Democratic Government and School System of Haiti

Democratic Government and School System of Haiti About the paper The given discussion paper is based on the topic ‘Democratic Government and School System of Haiti’. In the given paper, the main focus point is the education system of Haiti, which is an island of West Indies. Due to the adverse condition of the Republic of Haiti, since the independence of the nations, the education system is very ineffective and is the main cause of poverty and lower economic level of the country. In this paper, it is evaluated that with the democratic structure of the education system of Haiti, how can effective measures be taken for a positive impact on the social and intellectual development of the people over there; especially, the youth and the adult populace. The given learning paper is divided into three parts namely the breadth, the depth and the application. All the three parts of this learning paper are interconnected with each other and the discussion of these three parts have a flow of information. In the first part of the discussion paper namely the ‘breadth’, the theories related to education and democracy and are analyzed. The theories suggested in the given paper are given by Jean Jacques Rousseau, John Dewey and Jean Piaget. The concept of these theories is based on the formation of the organizational structure of Haiti. In addition to this, the Historical perspective of Haiti and its struggle for the imposition of the educational practices and values of the western countries is also described in the same section of the paper. With the use of the given theoretical framework, interlink between the race, education and democratic governance is also analyzed in the same segment of the discussion paper (Investing in Ins truction for Higher Student Achievement, 2003). The next segment of the learning paper is the ‘depth’. In this part of the paper, the annotated bibliography of a series of the current scholarly articles is made. The articles selected are related to the subject of democratic governance in Caribbean, especially, in context with Haiti. In addition to this, the current political events occurred in Haiti are also discussed in the same section of the paper. Also, the impact of the outside consequences on the governance of Haiti and Caribbean is also evaluated in the same paper and the effect of these governances on the poverty rates of these regions is also being explored in the same section of paper. The third and last section of the paper, which is the ‘application section’; the theories of democratic governance are analyzed with the foreign and economic affairs of the United States on the education sector of Haiti. In addition to this, the societal and economical indexes of the Haiti and Caribbean and the effect of internal governance factors or the pressure of the global business organizations of the United States on these indexes, is also included. The several other alternatives for the democratic governance are also investigated in the series, which were given by the three theorists in the first section of the discussion paper. Introduction Haiti, which is an island situated in the West Indies. The official name of Haiti is the ‘Republic of Haiti’. This is a Caribbean country, which is considered as a French speaking nation or Creole is also followed by the citizens of Haiti. This republican nation is located in the west side of the island of Hispaniola. The country was not independent, since its origin and got recognition as an independent nation in 1804 from France. In that period, this island was considered as the lowest country on the literacy level and the most deficient country among the entire hemisphere of west side. During the 1990s, Haiti was aimed for the establishment of the democracy by the international community (Haiti, 2009). From the population point of view, Haiti is counted among the highly populated nations of the world. Of the modern times, Haiti is figured as the ‘first independent nation of blacks’. During the period of nineteenth and twentieth century, several numbers of struggles were experienced in Haiti. Among the major struggles, the struggle for gaining more power by the several classes of the nations and struggle for the negligence of the advancements in the filed of social and economic aspects. These efforts gave birth to the several types of occupations in the military of the United States. The occupations were mainly promoted during the period of 1915 and lasted till the year 1934. At the end of the twentieth century, the Republic of Haiti restored democracy. This was executed in the year 1987, when a new ‘Constitution’ was ratified and a Bicameral Parliament was elected in Haiti. In this governmental system, the head of the states were the Prime Minister and the President. The President used to appoint a Supreme Court (Florà ©n-Romero, 2008). The governmental system of Haiti is categorized into three sections namely the Executive, Legislative and Judicial Government. There is one ‘Senate’ consisting of 30 seats and a ‘Chamber of Deputies’ comprising of 99 seats in the legislative section of the government. The term of these two sections of the legislative governments, is for six years and four years. The other section of the government, which is the executive power, is headed by the President of the Republic. The President is considered the head of the state and the head of the government is the Prime Minister. The third section of the government, which is the judicial power, is coordinated by the Supreme Court. The Democratic government had a great impact on the school system of Haiti. In the earlier period in Haiti, there were no uniform schedules for the schools. This is because in those times, the school system of Haiti was aided by the privately run schools. During that period, the population of the students rose with a great speed. Moreover, there were no arrangements of faculties in the schools and the schools lacked the equipments used for the educational purpose. The school timings were also shortened due to the ineffective system of education. The school systems of Haiti in the past periods had to serve the different groups of pupils. As periodic changes, schools were firstly developed in Haiti in the year 1905, after the emerging of the Constitution. The Constitution prescribed for the ‘compulsory primary education’ that was free of cost. The primary schools of the rural areas were created with several limitations; specifically, agricultural degree program with the introduction of the ‘Education Act’ of the year 1848. Later, the educational system was encouraged by the leaders of post colonial period of the Haiti; but the development of a comprehensive and convenient school system was not possible. Still, there are no means for education, as there are no provisions of the formal educations for the majority of Haitians. On the other hand, the primary school education is given to the small minority groups (Haitians— Their History and Culture, 2004). The Democratic government of Haiti made sincere and continuous efforts for the provision of better education to its people. Though, the efforts of the Haitian Government were much effective, yet, the results of the efforts, of the government were not according to the desired level. There was a great requirement of the initiation of a sincere reform and through the establishment of that reform; the country could utilize ‘education’ as an instrument for the enhanced growth of the nation. There were no clear signs to show the education as a focused point for the basic requirements of the country. In that period, the preferences of the Haiti population were not towards the public education governance; this was because, in those years, the Haitians were only interested to send the upper class children to the schools. And for the purpose of study, they used to go France and they were recognized as French people (Haiti Educational System-Overview, 2009). The entire education system of Haitians was fully based on ‘Racialism’. There was an in-depth tendency among the Haitian Communities regarding the education of the society. The formal system of the education in Haiti was fully designed in such a way, that there were two classes of the community namely the urban elites and others. The urban elites were very few of the total population, about 20% and only they were supposed to have education; while the other 80% population in the countryside, was fully neglected from such kinds of right of education. This error in the Haitian education system was required to be reformed by the administrative affairs. The students were required to given education through proper system with the provision of classrooms (Hanus, 1997). There was a completely formal system of education. In that system, the kids of age group of 4 to 6 years were sent to the private schools for getting the primary education. This system was traditionally considered by only those families, which were capable to afford the payment of the education. There were no changes in the scenario due to the decree held in the year 1982. The decree put stress on the democratic principles of the government accessible at the universal level. There were no effective facilities in the public schools for the children. The classrooms in the public schools were overcrowded, which are still in the same position. There were no means of security, comfort and hygiene facilities for the children. In the schools, there were no provision of drinking water for the children, no electricity facilities and no space for the recreational purpose of the students. The schools were far away from the localities; due to that the students had to walk several miles for acquiring education. The faculties were not sincere towards their work due to ‘absenteeism’ or were late from their duties, as they had to face the same problem, as was faced by the children. For the reformation of the educational system of Haiti, there have been made several efforts in the recent years (Rotberg, 1997). The aim of these reforms is to make the system of education easily accessible to the poor, in order to fulfill their needs and making changes in their social structures (Bourdieu Passeron, 1990). But these reforms could not be successful at the optimum level and as a consequence, most of the parts of Haiti remained having the old system of education. The main efforts to make changes in the educational system were brought in 1970s. An effective change was made in the year 1978, when the urban and rural primary schools were united and their provisions were protected by the DEN (National Department of Education). After this period, the whole education system was restructured. In the new system of education, the basic education for ten years became essential in addition to the secondary education of three years. Several effective changes were made in the educational materials and the course of study. The major change made in this period was the adoption of the ‘Haitian Creole’ as a basic language for the