Comparison of the Persian Gulf War of 1991 and The Iraq War of 2003 Essay

Comparison of the Persian Gulf War of 1991 and The Iraq War of 2003 - Essay Example War and reports of war have been a reality of our life, more so in recent times. After 9/11, the threat of war had been looming large, especially with the President George Bush coming out with knee-jerk jingoistic reactions, which was pardonable considering the shock and dismay generated by the incident.Then came the actual war in 2003. The question of the political expediency of the War of 2003 was drowned in a collective American fear of threats to security. George Bush's speeches were also engineered to keep the morale of the people high, in the tradition of past war leaders of the world (Churchill, for instance)In this war rhetoric, the image of the American soldier was glorified. The soldier was a savior and a friend. In the First Gulf War of 1991, George Bush, Sr. had done the same thing. He depicted through his speeches, the perfect image of an American soldier. Our soldiers, he said, are "some of the finest men and women of the United State of America" who "leave their spouse s and their children, to serve on the front line halfway around the world. They remind us who keeps America strong: they do." (Bush). He continues, "in the face of danger, they are brave; they are well-trained, and dedicated" (Bush) He mentions that they are willing to sacrifice their lives and their time to be with their families to fight for peace for the whole world (!)There is deceptiveness, conscious or unconscious, in a speech of this nature. It is implied that peace is brought about through war - a debatable statement. There is also an implication that those who fight are there, by their own free will. "There was an American soldier who said to an Iraqi soldier: 'it's okay, you are all right, you are all right'. . . Let us always be caring and good and generous in all we do" (Bush) The image is sought to be created as if the American soldiers have gone to have a party in Iraq. It needs a vigilant media to talk of an Abu-Ghraib or a Guantanamo Bay. Bush's American soldier is t he perfect gentleman (something like the British image of their 'bobby'- the gentle policeman - who nevertheless shot an innocent Brazilian immigrant on mere suspicion that he was responsible for the London train station bombings!) Bush's speeches are cleverly done, and achieve the purpose they want. In that sense they are masterpieces of their own genre of political writing. However, they seem to fall on the border of fact and fiction. Coming to Swofford's Jarhead- the irony is that this is 'fiction', but it gives a more real picture of war than do Bush's speeches! Swofford talks of the war from a soldier's perspective. There is no attempt to romanticize it. He talks of the dirt and the dust, and the rape, pillage and arson that taint war. He brings home to us that there is never a clean war or a good war. All war is terrible and dehumanizing. Swofford himself fought as a young marine in the Gulf War of the 1990's. He had written his memoirs then, and he uses this to liberally create the atmosphere of his story. He writes of writing to loved ones, " I was in the desert, sending out messages worldwide, claiming for love with my pen, and with each letter I wrote and sealed part of me escaped the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. At time I thought I might write myself away" (Swofford, 37). Swofford's book is a powerful book about the truth of war. As a matter of fact, we must remember that throughout history, there have been many who have fought wars and have come back convinced that peace is the only solution for bringing about lasting comfort to all humanity. Swofford tells what we all perhaps instinctively know, that the real reasons for war are "the old white fuckers and others who have billions of dollars to gain or lose in the oil fields, the deep, rich, flowing oil fields of the kingdom of Saud" (Swofford, 11). Solyan's article, What Bodies talks about the attempt by the US government to hide truth from

