Causes Of The Peloponnese War History Essay

Causes Of The Peloponnese War History Essay Thucydides an Athenian aristocrat and veteran of the Peloponnesian War documented the war from the beginning of the conflict in 431 BC to its conclusion in 404 BC. His on the scene reporting was the first of its kind and has been used by historians and political theorists for the last twenty four hundred years. Thucydides documentation of Athenian political and military actions prior to the war has been the basis of realists theory in the world of international relations. From an international relations perspective his analysis of war squarely points the finger at Athens and its quest for power in the Delian League and the region. Athens dominance in the Delian League allowed it to convert the alliance into an Athenian Empire that threatened the entire region and shifted the balance of power in the region. As Athens power grew it took on an imperialistic and militaristic policy that not only threatened its alliance but neutral states as well. The change in Athenian attitudes toward n eutral states can be seen in its response to Melos elders concerns over Athens attempts to take over their state, the strong do what they will and the weak suffer what they must.  [1]  Sparta, the premiere military power in Greece felt its influence weakening as Athens power began to creep into Spartan spheres of authority. Athens power spread throughout Spartan sphere of influence with alliances with city states such as Corcyra. Sparta viewed the rise of these alliances and the Athenian Navy as a direct threat to their and allies resources and food supply. The super power status of Sparta was giving way to the imperialistic moves of the Athenian city state. For much of the period prior to the Peloponnesian War Sparta was the premiere military force in Greece. Spartas society was a 400 year old stratified, militaristic system that bread men for war. Spartas military was the envy of the Greek world and its hoplite army the model of efficiency. Spartas men were allowed to spend all their time training for war due to Spartas large helot slave population. The helots tended to all agricultural and manual labor requirements for the state which allowed the men of Sparta to concentrate of military tactics. The primary function of the Sparta army was to defend the city and its colonies from any outside threat or in the event of a helot uprising. Due to the extremely large helot population, Spartas army was on a constant state of readiness to counter any helot insurgency. This war like mentality spread Spartas reputation to all corners of Greece allowing it to seize the status of super power. With Athens emergence as the other super power after the Persian wars it provided a balance of power in Greece and allowed the formation of opposing political systems and alliances. Sparta lead the Peloponnesian League, a group of oligary city states that benefited from Spartas vast land army for protection. Athens led the Delian League, a group of democratic city states that came together to defend the region against further Persian aggression. Athens assumed command of all military matters, dictated and allotted the distribution of league contributions. Athens with the resources of the Delian League began to tilt the balance of power and threaten Spartas position as a super power. Ultimately, Athens dominance threatened commerce and trade throughout the region causing the Spartan lead Peloponnesian League to take military action against Athens and the Delian League. According to Thucydides the cause of the war was the fear of the growth of the power of Athens.  [2]  At the conclusion of the Persian Wars Athens had become the undisputed leader in Greece, the School of Hellas, and for thirty years was to enjoy the faboulus Golden Age. Under Pericles leadership Athens grew in austereity becoming the fitting home for unsurpassed intellectual and artistic achievements. To enure Greeces prosperity and defend against a possible Perisian invasion, a coalition of city states formed the Delian League. Due to Athens standing as a naval power after the Persian War it assumed the primary leadership role. The primary purpose of the Delian league was to create and fund a standing navy to defend against future Persian raids into Delian held territory. Initially as a way to fund the league, members provided Athens an annual tribute of money or ships. Athens appointed financial officers to manage the leagues treasury on the Island of Delos, the leagues headqu arters. In an effort to consolidate Athens power Pericles relocated the tresury from Delos to Athens. This event moved the focus from defending league members interests to improving Athens status as a regional power and raised Athens as Greeces cultural center. Athens at this point was keeping one sixtieth of all revenues to benefit its own wealth and projects. Under Pericles leadership Athens used league funds to build monuments such as the Parthenon on the Acropolis and improvements to Athens infastructure. It is a remarkable fact that the thirty-plus monuments, temples, and buildings that we associate with Athens of the Golden Age were built in about eight years, while Pericles dominated Athenian politics.  [3]  Additionally, league members lost control of their ships to Athens as Athens assumed control of all naval operations increasing its importance and power in the league. Athens control of league resources allowed it to prosper and enhance its influence across the regio n. The control of these reources was very important to Athens as a whole due to the area around the city not being suitable for producing a abundant supply of crops. Athens survivied because its navy controlled the seas and the colonies that produced the grain and other food stables for the city. This rise of influence came at the expense of league members as they witnessed their liberties and wealth decrease. The consolidation of Athenian power among league menbers had transformed the Delian league into the Athenian Empire. The alliance that was formed out of democratic ideals of prosperity and protection of league members began to tear apart. Athenian increase in power, to almost tyrant levels caused league members began to question its overall purpose due to the decreased