instructional purpose. In such condition of ineffective education system, the democratic governance is required to have some effective measures, in order to make amendments in the situation of the educational practices. For the purpose of sustainable developments in the long run and for the reduction of the poverty, the democratic governance is the most important and essential measure. In the foreign policy of Canada, the democratic governance is considered as a pillar. The CIDA (Canadian International Development Agency) does several works for the purpose of handling the problem of poverty, by the provision of education to all the people equally and make the improvements in the sources of livelihood of the general people. The concept of democratic governance was also applied by CIDA in Haiti. CIDA established about 9000 centers for voting and gave registration to about more than 3.5 million of people for voting in the election of the year 2006. In the strengthening of the democratic institutions also, CIDA played an important role in Haiti. It established Haitian Parliament and other several Ministries in the form of democratic institution for the advancement of the educational level in Haiti. For the increasing level of access in the scope of primary education in Haiti, CIDA provided a great support. These efforts were made by CIDA for the development of the socially excluded children, in order to improve and protect them from the child labor and other risky activities (Democratic Governance in the Americas: Canada’s Role, 2007). For the improvement of the worsened condition of Haiti, education can prove to be a corner stone. For the development of the democratic way of life in the nation, transformation and advancement of the Haitian education system in the government, as well as, the general public of Haiti is essential. It is clear now, that for the improvement in the situation of the human rights in Haiti, there is a great requirement of the acquisition of the democratic government. As a step in this field, a development of the US policy is made for the strengthening and nurturing the democracy in governance. This also helps in the improvement in the illiteracy level and alleviation of the poverty. This policy provides assistance to the citizens of Haiti by the provision of effective services in the filed of health and education. The Breadth This is the first and the most important section of the discussion paper. In this section, the main focus is given to the theories of the democratic governance. The concept of these theories is focusing on the democracy and education system. The theories discussed here, are given by Jean Jacques Rousseau, John Dewey and Jean Piaget. All these three are the great philosophers of their own time. All these have given several views on the issue of democratic governance and the education system. The views of these theorists have a great implication in the school system of Haiti, to structure the education system, with the full integration of the aspects of democracy, given by all these three creative theorists and the interaction of both these aspects with each other. Theories of Democratic Governance Education The democratic governance has a great integration with the consensus of the society, as it is a long extent of procedures, which assists the society in the implementation of the better social and regulatory decisions such as government policies and laws, social justice, social welfare, human rights, protection of different sources of environment etc. For this purpose, several institutions or organizations are developed in different nations. In this series, the governing bodies included are the legislature, executive bodies, judiciary, private organizations, political parties, educational institutes and several other major bodies. In short, it can be summarized that the democratic governance is an essential provision to bring equality and fairness for the entire mass of the citizens in the matters of social aspects, education, livelihood and other social and economic aspects. The education and role of democratic governance in education are the two important aspects, which are viewed by the several numbers of theorists in the world. The concept of democratic education is a very composite philosophy for the purpose of learning and governance of the educational institutes such as the primary and secondary schools. In democratic education, there is a provision of the free participation of the school students and the faculty members in the democracy of the schools on an equal level. In these kind of educational centers, there is found a decision making process, which is based on decision sharing. The decision making is shared by the school students and the faculty members. In the democratic education, the decisions made are related to the working environment of the schools, way of teaching and learning of the students and several other concerning issues. Though, the contribution of all the theorists in this field has equal importance; yet, there are three theorists, who have contributed a lot in the field of democratic education. These theorists are: Jean Jacques Rousseau John Dewey and Jean Piaget The theories of these theorists are being given for the education system and democracy. The theories given by them have a great implication for the development of the democratic education in the Republic of Haiti. Theory of Rousseau Jean Jacques Rousseau was a great Philosopher of his own time. Rousseau composed several articles, philosophies and theories on politics and education. He emphasized on the thoughts of the modern aspects of politics and education. A great contribution was given by Rousseau for the support of the various educational methods, which put emphasis on the separation of the children from the society. The purpose of this implementation by Rousseau was to make the children capable of handling the adverse conditions of the environment by making them enable to handle them, to a great extent. According to Rousseau, the problems recognized by him were very unusual, as this was recognized that in the field of teaching and education, there was a problem of legitimation. Rousseau suggested in this theory of democratic education, that there is a great requirement for the adults to be honest with their children. The adults according to Rousseau were required not to conceal the realities that they have the power to make their children forced for education, as they have this as a physical compulsion. According to him, when the children grow up till a certain age group, they themselves become engaged in the activities of their own processes. According to Rousseau, human beings are born in free conditions; but after being a part of this society, they are bound with the chains of social regulations. At some points, where a requirement of the executive bodies is essential to accomplish a law, both the theories of Rousseau namely ‘Educational Theory’ and the ‘Political Theory’ appear to be integrated. According to Rousseau, in all the human beings, there exists a congenital capacity to grow. This capacity of development resides in our internal body organs and the faculties of the schools and learning institutions help in the further development of these capacities. Rousseau stated that if the natural tendencies of the humans are permitted to develop without any kind of limitations, the individuals can reach to a state of exemption and happiness. This is given a particular term by Rousseau namely ‘Education of nature’. In contrast to his own statement, Rousseau proclaims that without the provision of the freeness and happiness the human kinds can not have moral excellence. Without virtue, the man can have only happiness; but he will lack his worthiness. According to him, the man gives a great importance to virtue. The capacity of the man for worthiness is the special trait of human beings, which makes him distinguished from the creatures. The animals are free to live in their natural habitats and they are happy; but they do not have virtues of their own (Dewey, 2005). Rousseau is an educational reformer, who prescribed that there are three sources through which, we can get education. These three sources are the nature, other human beings and the non- living things. With the education, which we acquire from the nature, the human being can develop his internal organs, as well as, the inner capabilities. With the education acquired by the human beings, we come to know, the ways to implement the education acquired by the nature. From the things, which are found in the surroundings of the human beings, they have several kinds of personal experiences through which, they make developments in their personalities. There is a state at which the man can achieve this real goal. This is the state, when all the three types of education gained by man, becomes harmonized and aims for the same target. For the complete growth of a man, the aggregation of the above three kinds of education, is a very essential aspect according to Rousseau. The statements given by Ro usseau constitute the underlying truths about the education in alignment with some developments (Snauwaert, 1993). Rousseau stated that the educative development is based on the three important factors namely: The operative natural process and the structure of the internal body organs of the human beings. The application of the activities performed by the internal organs of the human beings, which are influenced by the behavior of the other persons. The interaction of the human beings with the environment in a direct way. Theory of Dewey The next theory related to education and democracy is given by John Dewey. He was also a great Philosopher of his own time. He gained popularity due to his contribution as an ‘Educational Reformer’ in America. The thoughts and ideas given by John Dewey influenced the standards of education in the United States of America and the other parts of the world; such as Haiti. The inner qualities of Dewey made him enthusiastic democrat and he stated that the success of the democracy is only possible, when, the people of a particular region, are well developed on the basis of the educational abilities These are the democratic thoughts, which include the ideas about the interaction of the education and democracy. In the first half of the twentieth century, a great influence of the ‘Educational Theory’ of John Dewey was seen. The democracy does not have a single meaning. According to Dewey, the democracy has a different meaning, which he stated in the report of the mission started by him, as a part of the educative mission. This aim to provide this new definition of the democracy was to present the new ideas of the education in concern with the democracy. According to Dewey, Democracy is not a kind of faith; rather it has a very simple meaning. In this sense, the energies of men can be tuned, when; they have the full fledged permission to show their varying qualities. According to him, Democracy does not have a faraway goal for human beings; but