Information Systems in Healthcare Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Information Systems in Healthcare - Essay Example This system helps in the constant connections between the suppliers and the manufacturers for better systematic process of the supplying and buying (Delpierre 408). This industry also includes the health care industry. In this case the basic requirement is the maintenance of the records of the thousands of the patients. In the past, decades ago, this maintenance was being done by the files and the traditional systems. The data of the patients includes their vitals ad their medical histories. This type of data needs constant up gradation. Traditionally for the up gradation, the hustle of the files and the papers had to be dealt with. With the introduction of the new information floe systems, which in the case of the health industry is knows as the electronic patient record, we see that the patient record maintenance has become ore and more convenient with the passing time. The electronic patient record means that the data and the information related to the patients is kept in the computers under the specific softwares which are comprehensive and easy enough o be maintained by the health practitioners. The electronic patient's record systems have been basically developed for the batter management and the administration that is needed in the health care facilities. These days the EPRs are being widely used in the western counties. The use of the EPRs is growing in the smaller clinical facilities however it has been seen that the EPRs have been difficult to incorporate in the larger health care facilities. The EPRs that are designed incorporate the small amount of information that is given to them. As we can see that the industries especially the health care facilities are the linked that are growing on the daily basis therefore the amount if the information that is needed to be stored is also increasing on the daily basis. With the amount the nature of the complexity o f the information is also increasing. This complexity has to be welcomed by the EPR systems that are used by the health care facilities these days (Elberg 203). The information flow in medicine The research has shown that the smaller health care facilities especially in Norway are dependent in the EPR systems for the maintenance of their patient's data and the information. The use of EPRs The purpose and the aim of the patient's medical record that is usually maintained by the health care facilities are to maintain the care of the patients. Generally y the medical record is always on related to an individual patient and it represents s the medical history of the patients and the recent medical case (Hassey 1402). There are some specifications that have to be met when the clinical data related to the patients has to be used. The specifications have been identified and they include that the medical data should be should be related to the individual patient and it should be able to help the medical health care provide to decide what treatment or therapy has to be g given to the patient. The medical data that is related to the patients is organized in the same form as it is done in the paper format however in a better manner. This helps the medical practitioner make and design the patients' clinical history leading to the therapy decisions. The EPR help the physicians in constantly updating their gained information with regards to the patients during the consultation process

Critically review the case law concerning the ascertainment of Essay

Critically review the case law concerning the ascertainment of employee status and consider whether the current tests are fit fo - Essay Example Moreover, employees usually are taxed within a diverse tax regime; under the PAYE, while the self-employed usually pay their taxes at the end of each tax year. This is due to the fact that self employed work generally falls under a contract for services while the employed work under a contract of services1. Nonetheless, there is a certain amount of ambiguity linked to the legal formula by which workers are categorized. In this view, the effectiveness of the law may be questioned. Furthermore, some perceive that the current classifications have grown to become too rigid to deal efficiently with the advancement of non-standard employment forums. Such queries have proved to be the subject of many policy-oriented and legal analyses for the last two decades. Many studies have looked into employers’ reasons as to why the employed flexible forms of work. This paper offers a critical review of the given law as it relates to the means by which employee status and a consideration as to whether the current tests are suitable for purpose. The ‘worker’ concept One way for augmenting the number of people covered by employment law includes the use of the wider definition of worker and not employee as the basis for determining protective legislation2. This would include even people who do not have employment contracts but still contract to offer their own individual services to their employers. To some extent, they are economically dependent on the business of their employer. In some way, this broader definition is useful for fair treatment legislation and that which touches on the payment of wages. Recently, the legislation was approved by the National Minimum Wage Act 1998 as well as under regulations that implement the Working Time Directive3. Nonetheless, most of its aspects with regards to its use have remained unclear. There appears to be extremely few decisions about the distinction between a self employed worker and an employee. For this reason, it is hard to comprehend how many people would be affected by extending employment protection rights to those under the definition ‘workers’ and not ‘employees’. Employment status The hardship linked with defining workers, employees, and the self-employed, as well as the issues of giving status to individuals in non-standard work, have added several practical implications to the execution of the law in practice. Ambiguities that surround the distinction between the self-employed and employees should mean that there are many of those who enjoy employment rights without their knowledge. On the other hand, those who may thing they fall under employee category, and therefore enjoy employment rights, may turn out otherwise on close legal scrutiny. This uncertainty may mean that some employers may leave out their obligations4. The Law Governing the Classification of Employment Relationships The decisive factor by which legal classification are decided on are not put down in legislation, however, they have been hugely developed through what is known as Case Law. In particular, four tests are relied on: ‘Integration’, ‘Control’, ‘mutuality of obligation’, and ‘business reality’. Behind such states are a known determinant that includes the means of payment, the stability and the overall length of the employment relationship, as well as the degree of coverage of