threat from Persia. With a decreased threat from Persia some league members wished to limit tributary payments to Athens or leave the alliance all together. Naxos was the first city state to revolt but was forced back to allegiance  [4]  but they would would not be the last. Megara was one of the members of the league that wished to separate from Athens empire and allign itself with Corinth in the Peloponessian League. In a break with Athens, Megara had supplied ships to Corinth during the battle of Sybota in 433 and along with Corcyra assitance Athens soundly defeated the Corinthian Navy. In retaliation for supplying naval assistance to Corinth, Athens, at Pericles insistance imposed a trade embargo against the City Megara in th e form of the Megarian Decree. The Megarian Decree prevented Megara Merchants from trading with Athenian markets. Pericles may have used the issue of Megara inhabitants cultivating land that was consecrated to Demeter and the killing of a Athenian herald to put forth the decree.  [5]  The harshness of the decree seems more in line with Athens anger with Megaras Military support for Corinth during the battle of Sybota. As a result of the trade embargo Megara appealed to Sparta for help. Spartas King Archidamus was reluctant to provide aide to Megara due to the possibility of going to war with Athens. Some in Sparta wanted to use the Megara Decree to go to war with Athens to curb its growing power. Thucydides writes of Spartas growing concern with Athens power, The Spartans voted that war should be declared not so much because they were influenced by the speeches of their allies as because they were afraid of the further growth of Athenian power.  [6]  Sparta and its allies in the Peloponnesian League believ ed that Athens actions were another attempt to enhance Athens power in the region and that a line needed to be drawn if Peloponnesian League was to maintain a power position in the region. In attempt to avoid war Sparta dispatched ambassadors to Athens to give a last minute ultimatum. Diodorus of Sicily documents Spartas diplomatic event, And the Spartans dispatched ambassadors, ordering the Athenians to rescind the action against the Megarians and threatening, if they did not accede, to wage war upon them together with the forces of their allies.  [7]  This approach goes directly against the Athens/Sparta agreement to settle disagreements by arbitration. The ultimatum also fuels the fires of war within the Athenian assembly and its master politician Pericles. The Athenian assembly gathered in 432 BC to hear in the Spartan ultimatum to withdraw the Megara Decree or face war with the Peloponnesian League. At the head of the Athenian government was Pericles a noted general (strategoi) and statesman. Under Pericles leadership Athens transformed the Delian league into a tool for Athenian imperialism. Pericles known for his great oratory skills used the moment to deliver his famous speech highlighting Athens glory during the ritual burying of the dead. His speech incited the assembly by saying that for them to accede to the demands of the Spartans, contrary to their own interests, would be the first step toward slavery  [8]  . Pericles reminded the assembly for the Athens that I have celebrated is only what the heroism of these and their like have made her, men whose fame, unlike that of most Hellenes, will be found to be only commensurate with their deserts.  [9]  Pericles lectured the assembly that Sparta had no right to dictate Athen s policies and how it used the resources of its alliance. He also reminded the assembly that it was Sparta that was breaking established doctrine on disputes and that this action symbolized Spartas disrespect towards Athens position of power in the region. With the aid of Pericles speaking skills and assemblys confidence in its military and diplomatic abilities followed Pericles lead and rejected the Sparta ambassadors. Sparta and the Peloponnesian League followed the Athenian rejection with a declaration of war. Conflict between Athens and Spartan led Peloponnesian League was nothing new and had been brewing for some time. Athens and members of the Peloponnesian League had fought a series of pitched battles prior to this event with Athens emerging the victor each time. During the battle of Sybota Islands, Sparta witnessed their Megarans and Corinthians allies suffer significant defeats. As leader of the Peloponnesian League, Sparta felt increased pressure from league members to act militarily to counter Athens power. Sparta had grown weary of Athens military build-up and diplomatic activities in the area and had looked for reasons to counter her imperialistic actions. Athens building of the Long Walls in 479 BC had stirred great amount of resentment in Athens to the point of going to war over its construction. Sparta detested the building of the Long Walls and looked at this building as a major esc alation of military activities in the area. The building of the walls connected Athens with its port in Piraeus and virtually made Athens an island nation within Greece itself. The construction of the great walls was equivalent to todays US missile defense system. As with the missile defense system, the great walls had both a defensive and offensive capability and caused Sparta to view its construction as simply an offensive weapon system. The reason Sparta viewed this as an offensive weapon system is the port in Piraeus handled all of Athens grain shipments coming from Hellespont and the Black Sea Regions. The walls that connected Athens and Piraeus ensured Athens supply of grain and its survival as long as Athens controlled the sea. Additionally, the strategic value of the Long Walls rendered Spartas land army useless, eliminating its only military offensive capability. Since Sparta lacked a navy that could challenge Athens, the Long Walls were an additional weapon system that til ted the balance of power in Athens favor. Sparta in an effort to preserve its super power status and influence in the region was left with little recourse then to pursue war against Athens. Athens aggressive development of the Delian League into an Athenian Empire proved to be that catalyst to war. The imperialistic policies and actions of the Athenian City state caused Sparta to question its own security

