† the Consu said. I developed a spine and walked over to the Consu. It touched and prodded me with its smaller arms, while its giant slashing arms, the ones the Consu used to decapitate enemies in combat, hovered on either side of me, at just about head level. I managed not to completely lose it. â€Å"Yes, well,† the Consu said, and I heard something like disappointment in its voice. â€Å"There's nothing particularly special about you, is there? Physically. Is there something special about you mentally?† â€Å"No,† I said. â€Å"I'm just me.† â€Å"We're all just ourselves,† the Consu said, and folded itself back into its self, much to my relief. â€Å"That is axiomatic. What is it about you that makes hundreds of Obin allow themselves to die to get to me, is what I am asking.† I felt sick again. â€Å"You said that hundreds of Obin died to bring you to me?† â€Å"Oh, yes,† the Consu said. â€Å"Your pets surrounded my ship with their own and tried to board it. The ship killed everyone that tried. They remained persistent and finally I became curious. I allowed one to board the ship and it told me that you had demanded the Obin convince the Consu to help you. I wanted to see for myself what sort of creature could so casually demand this, and could cause the Obin to fulfill it at such a cost to themselves.† It looked at me again curiously. â€Å"You appear upset,† it said. â€Å"I'm thinking about the Obin who died,† I said. â€Å"They did what you asked of them,† the Consu said, with a bored tone. â€Å"You didn't have to kill so many of them,† I said. â€Å"Your pets didn't have to offer up so many to sacrifice,† said the Consu. â€Å"And yet they did. You seem stupid so I will explain this to you. Your pets, to the extent that they can think, did this intelligently. The Consu will not speak to the Obin for their own behalf. We answered their questions long ago and it does not interest us to speak further on the subject.† â€Å"But you spoke to the Obin,† I said. â€Å"I am dying,† the Consu said. â€Å"I am on† – and here the Consu made a noise that sounded like a tractor falling down a hill – â€Å"the death journey that Consu prepared to move forward are permitted if in this life they have proven worthy. Consu on this journey may do as they please, including speaking to proscribed creatures, and may if asked appropriately grant a final boon. Your pets have spied on the Consu for decades – we were aware of this but did nothing about it – and knew the route of the death journey and knew the ceremonial ships those on the journey travel in. Your pets understood this was the only way they could talk to us. And your pets knew what it would require to interest me or any Consu enough to hear them. You should have known this when you made your demand.† â€Å"I didn't,† I said. â€Å"Then you are foolish, human,† the Consu said. â€Å"If I were inclined to feel sorry for the Obin, I would do so because they had wasted their effort and diverted me from my journey on the behalf of someone so ignorant of the cost. But I do not feel sorry for them. They at least knew the cost, and willingly paid it. Now. You will either tell me how you demand I help you, or I will go and your pets' deaths will have truly been for nothing.† â€Å"I need help to save my colony,† I said, and forced myself to focus. â€Å"My friends and family are there and are under threat of attack. It is a small colony and not able to defend itself. The Colonial Union will not help us. The Obin are not allowed to help us. The Consu have technology that could help us. I ask for your help.† â€Å"You said ‘ask,'† the Consu said. â€Å"Your pets said ‘demand.'† â€Å"I demanded help from the Obin because I knew I could,† I said. â€Å"I am asking you.† â€Å"I do not care about your colony or you,† the Consu said. â€Å"You just said that as part of your death journey you can grant a boon,† I said. â€Å"This could be it.† â€Å"It may be that my boon was to the Obin, in speaking to you,† the Consu said. I blinked at this. â€Å"How would it be a boon to them just to speak to me if you won't at least think of helping me?† I said. â€Å"Then it would be you who wasted their sacrifice and effort.† â€Å"That is my choice,† the Consu said. â€Å"The Obin understood that in making the sacrifice the answer might be ‘no.' This is another thing they understand that you don't.† â€Å"I know there is a lot I don't understand here,† I said. â€Å"I can see that. I'm sorry. But I still need help for my family and friends.† â€Å"How many family and friends?† the Consu said. â€Å"My colony has twenty-five hundred people,† I said. â€Å"A similar number of Obin died in order to bring me here,† the Consu said. â€Å"I didn't know that would happen,† I said. â€Å"I wouldn't have asked for that.