is a very easy way to have a spirit of freedom, among all the individuals. The essence of this kind of freedom is the individuals’ responsibility for the every aspect of their development. In the same report, the views of Dewey about the nature of democratic education are also included. According to this report, in a democracy, the development of an educational system for the development and sustaining of life depends on the actual worth and the dignity of the individuals and the proper identification of these two traits of the individuals. This is organized in such a way, that the entire individuals can have equal opportunities of gaining education according to their own abilities and knowledge level of having the education. For the critical analysis, the democracy provides the freedom of inquiry to the individuals and special training to them for the purpose of the critical analysis. The democratic education has the capability to promote the broad and conceptual discussion of all the information, based on facts that in the educational environment of great competence, the students have varying development stages. Such kind of broad discussion are not possible to be promoted in an educational environment; where the students are given only a limited prescribed syllabus for the basic studies and only some particular course materials are given for the study purpose. It is also stated by Dewey, that the uniformity and the standardization are not only two aspects on the basis of which, the degree of success of education in a democracy can be measured. This should be the obligation of the education that through its provision, all the individuals become cooperative and responsible for the society. The abstract of the democratic education is to promote the development of the democratic citizens, who can have the feeling of regarding the rights of other individuals in accordance with the fulfillment of their own obligations, towards the society by the observation of the different rationales of the democracy including equivalence of equals, rule of majority and different ideas of individuals. On this basis, the individuals can demand for the provision of their own rights and positive results of their efforts, for the perfection in the personality of the individuals. The democratic education has a very effective objective of the establishment of the perfection in the personality of the individual regarding their character and the development of more and more members in the society, who are much responsible for the well- being of the society. There were considered two important factors in the theory of democratic education by Dewey. These two factors are the civil society and the schools. These are the two important areas, which need special attention for the promotion of the intelligence on the basis of experimental studies. According to Dewey, to construct the civil society again in a different form, there is a keen requirement of the complete democracy. This level of complete democracy can’t be gained only by the extension of the rights of voting for the individuals, but it also needs the assurance that, there should be an equal opinion of all the individuals for the policies framed in the democracy in any field of human development. According to Dewey, the education does not only mean a formal education; but it calls that the people should have equal level of knowledge intelligence, for the generation of the beneficial laws and for the generation of the appropriate judgments. According to Dewey, the education gives the life effective growth and development without any formal element. In the reciprocal of this term, the democracy should be in the form of a social system based on education. In other words, a democratic society is the society, in which, there is an enormous role of education in the growth and development of the citizens. The inverse arrangement of this type of society is that, there should be provision of the education and the requirement of the further education by the means of self governance. The desire of democracy is realized in the presence of several other factors. America as a good democratic nation, has realized the power of democracy with a great success. But Dewey did not have clear facts about the establishment of democracy in America. According to him, demarcates are the individuals, who consider that instead of giving any training for a particular task and turning the perception of the individuals for their growth and development, education is the better way to reach such goals. In education, the major role is played by the Educators. According to them, the democracy is a type of social system, in which the Educators greatly encourage the growth of the individuals and help the people to have an association of free and inducing behavior for others. According to Dewey, in such a social system, the individuals can have positive growth. Dewey states that ‘Democracy’ cannot be considered only as a governmental structure, but is a social organizational system of a distributive nature. In such a system of democracy, all the individuals are free to combine their actions and thus, generate an induced mixture of the human interests with the inclusion of several cultural perspectives. In a democracy, all the values and aims of the different individuals challenge each other and they work for the achievement of some uncertain results. In this kind of system, the new approaches are generated for the attainment of these results. The life is a long and continuous process. In this process, the formal education acts an integral part. The formal education executes several works for us, as it directs the human beings to tread some constructive paths. In the views of Dewey, the philosophical methodology and the educational exercises; both are the two equivalent aspects. In the educational institutions, it is learnt by the students that to have affection for any kind of subject matter or text matter is not important, but important is the process through which, the knowledge related to that particular area can be derived. In regards to the field of education and democracy, two other aspects can also be considered as equally important. The first aspect is linked with the communication philosophy given by Dewey and the other one is the consideration of the theory of education, quite similar to the communication theory. In this way, Dewey has proved that the concept of communication and education has dual interaction with each other. This is why; the concept of ‘Democratic education’ is specially focused in the theory of Dewey. Both the concepts of the Dewey’s theory namely education and democracy has clear indication towards the concept of democracy. The concept of communication denotes the sharing of the common interests of the general people; but it puts emphasis on the identification of the co-relative interests of the people as an aspect of the administration. The concept of education focuses that; there should be organization of the social groups, which have free interaction among each other. These social groups can also make modifications in the habits of the social groups by the frequent readjustments according to the new situations, which are produced because of the changing conditions of the society. The social groups, which are constituted on the basis of the democracy, are mainly characterized by these two specific traits. The democratic societies are more interested in the systematic education, rather than other social groups; because in such a society, the people have actualization of the way of life in which, the interests of the people are diffused with each other and they have positive attitude towards the re-adjustment and progress. In such social groups, the education seems to have a great devotion on the part of democracy. In regards with a democratic government, it is said that those governments, which stand upon the right of voting are not the fully successful governments, if the general citizens of a particular democracy are not well- educated. In the democratic societies, the explanations of the external authority are repudiated, if these are not created on the basis of the educational aspects. Democracy is not only a type of government but, this can be considered as the affiliated system of living in which the people are linked with their transmitted experiences. Democracy is characterized by two aspects such as distributed pertains of people and attempting the larger varieties of the capabilities, of the individuals. These two characteristics of the democracy are not generated through the intended efforts of the individuals or their planning; but are considered to be developed by the intercommunication, immigration and business activity among the people, which are carried out by the facts of science over innate force. In general terms, if the stratification of a society into two different classes is considered mortal, it should be analyzed then, that all the intellectual possibilities of the society are approachable by all the individual members of the society in a convenient way. The democratic societies, which are divided into different classes, are required to give the specific education to all its constituents incorporated in the ruling section. There are some social groups, which are completely mobile. In such societies, the member persons should be fully educated, so that, they can adapt the newer conditions easily. If they are not become able to adapt the newer situations, the new changes overcome the different areas of these societies, which were not comprehended by them. Dewey also gave a philosophy of ‘Platonic education’. In this theory, the implication of the different ideas, of democracy in the education, is discussed (Campbell, 1996). In the educational field, the most permanent inher Democratic Government and School System of Haiti Democratic Government and School System of Haiti About the paper The given discussion paper is based on the topic ‘Democratic Government and School System of Haiti’. In the given paper, the main focus point is the education system of Haiti, which is an island of West Indies. Due to the adverse condition of the Republic of Haiti, since the independence of the nations, the education system is very ineffective and is the main cause of poverty and lower economic level of the country. In this paper, it is evaluated that with the democratic structure of the education system of Haiti, how can effective measures be taken for a positive impact on the social and intellectual development of the people over there; especially, the youth and the adult populace. The given learning paper is divided into three parts namely the breadth, the depth and the application. All the three parts of this learning paper are interconnected with each other and the discussion of these three parts have a flow of information. In the first part of the discussion paper namely the ‘breadth’, the theories related to education and democracy and are analyzed. The theories suggested in the given paper are given by