Conquest of Panay and Other Islands Essay

Legaspi’s Cebu settlement had three important problems. First, there was a shortage of food and what the natives were used to eat was different from Spanish food. Second, misfortune struck the settlement. On November 1, 1565, a fire of unknown origin broke out in the settlement. Some twenty Spanish houses and the hut where masses were celebrated were burned. Third, the Spaniards were displeased with Legaspi’s order that no Spaniard should take anything from the Filipinos without paying for it. This, together with the shortage of food, led to a conspiracy on November 27 under the leadership of Pablo Hernandez. The captain of the San Pablo revealed the plot to the master-of-camp, Mateo de Saez. The latter immediately warned Legaspi, who lost no time in arresting the conspirators. Hernandez was beheaded–those were times of harsh justice–but the rest of the conspirators were pardoned. And fourth, Legaspi was also faced with the hostility of the Portuguese who did not enjoy Legaspi’s settling in Cebu. They sent ships to Cebu to spy on Legaspi’s activities. In 1568, and again the following year, a Portuguese captain, Gonzalo de Pereira, blockaded Cebu in order to starve the Spaniards. With the aid of the Cebuanos, however, Legaspi withstood the blockade and succeeded in forcing Pereira to lift the blockade and leave the Philippines. In the midst of all these problems, the first reinforcements from Mexico arrived in Cebu on board the galleon San Geronimo on October 15, 1566. This made Legaspi happy, for it brought not only the news that Urdaneta had safely arrived in Mexico but much-needed soldiers from Mexico as well. Later two more galleons from Mexico arrived in Cebu on August 20, 1567, bringing additional reinforcements and supplies. They were commanded by two young grandsons of Legaspi’s–Felipe de Salcedo, 20 years old, and Juan de Salcedo, 18. With these reinforcements, Legaspi sent out various explorations to the neighboring islands for the purpose of securing more food and establishing friendly relations with the datus of the other islands. Later Legaspi received the information that food was abundant in one of the islands in the north. In 1569 he directed his men to sail to Panay. There, on the banks of the Panay River, Legaspi founded the second Spanish settlement in the Philippines. As in Cebu, he won the friendship of the Panay inhabitants by his policy of attraction. Many of these inhabitants were converted to Christianity by Augustinian missionaries. After that, Legaspi never encountered the problem of food shortage, for the natives brought the needed provisions to him. Legaspi was now ready to spread the rule of Spain to the other islands in the archipelago. With Cebu and Panay as bases, he ordered his men to explore the other Visayan islands. Captain Luis Enriquez de Guzman explored and conquered Masbate, Burias, and Ticao and claimed these for the Spanish crown. He got as far as the Bicol region, then known as Ibalon. In January 1570 Legaspi sent his warlike grandson, Juan de Salcedo, on an expedition farther to the north. With forty Spanish soldiers and some 500 Visayans, Salcedo landed at Ilin Island, just south of Mindoro, and took it for the king of Spain. From Ilin he sailed to another island, Lubang, northwest of Mindoro and close to the mouth of Manila Bay. There he met stiff resistance from Muslim defenders. Salcedo subdued them and finally captured Mamburao. This brought the Spaniards almost to the entrance of Manila Bay. Salcedo then returned to Panay to report to his grandfather what he had done.

America in Vietnam and The Domino Theory essays

America in Vietnam and The Domino Theory essays The theory most discussed during the Vietnam era seems to have been the so-called domino theory. This theory held that if one small nation fell to Communism, then so would its neighbors. The theory was a linchpin of high-level government discussions as early as 1954, when Secretary of State John Foster Dulles used it in a press conference on May 11 of that year. It was still apparently thought to be a cogent argument when President John F. Kennedy spoke about Cuba to the American Society of Newspaper Editors on April 20, 1061. The theory lent support to the arguments, therefore, of both Republicans and Democrats. There is, moreover, some reason to believe that the theory is in fact a somewhat adequate explanation of events; its obverseturning Communist states into states with representative governments, happened all over eastern Europe In terms of Southeast Asia, however, the possibility of governments falling like dominoes was sufficient excuse for U.S intervention. In his May 11, 1954 press conference, Secretary Dulles made clear that while no single one of the at-risk nationsVietnam, Laos or Cambodiacould alone initiate the fall of Southeast Asia, neither was the U.S. going to walk away from the region (Lewy, 1978, p. 163) to test the theory. Four years ago, the 25th anniversary of the fall of Saigon was commemorated in The Nation by a writer who is apparently a Thai national, or at least, has Thai ancestry. Thailand was one of the nations U.S. military engagements, in the name of the domino theory, was supposed to protect. In fact, the U.S. did not much care who did what to whom, as long as there were no Communists involved. As Chokchaimadon pointed out, "Supported by the United States, South Vietnamese governments were set up to counter communist North Vietnam; simultaneously, they also used their...