† â€Å"Is that so?† the Consu said. It shifted its bulk and drew in toward me. I didn't back away. â€Å"I don't believe you, human. You are foolish and you are ignorant, that much is clear. Yet I cannot believe that even you did not understand what you were asking the Obin for when you asked them to come to us for your sake. You demanded help from the Obin because you could. And because you could you did not ask the cost. But you had to have known the cost would be high.† I didn't know what to say to that. The Consu drew back and seemed to regard me, like it might an amusing insect. â€Å"Your capriciousness and callousness with the Obin interests me,† it said. â€Å"And so does the fact that the Obin are willing to give of themselves for your whims despite your lack of care for them.† I said something I knew I was going to regret, but I couldn't help myself. The Consu was doing a really excellent job of pushing my buttons. â€Å"That's a funny thing coming from someone from the race that gave the Obin intelligence but no consciousness,† I said. â€Å"As long as we're talking about capriciousness and callousness.† â€Å"Ah. Yes, that's right,† the Consu said. â€Å"The Obin told me this. You're the child of the human who made the machines that let the Obin play at consciousness.† â€Å"They don't play at it,† I said. â€Å"They have it.† â€Å"And it is a terrible thing that they do,† the Consu said. â€Å"Consciousness is a tragedy. It leads the whole race away from perfection, causes it to fritter its efforts on individual and wasteful effort. Our lives as Consu are spent learning to free our race from the tyranny of self, to move beyond ourselves and in doing so move our race forward. It is why we help you lesser races along, so you may also free yourselves in time.† I bit my cheek at this bit. The Consu would sometimes come down to a human colony, wipe it and everyone in it off the face of their planet, and then wait for the Colonial Defense Forces to come and fight them. It was a game to the Consu, as far as any of us could see. To say that they were doing it for our benefit was perverse, to say the least. But I was here to ask for help, not debate morals. I had already been baited once. I didn't dare let it happen again. The Consu continued, oblivious to my personal struggles. â€Å"What you humans have done to the Obin makes a mockery of their potential,† it said. â€Å"We created the Obin to be the best among us all, the one race without consciousness, the one race free to pursue its destiny as a race from its first steps. The Obin were meant to be what we aspired to. To see them aspire to consciousness is to see a creature that can fly aspire to wallow in mud. Your father did the Obin no favors, human, in hobbling them with consciousness.† I stood there for a minute, amazed that this Consu would tell me, in seemingly casual conversation, things that the Obin had sacrificed half their number for so many years ago but were never allowed to hear. The Consu waited patiently for my response. â€Å"The Obin would disagree,† I said. â€Å"And so would I.† â€Å"Of course you would,† the Consu said. â€Å"Their love of their consciousness is what makes them willing to do the ridiculous for you. That and the fact that they choose to honor you for something that your father did, even though you had no hand in it. This blindness and honor is convenient to you. It is what you use to get them to do what you want. You don't prize their consciousness for what it gives them. You prize it for what it allows you to do to them.† â€Å"That's not true,† I said. â€Å"Indeed,† said the Consu, and I could hear the mocking tone in its voice. It shifted its weight again. â€Å"Very well, human. You have asked me to help you. Perhaps I will. I can provide you with a boon, one the Consu may not refuse. But this boon is not free. It comes with a cost attached.† â€Å"What cost?† I said. â€Å"I want to be entertained first,† the Consu said. â€Å"So I offer you this bargain. You have among you several hundred Obin. Select one hundred of them in any way you choose. I will ask the Consu to send one hundred of our own – convicts, sinners, and others who have strayed from the path and would be willing to attempt redemption. We will set them at each other, to the death. â€Å"In the end, one side will have a victory. If it is yours, then I will help you. If it is mine, I will not. And then, having been sufficiently amused, I will be on my way, to continue my death journey. I will call to the Consu now. Let us say that in eight of your hours we will start this entertainment. I trust that will be enough time for you to prepare your pets.