Response Paper On Being An Atheist Philosophy Essay

Response Paper On Being An Atheist Philosophy Essay In the H.J. McCloskey article entitled, On Being an Atheist he begins with assertions that are absent of logic, common sense, and reasoning. He reaches all these conclusions without even a respectful cursory reading of Gods word, much less study. I will attempt to show where his arguments do not, conclusively prove that atheism is true, or that God does not exist.  [1]  I find it interesting that he does not address ontological arguments (the idea of God proves, or adds evidence to, the fact that He exists and, in fact, dismisses them. Therefore, I want to point out that ontological arguments do not prove atheism, because simply declaring yourself an atheist does not qualify you as an atheist. With all due respect, Mr. McCloskey argues in favor of atheism and attempts to discredit theism, by using multiple approaches one being that God failed to establish His own existence, and he claims in his cosmological argument, that the existence of all that we experience and see while on e arth, does not prove God exists or that He is even necessary.  [2]   Proofs cant definitively establish the case for God First, McCloskey implies proofs cant definitively establish the case for God, so they should be abandoned. McCloskey makes no effort to define evil, nor does he attempt to explain it. He tries to discredit anyones belief in God, by attacking the origin of their belief, but he never addresses why a persons faith cannot be valid whether they examine all the evidence prior to accepting Christian theism are not! To understand McCloskeys argument, you have to understand relativism, which is a position where all points of view are equally valid and all truth is relative to the individual, but relativism does not prove there is no God. Philosophy sometimes clouds issues to the point, that nothing can be known for sure. For the Christian, the ultimate expression of truth is found in Jesus words in John 14:6, I am the way, the truth, and the life McCloskey portrays God as jaded, accusatory, argumentative, uncaring, incompetent, unforgiving, and punitive. Mr. McCloskey is putting forth a cause and effect argument absent of consequences. McCloskey says the best proofs of the non existence of God are the evil acts of men and women and he circumvents morality, and focuses on evil, because morality is stronger proof that an intelligent creator designed the universe. As a result, McCloskey struggles with the question: AWhy is there evil and suffering in the world?  [3]   The Cosmological Argument In his book: Reasonable Faith, William Lane Craig, writes, There must exist a creator, or a being responsible for all creation and that creator has no need of a cause, as do those things which have an origin. So everything that begins to exist does need a cause, but to say that something has no beginning does not need a cause, denies the existence of a predecessor.  [4]   In Dr. Evans book, Philosophy of Religion, he summarized the cause question saying, The person who believes in God and the person who does not believe in God, do not merely disagree about God. They disagree about the very character of the universe. If God does not exist, objective moral values do not exist and since they do, then God does exist. Cultural relativism makes the culture the supreme determinant of right and wrong; therefore, the culture becomes god. McCloskey flippantly and wrongly asserts, There is no God, because of all the evil and wickedness in the world.  [5]  Mr. McCloskey argues against theism and paints a picture of humanity being little more than animals and acts that we classify as murder, torture, and rape are natural and amoral just as in the animal kingdom. Moreover, if there is no rule of law to prohibit certain actions, how can we have moral obligations or prohibitions? The cosmological argument asks: Is something good because God wills it, or does God will something because its good? Theists have traditionally taught: God wills something, because He is good, but that doesnt ignore divine sovereignty. William Craigs answer is, Gods moral nature is itself the ultimate standard of moral goodness. Go ds moral nature is what Plato called the Good. He is the source of moral value.  [6]   The Teleological Argument McCloskey claims, as does many philosophers, that in order to believe that nature was designed, there would need to be examples that were indisputable. The Argument of Design, appeals to a principle of reasoning that seems to be firmly embedded in common sense and in scientific thinking, so he asks, How can evil exist if an omnipotent God really exists? That brings us to the concept of free moral will. Evil is not something God deliberately and maliciously created so that humans could experience pain and suffering. Atheists never deal with the question of what the purpose of mans existence is. Julian Huxley, representing the atheist view, said: We are as much a product of blind forces as is the falling of a stone to Earth, or the ebb and flow of the tides. We have just happened, and man was made flesh by a long series of singularly beneficial accidents.  [7]  McCloskey asks why God cant keep humans from making wrong decisions? The teleological argument says, To approach this proof, indisputable examples of design would be required. Generally speaking, to give an example of design, would make it possible that there is a Designer; and in order for that possibility to exist, God must exist! McCloskey says, No being who was perfect could have created a world in which there was so much suffering or in which his creatures would engage in morally evil acts, which often result in injury to innocent persons.  [8]  Moral evil is caused by the actions and wrong choices of free, morally responsible beings. Natural evil, is the evil that does not occur as a result of a responsi bly moral being. God is justified in allowing evil, because he is God and we are not! Alvin Plantinga in his book: God, Freedom, and Evil writes, God has reasons for allowing evil that we cant know and would not understand if we did. Some of the evils in the world happen in order to produce second order virtues. For example, a first order evil occurs, when a grizzly bear charges a mans daughter; perhaps a second order virtue, courage, is produced when the man charges the bear waving his arms to scare the bear off. Or, if the bear gets the girl, which would be evil, perseverance and reliance on Christ could be the second order virtue of the man. The second order evils that occur, are opposite virtues, such as cowardice? This is the result of the mistakes of Man and his poor use of free choice.  [9]  McCloskeys discussion of free will begins when he asks why God did not arrange so that man always makes the right choice. His argument, is not logical, because had God decreed that ev eryone always choose the right path, then no one would have a free will. As Evans stated in his book, Philosophy of Religion: Thinking About Faith, AGod allows human kind a free will, because without it we could not be morally responsible, nor would we be capable of freely doing good by responding to and loving our Creator. Atheists cannot always argue that free will and necessitation to virtue are incompatible, because they represent God himself as possessing a free will and as being incapable of acting immorally. If this can be the case with God, why can it not be so with all free agents?  [10]   The Presence of Evil. There is the idea postulated worldwide that states, the amount of good in the world ultimately outweighs the evil in the world. Its the Agreater [emailprotected] argument where a greater good is achieved and therefore the good will always outweigh the bad. So by McCloskeys definition, wholesale murder is wrong, but unavoidable. If the atheist says there is no such thing as objective morality, the atheist loses all credibility. In JudeoChristian theism, we believe objective morality exists, and is the byproduct of the regenerate heart and mind, and if morality is transcendent of the opinions of man, it becomes nothing more than logic, when in fact morality is far more important than logic. So does atheism have a better explanation for the existence of objective morality? McCloskey offers nothing to the debate! Atheism is not comforting Our universe is a maze of mysteries, like how can gravity pull the Milky Way into a spiral? How can atoms contain such power that matter, smaller than a dime, produced the energy in the bomb that killed 100,000 Hiroshima residents? How can the doublehelix thread of DNA create all living things, from bacteria to trees to Beethoven? How can electrons, dormant in every atom of your body, explode into violent lightning bolts when theyre detached? Why does anything exist? If we say that the power of gravity, atoms, DNA, lightning and all the rest is God B and that God is E = MC2 B then God exists. Those baffling forces are undeniably real. McCloskey offers some encouragement and insight saying, Atheism is not comforting when you consider the problem of evil. Instead, atheism adopted by a thoughtful and sensitive person, leads to a spirit of self reliance, and self respect which demands that we comfort and help those who need such support, because it will mitigate the blows of fate.  [11]  William Lane Craig was absolutely accurate when he spoke ingeniously, If God does not e xist, then you are just a miscarriage of nature, thrust into a purposeless universe to live a purposeless life.  [12]  

