US foreign policy during Cold War Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

US foreign policy during Cold War - Thesis Example In investigating facts the writer does a remarkable work; though, his expose unearths the dark side of the US in regard to the use of tainted informers and henchmen against it arch-rival superpower. Simpson’s careful conclusions, nonetheless, ruffle some feathers. One would not recognize easily from his narration that the Eastern European power was to blame for the start of the conflict, or that Western countries had any genuine concern following the containment of social liberty in the region. The use of ex-Nazi officials by the United States in the Cold War against the Soviet resulted in a â€Å"blowback† effect back in the country as it triggered more socio-economic and political challenges in the country. The sharp analysis of the role played by American officials relates to everyone; the most prominent one including Truman, the Dulles kin, Eisenhower, and George Kennan as well as the many personalities in the key intelligence and national-security organs. These age ncies and individuals are believed to have carried out the murky work, involving the brand of falsity, distrust, amorality, and zealotry with the potential of the Soviet threat. The â€Å"blowback† effects, amount to â€Å"the unintended consequences of U.S. foreign policies† during Cold War. ... e amalgamation of muckraking operations and historical evaluations takes care of one factor of the narration given by the author: the jostling for influence among the key allied states to cage and stamp their authorities for national significance exposed the researchers who had played pivotal roles in the empowerment of Hitler's war machine. In regard to their natural accomplishments, which the writer explains exhaustively, it is normal that many troops, who fought on the side of the Allied countries, were keen on their skills and in consolidating it to the disadvantage of the enemies than their historical accounts. Whereas the issue of national interest was legitimate, in imp lementation the end justified the most insignificant of means. Tenets of the American policy The fundamental principle American policymakers employed after the Second World War to incorporate ex-Nazis and informers was the likelihood or the inevitable occurrence of a fresh conflict pitting the two superpowers, the United States and the USSR. The expectation of the United States of a long-standing conflict was aggravated by the geopolitical hostilities between European powers and some Asian powers immediately after 1945; by the lack of consistent details on the actual situation in the East; and commonly by spiritual regulations that emphasized that Communism amounted to Satanism. Such observations differed across societies; however, they amounted to a significant phenomenon. The real weighing of triggering factors in Europe in the mid-twentieth century, however, implied that neither of the two world superpowers had the capacity to stamp its unilateral authority in the face of another through the use of military might only.

Persuasive speech about why iIllegal immigrants should not be given or Presentation

Persuasive about why iIllegal immigrants should not be given free health care - Speech or Presentation Example Also an unauthorized migrant might be one who violates the set terms of a legal entry. In 2008 it was estimated that the population of illegal immigrants in the US was approximately 11 million, which was said to be a drop from 12.5 million recorded in 2007 (Bogen 12). Bogen further points out that Mexican immigrant take the highest percentage (56%) out the total immigrants’ population. Studies reveal that majority of the current immigrant are well educated, many of them having at least a college degree. However, in general, the US population is better educated than that of the immigrants. Since 1990s, legal migrants continued to be outpaced in number by the illegal immigrants who are increasingly occupying various areas around the country. Most of the families in the US estimated to be 13.9 million individuals have at least one spouse, who is an illegal immigrant and most of them settle in areas characterized by large immigrants’ population (Beasley 32). He observes tha t unauthorized contemporary migrants comprise of about 44% of the total population of us. Majority of them settle in Florida, Texas, California, New Jersey, Illinois and Pennsylvania with California harboring the highest population of approximately 2.93 million illegal migrants.