The Constant Gardener | Analysis

The Constant Gardener | Analysis Fernando Meirelless adaptation of John le carres 2001 novel The Constant Gardener is a drama film which is sure to thrill the global audience around the world. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards, which includes Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Score, Best Film Editing, and Best Supporting Actress for Rachel Weisz, which she won. The film had a budget of $25 million but it made a huge profit with gross revenue of $82,466,670 proving to be a commercial success among the audience around the world. Story Based on the novel by John Le Carrà ©, The Constant Gardener starts with a murder, as any good mystery film does. British diplomat Justin Quayle (Ralph Fiennes) assigned to Nairobi sees his world fall apart when his wife, activist Tessa Quayle (Rachel Weisz), is found brutally maimed in a remote area of Northern Kenya. His colleagues at the British High Commission, especially close friend Sandy (Danny Huston), believe the usually easy going Justin will quietly let them take care of the situation. Up to this point in his life, Justin has done little but quietly does his melodious job, tend to his gardens, and marry an extraordinary woman. Haunted by his past memories, and sceptical that his wife may have been unfaithful and cheating on him, Justin will no longer sit by submissively. He cannot accept what happened to Tessa, especially when he finds out that the government wants to sweep the whole thing under the rug. It seems Tessa was trying to discover somethingand was perhaps even on the verge of exposing a deadly pharmaceutical conspiracy. So, Quayle embarks on his own investigation, risking his life to uncover the truth and whether he succeeds or stopped under his tracks form the chief outline of the film. Acting Fiennes and Weisz are outstanding in this film. The Oscar winning actor Fiennes Playing Justin steals the show. He captures all the sad beauty of a man mourning for a woman he loved very much but who he also realizes he didnt know all that well. Its almost as if in investigating Tessas murder, Justin finally sees what kind of woman his wife truly wasand falls in love with her all over again. You feel his pain and feel sorry for him. For her part, Weisz has certainly proven she is more than just a sweet face alarmed by disturbed mummies. She expertly portrays a determined social activist driven to help these Kenyan people any way she can, even if it means sacrificing her own personal happiness and life. She in the end sacrifices her own life in order to find the truth and find justice for the Kenyan people. Weisz is radiant in every single shotwhich is rather an accomplishment considering that the actress was nine months pregnant, sweaty and without make-up in many scenes. You often w onder how it is these two characters ever fell for each other to begin with, but thats the true tribute to these fine actors. In their capable hands, they make Justin and Tessas opposites-attract-but-modest love story unquestionable. Danny Huston is a peculiar choice to play Sandy, Justins devious colleague. He struggles with his fake British accent and a better choice of cast would have been a better choice for the character. Direction With The Constant Gardener, Brazilian director Fernando Meirelles proves his surprise Academy Award nomination for directing the scorching City of God wasnt a stroke of luck. The guy obviously knows what hes doing and he provides energetic direction nailing the audience glued to their seats. Meirelles hands us the horrible, heart wrenching plight of the African people, focusing on the hauntingly beautiful Kenya and lovingly detailing its colourful people. Scenes of Tessa walking through barely liveable shantytowns, as bright, seemingly happy children run around her while singing, leaves a very indelible impression. He zooms in on these two people whose love is put to the test because of the circumstances they find themselves in, while wrapping up the narrative in a compact murder mystery, which may or may also involve a conspiracy of global proportions. The Constant Gardener is much more than just a mystery. Its going to make you thinkand think hard. Trivia .The novel was originally banned in Kenya because it depicts corrupt Kenyan officials. . Ralph Fiennes held and operated the camera for Justins point of view in the film. . The filmmakers installed water tanks, a new bridge and a classroom in Kibera, the slum in which the film was shot. They also built a secondary school in the desert of northern Kenya where the final scenes were photographed. My verdict The Constant Gardener is an elegant, absorbing, and suspenseful mystery with rich performances from the leads. Despite an unhurried opening, the energetic direction by Fernando Meirelles and admirable lead performances by Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz make this adapted film an exciting and suspenseful thriller 4 broccolis out of 5 COME BACK FOR LATER The Constant gardener is primarily set in Kenya loilangalani and slums on Kibera a section of Nairobi, Kenya. It follows the lives of a shy low-rung British diplomat Justin Quayle (Ralph Fiennes) who is posted in Kenya and his beautiful young humanitarian activist Tessa (Rachel Weitz). Justin is satisfied to represent his country without questioning his boss. when his wife Tessa and an African man (who he suspects Tessa to be cheating with) are found brutally raped and murdered in a remote area in North Kenya, he did not believe the death reports that they were assaulted and harassed by bandits, and he begins to ask penetrating questions against the activities of the government, much to the astonishment of Sandy Woodrow (Danny Huston) and his other equals at the British high Commission located in Kenya. But as his inspections quickly lead him to an awry trail of blackmail, dishonesty, exploitation, political scandal and global conspiracy, he revives what he represents and what made h im marry and find love for his wife in the first place forms and whether he avenges the death of his wife forms the chief outline in the film For most of the movie, which is an elegant style of flashbacks and foreshadowings, Tessa is dead, murdered in the Kenyan wilds, where she had travelled with a African doctor named Arnold Bluhm (Hubert Koundà ©), who many in the Nairobi community assumed was her lover. In that gossipy world, Tessa was always something of a scandalous woman, pricking the fake civility of cocktail parties with impolite questions about money, authority, hardships and illness of the poor people in Kenya. She favours to spend her time usually in the company of Dr. Bluhm travelling through slums and communities, during her pregnancy, where she was kind of a good figure among the native villagers. After she gets murdered Justin sets out to find who caused the death of his wife and her companion and whether he finds his solution forms the rest of the story. The actors have done a splendid job in my opinion Fiennes as the literal gardener Justin Quayle the perfect dashing and sensitive heartthrob learns how much he loves his wife and he wants to bring the big pharmacy corporation down and bring dirty secrets out. Rachel Weisz is absolutely joyful as Tessa, a brilliant and determined social activist, unwavering in her pursuit to uncover the immoral research methods practiced at the expense of indigent Kenyan citizens. Weisz is radiant in every single shotwhich is quite an accomplishment considering that the actress was nine months pregnant, sweaty and without make-up in many scenes. Danny Huston is a peculiar choice to play Sandy, Justins devious colleague. He struggles with his fake British accent and a better choice of cast would have been a better choice for the character. Despite an unhurried opening, the energetic direction by Fernando Meirelles and admirable lead performances by Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz make this adapted film an exciting and suspenseful thriller My verdict The Constant Gardener is an elegant, absorbing, and suspenseful mystery with rich performances from the leads. Despite an unhurried opening, the energetic direction by Fernando Meirelles and admirable lead performances by Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz make this adapted film an exciting and suspenseful thriller 4 broccolis out of 5