pollock Essay -- essays research papers

For centuries artist along with society have placed an emphasis on meaning in a piece of art. Art has always consisted of subject matters, motifs and other pre-concieved ideas or thoughts about what one should use as their focal point in a work of art. The very definition of art though, is an appealing or attractive object created through any of the fine arts. Nowhere does it say that a work of art must have a concentration point. Not until the advent of abstract expressionism was the idea of â€Å"painting from the unconscious,†1 brought into the art scene.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This movement typically saw artist rapidly slinging, slapping and dripping paint onto large canvases with no emphasis on subject matters but rather spontaneity. Jackson Pollock who has been deemed the greatest american painter was one of the pioneers of this artistic movement. Pollock, the first painter to pour paint on the canvas with brushes instead of using brush strokes to apply it, circled his canvases which were placed across the floor, controlling the flow of the paint in a very rythmic matter.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The project which I have created was based upon the stylistic nature of Jackson Pollock's work. The freedom of this form of abstract...

The Yellow Wallpaper Reading Response

This is a fictional story, in classic form, has a plot, a setting, a cast of characters, and a point of view in which the story is told. The conflict of this story is the struggle of Jane against her husband and then later her struggle against the wallpaper itself. However, it is the way in which the story is told and the unexpected conclusion at the end of it that make it unique and part of the 19th century. The setting of this story takes place during the summer in a rented home that John has acquired so that the narrator may rest and get well again.The story takes place about the time in which it was written, in the late 19th century. The house is a colonial mansion, which our narrator quickly tells us she thinks is haunted. It is in a rural setting surrounded by gardens and woods with â€Å"a lovely shaded winding road† leading up to the mansion. The main setting, which the narrator describes, is the room in which she stays. She goes into explicit detail as she carefully d escribes the yellow wallpaper which consumes more and more of her attention. The wallpaper becomes a moving prison to our main character, while other characters, like John, barely seem to notice its presence.There are not many characters in this story, but each one plays a vital role in giving the reader insight into the mind of the writer and allowing the reader to come to a deeper understanding of the meaning of the story. Jennie, a flat character and foil of the main character, is the main character’s sister-in-law and is the caretaker of the home. She is the â€Å"perfect and enthusiastic housekeeper and hopes for no better profession† who serves as a substitute wife for John’s traditional family view. She is the imprisoned woman who is perfectly fine with her prison, even blaming the narrator’s sickness on her untraditional thinking and writing.John, who is also a flat character, is the main character’s husband and is the archetype of the 19th century white male. He is a successful â€Å"practical physician† who treats his wife more like a patient than he does an equal partner. John is a representative image of the dominant sunlight, which in the story keeps the woman behind strict bars and prevents her from being free or creative. Though the narrator never explicitly tells us her name, the very end of the story says, â€Å"’I’ve got out at last,’ said I, ‘in spite of you and Jane. And I’ve pulled off most of the paper, so you can’t put me back! † This is a clear indication to me that the narrator’s name is Jane, as revealed by the crazy woman (Jane) who now thinks she was the one in the wallpaper. The narrator of the story, Jane, is the main character and is a round character that is fully developed. She is representative of the woman imprisoned, unsatisfied with being merely the submissive housekeeper. Jane is like the less dominant moon, which in the story allows the bars of the wallpaper to move and free the woman in the wallpaper from her daytime prison. We are given an insight into Jane’s mind and opinions through her writings in her journal.This story is told in first-person narration. However, it is not in traditional story form, but it is constructed as if we are reading the hidden journal of the Jane who is telling, us alone, all her intimate thoughts. This also allows for the time-lapse in which the story skips over weeks at a time allowing the reader to gain an understanding of what is going on without having to read mundane and unimportant details. The chronological order of the journal also lends to it appearing as if it could be an actual journal the audience is reading.Although The Yellow Wallpaper has all the components of the average fictional story such as plot, a setting, characters, and is even told in a fairly common point of view, the brilliant writing of the story combined with the unique way in which it is presented, make for an exciting story that keeps the reader’s attention. The story is also a deep insight into the author’s world and time revealing her own personal point of view. It is this creative writing, coupled with deep meaning and veiled in captivating writing, which assures this literary work will continue to remain a hallmark of fiction.