† â€Å"We will have no problem finding a hundred volunteers among the Obin,† Dock said to me. It and I were in the conference room General Gau had lent me. Hickory and Dickory stood outside the door to make sure we weren't disturbed. â€Å"I will have the volunteers ready for you within the hour.† â€Å"Why didn't you tell me how the Obin planned to get the Consu to me?† I asked. â€Å"The Consu here told me that hundreds of Obin died to get him here. Why didn't you warn me that would happen?† â€Å"I did not know how we would choose to try to get the Consu's attention,† Dock said. â€Å"I sent along your requirement, along with my own assent. I was not a participant in making the choice.† â€Å"But you knew this could happen,† I said. â€Å"As a member of the Council I know that we have had the Consu under observation, and that there had been plans to find ways to talk to them again,† Dock said. â€Å"I knew this was one of them.† â€Å"Why didn't you tell me?† I said. â€Å"I told you that attempting to speak to the Consu would come at a high cost,† Dock said. â€Å"This was the cost. At the time, the cost did not seem too high for you.† â€Å"I didn't know that it would mean that hundreds of Obin would die,† I said. â€Å"Or that they would just keep throwing themselves into a Consu firing line until the Consu got curious enough to stop. If I had known I would have asked you to try something else.† â€Å"Given what you required us to do and the time in which we had to do it, there was nothing else,† Dock said. It came to me and opened up its hands, like it was trying to make me see something important. â€Å"Please understand, Zoe. We had been planning to petition a Consu on its death journey for a long time now, and for our own reasons. It was one of the reasons we were able to fulfill your requirement at all. Everything was already in place.† â€Å"But it was my order that killed them,† I said. â€Å"It is not your fault that the Consu required their deaths,† Dock said. â€Å"The Obin who were part of the mission had already known what was required to get the attention of the Consu. They were already committed to this task. Your request changed only the timing and the purpose of their mission. But those who participated did so willingly, and understood the reason for doing it. It was their choice.† â€Å"They still did it because I didn't think about what I was asking,† I said. â€Å"They did it because you required our help,† Dock said. â€Å"They would have thought it an honor to do this for you. Just as those who will fight for you now will consider it an honor.† I looked at my hands, ashamed to look at Dock. â€Å"You said that you had already been planning to petition a Consu on its death journey,† I said. â€Å"What were you going to ask?† â€Å"For understanding,† Dock said. â€Å"To know why the Consu kept consciousness away from us. To know why they chose to punish us with its lack.† I looked up at that. â€Å"I know the answer,† I said, and told Dock what the Consu had told me about consciousness and why they chose not to give it to the Obin. â€Å"I don't know if that was the answer you were looking for,† I said. â€Å"But that's what this Consu told me.† Dock didn't say anything. I looked more closely at it, and I could see it was trembling. â€Å"Hey,† I said, and got up from my chair. â€Å"I didn't mean to upset you.† â€Å"I am not upset,† Dock said. â€Å"I am happy. You have given us answers to questions we have been asking since as long as our race has existed. Answers the Consu would not have given us themselves. Answers many of us would have given our lives for.† â€Å"Many of you did give your lives for them,† I said. â€Å"No,† Dock said. â€Å"They gave their lives to help you. There was no expectation of any compensation for the sacrifice. They did it because you required it. You did not have to give us anything in return. But you have given us this.† â€Å"You're welcome,† I said. I was getting embarrassed. â€Å"It's not a big thing. The Consu just told me. I just thought you should know.† â€Å"Consider, Zoe, that this thing that you just thought we should know was something that others would have seen as something to hold over us,† Dock said. â€Å"That they would have sold to us, or denied to us. You gave it freely.† â€Å"After I told you that I required your help and sent hundreds of Obin out to die,† I said, and sat back down. â€Å"Don't make me out to be a hero, Dock. It's not the way I feel right now.† â€Å"I am sorry, Zoe,† Dock said. â€Å"But if you will not be a hero, at least know that you are not a villain. You are our friend.† â€Å"Thank you, Dock,† I said. â€Å"That helps a little.