Destiny in Romeo and Juliet Essay

Shakespeare refers to Romeo and Juliet as â€Å"star-crossed lovers.† We can not deny the fact that they are ‘destined to be together,’ it is just something that the reader must accept. Fate is inevitable throughout the whole play; Shakespeare never gives readers an explanation as to why there is a feud between the Capulets and the Montagues, it is rather an undeniable aspect of the world of the play. The events surrounding the love affair of Romeo and Juliet are not merely coincidences, but rather all elements that will bring out the unavoidable outcome of the young lovers’ deaths. When fate begins to work its magic, the events of the play and the work of Shakespeare begins to unravel itself. The only reason Romeo decides to attend the Capulet’s ball is entirely in the hands of destiny. By chance, a young knave of the Capulet’s, who could not read himself, had asked Romeo to read an invitation list for the ball. Young Romeo was hopelessly I love with Rosaline at this time, and he attended the party only in hopes of seeing her. However, at the ball, Romeo falls in love with fair Juliet the moment he lays eyes on her. We can easily say that Romeo and Juliet were ’destined’ to meet and fall in love. After meeting Romeo that night, Juliet is talking to her nurse; ridiculously desperate and dramatic. She has not known man for more than three hours, yet she is hinting that she will die if she does not marry him; as given when she says, â€Å"If he be married my grave be my wedding bed.† Acts I and II will appear completely ironic to those who know of the events yet to come. Juliet continues to talk about how their love will kill him, â€Å"Yet I should kill thee with much cherishing,† this being one of the most ironic of quotes, as it turns out that their love is the actual cause of their deaths. Act III’s fighting scene is a crucial turning point in Romeo and Juliet. In the Elizabethan era, it was not unusual to find men fighting in the streets. Commonly, the culpable side would be sentenced to death or as Romeo believes worse, declared banished. The battle between Mercutio and Tybalt begins in the hot streets of Verona. Mercutio is killed, but before he dies he curses both families, â€Å"A plague o both your houses.† What he is trying to express, is that he wishes both families would just settle their hostile feud. Once Romeo realizes what has happened he seeks revenge and kills Tybalt. He then recognizes what he has done and what effect it will have on him, â€Å"I am fortune’s fool,† he acknowledges the fact that nothing will ever be the same again, â€Å"The day’s black fate on moe days doth depend, this but begins the woe others must end.† Romeo is banished. We are left wondering whether or not Romeo and Juliet would have stayed together if it had not been for Romeo acting upon anger and killing Tybalt. Romeo and Juliet is a drama that overflows with the best works of fate, and the characters seem to know it. Romeo refuses to accept what destiny has dealt him, â€Å"I defy you stars,† and Juliet constantly tempts her own fate, â€Å"Give me Romeo and when I shall die, take him and cut him out in little stars.† I believe the reason many people still enjoy this play is because of the passion the young lovers have for each other. They both recognize they can’t be together in life, so they come together in death. Romeo and Juliet remains one of William Shakespeare’s best pieces, about two â€Å"star-crossed lovers† whose lives were driven by fate.