Jean Jacques Rousseau, John Dewey and Jean Piaget. The concept of these theories is based on the formation of the organizational structure of Haiti. In addition to this, the Historical perspective of Haiti and its struggle for the imposition of the educational practices and values of the western countries is also described in the same section of the paper. With the use of the given theoretical framework, interlink between the race, education and democratic governance is also analyzed in the same segment of the discussion paper (Investing in Ins truction for Higher Student Achievement, 2003). The next segment of the learning paper is the ‘depth’. In this part of the paper, the annotated bibliography of a series of the current scholarly articles is made. The articles selected are related to the subject of democratic governance in Caribbean, especially, in context with Haiti. In addition to this, the current political events occurred in Haiti are also discussed in the same section of the paper. Also, the impact of the outside consequences on the governance of Haiti and Caribbean is also evaluated in the same paper and the effect of these governances on the poverty rates of these regions is also being explored in the same section of paper. The third and last section of the paper, which is the ‘application section’; the theories of democratic governance are analyzed with the foreign and economic affairs of the United States on the education sector of Haiti. In addition to this, the societal and economical indexes of the Haiti and Caribbean and the effect of internal governance factors or the pressure of the global business organizations of the United States on these indexes, is also included. The several other alternatives for the democratic governance are also investigated in the series, which were given by the three theorists in the first section of the discussion paper. Introduction Haiti, which is an island situated in the West Indies. The official name of Haiti is the ‘Republic of Haiti’. This is a Caribbean country, which is considered as a French speaking nation or Creole is also followed by the citizens of Haiti. This republican nation is located in the west side of the island of Hispaniola. The country was not independent, since its origin and got recognition as an independent nation in 1804 from France. In that period, this island was considered as the lowest country on the literacy level and the most deficient country among the entire hemisphere of west side. During the 1990s, Haiti was aimed for the establishment of the democracy by the international community (Haiti, 2009). From the population point of view, Haiti is counted among the highly populated nations of the world. Of the modern times, Haiti is figured as the ‘first independent nation of blacks’. During the period of nineteenth and twentieth century, several numbers of struggles were experienced in Haiti. Among the major struggles, the struggle for gaining more power by the several classes of the nations and struggle for the negligence of the advancements in the filed of social and economic aspects. These efforts gave birth to the several types of occupations in the military of the United States. The occupations were mainly promoted during the period of 1915 and lasted till the year 1934. At the end of the twentieth century, the Republic of Haiti restored democracy. This was executed in the year 1987, when a new ‘Constitution’ was ratified and a Bicameral Parliament was elected in Haiti. In this governmental system, the head of the states were the Prime Minister and the President. The President used to appoint a Supreme Court (Florà ©n-Romero, 2008). The governmental system of Haiti is categorized into three sections namely the Executive, Legislative and Judicial Government. There is one ‘Senate’ consisting of 30 seats and a ‘Chamber of Deputies’ comprising of 99 seats in the legislative section of the government. The term of these two sections of the legislative governments, is for six years and four years. The other section of the government, which is the executive power, is headed by the President of the Republic. The President is considered the head of the state and the head of the government is the Prime Minister. The third section of the government, which is the judicial power, is coordinated by the Supreme Court. The Democratic government had a great impact on the school system of Haiti. In the earlier period in Haiti, there were no uniform schedules for the schools. This is because in those times, the school system of Haiti was aided by the privately run schools. During that period, the population of the students rose with a great speed. Moreover, there were no arrangements of faculties in the schools and the schools lacked the equipments used for the educational purpose. The school timings were also shortened due to the ineffective system of education. The school systems of Haiti in the past periods had to serve the different groups of pupils. As periodic changes, schools were firstly developed in Haiti in the year 1905, after the emerging of the Constitution. The Constitution prescribed for the ‘compulsory primary education’ that was free of cost. The primary schools of the rural areas were created with several limitations; specifically, agricultural degree program with the introduction of the ‘Education Act’ of the year 1848. Later, the educational system was encouraged by the leaders of post colonial period of the Haiti; but the development of a comprehensive and convenient school system was not possible. Still, there are no means for education, as there are no provisions of the formal educations for the majority of Haitians. On the other hand, the primary school education is given to the small minority groups (Haitians— Their History and Culture, 2004). The Democratic government of Haiti made sincere and continuous efforts for the provision of better education to its people. Though, the efforts of the Haitian Government were much effective, yet, the results of the efforts, of the government were not according to the desired level. There was a great requirement of the initiation of a sincere reform and through the establishment of that reform; the country could utilize ‘education’ as an instrument for the enhanced growth of the nation. There were no clear signs to show the education as a focused point for the basic requirements of the country. In that period, the preferences of the Haiti population were not towards the public education governance; this was because, in those years, the Haitians were only interested to send the upper class children to the schools. And for the purpose of study, they used to go France and they were recognized as French people (Haiti Educational System-Overview, 2009). The entire education system of Haitians was fully based on ‘Racialism’. There was an in-depth tendency among the Haitian Communities regarding the education of the society. The formal system of the education in Haiti was fully designed in such a way, that there were two classes of the community namely the urban elites and others. The urban elites were very few of the total population, about 20% and only they were supposed to have education; while the other 80% population in the countryside, was fully neglected from such kinds of right of education. This error in the Haitian education system was required to be reformed by the administrative affairs. The students were required to given education through proper system with the provision of classrooms (Hanus, 1997). There was a completely formal system of education. In that system, the kids of age group of 4 to 6 years were sent to the private schools for getting the primary education. This system was traditionally considered by only those families, which were capable to afford the payment of the education. There were no changes in the scenario due to the decree held in the year 1982. The decree put stress on the democratic principles of the government accessible at the universal level. There were no effective facilities in the public schools for the children. The classrooms in the public schools were overcrowded, which are still in the same position. There were no means of security, comfort and hygiene facilities for the children. In the schools, there were no provision of drinking water for the children, no electricity facilities and no space for the recreational purpose of the students. The schools were far away from the localities; due to that the students had to walk several miles for acquiring education. The faculties were not sincere towards their work due to ‘absenteeism’ or were late from their duties, as they had to face the same problem, as was faced by the children. For the reformation of the educational system of Haiti, there have been made several efforts in the recent years (Rotberg, 1997). The aim of these reforms is to make the system of education easily accessible to the poor, in order to fulfill their needs and making changes in their social structures (Bourdieu Passeron, 1990). But these reforms could not be successful at the optimum level and as a consequence, most of the parts of Haiti remained having the old system of education. The main efforts to make changes in the educational system were brought in 1970s. An effective change was made in the year 1978, when the urban and rural primary schools were united and their provisions were protected by the DEN (National Department of Education). After this period, the whole education system was restructured. In the new system of education, the basic education for ten years became essential in addition to the secondary education of three years. Several effective changes were made in the educational materials and the course of study. The major change made in this period was the adoption of the ‘Haitian Creole’ as a basic language for the instructional purpose. In such condition of ineffective education system, the democratic governance is required to have some effective measures, in order to make amendments in the situation of the educational practices. For the purpose of sustainable developments in the long run and for the reduction of the poverty, the democratic governance is the most important and essential measure. In the foreign policy of Canada, the democratic governance is considered as a pillar. The CIDA (Canadian International Development Agency) does several works for the purpose of handling the problem of poverty, by the provision of education to all the people equally and make the improvements in the sources of livelihood of the general people. The concept of democratic governance was also applied by CIDA in Haiti. CIDA established about 9000 centers for voting and gave registration to about more than 3.5 million of people for voting in the election of the year 2006. In the strengthening of the democratic institutions also, CIDA played an important role in Haiti. It established Haitian Parliament and other several Ministries in the form of democratic institution for the advancement of the educational level in Haiti. For the increasing level of access