British didnt have to lose the Colonies essays

AP History/ British didn't have to lose the Colonies essays Were it not for the oversights, mistakes, and misjudgments of British leadership, the American colonies would still be territory of Great Britain. Parliament had the power to declare the colonies exempt from taxation, increased colonial dependency on Britain, or given the colonies a form of government that while subject to the Kings veto, would have been an equally powerful counterpart of Parliament that would have ruled over the colonies alone, circumventing the need for rebellion by allowing more freedoms. I. Parliament/King could have declared the colonies exempt from the taxes enforced on English merchants. A. Even if the British merchants complained, they were powerless. 1. They relied on the colonies for a large portion of business. 2. The non-importation agreements proved the power of the colonies over the British economy. 3. The repealing of the Stamp Act proved that mercantilism was a double-edged sword, forcing the economy to become dependent on the colonies for trade and material. B. Keeping on good terms with the colonial merchants proved important. 1. There was a monopoly on tobacco and tobacco prices, an important and widely exported staple product. 2. The Navy was dependent on lumber from the colonies to build and repair ships, maintaining British dominance of the shipping lanes. 3. Without colonists to buy imports from Britain, the British economy suffered, as witnessed by the non-importation agreements that got the Stamp Act repealed. C. It would serve the ultimate purpose by keeping the colonies from succeeding. 1. The colonists were taxing themselves, and resented the taxation on their trade. 2. The colonists were psychologically independent from Britain, being so far removed from their mother country, and many colonialists were born in the colonies, with no real allegiance to Britain. 3. The colonists were self-sufficient, except for the keeping banks, and would obviously break away...