Exercise in Writing With Specific Details

Exercise in Writing With Specific Details Specific details create word pictures that can make your writing easier to understand and more interesting to read. This exercise will give you practice in revising sentences to make them more concrete and specific. Instructions Revise the following sentences to make them more concrete and specific. ExampleThe sun came up.At 6:27 on March third, the sun rose in a cloudless sky and flooded the earth with liquid gold. The food in the cafeteria was unappealing.We painted part of the garage.She sat by herself in the coffee shop.The kitchen was a mess.Marie looked sad.I waved to my pet.The car sped away.The waiter seemed to be impatient and annoyed.He was hurt in a boating accident.I felt tired after practice.She enjoys listening to music.There was a strange smell in the attic.The movie was stupid and boring.She ate lunch at a restaurant with her sister.It was noisy in the room.

Best Toe Kick Dimensions for Cabinet Design

Best Toe Kick Dimensions for Cabinet Design At the bottom of every base floor cabinet in your kitchen or bathroom, you will notice a notched profile below the front door of the cabinet. This notched profile, called a toe kick, is an ergonomic feature designed to make it safer and more comfortable to work at the cabinets countertop. This might seem like a small advantage, but long experience shows that this small amount makes it much easier for a user to stand for long periods without uncomfortable leaning and without struggling to maintain balance. As with many other standard features of home and furniture design, the toe kick follows a fairly common measurement standard.  So universal is this standard that factory-made stock cabinets always follow these standard dimensions for a toe kick,  and an experienced carpenter or woodworker who constructs  a base cabinet will include the toe kick with these standard dimensions. Standards such as these are neither  legal requirements nor mandated by building code. Rather, builders have established over time that such measurements make for greater comfort and safety, so it is wisest to follow these measurements unless specifically directed otherwise.    Standard Dimensions for Toe Kicks The optimal depth for a toe kick is 3 inches. This provides an adequate recess to stand comfortably and maintain balance while working at a countertop. Almost all factory-made stock cabinets will comply with this depth standard.   Toe-kick depths greater than 3 inches do not hurt the effectiveness of the toe kick, but depths less than 3 inches should usually be avoided, as they interfere with ergonomic effectiveness.   The optimal height for a toe kick is 3 1/2 inches, and heights up to 4 inches are common. Increasing the height over 3 1/2 inches does not hurt the effectiveness of the toe kick, but it may very slightly reduce the space in your base cabinet. Is There Any Reason to Change the Dimensions of Your Toe Kick? Its quite rare that a reason presents itself to vary from these standard dimensions for your base cabinet toe kicks. It is actually only possible at all in custom cabinets built to specifications or having a carpenter alter the installation of factory cabinets.   Family need for altered dimensions is generally the catalyst for requests for alteration of such specs. For example, a very tall person with large feet might find a larger toe kick more accommodating. The likelihood of a need to reduce the size of the toe kick is slim, although a very short person might consider this as a means of slightly lowering the countertop height to provide an added level of comfort to a workspace.