in the scope of primary education in Haiti, CIDA provided a great support. These efforts were made by CIDA for the development of the socially excluded children, in order to improve and protect them from the child labor and other risky activities (Democratic Governance in the Americas: Canada’s Role, 2007). For the improvement of the worsened condition of Haiti, education can prove to be a corner stone. For the development of the democratic way of life in the nation, transformation and advancement of the Haitian education system in the government, as well as, the general public of Haiti is essential. It is clear now, that for the improvement in the situation of the human rights in Haiti, there is a great requirement of the acquisition of the democratic government. As a step in this field, a development of the US policy is made for the strengthening and nurturing the democracy in governance. This also helps in the improvement in the illiteracy level and alleviation of the poverty. This policy provides assistance to the citizens of Haiti by the provision of effective services in the filed of health and education. The Breadth This is the first and the most important section of the discussion paper. In this section, the main focus is given to the theories of the democratic governance. The concept of these theories is focusing on the democracy and education system. The theories discussed here, are given by Jean Jacques Rousseau, John Dewey and Jean Piaget. All these three are the great philosophers of their own time. All these have given several views on the issue of democratic governance and the education system. The views of these theorists have a great implication in the school system of Haiti, to structure the education system, with the full integration of the aspects of democracy, given by all these three creative theorists and the interaction of both these aspects with each other. Theories of Democratic Governance Education The democratic governance has a great integration with the consensus of the society, as it is a long extent of procedures, which assists the society in the implementation of the better social and regulatory decisions such as government policies and laws, social justice, social welfare, human rights, protection of different sources of environment etc. For this purpose, several institutions or organizations are developed in different nations. In this series, the governing bodies included are the legislature, executive bodies, judiciary, private organizations, political parties, educational institutes and several other major bodies. In short, it can be summarized that the democratic governance is an essential provision to bring equality and fairness for the entire mass of the citizens in the matters of social aspects, education, livelihood and other social and economic aspects. The education and role of democratic governance in education are the two important aspects, which are viewed by the several numbers of theorists in the world. The concept of democratic education is a very composite philosophy for the purpose of learning and governance of the educational institutes such as the primary and secondary schools. In democratic education, there is a provision of the free participation of the school students and the faculty members in the democracy of the schools on an equal level. In these kind of educational centers, there is found a decision making process, which is based on decision sharing. The decision making is shared by the school students and the faculty members. In the democratic education, the decisions made are related to the working environment of the schools, way of teaching and learning of the students and several other concerning issues. Though, the contribution of all the theorists in this field has equal importance; yet, there are three theorists, who have contributed a lot in the field of democratic education. These theorists are: Jean Jacques Rousseau John Dewey and Jean Piaget The theories of these theorists are being given for the education system and democracy. The theories given by them have a great implication for the development of the democratic education in the Republic of Haiti. Theory of Rousseau Jean Jacques Rousseau was a great Philosopher of his own time. Rousseau composed several articles, philosophies and theories on politics and education. He emphasized on the thoughts of the modern aspects of politics and education. A great contribution was given by Rousseau for the support of the various educational methods, which put emphasis on the separation of the children from the society. The purpose of this implementation by Rousseau was to make the children capable of handling the adverse conditions of the environment by making them enable to handle them, to a great extent. According to Rousseau, the problems recognized by him were very unusual, as this was recognized that in the field of teaching and education, there was a problem of legitimation. Rousseau suggested in this theory of democratic education, that there is a great requirement for the adults to be honest with their children. The adults according to Rousseau were required not to conceal the realities that they have the power to make their children forced for education, as they have this as a physical compulsion. According to him, when the children grow up till a certain age group, they themselves become engaged in the activities of their own processes. According to Rousseau, human beings are born in free conditions; but after being a part of this society, they are bound with the chains of social regulations. At some points, where a requirement of the executive bodies is essential to accomplish a law, both the theories of Rousseau namely ‘Educational Theory’ and the ‘Political Theory’ appear to be integrated. According to Rousseau, in all the human beings, there exists a congenital capacity to grow. This capacity of development resides in our internal body organs and the faculties of the schools and learning institutions help in the further development of these capacities. Rousseau stated that if the natural tendencies of the humans are permitted to develop without any kind of limitations, the individuals can reach to a state of exemption and happiness. This is given a particular term by Rousseau namely ‘Education of nature’. In contrast to his own statement, Rousseau proclaims that without the provision of the freeness and happiness the human kinds can not have moral excellence. Without virtue, the man can have only happiness; but he will lack his worthiness. According to him, the man gives a great importance to virtue. The capacity of the man for worthiness is the special trait of human beings, which makes him distinguished from the creatures. The animals are free to live in their natural habitats and they are happy; but they do not have virtues of their own (Dewey, 2005). Rousseau is an educational reformer, who prescribed that there are three sources through which, we can get education. These three sources are the nature, other human beings and the non- living things. With the education, which we acquire from the nature, the human being can develop his internal organs, as well as, the inner capabilities. With the education acquired by the human beings, we come to know, the ways to implement the education acquired by the nature. From the things, which are found in the surroundings of the human beings, they have several kinds of personal experiences through which, they make developments in their personalities. There is a state at which the man can achieve this real goal. This is the state, when all the three types of education gained by man, becomes harmonized and aims for the same target. For the complete growth of a man, the aggregation of the above three kinds of education, is a very essential aspect according to Rousseau. The statements given by Ro usseau constitute the underlying truths about the education in alignment with some developments (Snauwaert, 1993). Rousseau stated that the educative development is based on the three important factors namely: The operative natural process and the structure of the internal body organs of the human beings. The application of the activities performed by the internal organs of the human beings, which are influenced by the behavior of the other persons. The interaction of the human beings with the environment in a direct way. Theory of Dewey The next theory related to education and democracy is given by John Dewey. He was also a great Philosopher of his own time. He gained popularity due to his contribution as an ‘Educational Reformer’ in America. The thoughts and ideas given by John Dewey influenced the standards of education in the United States of America and the other parts of the world; such as Haiti. The inner qualities of Dewey made him enthusiastic democrat and he stated that the success of the democracy is only possible, when, the people of a particular region, are well developed on the basis of the educational abilities These are the democratic thoughts, which include the ideas about the interaction of the education and democracy. In the first half of the twentieth century, a great influence of the ‘Educational Theory’ of John Dewey was seen. The democracy does not have a single meaning. According to Dewey, the democracy has a different meaning, which he stated in the report of the mission started by him, as a part of the educative mission. This aim to provide this new definition of the democracy was to present the new ideas of the education in concern with the democracy. According to Dewey, Democracy is not a kind of faith; rather it has a very simple meaning. In this sense, the energies of men can be tuned, when; they have the full fledged permission to show their varying qualities. According to him, Democracy does not have a faraway goal for human beings; but is a very easy way to have a spirit of freedom, among all the individuals. The essence of this kind of freedom is the individuals’ responsibility for the every aspect of their development. In the same report, the views of Dewey about the nature of democratic education are also included. According to this report, in a democracy, the development of an educational system for the development and sustaining of life depends on the actual worth and the dignity of the individuals and the proper identification of these two traits of the individuals. This is organized in such a way, that the entire individuals can have equal opportunities of gaining education according to their own abilities and knowledge level of having the education. For the critical analysis, the democracy provides the freedom of inquiry to the individuals and special training to them for the purpose of the critical analysis. The democratic education has the capability to promote the broad and conceptual discussion of all the information, based on facts that in the educational environment of great competence, the students have varying development stages. Such kind of broad discussion are not possible to be promoted in an educational environment; where the students