Effective Management System Essays

Effective Management System Essays Effective Management System Essay Effective Management System Essay It has vastly expanded to become a distinctive household brand enterprise that has established Its name on the International scale with Its bakery, restaurant and food atrium footprints. Its portfolio comprises of several brands being Play, Din Tall Fund,Food Republic, The Icing Room, Toast Box and Carols Jar In China (Breadth, 2014). Bakery from Breadth contributed 52. 2% to the total Breadth Group revenue, million, an Increase of 22. 1% from 2009 onwards (Breadth, 2014). This was mostly contributed by expansion of outlets and partly driven by higher same store sales In Hong Kong and Singapore. Growth In franchise revenue was mainly attributed to Increasing growth In royalty fees Income In Dalton with expanding franchise brands on broader consumer based. The objective this report Is to discuss and analyze Breadth current situation, Its current strategies and to conclude on Breadth human resource strategy whether If It Is affective. Strategy. Breakfast has a manage to create a strong branding with differentiation with over 7 different brands to cater to a large number of food and beverage consumers . Breadth also has very creative product innovations led by a team of skilled culinary chefs to run the research and development department , which is a team comprised of chefs from Japan , Spain , Germany and France that has produce numerous recipes which has made some of Breadth most popular dishes and rodents example the famous pork floss bread which risen Breadth to fame. Besides being run by a team of experience managers with a diversified background of experience ranging from Finance to Food and Beverage led by the founder Dry. George Queue himself , Breadth group also has a strong partnership in Asia to penetrate and build its reputation in the Asian market which manages to penetrate the Asia market with ease from Asia to the Middle East . (Breadth,2014) How does providing training and development skills to employees actually benefit an organization ? Training can improve and greatly increases an employees knowledge and understanding of foreign cultures and competitors which could benefit as they can work even closer with their foreign peers and understand different foreign cultures to produce goods which will cater to the business foreign consumers . Trainings could also ensure that employees have the necessary skills to work with the latest technology which could eventually speed up the productivity rate of the business as employees are well equipped with the knowledge in handling equipments . Trainings not only imparts knowledge to the employees as an individual UT also as a team as well to improve employees working as a team closely to ensure effective teamwork producing good quality product and excellent service standard . Another benefit is how training can ensure a better understanding for employees towards the companys culture example , in the case of Breadth the company culture focuses on product innovation and creativity to differentiate its brands. Breadth,2014) An effective training can only be planned effort by an organization to accommodate the learning of employees which is a high leverage training that is linked to strategic equines objectives that is supported by top management , relies on instructional designs model and set to the same level as to programs of other organization to ensure that the organization is keeping up with its competitor in terms of knowledge and skills. Nee of the trainings that Breadth did was for Din ATA Fungus employees where Breadth shifted the centralized kitchen and training facilities all in one to accommodate to trainings for new employees to shorten the time from eight months to four months effectively a 50% decrease in training time savings substantial cost for he organization and better used of time for productivity . Also Din It Fungus staff have and hiring master chefs from china to teach the new or existing Junior chefs the art of making a traditional , Din ATA Fungus most famous dish Ixia Long ABA which takes years to harness the skill can actually be imparted in a training in months, as they are well equipped with numerous skills that can improve productivity and increase retention rates by over 20% as the employees of Din ATA Fund are trained to better understand the strong emphasis on career progression and oriented cultures . Spring Singapore,2013)With trainings skills which clearly differentiates Breadth from other competitors especially Din ATA Fungus chefs which are equipped with skills taught by a master culinary chef the organization , Breadth is able to produce the renowned Ixia Long ABA which has been on the media which drove many consumers wanting for more even thought Ixia Long ABA is a dish provided in many oriental restaurants , Breadth manages to create the most famous among its competitors . Performance management is a process where by the managers ensure that employees task and production are consistent with the organization goals it is classical creating a conducive work environment where individuals are able to perform at their best of their abilities (Hatfield,No date). When a company takes time to analyze the performance of its employees productivity rate and social factors to increase retention rate will improve significantly as employees see it as the organization caring about the needs of the employees . The information is usually gather in the feedbacks . To develop an effective performance management system a company should set clear expectations for employees in conjunction with providing managers performance management training , senior management support , focusing on the right performance measures and to differentiate performance fairly and effectively . In the case of Breadth the company has manage to implement policies to reduce working hours for a regular full time staff from the regular time of 11 hours and opt for a shorter working hour of 6. Hours ,which cater towards the service position which is deem long hours and unrewarding . Due to labor constraints, Din ATA Fund has also increase part-time employees by 50% to increase productivity under the supervision of full-timers . Spring Singapore. 2013) Performance appraisal and performance feedbacks are part and parcel of performance management to align the organizations goals to the employees passed down by top management and to provide employees in regards to their individuals effectiveness to increase productivity(HARM Guide,2013) . A performance appraisal can improve productivity for an individual within an organization as they understand whether their performance is what the organization is asking for, example an employee from Breadth who has been on a constant low productivity rate might hint he is doing his work right , however with performance appraisal conducted by his supervisor or managers the manager could use these information provided through the 5 performance information source of Managers,Peers,Subordinates,Self and Customers , the manager could then provide a performance feedback to the 2. Pay Structure Decisions There are two views of pay structure one from the employee and one from the employers . An employers view of a pay structure is critical in attaining strategic objectives as well understand that pay has an impact in the employees social factors such as behaviors and attitude . The employer should also consider that employee compensation can be a significant cost to the organization . While from an employees view policies that will affect the wages,compensations or other earnings will affect their total income which will affect their standard of living . Employees are also sensitive when it comes to fairness and pay when compared to others . There are two different pay structure concepts and consequences one being pay level which focus on external equity with the consequence being external employees movements , high labor cost and Job structure which focus on internal equity , consequence being internal employee movements and decrease in Cooperation . An organization like Breadth has develop pay levels as labor-market competition as product-market competition might not prove a viable option due to Breadth already high operating cost of 30% raw materials and 32% employees compensation as Breadth is unable to increase the cost of any Breadth group brands product as price sensitivity to consumers due to the line of products Breadth sells can drastically reduce revenues and hurt their reputation . COB,2014) Breadth has hired many culinary experts , Top management executives with a history of experiences and and expert search and development team from all over the world has to place itself different from its competitors and to create a globalizes reputation . To attract such talents to the organization Breadth has take careful consideration in the pay structures as it differs across other countries in terms of level and relative worth of Jobs also experts pay and benefits used to link closely to the home country but now it depends more on assignments nature and duration of the Job. This is a result from high base salary in addition of company benefits and allowance to attract the foreign talents to Breadth . Though this will potentially increase Breadth group wages over the years due to rise in expectations and geographical segments example Breadth group in china with the recent government policy to raise income of workforce . Breadth has manage to position itself as a unique food and beverage company due the impact made by hiring foreign culinary chefs and executives working closely to develop innovative products . In conclusion , Breadth has a strong human resource strategy to support it competitive strategy to differentiate its brand from its competitors in terms of roving training and development and conducting quality performance management . However , Breadth operating expenses of employees compensations are ever increasing due to the already high labor cost which is taking 30% of the companies profit . These can be reduce with careful consideration of hiring more up the position to reduce operating expenses .