Imagery and Themes in the Epic of Gilgamesh Essay -- Epic Gilgamesh es

Historical Context - Imagery and Themes Rosenberg notes that Gilgamesh is probably the world's first human hero in literature (27). The Epic of Gilgamesh is based on the life of a probably real Sumerian king named Gilgamesh, who ruled about 2600 B.C.E. We learned of the Gilgamesh myth when several clay tablets written in cuneiform were discovered beginning in 1845 during the excavation of Nineveh (26). We get our most complete version of Gilgamesh from the hands of an Akkadian priest, Sin-liqui-unninni. It is unknown how much of the tale is the invention of Sin-liqui-unninni, and how much is the original tale. The flood story, which appears in the Sin-liqui-unninni version, is probably based on an actual flood that occurred in Mesopotamia around 2900 B.C.E. (26). The Sumerian culture influenced the entire Near East (Swisher 13). The success of their culture was dependent on the agricultural viability of the area. Every year there were floods which provided rich silt for successful farming that encouraged the people to stay in the same area year after year instead of migrating to find new areas for crops (19). There are indications that the Sumerians were composed of two different peoples which mingled in the same area. The Semites are believed to have mixed with the Highlanders. The Semites were patriarchal hunters and more warlike than the Highlanders. The Highlanders were matriarchal and peaceful. Swisher suggests that there is evidence of both social groups and that the combination of the two led to changes in the perception of the roles of the gods and goddess as well as the men and women (21). Sumer was originally small groups of people that eventually grew to form cities. As a country it included 13 ... ...der to receive eternal life. The apparent belief in an afterlife which is indicated by the burial with useful objects may show that eternal life is achieved after physical death. The Flood - recounted by Utanapishtim is representative of the purification of human life by the gods. Their transgressions are swept away (with most of the population) and they are reborn into a fresh, new world and relationship with the gods. Ark - the symbol of the gods' love of the humans and their interest in preserving the human race. We also identified five themes in the Epic of Gilgamesh: Conflict between chaos and order, represented by nature and civilization; Man's quest for immortality and knowledge; Dealing with loss; Male bonding/brotherhood; Heroism (man's victory over nature).