† Dock nodded. â€Å"Now I must go to find the hundred volunteers you seek,† it said, â€Å"and to tell the Council what you have shared with me. Do not worry, Zoe. We will not disappoint you.† â€Å"This is what I have for you on short notice,† General Gau said. He swept an arm through the space station's immense cargo bay. â€Å"This part of the station is just newly constructed. We haven't actually used it for cargo yet. I think it'll suit your purposes.† I stared at the immensity of the space. â€Å"I think so,† I said. â€Å"Thank you, General.† â€Å"It's the least I could do,† General Gau said. â€Å"Considering how you've helped me just recently.† â€Å"Thank you for not holding the Consu invasion against me,† I said. â€Å"On the contrary, it's been a benefit,† Gau said. â€Å"It stopped the battle around the space station before it could get truly horrific. The traitor crews assumed I had called those ships for assistance. They surrendered before I could correct the impression. You helped me quash the rebellion before it could get started.† â€Å"You're welcome,† I said. â€Å"Thank you,† said Gau. â€Å"Now, of course, I would like them to go away. But it's my understanding that they're here to make sure we don't do anything foolish with our Consu guest while he's here. The ships are fighter drones, not even manned, but this is Consu technology. I don't imagine if they opened fire on us we'd stand much of a chance. So we have an enforced peace here at the moment. Since it works for me, not against me, I shouldn't complain.† â€Å"Have you found out any more about Nerbros Eser and what his plans are?† I asked. I didn't feel like thinking about the Consu anymore. â€Å"Yes,† Gau said. â€Å"Lernin has been quite forthcoming now that he's trying to avoid being executed for treason. It's been a wonderful motivator. He tells me that Eser plans to take Roanoke with a small force of soldiers. The idea there is to show that he can take with a hundred soldiers what I couldn't take with four hundred battle cruisers. But ‘take' is the wrong word for it, I'm afraid. Eser plans to destroy the colony and everyone in it.† â€Å"That was your plan too,† I reminded the general. He bobbed his head in what I assumed was an acknowledgment. â€Å"You know by now, I hope, that I would have much preferred not to have killed the colonists,† he said. â€Å"Eser does not intend to offer that option.† I skipped over that piece of data in my head. â€Å"When will he attack?† I asked. â€Å"Soon, I think,† Gau said. â€Å"Lernin doesn't think Eser has assembled his troops yet, but this failed assassination attempt is going to force him to move sooner than later.† â€Å"Great,† I said. â€Å"There's still time,† Gau said. â€Å"Don't give up hope yet, Zoe.† â€Å"I haven't,† I said. â€Å"But I've still got a lot on my mind.† â€Å"Have you found enough volunteers?† Gau asked. â€Å"We have,† I said, and my face tightened up as I said it. â€Å"What's wrong?† Gau said. â€Å"One of the volunteers,† I said, and stopped. I tried again. â€Å"One of the volunteers is an Obin named Dickory,† I said. â€Å"My friend and my bodyguard. When it volunteered I told it no. Demanded that it take back its offer. But it refused.† â€Å"Having it volunteer could be a powerful thing,† Gau said. â€Å"It probably encouraged others to step forward.† I nodded. â€Å"But Dickory is still my friend,† I said. â€Å"Still my family. Maybe it shouldn't make a difference but it does.† â€Å"Of course it makes a difference,† Gau said. â€Å"The reason you're here is to try to keep the people you love from being hurt.† â€Å"I'm asking people I don't know to sacrifice themselves for people I do,† I said. â€Å"That's why you're asking them to volunteer,† Gau said. â€Å"But it seems to me the reason they're volunteering is for you.† I nodded and looked out at the bay, and imagined the fight that was coming. â€Å"I have a proposition for you,† the Consu said to me. The two of us sat in the operations room of the cargo bay, ten meters above the floor of the bay. On the floor were two groups of beings. In the first group were the one hundred Obin who had volunteered to fight for me. In the other group were the one hundred Consu criminals, who would be forced to fight the Obin for a chance to regain their honor. The Consu looked scary big next to the Obin. The contest would be modified hand-to-hand combat: The Obin were allowed a combat knife, while the Consu, with their slashing arms, would fight bare-handed, if you called being able to wield two razor-sharp limbs attached to your own body â€Å"bare-handed.