Analyze a character of your choosing from any of the short stories we Essay

Analyze a character of your choosing from any of the short stories we have read and explain how that character illustrates a theme. (I picked the narrator from the cathedral by Raymond carver) - Essay Example Despite the fact that his wife has remained a friend to the blind man, Robert, for the last ten years, they have not met since then, and the narrator does not like the fact that Robert is visiting his wife after he lost his wife. Therefore, he is uncomfortable receiving the blind man in his house, and thus goes on to say, â€Å"a blind man in my house was not something I looked forward to† (Carver, 209). The narrator does not seem to appreciate what the friendship means to his wife, and he does not care about what the friend ship means to the blind man, who has just lost his wife. Thus, the narrator comes out as a person who only cares about his own feelings, in total disregard of what the others feel. In a further show of meanness, the narrator does not appreciate the fact that it was Robert who had assisted his wife in a suicide attempt after she got divorced from her former husband (Halpert, 44). Instead, the narrator seems to be concerned with the fact that Robert is part of his wife’s past, and consequently he becomes jealous. The narrator comes out as a person who is completely insensitive to the plight of other people. In fact, he narrates that his perception of a blind man is that from the movies, where they are neither found to be happy nor to laugh, while their movement is slow. The narrator says â€Å"My idea of blindness came from the movies† (Carver, 209). This indicates that he has never been concerned about people who have such disabilities, and in fact, the only time he becomes aware of them is through the movies. Making such statements in relation to a blind person with disability is really a display of insensitivity (Amir, 38). Further, instead of appreciating that the blind man is a capable man who has been able to bring up and keep a family until he lost his wife, the narrator feels pity for the wife of the blind

Literature Review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Literature Review - Essay Example Literature related to group and teamwork will be reviewed in order to gain full insight of this particular topic and how it impacts on the behaviour of people working in an organization. This topic has been chosen since it is insightful in that it is concerned with illustrating how knowledge gained about groups affect the behaviour of people involved in order to make organizations work more effectively. The paper will also outline a personal reflection about what I have gained from studying this topic as well as areas that need further research to improve the body of knowledge that exists in this particular topic. Text analysis Why do people join groups? A group is defined as â€Å"two or more individuals, interacting and interdependent, who have come together to achieve particular objectives,† (Robbins, 1993, p. 285). On the other hand, a team is a group of people that has been formed to work together in common, coordinate their action towards the achievement of an outcome of the project for the benefit of the group (Schultz, 2005). There is no single reason why people join a group. The most popular reasons for joining a group are related to our needs for security, status, self esteem, affiliation, power and goal achievement (Robbins, 1993). People often believe that there is more strength in joining groups than standing alone (Robbins, 1993). When people work in a group, they have fewer doubts and they are more resistant to threats. For instance, new employees in an organization often vulnerable to a sense of isolation and this is the reason why the turn to the group for guidance and moral support from other seasoned employees. Other people join a group as a way of gaining status (Robbins, 1993). People tend to gain prestige for belonging to a particular group that is seen as important in an organization. It can also be observed that people belonging to a certain group also develop a sense of self esteem. The feeling of self worth is often developed by people who belong to a prestigious group that is envied by many people. The other reason why people join a group is that they need affiliation with other people (Robbins, 1993). Some people may be very reach but they cannot leave their jobs as a result of the need to interact with others. Groups often represent power and this is the reason why people often join them. What often cannot be achieved individually becomes possible if people work in groups. Essence of group or teamwork in an organization The goal of the team or group should be synergy, in other words, the sum of the individual efforts in the team is greater than the sum of the individual inputs (Schultz 2005). In an organization, people who often pull their efforts towards the attainment of the same goals are likely to succeed in their endeavour than people who work as individuals. It may be difficult for a person to achieve the same goal that can be achieved by a group of people. Basically, organizational goals can be a chieved if people work in groups. Some tasks require the efforts of many people in order for them to be achieved. The main objectives of the organization have to be shared by all the workers so that they share the same understanding towards the vision of the organization. In an organization that is characterised by teamwork, it can be seen that the employees are also motivated to pull

Listening Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Listening - Assignment Example y dad acts as a mediator to a dispute, he tends to listen carefully by not interrupting the party speaking and seems to keenly observe facial and body expressions. I also notice that whenever he speaks, he always relate his views to actual situations. He conveys his message to the parties in a very professional way and makes sure that he gets the correct information so as to give the best advice (McKelvie, 2009). He always respect, value and acknowledge differing opinions which makes the conflicting parties less argumentative (Rogers & Farson, as cited in Shapse, n.d.). One characteristic that separates him from other mediators is that he has the charisma to entice people to hear and understand whatever he says. These attitudes have greatly improved his relationship with our family and everyone else in our town (Crotts, 2010). My dad has many friends from all walks of life. Almost everybody knows him well. At home, family members rarely argue even on trivial matters. All of us in the family have been inspired by his calmness and openness to everything. He is not easily angered. When he talks to me, I can see a very matured and sensible human being. Another thing, my father is a disciplinarian and sometimes perfectionist. Whenever he sees you texting while he’s talking, he will pause for a moment and wait till you listen