Bloody civil war Essay

The final two chapters of the novel, Ike tries to discover and understand the history of his own family and the way in which they had treated the blacks. He even attempts to make amendments to one of them, by sending some money. The brief chronicle that he finds of his family helps him reconstruct some parts of the history. He remembers for example, the little hut in which all the black people were herded together, and the way in which the whites manufactures bleaching substances for the blacks to use so as to change their color: â€Å"[†¦]the square, galleried, wooden building squatting like a portent above the fields whose laborers it still held in thrall ’65 or no and placarded over with advertisements for snuff and cures for chills and salves and potions manufactured and sold by white men to bleach the pigment and straighten the hair of Negroes that they might resemble the very race which for two hundred years had held them in bondage and from which for another hundred years not even a bloody civil war would have set them completely free[†¦.]†(Faulkner, 245) This forced change of hair color is very significant: the author emphasizes the fact that the whites wanted to transform the black and make them as themselves, a race however quite imperfect since it is the one that invented slavery. Neither the land nor the people can be bought, since they have been left to live free by the creator of the world. Man’s possession of land or of slaves only imaginary, since these primary things cannot be bought: â€Å"’Bought nothing. Because He told in the Book how He created the earth, made it and looked at it and said it was all right, and then He made man. He made the earth first and peopled it with dumb creatures, and then He created man to be His overseer on earth[†¦]Because it was never Ikkemotubbe’s fathers’ fathers’ to bequeath Ikkemotubbe to sell to Grandfather or any man because on the instant when Ikkemotubbe discovered, realised, that he could sell it for money, on that instant it ceased ever to have been his forever, father to father to father, and the man who bought it bought nothing. † (247) In the family’s brief chronicle, Ike discovers many of the iniquities that were common at the time, in what regarded the black people. His grandfather had had sons and daughters of the black slaves, and never acknowledged them. Also, the contracts done between the blacks and the whites were invalid, since the black man had no way to claim his rights or to prove them, since he was usually even unable to read: â€Å"and it would seem to the boy that he could actually see the black man, the slave whom his white owner had forever manumitted by the very act from which the black man could never be free so long as memory lasted, entering the commissary, asking permission perhaps of the white man’s son to see the ledger-page which he could not even read, not even asking for the white man’s word, which he would have had to accept for the reason that there was absolutely no way under the sun for him to test it[†¦]†(256) Ike ironically observes the extent of the injustice done to the children that were not acknowledged because they were black, and the way in which they were usually simply given a sum of money to make amends: â€Å"So I reckon that was cheaper than saying My son to a nigger he thought. Even if My son wasn’t but just two words. † (259) Thus, Faulkner’s novel is centered around the idea of the essential freedom given by nature to any creature. The bear is a symbol for this freedom, and his spirit is akin to that of the blacks and Indians: â€Å"[†¦]an old bear, fierce and ruthless not just to stay alive but ruthless with the fierce pride of liberty and freedom, jealous and proud enough of liberty and freedom to see it threatened not with fear nor even alarm but almost with joy, seeming deliberately to put it into jeopardy in order to savor it and keep his old strong bones and flesh supple and quick to defend and preserve it; an old man, son of a Negro slave and an Indian king, inheritor on the one hand of the long chronicle of a people who had learned humility through suffering and learned pride through the endurance which survived the suffering, and on the other side the chronicle of a people even longer in the land than the first. † (Faulkner, 267) The same ideas appear in the short story called That Evening Sun, but the author here emphasizes the barrier that existed between the blacks and the whites. The story, which has the same characters of the Compson family as The Sound and the Fury, is centered on a black servant called Nancy and on her agony at having been left by her husband and the terror that he might return and kill her. Nancy is terribly beaten by the police when she tries to claim her pay from a white man, and then locked up: â€Å"When you going to pay me, white man? When you going to pay me, white man? It’s been three times now since you paid me a cent-‘ Mr. Stovall knocked her down, but she kept on saying, â€Å"When you going to pay me, white man? It’s been three times now since—‘ until Mr. Stovall kicked her in the mouth with his heel and the marshal caught Mr. Stovall back, and Nancy lying in the street, laughing. She turned her head and spat out some blood and teeth and said, ‘It’s been three times now since he paid me a cent. ’†(Faulkner, 289) The story focuses on the impressive agony of the woman and her loneliness, as the whites refuse to comfort her in any way. The prejudices against the blacks are again obvious: as in The Bear, the villagers remark that a black person would never commit suicide, unless under the power of a drug: â€Å"He said that it was cocaine and not whiskey, because no nigger would try to commit suicide unless he was full of cocaine, because a nigger full of cocaine was not a nigger any longer. †(Faulkner, 291) The idea of the white people is that the black have no feelings and no inner life of their own, and that they live mostly like beasts, therefore could never have the impulse to suicide. The woman tries to cling to the children’s company in her distress and her fear of the husband that she thinks will come after her. The recurrent remark that she makes, saying that she is no more than a nigger is very significant. She underlies the fact that she is actually perceived as only a nigger, and that even she feels like that: â€Å"I ain’t nothing but a nigger,† Nancy said. ‘It ain’t none of my fault. ’† (Faulkner, 296) She cannot escape her race, and, although she feels she has an inner life she does not have an identity to associate it with. The last fragment of the story is of utter importance: Quentin, the storyteller remains listening to the sounds made by Nancy after they live her house, and hints at the barrier between the white and the black. The whites merely live her and her problems, as she is not considered to be important enough for further consideration: â€Å"But we could still hear her. She began as soon as we were out of the house, sitting there above the fire, her long brown hands between her knees. We could still hear her when we had crossed the ditch, Jason high and close and little about father’s head. Then we had crossed the ditch, walking out of Nancy’s life. Then her life was sitting there with the door open and the lamp lit, waiting, and the ditch between us and us going on, dividing the impinged lives of us and Nancy. â€Å"(Faulkner, 300) Thus, Faulkner describes the lives of the black and white people in the Southern world with great insight, emphasizing the essential freedom of man as of nature, and the impossibility to possess or reduce them and limit their importance. Works Cited: Abadie, Ann J. Faulkner in Cultural Context. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 1997. Clark, Jim. â€Å"On Faulkner. † The Mississippi Quarterly. http://www. questia. com/app/direct/SM. qst Faulkner, William. Collected Stories of William Faulkner. New York: Random House, 1950. — Three Famous Short Novels. New York, Vintage Books, 1958. Singal, Daniel J. William Faulkner: The Making of the Modernist. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1997. â€Å"William Faulkner†. http://www. kirjasto. sci. fi/faulkner. htm

