Terrorism

Terrorism is violence or other harmful acts committed against civilians for political or other ideological reasons. Acts of terrorism include threats of terrorism, assassinations, kidnappings, hijackings, bombings, cyber attacks (computer-based) and the use of chemical, biological, nuclear and radiological weapons. Psychological factors relating to terrorism are of particular interest to psychologists, political scientists, and government officials, who would like to be able to predict and prevent the emergence of terrorist groups.
Individuals who become terrorists often are unemployed, socially alienated individuals who have dropped out of society. Those with little education, such as youths in Algerian ghettos or the Gaza Strip, may try to join a terrorist group out of boredom and a desire to have an action adventure in pursuit of a cause they regard. The more educated youths may be motivated more by genuine political or religious convictions. Terrorists tend to be of medium height and build to blend easily into crowds. Their dress and hair styles are inconspicuous. In addition to their normal appearance, they talk and behave like normal people. They may even be well dressed if, for example, they need to be in the first-class section of a plane targeted for hijacking.

Self-Assessment of online listening to podcasts

The first podcast which I have listened to is named "Long-Weekend Fun". It lasted almost 16 minutes and was fot a intermediate speaker. The podcast was a dialogue between two people about their three day weekend. I listened to it only once, it wasn't difficult. The speakers were talking at an average speed and I couldn't feel strong accent in their talk, so it was quite easy to understand.
The second podcast I have listened to is named "Leaving a voicemail message". It lasts 13 minutes and a half. It's also for intermediate speaker. The speaker gives a piece of good advice how to leave a polite and professional voicemail message. The podcast wasn't difficult to listen. The speaking speed was average and there were only a few unknown words, but it was easy to understand them from the context.
I think listening to podcasts and similar tasks help to improve listening skills. I liked this task.

Racism

Racism is believing that members of one race are intrinsically superior or inferior to members of other races. With expanding globalization and migration, racism more and more often is under disscusion and is becoming a really big problem. So, how it comes out and what could we do to solve this problem?

Racism can be directed against any race, color or ethnicity. Unfortunately, it can exist all over the world. Racism takes many different forms. These can include :

• Personal attacks of any kind, including violence


• Written or verbal threats or insults


• Damage to property, including graffiti
  
  

Other forms of racism are not obvious, such as discrimination in hiring and apartment rentals, or policies that disadvantage members of certain races, whether intentionally or not. Racism can also exist at 3 levels: individual, institutional and cultural. One person can act in a racist way or a
group of people or a whole community of people can be racist. Racism is against the law and should not be accepted under any circumstances, because no one deserves racism.

We should take actions to stop or at least soften racism. Here are the possible ways of doing it :

• Speak out against racism, otherwise silence may be interpreted as an approval of discrimination


• Join organizations dealing with issues of racism and human rights


• Explore ways in which community organizations can work together to promote positive race relations


• Object to racist jokes and insults


• Organize an inter-cultural music or film festival
  

Racism is an attack on the very notion of human rights. It systematically denies certain people their full human rights just because of their race, colour, or ethnicity. It is an assault on the fundamental principle underlying the Universal Declaration of Human Rights - that human rights are everyone's birthright and apply to all without distinction. To sum up, race is not a valid way to classify people.

Gun control

Gun control

Gun control has long been among the most controversial political issues in America. The Second Amendment of the Constitution protects "the right of the people to keep and bear arms." This leads to the fact that 40% of all US homes have guns and every year, more than two thousand people die in the United States from gun-related injuries. The population groups most affected by these avoidable deaths are children and young adolescents. Researches indicate that the most important factors which cause violence are high unemployment rates, ethnic and religious hostilities, political instability, financial inequalities etc. When guns are easily available on such circumstances injuries are more likely to occur, no matter in what country it would be. The more guns there are in circulation, the greater the likelihood that they will be misused.
There are a variety of ways of dealing with the problems caused by guns in society. I believe that legislation is one of the most commonly used. Authorities should consider the question of gun control seriously and take actions. Guns shouldn’t be available for everyone.

Summary "Employment law"

The history of employment law begins with industrialization of Western countries. From the beginning there has been a steady increase in the areas of employment that the law has come to regulate. Most of the richer countries now have legislation which guarantees a minimum wage for all workers, prevents employees from being dismissed without some reason and requires employers to give their employees a written statement of the main term of their employment contract. The right to strike was one of the first employment rights to be recognized by law. Employment law is very similiar in most western countries, but for example there are fewer employment laws in Japan. But on the other hand, Japanese workers enjoy more security, as insurance benefits and recreational facilities are usually made available to them by companies.

Fraud online

In criminal law, fraud is the crime or offense of deliberately deceiving another in order to damage them — usually, to obtain property or services from him or her unjustly. I’ll talk about Internet fraud. Many legitimate companies sell their products or services through the Internet. Charities use Internet to ask for donations. Unfortunately individuals also understand that the Internet is a great way to reach people, use them and rob them.
There are some ways to avoid being robbed through the Internet. Firstly you must know who you are dealing with. If the seller or charity is unfamiliar, check with your state or local consumer protection agency if it’s legal. Get the physical address and phone number in case there is a problem later. Secondly – never believe promises of easy money. If someone claims that you can earn money with little or no work, get a loan or credit card even if you have bad credit, or make money on an investment with little or no risk, it’s probably a scam. What is more you must always guard you personal information. Don’t provide your credit card or bank account number unless you are actually paying for something.
To sum up, the Internet serves many useful services, but also it’s an excellent tool for fraudsters. That's why you should always think twice before you invest your money in any opportunity you learn about through the Internet.
There are many more ways to avoid fraud , but to my opinion these that I have mentioned are the most important.

Criminal law

Summary

Criminal law

Crimes can be thought of as acts which the state considers to be wrong and which can be punished by the state.
Criminal acts differ in different countries. For example, some countries such acts as smoking marijuana, having more than one wife at the same time or drink alcohol consider as crimes, the others don't. But in general, quite a lot criminal acts are common to most countries, such as stealing, physically attacking someone or damaging their property.
In many legal systems there is an important principle that a person cannot be considered guilty of a crime until the state proves he committed it. The state must prove the guilt according to high standards. For each crime there are precise elements which must be proven. Usually there are two elements of a crime : 1) the criminal act itself(Actus Reus); 2) the criminal state of mind of the person when he committed the act(Mens Rea).
When talking about murder, the court must be sure that the act was a substantial cause of the death. The defendant may avoid the quilt if he can show he has a defense. A defense is a reason the court should excuse his act. Different systems of law recognize different and usually limited sets of defenses. For example, English law allow the defense of duress – being forced to commit the crime. Another popular defense is of insanity, but it requires careful proof. Nearly every system of law recognizes self-defense.
The concept of defense should not be confused with mitigation – reasons your punishment should not be harsh. After found being guilty the defendant may try to mitigate his crimes by explaining the specific circumstances at the time of the crime.
Technical change is one of the main reasons why criminal law is one of the fastest growing areas of the law. Another reason is that the number of crimes seem to be increasing rapidly. Sometimes governments have to pass new laws to deal with new forms of behavior.