are given only a limited prescribed syllabus for the basic studies and only some particular course materials are given for the study purpose. It is also stated by Dewey, that the uniformity and the standardization are not only two aspects on the basis of which, the degree of success of education in a democracy can be measured. This should be the obligation of the education that through its provision, all the individuals become cooperative and responsible for the society. The abstract of the democratic education is to promote the development of the democratic citizens, who can have the feeling of regarding the rights of other individuals in accordance with the fulfillment of their own obligations, towards the society by the observation of the different rationales of the democracy including equivalence of equals, rule of majority and different ideas of individuals. On this basis, the individuals can demand for the provision of their own rights and positive results of their efforts, for the perfection in the personality of the individuals. The democratic education has a very effective objective of the establishment of the perfection in the personality of the individual regarding their character and the development of more and more members in the society, who are much responsible for the well- being of the society. There were considered two important factors in the theory of democratic education by Dewey. These two factors are the civil society and the schools. These are the two important areas, which need special attention for the promotion of the intelligence on the basis of experimental studies. According to Dewey, to construct the civil society again in a different form, there is a keen requirement of the complete democracy. This level of complete democracy can’t be gained only by the extension of the rights of voting for the individuals, but it also needs the assurance that, there should be an equal opinion of all the individuals for the policies framed in the democracy in any field of human development. According to Dewey, the education does not only mean a formal education; but it calls that the people should have equal level of knowledge intelligence, for the generation of the beneficial laws and for the generation of the appropriate judgments. According to Dewey, the education gives the life effective growth and development without any formal element. In the reciprocal of this term, the democracy should be in the form of a social system based on education. In other words, a democratic society is the society, in which, there is an enormous role of education in the growth and development of the citizens. The inverse arrangement of this type of society is that, there should be provision of the education and the requirement of the further education by the means of self governance. The desire of democracy is realized in the presence of several other factors. America as a good democratic nation, has realized the power of democracy with a great success. But Dewey did not have clear facts about the establishment of democracy in America. According to him, demarcates are the individuals, who consider that instead of giving any training for a particular task and turning the perception of the individuals for their growth and development, education is the better way to reach such goals. In education, the major role is played by the Educators. According to them, the democracy is a type of social system, in which the Educators greatly encourage the growth of the individuals and help the people to have an association of free and inducing behavior for others. According to Dewey, in such a social system, the individuals can have positive growth. Dewey states that ‘Democracy’ cannot be considered only as a governmental structure, but is a social organizational system of a distributive nature. In such a system of democracy, all the individuals are free to combine their actions and thus, generate an induced mixture of the human interests with the inclusion of several cultural perspectives. In a democracy, all the values and aims of the different individuals challenge each other and they work for the achievement of some uncertain results. In this kind of system, the new approaches are generated for the attainment of these results. The life is a long and continuous process. In this process, the formal education acts an integral part. The formal education executes several works for us, as it directs the human beings to tread some constructive paths. In the views of Dewey, the philosophical methodology and the educational exercises; both are the two equivalent aspects. In the educational institutions, it is learnt by the students that to have affection for any kind of subject matter or text matter is not important, but important is the process through which, the knowledge related to that particular area can be derived. In regards to the field of education and democracy, two other aspects can also be considered as equally important. The first aspect is linked with the communication philosophy given by Dewey and the other one is the consideration of the theory of education, quite similar to the communication theory. In this way, Dewey has proved that the concept of communication and education has dual interaction with each other. This is why; the concept of ‘Democratic education’ is specially focused in the theory of Dewey. Both the concepts of the Dewey’s theory namely education and democracy has clear indication towards the concept of democracy. The concept of communication denotes the sharing of the common interests of the general people; but it puts emphasis on the identification of the co-relative interests of the people as an aspect of the administration. The concept of education focuses that; there should be organization of the social groups, which have free interaction among each other. These social groups can also make modifications in the habits of the social groups by the frequent readjustments according to the new situations, which are produced because of the changing conditions of the society. The social groups, which are constituted on the basis of the democracy, are mainly characterized by these two specific traits. The democratic societies are more interested in the systematic education, rather than other social groups; because in such a society, the people have actualization of the way of life in which, the interests of the people are diffused with each other and they have positive attitude towards the re-adjustment and progress. In such social groups, the education seems to have a great devotion on the part of democracy. In regards with a democratic government, it is said that those governments, which stand upon the right of voting are not the fully successful governments, if the general citizens of a particular democracy are not well- educated. In the democratic societies, the explanations of the external authority are repudiated, if these are not created on the basis of the educational aspects. Democracy is not only a type of government but, this can be considered as the affiliated system of living in which the people are linked with their transmitted experiences. Democracy is characterized by two aspects such as distributed pertains of people and attempting the larger varieties of the capabilities, of the individuals. These two characteristics of the democracy are not generated through the intended efforts of the individuals or their planning; but are considered to be developed by the intercommunication, immigration and business activity among the people, which are carried out by the facts of science over innate force. In general terms, if the stratification of a society into two different classes is considered mortal, it should be analyzed then, that all the intellectual possibilities of the society are approachable by all the individual members of the society in a convenient way. The democratic societies, which are divided into different classes, are required to give the specific education to all its constituents incorporated in the ruling section. There are some social groups, which are completely mobile. In such societies, the member persons should be fully educated, so that, they can adapt the newer conditions easily. If they are not become able to adapt the newer situations, the new changes overcome the different areas of these societies, which were not comprehended by them. Dewey also gave a philosophy of ‘Platonic education’. In this theory, the implication of the different ideas, of democracy in the education, is discussed (Campbell, 1996). In the educational field, the most permanent inher

The Return: Midnight Chapter 11

When M. le Princess Jessalyn D'Aubigne had drunk her fil of Damon's blood – and she was thirsty for such a fragile thing – it was Damon's turn. He forced himself to remain patient when Jessalyn flinched and frowned at the sight of his ironwood knife. But Damon teased her and joked with her and played chasing games up and down the enormous bed, and when he final y caught her, she scarcely felt the knife's sting at her throat. Damon, though, had his mouth on the dark red blood that wel ed out immediately. Everything he'd done, from pouring Black Magic for Bonnie to pouring out the star bal ‘s liquid at the four corners of the Gate to making his way through the defenses of this tiny gem of a castle had been for this. For this moment, when his human palate could savor the nectar that was vampire blood. And it was†¦heavenly! This was only the second time in his life that he'd tasted it as a human. Katerina – Katherine, as he thought of her in English – had been the first, of course. And how she could have crept off after that and gone, wearing just her short muslin shift, to the wide-eyed, inexperienced little boy who was his brother, he would never understand. His disquiet was spreading to Jessalyn. That mustn't happen. She had to stay calm and tranquil as he took as much as he could of her blood. It wouldn't hurt her at al , and it meant al the difference to him. Forcing his consciousness away from the sheer elemental pleasure of what he was doing, he began, very careful y, very delicately, to infiltrate her mind. It wasn't difficult to get to the nub of it. Whoever had wrenched this delicate, fragile-boned girl from the human world and had endowed her with a vampire's nature hadn't done her any favors. It wasn't that she had any moral objections to vampirism. She'd taken to the life easily, enjoying it. She would have made a good huntress in the wild. But in this castle? With these servants? It was like having a hundred snooty waiters and two hundred condescending sommeliers staring her down as soon as she opened her mouth to give an order. This room, for instance. She had wanted some color in it – just a splash of violet here, a little mauve there – natural y, she realized, a vampire princess's bedchamber had to be mostly black. But when she'd timidly mentioned the subject of colors to one of the parlor maids, the girl had sniffed and looked down her nostrils at Jessalyn as if she'd asked for an elephant to be instal ed just beside her bed. The princess had not had the courage to bring up the matter with the housekeeper, but within a week three baskets ful of black-and-off-black throw pil ows had arrived. There was her â€Å"color.