How I Learned to Drive Analysis Essay Example for Free

How I Learned to Drive Analysis Essay In Paula Vogel’s â€Å"How I Learned to Drive†, we follow our protagonist nicknamed â€Å"Lil Bit† on a gut wrenching, and downright disturbing journey through her adolescence, told as a series of narrations, monologues, and flashbacks with the occasional interjection of a PSA like voice over. The play recounts the physical and emotional abuse Lil Bit encountered from the ages of eleven to eighteen at the hands of her uncle Peck, while he teaches her to drive. The main flaw I saw in Lil Bit was that she is too smart for her own good. You see this characteristic throughout the play as she manipulates Peck. For example, it was most obvious for me when their roles of adult and child are reversed, and Peck is explaining to Lil Bit what a good boy he has been for not drinking. Knowing how much Peck lusts after her she offers him a reward for his good behavior in the form of undoing her bra. Another great example is when prior to her and peck going on a road trip and Lil Bit’s mother indicates that she has a sense of what Peck has on his mind, she responds by saying â€Å"I can take care of myself. And I can certainly handle uncle Peck.† At this point in the story she is only eleven. It’s hard to imagine a child of that age so grown up emotionally. Overall, most of the characters had likeable qualities, with the exception of the grandmother. I didn’t really like the way she meddled in the Parenting of Lil Bit. I liked â€Å"Big Papa† the best. He’s a crabby old timer who speaks anything that comes into his head with reckless abandon. It brought me some levity in an otherwise melancholy play. The climax of the play occurs on Lil Bit’s eighteenth birthday. She and Peck are in a hotel room, and she’s been ignoring peck for some time leading up to this meeting as he’s been sending her cards counting down to her birthday. Lil Bit is obviously conflicted about their relationship now that she has gotten older, but Peck is looking forward to a time when it’s not illegal for them to be together. This is creepy enough on its own, but when Peck drops the marriage bomb, the creep factor skyrockets. I was honestly disgusted at the idea of a man leaving his wife to be with his niece whom he  has known since birth, blood related or not. Prior to the climax, one major event occurs and that is in the monologue that Aunt Mary delivers indicating that she knows what’s going on between Peck and Lil bit. The words used during this monologue, indicate to me a couple of key points about this character. First of all she is very intelligent. Her thoughts are well put together and the words she uses indicates to me that she has some sort of education. She is also very intuitive, she picks up on the subtle, non-verbal signals that peck gives off when he’s got something on his mind and presumably when he’s around Lil Bit. Also, the words used by Lil Bit in her different flashbacks have a direct correlation to her age. It’s obvious as you read them, that during the later ones she is forming more complex thoughts and emotions, which is indicative of growth. For the music in this play, Paula Vogel suggested period correct music spanning two generations. She mentions Motown several times, as well as Roy Orbison and the Beach Boys. Most of this music is romantic and happy with little hints of sexuality and sometimes-pedophilic references. For some weird reason the voice of the announcer in my head was played by the Moviephone guy. The car in the play was described as a Buick Riviera, but in my mind it was more like a Camaro or GTO. The main reason for this is the obvious relationship between Peck and his car. The way he describes the way the aggressive way men are taught to drive and the feeling of a cars’ response to your touch, just makes me think of those fast nimble sports cars. Taking place in the 1960’s, the costumes in my mind were bell-bottoms and flowered shirts, polyester leisure suits, and fringes all over the place. This was your typical 1960’s attire. I believe the overall theme of this play is about the effect of time on relationships. The relationship between Peck and Lil Bit starts out strong, for her and fragile for him. She has a strong male figure giving her attention while he is nurturing a relationship that he knows is illegal and  immoral. As time progresses, the roles ultimately reverse leaving Peck with much confidence in the relationship while Lil Bit comes to realize the truth about it which leads to its demise. It just goes to show that time will always change relationships, jus not always in the way you imagined.

Thin layer chromatography (TLC)