† I was getting very nervous about the Obin's chances. â€Å"A proposition,† the Consu repeated. I glanced over at the Consu, who in himself nearly filled the operations room. He'd been there when I had come up; I wasn't entirely sure how he'd gotten himself through the door. The two of us were there with Hickory and Dock and General Gau, who had taken it upon himself to act as the official arbiter for the contest. Dickory was on the floor. Getting ready to fight. â€Å"Are you interested in hearing it?† the Consu asked. â€Å"We're about to start,† I said. â€Å"It's about the contest,† the Consu said. â€Å"I have a way that you can get what you want without having the contest at all.† I closed my eyes. â€Å"Tell me,† I said. â€Å"I will help you keep your colony safe by providing you a piece of our technology,† the Consu said. â€Å"A machine that produces an energy field that robs projectiles of their momentum. A sapper field. It makes your bullets fall out of the air and sucks the power from missiles before they strike their targets. If you are clever your colony can use it to defeat those who attack it. This is what I am allowed and prepared to give to you.† â€Å"And what do you want in return?† I asked. â€Å"A simple demonstration,† the Consu said. It unfolded and pointed toward the Obin on the floor. â€Å"A demand from you was enough to cause hundreds of Obin to willingly sacrifice themselves for the mere purpose of getting my attention. This power you have interests me. I want to see it. Tell this one hundred to sacrifice themselves here and now, and I will give you what you need in order to save your colony.† â€Å"I can't do that,† I said. â€Å"It is not an issue of whether it is possible,† the Consu said. It leaned its bulk over and then addressed Dock. â€Å"Would the Obin here kill themselves if this human asked it?† â€Å"Without doubt,† Dock said. â€Å"They would not hesitate,† the Consu said. â€Å"No,† Dock said. The Consu turned back to me. â€Å"Then all you need to do is give the order.† â€Å"No,† I said. â€Å"Don't be stupid, human,† the Consu said. â€Å"You have been assured by me that I will assist you. You have been assured by this Obin that your pets here will gladly sacrifice themselves for your benefit, without delay or complaint. You will be assured of helping your family and friends survive imminent attack. And you have done it before. You thought nothing of sending hundred to their death to speak to me. It should not be a difficult decision now.† He waved again toward the floor. â€Å"Tell me honestly, human. Look at your pets, and then look at the Consu. Do you think your pets will be the ones left standing when this is over? Do you want to risk the safety of your friends and family on them? â€Å"I offer you an alternative. It carries no risk. It costs you nothing but your assent. Your pets will not object. They will be happy to do this for you. Simply say that you require this of them. That you demand it of them. And if it makes you feel any better, you can tell them to turn off their consciousness before they kill themselves. Then they will not fear their sacrifice. They will simply do it. They will do it for you. They will do it for what you are to them.† I considered what the Consu had said. I turned to Dock. â€Å"You have no doubt that those Obin would do this for me,† I said. â€Å"There is no doubt,† Dock said. â€Å"They are there to fight at your request, Zoe. They know they may die. They have already accepted that possibility, just as the Obin who sacrificed themselves to bring you this Consu knew what was required of them.† â€Å"And what about you,† I said to Hickory. â€Å"Your friend and partner is down there, Hickory. For ten years, at least, you've spent your life with Dickory. What do you say?† Hickory's trembling was so slight that I almost doubted that I saw it. â€Å"Dickory will do as you ask, Zoe,† Hickory said. â€Å"You should know this already.† It turned away after that. I looked at General Gau. â€Å"I have no advice to offer you,† he said. â€Å"But I am very interested to find out what you choose.† I closed my eyes and I thought of my family. Of John and Jane. Of Savitri, who traveled to a new world with us. I thought of Gretchen and Magdy and the future they could have together. I thought of Enzo and his family and everything that was taken from them. I thought of Roanoke, my home. And I knew what I had to do. I opened my eyes. â€Å"The choice is obvious,† the Consu said. I looked at the Consu and nodded. â€Å"I think you're right,† I said. â€Å"And I think I need to go down and tell them.† I walked to the door of the operations room. As I did, General Gau lightly took my arm. â€Å"Think about what you're doing, Zoe,† Gau said. â€Å"Your choice here matters.† I looked up at the general. â€Å"I know it does,† I said. â€Å"And it's my choice to make.