†And in the future would her highness be so good as to consult her housekeeper before querying the staff as to her household whims? She actually said that about my â€Å"whims,† Jessalyn thought as she arched her neck back and ran sharp fingernails through Damon's thick soft hair. And – oh, it's no good. I'm no good. I'm a vampire princess, and I can look the part, but I can't play it. You're every bit a princess, your highness, Damon soothed. You just need someone to enforce your orders. Someone who has no doubts about your superiority. Are your servants slaves? No, they're all free. Well, that makes it a little trickier, but you can always yell louder at them. Damon felt swol en with vampire blood. Two more days of this and he would be, if not his old self, then at least almost his old self: a ful vampire, free to walk about the city as he liked. And with the Power and status of a vampire prince. It was almost enough to balance out the horrors he'd gone through in the last couple of days. At least, he could tel himself that and try to believe it. â€Å"Listen,†he said abruptly, letting go of Jessalyn's slight body, the better to look her in the eye. â€Å"Your glorious highness, let me do one favor for you before I die of love or you have me kil ed for impudence. Let me bring you ‘color' – and then let me stand beside you if any of your menials grumble about it.† Jessalyn wasn't used to this kind of sudden decision, but couldn't help but be carried along with Damon's fiery excitement. She arched her head back again. When he final y left the bijoux palace, Damon went out the front door. He had with him a little of the money left over from pawning the gems, but this was more than enough for the purpose he had in mind. He was quite certain that the next time he went out, it would be from the flying portico. He stopped at a dozen shops and spent until his last coin was gone. He'd meant to sneak in a visit to Bonnie as wel while doing his errands, but the market was in the opposite direction from the inn where he'd left her, and in the end there just wasn't time. He didn't worry much as he walked back to the bijoux castle. Bonnie, soft and fragile as she seemed, had a wiry core that he was sure would keep her inside the room for three days. She could take it. Damon knew she could. He banged on the little castle's gate until a surly guard opened it. â€Å"What do you want?†the guard spat. Bonnie was bored out of her mind. It had only been a day since Damon had left her – a day she could only count by the number of meals brought to her, since the enormous red sun stood forever on the horizon and the blood-red light never varied unless it was raining. Bonnie wished it was raining. She wished it was snowing, or that there would be a fire or a hurricane or a smal tsunami. She had given one of the star bal s a try, and found it a ridiculous soap opera that she couldn't understand in the least. She wished, now, that she had never tried to stop Damon from coming here. She wished that he had pried her off before they had both fal en into the hole. She wished that she had grabbed Meredith's hand and just let go of Damon. And this was only the first day. Damon smiled at the surly guard. â€Å"What do I want? Only what I already have. An open gate.†He didn't go inside, however. He asked what M. le Princess was doing and heard that she was at a luncheon. On a donor. Perfect. Soon there came a deferential knock at the gate, which Damon demanded be opened wider. The guards clearly didn't like him; they had properly put together the disappearance of what turned out to be their captain of guard and the intrusion of this strange human. But there was something menacing about him even in this menacing world. They obeyed him. Soon after that there came another quiet knock and then another, and another and so on until twelve men and women with arms ful of damp and fragrant brown paper had quietly fol owed Damon up the stairs and into M. le Princess's black bedchamber. Jessalyn, meanwhile, had had a long and stuffy post-luncheon meeting, entertaining some of her financial advisors, who both seemed very old to her, although they had been changed in their twenties. Their muscles were soft with lack of use, she found herself thinking. And, natural y, they were dressed in ful -sleeved, wide-legged black except for a fril at their throats, white inside by gaslight, scarlet outside by the eternal blood-red sun. The princess had just seen them bow out of her presence when she inquired, rather irritably, where the human Damon was. Several servants with malice behind their smiles explained that he had gone with a dozen†¦humans†¦up to her bedchamber. Jessalyn almost flew to the stairs and climbed very quickly with the gliding motion that she knew was expected of proper female vampires. She reached the Gothic doors, and heard the hushed sounds of indignant spite as her ladies-in-waiting al whispered together. But before the princess could even ask what was going on, she was engulfed in a great warm wave of scent. Not the luscious and life-sustaining scent of blood, but something lighter, sweeter, and at the moment, while her bloodlust was sated, even headier and more dizzying. She pushed open the double doors. She took a step into her bedchamber and then stopped in astonishment. The cathedral-like black room was ful of flowers. There were banks of lilies, vases ful of roses, tulips in every color and shade, and riots of daffodils and narcissus, while fragrant honeysuckle and freesia lay in bowers. The flower peddlers had converted the gloomy, conventional black room into this fanciful extravaganza. The wiser and more farsighted of M. le Princess's retainers were actively helping them by bringing in large, ornate urns. Damon, upon seeing Jessalyn enter the room, immediately went to kneel at her feet. â€Å"You were gone when I woke!†the princess said crossly, and Damon smiled, very faintly. â€Å"Forgive me, your highness. But since I am dying anyway, I thought that I should be up and securing these flowers for you. Are the colors and scents satisfactory?† â€Å"The scents?†Jessalyn's whole body seemed to melt. â€Å"It's†¦ like†¦an orchestra for my nose! And the colors are like nothing I've ever seen!†She burst into laughter, her green eyes lightening, her straight red hair a waterfal around her shoulders. Then she began to stalk Damon back into the gloom in one corner. Damon had to control himself or he would have laughed; it was so much like a kitten stalking an autumn leaf. But once they got into the corner, tangled in the black hangings and nowhere near a window, Jessalyn assumed a deadly serious expression. â€Å"I'm going to have a dress made, just the color of those deep, dark purple carnations,†she whispered. â€Å"Not black.† â€Å"Your highness wil look wonderful in it,†Damon whispered in her ear. â€Å"So striking, so daring – â€Å" â€Å"I may even wear my corsets on the inside of my dress.†She looked up at him through heavy lashes. â€Å"Or – would that be too much?† â€Å"Nothing is too much for you, my princess,†Damon whispered back. He stopped a moment to think seriously. â€Å"The corsets – would they match the dress or be black?† Jessalyn considered. â€Å"Same color?†she ventured. Damon nodded, pleased. He himself wouldn't be caught dead in any color other than black, but he was wil ing to put up with – even encourage – Jessalyn's oddities. They might get him made a vampire faster. â€Å"I want your blood,†the princess whispered, as if to prove him right. â€Å"Here? Now?†Damon whispered back. â€Å"In front of al your servants?† Jessalyn surprised him then. She, who had been so timid before, stepped out of the curtains and clapped her hands for silence. It fel immediately. â€Å"Everyone out!†she said peremptorily. â€Å"You have made me a beautiful garden in my room, and I am grateful. The steward† – she nodded toward a young man who was dressed in black, but who had wisely placed a dark red rose in his buttonhole – â€Å"wil see to it that you're al given food – and drink – before you go!†At this there was a murmur of praise that made the princess blush. â€Å"I'l ring the bel pul when I need you† – to the steward. In fact, it wasn't until two days later that she reached up and, a little reluctantly, rang the bel pul . And that was merely to give the order that a uniform be made for Damon as quickly as possible. The uniform of captain of her guard. By the second day, Bonnie had to turn to the star bal s as her only source of entertainment. After going through her twenty-eight orbs she found that twenty-five of them were soap operas from beginning to end, and two were ful of experiences so frightening and hideous that she labeled them in her own mind as Never Ever. The last one was cal ed Five Hundred Stories for Young Ones, and Bonnie quickly found that these immersion stories could be useful, for they specified the names of things a person would find around the house and the city. The sphere's connecting thread was a series about a family of werewolves named the Dz-Aht-Bhi'iens. Bonnie promptly christened them the Dustbins. The series consisted of episodes showing how the family lived each day: how they bought a new slave at the market to replace one who had died, and where they went to hunt human prey, and how Mers Dustbin played in an important bashik tournament at school. Today the last story was almost providential. It showed little Marit Dustbin walking to a Sweetmeat Shop and getting a sugarplum. The candy cost exactly five soli. Bonnie got to experience eating part of it with Marit, and it was good. After reading the story, Bonnie very careful y peeked through the edge of the window blind and saw a sign on a shop below that she'd often watched. Then she held the star bal to her temple. Yes! Exactly the same kind of sign. And she knew not only what she wanted, but how much it should cost. She was dying to get out of her tiny room and try what she had just learned. But before her eyes, the lights in the sweetshop went dark. It must be closing time. Bonnie threw the star bal across the room. She turned the gas lamp down to just the faintest glow, and then flung herself on her rush-fil ed bed, pul ed the covers up†¦and discovered that she couldn't sleep. Groping in ruby twilight, she found the star bal with her fingers and put it to her temple again. Interspersed with clusters of stories about the Dustbin family's daily adventures were fairy tales. Most of them were so gruesome that Bonnie couldn't experience them al the way through, and when it was time to sleep, she lay shivering on her pal et. But this time the story seemed different. After the title, The Gatehouse of the Seven Kitsune Treasures, she heard a little rhyme: Amid a plain of snow and ice There lies kitsune paradise. And close beside, forbidden pleasure: Six gates more of kitsune treasure. The very word kitsune was