Thin layer chromatography (TLC) It stands for Thin Layer Chromatography. Its a simple technique used by chemists in separation of Mixtures in addition to supporting the identification of the separated compounds by comparing the Retention Factor of the separated compound with that of a known compound. The TLC plate on which the Thin Layer Chromatography is performed is usually a sheet of glass, aluminum or plastic. Its has a coat of adsorbent material ( known as stationary phase ) such as silica gel, alumina or cellulose. First step is application of the sample to the plate, then in a capillary action- the chemist draws the solvent up the plate. Separation occurs due to the different ascendance rates of analytes on the plate. Advantages of TLC over other types of chromatography Paper Chromatography TLC is faster than paper chromatography. Its more sensitive to many substances. Its preparation is usually sharper. It requires smaller quantity of sample. Potential application of different types of reagents without causing damage to the plate. Column chromatography TLC has smaller apparatus It has more speed Previous points leads to cheaper over all procedure It provides easier measurement of the Retention Factor. The above advantages makes it more suitable for analytical purposes rather than separation purposes. Preparation of TLC plate To prepare the TLC plate, first we must mix a small quantity of an inert substance such as calcium sulfate with adsorbent substance like Silica gel and water. The second step is spreading this mixture on sheet of unreactive substance such as glass or plastic. The third step is activation of the plate that results from the previous procedures by heating it in an oven at 110oC for nearly half an hour. The adsorbent layers thickness depends on the purpose of TLC as in case of analytical purposes, it ranges from 0.1 to 0.25 mm. In case of preparative TLC it ranges from 0.5 to 2.0 mm. Technique A small amount of the samples solution is poured on the plate to cover about one centimeter high from the base. Then the plate is soaked in a convenient solvent like Hexane and put in a container thats well sealed. Using capillary action, the solvent goes up the plate to meet the samples mixture which it helps to move up the plate and dissolves as well. Differences between rates of the compounds in the mixture are because each compound has different affinity to the adsorbent layer (stationary phase) from the other compounds and also each compound has different solubility in the mixture. If the solvent is changed, the compounds can be separated (using Retention Factors value). Applications of TLC in the Pharmaceutical field Thin-layer chromatography technique is used for separation of amino acids that are the main components of antibiotics, enzymes and hormones. TLC-UV spectrometry was used to determine salidroside in 8 Rhodiola species ( Rhodiola is a herb that has been used for long time for treatment of cold and flu symptoms in addition to relieving mental and physical stresses. In China, its recently considered as promising anti-aging drug in addition to having causative agent for improvement of athletic performance and enhancing memory). The combination of advanced chromatographic resolution of 2D-TLC with simple bioautography is used in discovering new natural products that are active against important fungal pathogens of plants. Thin-layer chromatography in addition to HPLC are used for the identification of Pogostemoni herba which is a crude drug and a Kampo medicines-component. TLC-colourimetric was used to estimate free and combined emodine, physcione and chrysophanol in Indian Rhubarb and it turned out to contain (0.07%)of free emodin of (0.08%) of C-glycosidic emodin, (0.30%) of O-glycosidic emodin, (0.40%) of free physcione, (0.18%) of O-glycosidic physcione, (0.17 %) of C-glycosidic physcione, (0.15%) of free chrysophanol, (0.06%) of O-glycosidic chrysophanol and (0.21%) of C-glycosidic chrysophanol. TLC-UV Densitometric method is used in Misai Kucing Capsules for Simultaneous Quantification of Sinensetin and Tetramethoxyflavone. TLC is used for determination of different compounds in analgesic tablets. TLC-densitometric procedure is used for determination of the contents of Plumbagin which is a naphthoquinone that acts as antimalarial , antimalarial , anticancer, cardiotonic and antifertilityaction. Quantitative Thin-Layer Chromatography is used for the determination of Propranolol in human plasma. Determination of Steroidal Alkaloid Glycosides using Thin-Layer chromatography Immunostaining. TLC is used to determine Phenytoin in pharmaceutical preparations and identify its Hydroxylated Urinary Metabolites. Isolation of antioxidants from Perilla frutescens var. acuta fruit is carried out using TLC. TLC- densitometric method is used to analyse artemisinin in the planlets of Artemisia annua L. TLC is used to detect as well as identify opiates in urine in addition to reveilind adultration in heroin. TLC-Densitometry is used in the Quantitative Analysis of Curcumin, Demethoxycurcumin and Bisdemethoxycurcumin in the Crude Curcuminoid Extract from Curcuma longa.