Businnes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Businnes - Essay Example It is the case that only approximately 10% of the population of the UAE can trace their lineage back to the original inhabitants of the land, and the influx of a significant number of foreigners has in a way represented a kind of dilution of culture. However the economic crisis has seen a large number of foreigners return to their home countries which in a way has caused the nation to reevaluate their own national identity. Coincidentally, right at the beginning of the financial crisis the nation opened their doors to the Cultural and Scientific Association, which is devoted to the promoting of Emirati culture. From this perspective, one could argue that with the outflow of foreigners would not necessarily have a culturally negative or positive effect, rather it may prompt discussions as to how the Emirates view their culture and how to preserve their culture. With this in mind one must question how originally, the influx of foreigners had affected the culture of the UAE. Without question, if approximately 90% of the population coming from foreign nations there would ultimately be an effect on the cultures and traditions of the UAE. Many things are influenced by the influx of foreigners such as the clothing that people wear, the food that people eat and the pastimes that people partake in. In the case of sport, there are a significant number of cricket players owing to the large influx of nationals from Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and India. According to Nayar (2011) there is a significant quantity of cricketing clubs that are training to learn a Sri Lankan style of bowling. What is interesting from this point is that Cricket is not a sport that is traditionally played in the UAE, moreover adopting a Sri Lankan style of bowling is a testament to the globalization of sport. From the arts perspective, Abu Dhabi will be home to the Middle Eastern c ontingent of the Louvre (Which will showcase a number of foreign pieces). Without

MST 203 Marketing Coursework Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

MST 203 Marketing Coursework - Essay Example It is irrefutable that this principle also changes the role and function of marketing managers in the business organization. Marketing management is defined as the "analysis, planning, implementation, and control of programs designed to create, build, and maintain beneficial exchanges with target buyers for the purpose of achieving organizational objectives (Kotler & Armstrong 2001, p.14)." Truly, the business arena has evolved from placing emphasis on production, product improvements, and selling approaches and started to focus on customers. Marketing management functions now covers how a company can create and extend more valuable goods and services to each customer. Tesco PLC is the largest British retailer based on both global and local shares. Traditionally, the UK-based international retailer specializes only in the distribution of food products but it currently adds other goods and services to its product portfolio which ranges from clothing to consumer electronics to consumer financial services to internet services to internet service and consumer telecom. Last February 26, the company announced a total annual turnover of 33.974 billion and reported a pre-tax profit of 1.962 billion. It is estimated that in every 8 UK retail sales, 1 is spent on Tesco. Tesco is currently one of the world recognized retailers. As marketing is an essential aspect of a business organization, it is irrefutable that Tesco's success can be attributed on how it manages its marketing activities. This report will specifically look at the management activities and decision which named the company as the #5 largest retailer in the global arena. Marketing at a Strategic Level Strategic planning is one of the essential marketing management activities undertaken by Tesco PLC. Accordingly, Tesco PLC's commitment in effectively marketing its products is mirrored in the way it crafts its mission, vision, and goals. Tesco states its mission as "Our core purpose is to create value for customers to earn their lifetime loyalty (Our Core Purpose)." This statement is further expressed in two key values known as "No one tries harder for the customer," and "Treat people as we like to be treated (Our Core Purpose)." With these statements and values as guides in conducting their business operations, Tesco PLC undoubtedly lays a strong foundation in marketing its products and services. Recently, the company launched its new simplified marketing strategy which is a response to the increasing complexity of operations due to the rapid growth of its stores, range of products, intense competition, and new customer demographics. These factors, along with other challenges make it relatively more difficult and longer for Tesco to make important decisions. Thus, simplifying their marketing strategy into three words which contains the core value and purpose of the company is seen to be beneficial. Tesco PLC's new marketing strategy is encapsulated into three words-Every Little Helps. Every Little Helps reflects the company's recognition that it has a huge feat to accomplish and that every little [effort] helps in reaching its goals.