frightening. But, Bonnie thought, the story might prove relevant somehow. I can do this, she thought and put the star bal to her temple. The story didn't start with anything gruesome. It was about a young girl and boy kitsune who went on a quest to find the most sacred and secret of the â€Å"seven kitsune treasures,†the kitsune paradise. A treasure, Bonnie learned, could be something as smal as a single gem or as large as an entire world. This one, going by the story, was in the middle range, because a â€Å"paradise†was a kind of garden, with exotic flowers blooming everywhere, and little streams bubbling down smal waterfal s into clear, deep pools. It was al wonderful, Bonnie thought, experiencing the story as if she were watching a movie al around her, but a movie that included the sensations of touch, taste, and smel . The paradise was a bit like Warm Springs, where they sometimes had picnics back at home. In the story, the boy and girl kitsune had to go to â€Å"the top of the world†where there was some kind of fracture in the crust of the highest Dark Dimension – the one Bonnie was in right now. They managed somehow to travel down, and even farther down, and passed through various tests of courage and wit before they got into the next lowest dimension, the Nether World. The Nether World was completely different from the Dark Dimension. It was a world of ice and slippery snow, of glaciers and rifts, al bathed in a blue twilight from three moons that shone from above. The kitsune children almost starved in the Nether World because there was so little for a fox to hunt. They made do with the tiny animals of the cold: mice and smal white voles, and the occasional insect (Oh, yuck, Bonnie thought). They survived until, through the fog and mist, they saw a towering black wal . They fol owed the wal until final y they came to a Gatehouse with tal spires hidden in the clouds. Written above the door in an old language they could hardly read were the words: The Seven Gates. They entered a room in which there were eight doorways or exits. One was the door through which they had just entered. And as they watched, each door brightened so they could see that the other seven doors led to seven different worlds, one of which was the kitsune paradise. Yet another gate led to a field of magical flowers, and another showed butterflies flittering around a splashing fountain. Another dropped to a dark cavern fil ed with bottles of the mystical wine Clarion Loess Black Magic. One gate led to a deep mine, with jewels the size of a fist. And then there was a gate which showed the prize of al flowers: the Royal Radhika. It changed its shape from moment to moment, from a rose to a cluster of carnations to an orchid. Through the last door they could see only a gigantic tree, but the final treasure was rumored to be an immense star bal . Now the boy and girl forgot al about the kitsune paradise. Each of them wanted something from another of the gates, but they couldn't agree on what. The rule was that any party or group who reached the gates could enter one and then return. But while the girl wanted a sprig of the Royal Radhika, to show that they'd completed their quest, the boy wanted some Black Magic wine, to sustain them on the way back. No matter how they argued they couldn't reach an agreement. So final y they decided to cheat. They would simultaneously open a door and jump through, snatch what they wanted, and then jump back out and be out of the Gatehouse before they could be caught. Just as they were about to do so, a voice warned them against it, saying, â€Å"One gate alone may you twain enter, and then return from whence you came.† But the boy and the girl chose to ignore the voice. Immediately, the boy entered the door that led to the bottles of Black Magic wine and at the same instant the girl stepped into the Royal Radhika door. But when each turned around there was no longer any sign of a door or gate behind them. The boy had plenty to drink but he was left forever in the dark and cold and his tears froze upon his cheeks. The girl had the beautiful flower to look at but nothing to eat or drink and so under the glowing yel ow sun she wasted away. Bonnie shivered, the delicious shiver of a reader who had gotten what she expected. The fairy tale, with its moral of â€Å"don't be greedy†was like the stories she'd heard from the Red and the Blue Fairy Books when she was a child sitting on her grandmother's lap. She missed Elena and Meredith, badly. She had a story to tel , but no one to tel it to.

Compare/Contrast of Political Parties Essay

INDEPENDENT PARTY 1) Values and Beliefs -Protect the right to life of the innocent unborn; -Stop the undeclared wars which are daily costing American lives and billions of tax dollars; -Stop reckless spending, including foreign aid, and take care of America’s domestic needs -End debt financing of both Federal and State governments; -End the Federal income tax, and restore a tariff based revenue system; -Immediately terminate international trade agreements such as NAFTA, WTO, and the proposed FTAA, and stop sending high paying American jobs to foreign countries; -Reduce immigration, and stop all government subsidies to illegal aliens; no driver’s licenses for illegals; deport all illegal aliens; -Defend America’s moral values; keep God in the pledge of allegiance; -Support high standards in education, including encouragement of private schools and home schooling; -Stop the pillaging of consumers and taxpayers by the energy/utility monopolies; -Defend Second Amendment rights; -Restore a debt free, interest free money system; -Uphold traditional marriage and family values; 2)History of the Independents -California’s American Independent Party has been a ballot qualified political party since 1968. The American Independent Party, which now has some 300,000 registered members in California, is affiliated at the national level with the Constitution Party. -On July 8, 1967, formal organization of California’s American Independent Party was completed at a convention held in Bakersfield. â€Å"A new party is urgently needed today because the leaders of the two existing parties, Democrat and Republican, have deserted the principles and traditions of our nation’s founding fathers. Control of the government, under the domination of these two existing parties, has left the hands of the people our government was created to serve.† -In 1967, Gov. George C. Wallace of Alabama was on the move to run for President on a new party ticket. Wallace supporters greeted with enthusiasm the formation of the American Independent Party. -On August 3, 1968, the delegates to the state convention of the American Independent Party adopted the party’s first platform. This document held tremendous significance for A I P activists who had joined the new party because they wanted major changes in public policies. 3)Why Independent? -The American Independent Party has kept alive the best of the American principles which have largely been abandon by the Democrat and Republican parties.The American Independent Party has survived for over a quarter of a century because the party has had effective leaders, along with a popular platform, emphasizing respect for life, fiscal responsibility, a reduced role of government in people’s lives, reduction of the tax burden, control of crime, protection of American businesses, workers, and farmers from  unfair foreign competition, and an America first non-interventionist foreign policy. 4)Young Independents Today -Some have suggested that the American Independent Party may be out of step with young Americans whose views are alleged to be radically different from those of middle aged and older Americans. The commitment of Young Americans to the country’s traditional moral, political, and economic values, however, remains comparable to that of other age groups. -The future of the American Independent Party is assured by a market for its views among young Americans who do not have years of commitment to the dominant parties. Today, the political climate in America is changing. The people are looking for new voices, new choices, new vehicles for political expression. The people are looking to the American Independent Party for leadership. POPULIST PARTY 1)History -delegates adopted the platform of the People’s party also called the Populist party -the populists represented a grand coalition of farmers, laborers, and reformers, which aimed to put government back into the hands of the people -populist leaders were diverse and colorful -the populists chose their candidates amid calls for restricted immigration and a shorter workday for industrial laborers. -the party also aimed to convince the government to allow the free coinage of silver, a measure that would make silver, not just gold, legal tender. -despite action by the farmers alliances and the grangers the plight of thousands of farmers worsened. -the platform of the populist party called for extensive reforms -reformers believed that farmers and workers should be freed from the exploitative practices of banks and railroads and merchants -the populists gained 14 seats in congress, won 2 governorships, and received the largest number of popular votes cast for any third party in the 1800s -by the time of the 1896 election the populist party itself had declined but some of its ideas entered the mainstream -the continuing depression forced the democratic party into a more radical position on one key issue-unlimited coinage of silver -this stance led many populists to support the democratic candidate william jennings bryan of nebraska -populism began to decline -one factor limited populism’s strength in the south -peoples party failed to gain wide support in the south -the southern alliance advised its memebers to support major party candidates who favored agricultural interests -the underlying reason for the failure of populism in the south was the issue of white supremacy -the southern alliance feared that populism might lead to gains for african americans

United States Armed Forces Are Only For The Rough And Tough

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Some of my classmates started screaming and crying when the plane hit the other tower. School was released early because of the amount of students who had relatives that worked in the twin towers. Seeing all of my classmates and the other kids at my school crying caused something inside me to want to make a difference and fight for my country. Without doing any research of my own about the different branches of the military, I chose to join the Army. On the way home, I went to the nearest recruiting office and that became the beginning of my military career. I wasShow MoreRelatedMasculinity Essay1693 Words   |  7 PagesMasculinity is also referred to as manhood, boyhood or manliness. Examples of character traits which are traditionally cited as masculine include characters such as courage, the fact or state of being independent, and confident and forceful behavior. 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