† The general let go of my arm. â€Å"Do what you have to do,† he said. â€Å"Thank you,† I said. â€Å"I think I will.† I left the room and for the next minute tried very hard not to fall down the stairs as I walked down them. I'm happy to say I succeeded. But it was a close thing. I walked toward the group of Obin, who were milling about, some doing exercises, some talking quietly to another or to a small group. As I got closer I tried to locate Dickory and could not. There were too many Obin, and Dickory wasn't somewhere I could easily see him. Eventually the Obin noticed I was walking to them. They quieted and equally quietly formed ranks. I stood there in front of them for a few seconds, trying to see each of the Obin for itself, and not just one of a hundred. I opened my mouth to speak. Nothing would come. My mouth was so dry I could not make words. I closed my mouth, swallowed a couple of times, and tried again. â€Å"You know who I am,† I said. â€Å"I'm pretty sure about that. I only know one of you personally, and I'm sorry about that. I wish I could have known each of you, before you were asked†¦before I asked†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I stopped. I was saying stupid things. It wasn't what I wanted to do. Not now. â€Å"Look,† I said. â€Å"I'm going to tell you some things, and I can't promise it's going to make any kind of sense. But I need to say them to you before†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I gestured at the cargo bay. â€Å"Before all of this.† The Obin all looked at me, whether politely or patiently, I can't say. â€Å"You know why you're here,† I said. â€Å"You're here to fight those Consu over there because I want to try to protect my family and friends on Roanoke. You were told that if you could beat the Consu, I would get the help I needed. But something's changed.† I pointed up to the operations room. â€Å"There's a Consu up there,† I said, â€Å"who tells me that he'll give me what I need to save Roanoke without having to have you fight, and risk losing. All I have to do is tell you to take those knives you were going to use on those Consu, and use them on yourselves. All I have to do is to tell you to kill yourselves. Everyone tells me you'll do it, because of what I am to you. â€Å"And they're right. I'm pretty sure about that, too. I'm certain that if I asked all of you to kill yourselves, you would do it. Because I am your Zoe. Because you've seen me all your lives in the recordings that Hickory and Dickory have made. Because I'm standing here in front of you now, asking you to do it. â€Å"I know you would do this for me. You would.† I stopped for a minute, tried to focus. And then I faced something I'd spent a long time avoiding. My own past. I raised my head again and looked directly at the Obin. â€Å"When I was five, I lived on a space station. Covell. I lived there with my father. One day while he was away from the station for a few days on business, the station was attacked. First by the Rraey. They attacked, and they came in and they rounded up all the people who lived on the station, and they began to kill us. I remember†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I closed my eyes again. â€Å"I remember husbands being taken from their wives and then shot in the halls where everyone could hear,† I said. â€Å"I remember parents begging the Rraey to spare their children. I remember being pushed behind a stranger when the woman who was watching me, the mother of a friend, was taken away. She tried to push away her daughter, too, but she held on to her mother and they were both taken away. If the Rraey had continued much longer, eventually they would have found me and killed me too.† I opened my eyes. â€Å"But then the Obin attacked the station, to take it from the Rraey, who weren't prepared for another fight. And when they cleared the station of the Rraey, they took those of us humans who were left and put us in a common area. I remember being there, with no one looking after me. My father was gone. My friend and her mother were dead. I was alone. â€Å"The space station was a science station, so the Obin looked through the research and they found my father's work. His work on consciousness. And they wanted him to work for them. So they came back to us in the common area and they called out my father's name. But he wasn't on the station. They called his name again and I answered. I said I was his daughter and that he would come for me soon. â€Å"I remember the Obin talking among themselves then, and then telling me to come away. And I remember saying no, because I didn't want to leave the other humans. And I remember what one of the Obin said to me then. It said, ‘You must come with us. You have been chosen, and you will be safe.' â€Å"And I remembered everything that had just happened. And I think even at five years old some part of me knew what would happen to the rest of the people at Covell. And here was the Obin, telling me I would be safe. Because I had been chosen. And I remember taking the Obin's hand, being led away and looking back at the humans who were left. And then they were gone. I never saw them again. â€Å"But I lived,† I said. â€Å"Not because of who I was; I was just this little girl. But because of what I was: the daughter of the man who could give you consciousness. It was the first time that what I was mattered more than who I was. But it wasn't the last.