Ethical Dilemma: Brain Death

Ethical Dilemma: Brain Death The ethical dilemma is a situation that is common in many places of work including the nurse’s career. These dilemmas are always hard to solve since technically they weigh equally in the eyes of the professional nurses in question (White, 2001). Nursing as a career like any other has diverse ethical dilemmas. This paper aims at describing an ethical dilemma in relation to declaration of brain death by the nurse and refusal of this fact by the patient’s family. The work will entail the definition of ethical dilemma; main moral issues that arose in the scenario given; description of two bioethical principles and giving a view of how they relate to this scenario; explain my personal morality and how it relates to the dilemma of declaration of brain death and finally the conclusion. Ethical Dilemma and How it Affects Nursing According to Ong Yee (2012), ethical dilemma is a situation that needs one to choose one from among two or more morally acceptable options or between equally unacceptable courses of action, whereby one of the choices prevents the selection of the other. Increase in economic stress, advances in medicine, rise in self determination of patients and differing values between patients, their family and health workers, especially nurses are among the many factors that contribute to the frequency and complexity of issues that are ethical in the healthcare. Example of these ethical dilemmas includes truth-telling and disagreement over the management plans. This therefore needs the nurses to be in a good stead so as to be aware of these issues and adopt a suitable approach towards dealing with such dilemmas. In addition, the health care facilities management should have a responsibility to ensure that systems are in place to minimize the occurrence of dilemmas and to ensure that in case it ha ppens, staffs, including nurses, are supported on how to get through the process of resolving dilemmas and conflicts that may arise afterwards. An ethical dilemma can also be a situation or state in which one must select between two or more adoptions that are equally unacceptable, where this is â€Å"Conflict between two or more nursing ethical principles and each solution may contain unpleasant outcomes for one or more involved parties†; and in my case the parties are the bereaved family and the management staff (Miwa et al, 2012). The effect of a brain death and the family refusal scenario may be of great emotional impact of the nurses. Some might even end up losing it all, according the historical findings, but it always appropriate to note that these effects will differ from one nurse to another. The grade to which one feels a dilemma will always differ from each nurse and also differs in terms of the nurses educational background, how much clinical experienced is the nurse and also one’s nursing moral (Miwa et al, 2012). The dilemma consequences are always frustrating and upsetting nurses and more so when one does not have adequate experience dealing with the matter. The suffering that the nurses go through is known as the moral distress (Epstein Delgado 2010). This is meant to happen since the nurses know the ethically correct action to take in reference to the brain death but feels powerless to take the action. This might lead to some nurses leaving their jobs, or even the profession altogether. Main Moral Issues Raised In a situation of ethical dilemma in the declaration of brain death and refusal on the part of the family, the main moral issues include the fact that the family is legally authorized to make decisions in relations to the patient even though they do not have the medical knowhow they desire an action; not declaring the patient brain death thus the patient will still be assumed to be alive and thus treated. On the other hand, the nurse who has the clinical knowledge opposes the idea and is about a desire for action that the patient should be declared clinically and legally dead so that other follow up procedures could be taken (Epstein Delgado 2010). This means that there are two courses of action, both of which can be justified ethically and neither of which is of lesser weight. If the desires of the family are followed, the patient will be in the hospital assumed alive and treated like any other patient. One may ask how beneficial is this to the family and what are the costs of this action? On the other hand, if the desire of the staff is followed, the patient will be declared dead and there is the likely hood of the family feeling abandoned and opinion, neglected thus angry thus would lead to other repercussions like court battles a situation that one would like to avoid due to the costs that come with it (Epstein Delgado 2010). Bioethical Principles According to Crisham (1985), the bioethical principal has evolved over the years with some elements added and others removed until now we have only four broad bioethical principles: beneficence, non-maleficence, justice and autonomy. In this case will discuss autonomy and beneficence. This does not mean they override all other moral considerations, but they are the perfect match for this kind of ethical dilemma. Autonomy Ethics entails the respect for autonomy. This is the principle of permission. In minimal terms, autonomy requires to decide for the as an individual and free from the control of others and with sufficient level of understanding that you will provide a meaningful choice. Autonomous persons should be capable to deliberate a course of action and develop an action plan then implement it. This principle comes with its share of problems, especially when the person is incompetent for our scenario the bereaved family. The issues, therefore, rise since the family is to give informed consent to the declaration of the patient’s brain death. The principle holds that there is a need for competence, disclosure, voluntariness and comprehension when it comes to the informed consent making the declaration even more difficult for our car (Gordon et al, 2011). In relation to the ethical dilemma therefore, there is a need for informed consent from the parents for the declaration to take effect. And the fact that the family denies the declaration simply means they do not consent to it thus rendering it null and void (Gordon et al, 2011). Beneficence This principle requires that we contribute to the welfare of others as an ‘embodiment of the Golden Rule’ (Gordon et al, 2011). This principle can be divided into two: utility and positive beneficence. The positive beneficence principle requires that there is provision of benefits from the moral staff while the utility principle requires that the nurses weigh the benefits and deficits as a means of producing the best result. There is therefore need for a risk benefit analysis. In the scenario of brain death declaration and refusal from family, I will be preventing the ethical losses on part of the health facility by declaring that the patient is brain dead while I will be like issuing a loose statement to the patient’s family. The utility principle, therefore, requires me to weigh the risk associated with the declaration and come up with a sound decision (Gordon et al, 2011). Personal Morality Naturally, I am an empathetic person with great compassion, thus pride myself being a nurse. I always try to put myself in the patients and family shoes and try to understand the situation that they are in. I made great sacrifices on behalf of my career as a nurse and just to see that my role as a nurse is felt in the health facility. I am open and ready to lean in all the environments. I also enjoy socializing and comparing notes with my colleagues to ensure that the product of my decisions is holistic and meet the threshold that is set. My compassion has enabled me to appear friendly for both the patients and their family and friends. I always believe that am suppose to be dedicated to my place of work through hard work and ensuring flexibility whenever need be (White, 2001). The majority of these qualities is what I would call that makes part of me as a nurse if not all and therefore a situation that brings a collision between these qualities and the my occupation as a nurse does not only cause great confusion but perplexes. The scenario of declaring the brain death and refusal of the family is therefore a hard nut to crack on my part. One side of the puzzle is, given the fact that I have been appearing to be the ‘friend’ of the patients and their family members and friends, and such a declaration will make me lose one of the morality that I intend to keep. Compassion is the morality that keeps me going in my career as a nurse (White, 2001). Empathy makes me understand the situation of the family and the pain that they are going through thus making the declaration even harder. On the other hand, a declaration is my duty in place of work. I have to declare that the child is brain dead to ensure me being a benefit to the facility. Failure of which will be like a denial to do an activity which is actually the same reason why I am a nurse. This might lead to results such as being sucked. The declaration of brain death and refusal by the family is therefore an ethical dilemma. This is from the fact that it brings forward the controversy between the two bioethical principles: autonomy and beneficence. It is hard to determine whether to do what one is expected to do in the career or do what one views is right while all this does not solve the solution at hand; this is the scenario that comes with this ethical dilemma. The values of compassion and empathy makes enable one to understand the situation better and feel for the family even more and may end up forgetting his or her role as a nurse. In this case, the declaration of a brain death would be still a great ethical dilemma on part of the nurses if the family is against the declaration. References Beauchamp, T.L. (2011). Making Principlism Practical,Bioethics, 25(6), 301-303. Crisham, P. (1985).Moral: How Can I Do What’s Right? Nursing Management, 16 (3), 42A- 42N. Epstein, E.G., Delgado, S., (Sept 30, 2010) Understanding and Addressing Moral Distress. OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 15(3), Manuscript 1. Gordon, J.S., Rauprich, O. Vollmann, J. (2011). Applying the Four-Principle Approach. Bioethics, 25(6), 293-300. Ham, K. (2004). Principled Thinking: A Comparison of Nursing Students and Experienced Nurses. Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 35(2), 66-73. Miwa, Y., Shizue, M., Masako A. (2012). Ethical Dilemma Factor in Regarding Physical Restraints to Elderly of Female Nurses with the Living Together Experience. International Journal of Clinical Medicine, 3, 328-334. Ong, W. Y., Yee, C. M. , Lee, A. (2012). Ethical Dilemmas in the Care of Cancer Patients near the end of Life. Singapore Medical Journal, 53 (1), 11-6. White, G. (2001). Issues Update: The Code of Ethics for Nurses. The American Journal of Nursing, 101(10), 73-75.