Tsa Policies

As an aviation management major airport security is a concern that I have taken a huge interest in. Making travel safer to air travelers is one of the biggest tasks that will never end as long as there is a plane in the sky. However, there are many problems that come about when traveling because passengers feel as if they are being harassed, which doesn’t set a good look for the Transportation Security Administration. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) consist of 50,000 security officers, inspectors, directors, air marshals and managers who protect the nation's transportation systems so you and your family can travel safely. They look for bombs at checkpoints in airports, they inspect rail cars, they patrol subways with our law enforcement partners, and they work to make all modes of transportation safe. Criminals and terrorists have been known to conceal items in private areas of the body, especially in the small of the back above the buttocks and high on the thigh. Screeners are to carefully inspect these areas during pat downs to adequately check for dangerous items. Also, underwire bras can set off magnetometers, and bras have been used to conceal dangerous items. One of the most intrusive and most controversial aspects of secondary screening is the use of pat-down inspections to check selected passengers or to resolve magnetometer alarms. Specific complaints over pat-down techniques have centered on allegations of inappropriate touching and unprofessional or rude conduct by screeners. More general complaints have focused on privacy concerns and perceptions that the pat-down procedures were intrusive and humiliating. A 2005, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) investigation and audit of pat-down screening procedures found that the TSA adequately advised passengers of their rights under the pat-down procedures, and appropriately accommodated those rights. The DHS also found that TSA screeners were adequately trained in pat down inspection procedures and, based on TSA records, additional screening procedures were performed on proportionate numbers of male and female passengers. Finally, the DHS found that the TSA had implemented procedures to investigate and resolve passenger complaints regarding the screening process. The TSA maintains a screening Performance Management Information System (PMIS) where recorded complaints are logged. Operations research analysis teams and federal security directors review complaints logged in the database to track trends and identify areas of concern and take appropriate actions, including possible disciplinary actions, to resolve specific issues. Complaints involving allegations of discrimination based on color, race, gender, religion, or national or ethnic origin are forwarded to the TSA’s Office of Civil Rights for further investigation. Despite considerable concern raised by some regarding inappropriate behavior during pat-down screening procedures, the DHS found no problems with the technique. Nonetheless, privacy groups, such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ALCU), continue to express concern over potential intrusion on individual rights and alleged cases of sexual harassment and abuse of passengers, particularly female passengers, by TSA screeners. These concerns, however, raise a significant challenge for the TSA: to maintain high levels of security, which require resolving all alarms and screening in detail those passengers ascertained to pose an elevated security risk, while maintaining the privacy rights and dignity of passengers identified for these secondary screening measures. While these technologies offer a potential alternative to pat-down screening techniques, they too, raise privacy concerns because the images generated by these systems can reveal private areas, physical characteristics that individuals may wish to keep private, as well as prosthetics and other assistive medical devices. In the fast-paced environment of the passenger checkpoint, pat-down searches may be rushed and certain areas may be overlooked. The difficulty in detecting threat items on passengers is compounded by the requirements to respect the privacy of individuals discussed above, as well as social and cultural norms and individual differences regarding interpersonal contact and expectations of privacy and modesty. Some have also noted cultural sensitivities toward handicapped and disabled individuals and point out that screeners are sometimes hesitant to perform intrusive searches, particularly on individuals wearing various prosthetics. Terrorists and criminals can and have exploited these aspects of individual privacy by concealing prohibited items in body cavities and near private areas of their bodies, and could also exploit a screener’s reluctance to perform thorough searches of prosthetic devices. Covert testers also use these methods to conceal simulated threat items in an effort to test screeners’ abilities to detect items under real-world conditio ns and identify vulnerabilities in checkpoint screening that can potentially be reduced through procedural modifications and/or changes to screener training. These covert tests have revealed weaknesses in screener performance to detect weapons, simulated explosives, and components of explosive devices.

Hiv / Aids And Aids - 856 Words

HIV/ AIDS affects many people in the world. One of the many places that have the highest HIV/ AIDS epidemic is in South Africa. South Africa has one of the highest prevalence of HIV/ AIDS in the whole world. There are 6.3 million people living with HIV/AIDS in South Africa. There is a 19.1% adult HIV/AIDS prevalence, 340,000 new infections, 200,000 AIDS related deaths, and 42% adults on antiretroviral treatment. South Africa has the largest antiretroviral treatment program in the world. There are also many HIV/ AIDS prevention programs in South Africa. A lot of South Africans have to deal with this horrible disease on a daily basis, affecting and changing their lives forever. Other than the programs to prevent HIV/AIDS, there are many other solutions to prevent HIV/ AIDS in South Africa such as HIV/ AIDS education, HIV Awareness, etc. The South African HIV/ AIDS prevalence is very high in Africa. There are many different ways that HIV/AIDS is transmitted. One way that HIV/AIDS is transmitted is poverty. HIV/AIDS is an outcome of poverty. Because there are a lot of poor people with limited resources, they get what they need by engaging in risk behavior, such as sex. There also is a lot of sexual violence in South Africa. There were a total of 53, 617 sexual offences reported in 2014 and 2015. That is a lot and does not even include the sexual offences that were not reported. This is one of the reasons why there are many untreated Johnson 1 people with HIV/ AIDS. PeopleShow MoreRelatedHiv / Aids And Aids1472 Words   |  6 PagesHIV/AIDS is the major ongoing issue attacking sub-Saharan Africa. The damage caused by HIV/AIDS strips families, communities, and increases poverty. In Kenya, the plague has mainly targeted those in the fertile and reproductive age groups. 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