† I looked up at the operations room, trying to see if those in there were listening to me, and wondering what they were thinking. Wondering what Hickory was thinking. And General Gau. I turned back to the Obin. â€Å"What I am still matters more than who I am,† I said. â€Å"It matters more right now. Right this minute. Because of what I am, hundreds of you died to bring just one Consu to see me. Because of what I am, if I ask you to take those knives and plunge them into your bodies, you will do it. Because of what I am. Because of what I have been to you.† I shook my head and looked down at the ground. â€Å"All my life I have accepted that what I am matters,† I said. â€Å"That I had to work with it. Make accommodations for it. Sometimes I thought I could manipulate it, although I just found out the price for that belief. Sometimes I would even fight against it. But never once did I think that I could leave what I was behind. Because I remembered what it got me. How it saved me. I never even thought of giving it up.† I pointed up at the operations room. â€Å"There is a Consu in that operations room who wants me to kill you all, just to show him that I can. He wants me to do it to make a point to me, too – that when it comes down to it, I'm willing to sacrifice all of you to get what I want. Because when it comes down to it, you don't matter. You're just something I can use, a means to an end, a tool for another purpose. He wants me to kill you to rub my face in the fact I don't care. â€Å"And he's right.† I looked into the faces of the Obin. â€Å"I don't know any of you, except for one,† I said. â€Å"I won't remember what any of you look like in a few days, no matter what happens here. On the other hand all the people I love and care for I can see as soon as I close my eyes. Their faces are so clear to me. Like they are here with me. Because they are. I carry them inside me. Like you carry those you care for inside of you. â€Å"The Consu is right that it would be easy to ask you to sacrifice yourselves for me. To tell you to do it so I can save my family and my friends. He's right because I know you would do it without a second thought. You would be happy to do it because it would make me happy – because what I am matters to you. He knows that knowing this will make me feel less guilty for asking you. â€Å"And he's right again. He's right about me. I admit it. And I'm sorry.† I stopped again, and took another moment to pull myself together. I wiped my face. This was going to be the hard part. â€Å"The Consu is right,† I said. â€Å"But he doesn't know the one thing about me that matters right now. And that it is that I am tired of being what I am. I am tired of having been chosen. I don't want to be the one you sacrifice yourself for, because of whose daughter I am or because you accept that I can make demands of you. I don't want that from you. And I don't want you to die for me. â€Å"So forget it. Forget all of this. I release you of your obligation to me. Of any obligation to me. Thank you for volunteering, but you shouldn't have to fight for me. I shouldn't have asked. â€Å"You have already done so much for me. You have brought me here so I could deliver a message to General Gau. He's told me about the plans against Roanoke. It should be enough for us to defend ourselves. I can't ask you for anything else. I certainly can't ask you to fight these Consu and possibly die. I want you to live instead. â€Å"I am done being what I am. From now on I'm just who I am. And who I am is Zoe. Just Zoe. Someone who has no claim on you. Who doesn't require or demand anything from you. And who wants you to be able to make your own choices, not have them made for you. Especially not by me. â€Å"And that's all I have to say.