Walt Whitman’s Song of Myself and Alice Fulton’s You Can’t Rhumboogie i

Walt Whitman’s Song of Myself and Alice Fulton’s You Can’t Rhumboogie in a Ball and Chain When I read poetry, I often tend to look first at its meaning and second at how it is written, or its form. The mistake I make when I do this is in assuming that the two are separate, when, in fact, often the meaning of poetry is supported or even defined by its form. I will discuss two poems that embody this close connection between meaning and form in their central use of imagery and repetition. One is a tribute to Janis Joplin, written in 1983 by Alice Fulton, entitled â€Å"You Can’t Rhumboogie in a Ball and Chain.† The second is a section from Walt Whitman’s 1,336-line masterpiece, â€Å"Song of Myself,† first published in 1855. The imagery in each poem differs in purpose and effect, and the rhythms, though created through repetition in both poems, are quite different as well. As I reach the end of each poem, however, I am left with a powerful human presence lingering in the words. In Fulton’s poem, that presence is the live-hard-and-die -young Janis Joplin; in Whitman’s poem, the presence created is an aspect of the poet himself. Alice Fulton’s modern sestina â€Å"You Can’t Rhumboogie in a Ball and Chain† finds unity in the repetition of similar images throughout the closed form poem. These images hold together to create a unique and disturbing picture of the young rock icon Janis Joplin. Addressed directly to Joplin, the poem strictly follows the sestina form: six six-line stanzas, followed by a three-line â€Å"envoy.† The distinct feature of the sestina is that the same six words conclude the lines of every stanza, simply changing order according to a set pattern from one stanza to the next. I imagine that to write a sestina, the poet... ...he poem around a single figure: Fulton puts Joplin at the center of her poem, while Whitman’s poetic world is drawn around and even within himself. Both capture raw details of human life and misery in their imagery. Both use repetition to define an irregular but recognizable rhythm. Yet the two poems beat out their rhythms in distinct and utterly different measures, leaving me with two powerful figures, created by the poems’ forms, which have their own purpose and form in the larger world beyond poetry. Works Cited Fulton, Alice. â€Å"You Can’t Rhumboogie in a Ball and Chain.† Approaching Poetry: Perspectives and Responses. Ed. Peter Schakel and Jack Ridl. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1997. 128-29. Whitman, Walt. â€Å"Song of Myself.† 1855 ed. Walt Whitman’s â€Å"Song of Myself.† Edwin Haviland Miller. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1989. 9-11.

Merchant Of Venice Character Diary - Shylock :: Free Merchant of Venice Essays

Today Bassanio came up to me asking for my moneys. Later on I told him that I would lend him the moneys without any interest. I was very cautious in the repeating of his demands. Antonio is naive risking his life hoping the ships will return. I am clever because I am using this opportunity to get revenge. I made Bassanio nervous when I called Antonio a good man and they both probably knew the meaning. I'll show Antonio when his ships fail to return. Lancelot is getting on my nerves again. He is snail-slow in profit and he sleeps by day. My daughter seems to want to get out of the house and might be getting annoyed with me. I am sure that it is just a phase. Because it meant that Bassanio would lose even more of the money he borrowed I decided to attend the feast with all those creepy masks. I took no pleasure in it but I intend to ruin Bassanio. Bassanio will have all the ducats spent in no time. I forgot about my anger over my daughter's flight when I heard about Bassanio's ship wrecked in the English Channel. I then quickly remembered my daughters leaving when Tubal came to me with information on Jessica's reckless spending of my moneys. My heart was broken when I heard about I exchange for a monkey, she traded the ring that was a gift from my wife to me. I should have seen this coming. My hate turned into a disaster in only a short time today. First, Bassanio offered me double the money that was borrowed, but I was too stubborn to accept and reminded the court that the flesh was mine by law. I looked into Antonio's eyes and he seemed to have felt that he deserved what should have come. As I was sharpening my knife, Gratiano started abusing me. I guess I deserved what was happening but what happened next I'm not sure of. A lawyer came in and seemed to be on my side until she mentioned that I could only take Antonio's flesh, no blood. I was shocked to hear this but I then tried to accept the double amount but knew it was too late because that wasn't written on the bond. If that was not enough I could not just go home. The lawyer bent the law and would have taken away my life if it weren’t up to the Duke. Merchant Of Venice Character Diary - Shylock :: Free Merchant of Venice Essays Today Bassanio came up to me asking for my moneys. Later on I told him that I would lend him the moneys without any interest. I was very cautious in the repeating of his demands. Antonio is naive risking his life hoping the ships will return. I am clever because I am using this opportunity to get revenge. I made Bassanio nervous when I called Antonio a good man and they both probably knew the meaning. I'll show Antonio when his ships fail to return. Lancelot is getting on my nerves again. He is snail-slow in profit and he sleeps by day. My daughter seems to want to get out of the house and might be getting annoyed with me. I am sure that it is just a phase. Because it meant that Bassanio would lose even more of the money he borrowed I decided to attend the feast with all those creepy masks. I took no pleasure in it but I intend to ruin Bassanio. Bassanio will have all the ducats spent in no time. I forgot about my anger over my daughter's flight when I heard about Bassanio's ship wrecked in the English Channel. I then quickly remembered my daughters leaving when Tubal came to me with information on Jessica's reckless spending of my moneys. My heart was broken when I heard about I exchange for a monkey, she traded the ring that was a gift from my wife to me. I should have seen this coming. My hate turned into a disaster in only a short time today. First, Bassanio offered me double the money that was borrowed, but I was too stubborn to accept and reminded the court that the flesh was mine by law. I looked into Antonio's eyes and he seemed to have felt that he deserved what should have come. As I was sharpening my knife, Gratiano started abusing me. I guess I deserved what was happening but what happened next I'm not sure of. A lawyer came in and seemed to be on my side until she mentioned that I could only take Antonio's flesh, no blood. I was shocked to hear this but I then tried to accept the double amount but knew it was too late because that wasn't written on the bond. If that was not enough I could not just go home. The lawyer bent the law and would have taken away my life if it weren’t up to the Duke.