† The Obin stood in front of me, silently, and after a minute I realized that I didn't really know why I was expecting a response. And then for a crazy moment I wondered if they actually even understood me. Hickory and Dickory spoke my language, and I just assumed all the other Obin would, too. That was a pretty arrogant assumption, I realized. So I sort of nodded and turned to go, back up to the operations room, where God only knew what I was going to say to that Consu. And then I heard singing. A single voice, from somewhere in the middle of the pack of Obin. It took up the first words of â€Å"Delhi Morning.† And though that was the part I always sang, I had no trouble recognizing the voice. It was Dickory. I turned and faced the Obin just as a second voice took up the counterpoint, and then another voice came in, and another and another, and soon all one hundred of the Obin were singing, creating a version of the song that was so unlike any I had heard before, so magnificent, that all I could do was stand there and soak in it, let it wash around me, and let it move through me. It was one of those moments that you just can't describe. So I won't try anymore. But I can say I was impressed. These Obin would have known of â€Å"Delhi Morning† for only a few weeks. For them to not only know the song but to perform it flawlessly was nothing short of amazing. I had to get these guys for the next hootenanny. When it was done, all I could do was put my hands to my face and say â€Å"Thank you† to the Obin. And then Dickory came through the ranks to stand in front of me. â€Å"Hey, you,† I said to Dickory. â€Å"Zoe Boutin-Perry,† said Dickory. â€Å"I am Dickory.† I almost said, I know that, but Dickory kept speaking. â€Å"I have known you since you were a child,† it said. â€Å"I have watched you grow and learn and experience life, and through you have learned to experience life myself. I have always known what you are. I tell you truthfully that it is who you are that has mattered to me, and always has. â€Å"It is to you, Zoe Boutin-Perry, that I offer to fight for your family and for Roanoke. I do this not because you have demanded it or required it but because I care for you, and always have. You would honor me if you would accept my assistance.† Dickory bowed, which was a very interesting thing on an Obin. Here was irony: This was the most I had heard Dickory say, ever, and I couldn't think of anything to say in return. So I just said, â€Å"Thank you, Dickory. I accept.† Dickory bowed again and returned to ranks. Another Obin stepped forward and stood before me. â€Å"I am Strike,† it said. â€Å"We have not met before. I have watched you grow through all that Hickory and Dickory have shared with all Obin. I too have always known what you are. What I have learned from you, however, comes from who you are. It is an honor to have met you. It will be an honor to fight for you, your family, and for Roanoke. I offer my assistance to you, Zoe Boutin-Perry, freely and without reservation.† Strike bowed. â€Å"Thank you, Strike,† I said. â€Å"I accept.† And then I impulsively hugged Strike. It actually squeaked in surprise. We unhugged, Strike bowed again, and then returned to ranks just as another Obin came forward. And another. And another. It took a long time to hear each greeting and offer of assistance, and to accept each offer. I can honestly say there was never time better spent. When it was done I stood in front of one hundred Obin again – this time, each a friend. And I bowed my head to them and wished them well, and told them I would see them after. Then I headed back toward the operations room. General Gau was at the bottom of the stairs, waiting for me. â€Å"I have a position for you on my staff, Zoe, if you ever want it,† he said. I laughed. â€Å"I just want to go home, General. Thank you all the same.† â€Å"Some other time, then,† Gau said. â€Å"Now I'm going to preside over this contest. I will be impartial when I'm observing it. But you should know that inside I'm rooting for the Obin. And that's something I never thought I would say.† â€Å"I do appreciate it,† I said, and headed up the stairs. Hickory met me at the door. â€Å"You did what I hoped you would do,† Hickory said. â€Å"I regret not volunteering myself.† â€Å"I don't,† I said, and hugged Hickory. Dock bowed to me; I nodded back. And then I approached the Consu. â€Å"You have my answer,† I said. â€Å"So I have,† the Consu said. â€Å"And it surprises me, human.† â€Å"Good,† I said. â€Å"And the name is Zoe. Zoe Boutin-Perry.† â€Å"Indeed,† the Consu said. He sounded amused at my cheekiness. â€Å"I will remember the name. And have others remember it as well. Although if your Obin do not win this contest, I do not imagine we will have to remember your name for long.† â€Å"You'll remember it for a long time,† I said. â€Å"Because my friends down there are about to clean your clock.† And they did. It wasn't even close.