The Flaw of the Brady Bill essays

The Flaw of the Brady Bill essays The federal Brady Law created an instant background check system meant to track the records of everyone prohibited from possessing firearms: convicted felons, people under a domestic violence restraining order, illegal aliens, drug addicts, dishonorably discharged military personnel, fugitives from justice and certain mentally ill people. The Brady Bill, imposed in February 1994, has been successful of what it was supposed to do. The Bill restricts mentally ill people from getting handguns, but medical records are kept secret, and there is no way of telling who is getting the guns. Is the Brady Bill working like it was planned? A priest and a parishioner were shot dead during church service in New York. Fr Lawrence Penzes, 50, had just finished his homily at Our Lady of Peace Church at Lynbrook on Long Island, when a gunman burst in and opened fire. Doctors say Fr Lawrence probably died at the altar. The other victim was Eileen Tosner, 73, a Lynbrook resident who attended Mass every morning. The suspect was Peter J Troy, 34. He was charged with two counts of second-degree murder and one count of attempted murder. The police said he has a record of psychiatric illness. (Independent Catholic Bergin, March 2002) Scott Harlan Thorpe, 40, of Smartville was a client of the outpatient mental health clinic where he started shooting just before noon Wednesday, killing two people and wounding a third, said Nevada County Sheriff Keith Royal. Thorpe then drove to a restaurant in near Grass Valley, 50 miles northeast of Sacramento, and shot and killed the manager and wounded a cook because he thought the restaurant was poisoning him, Royal said. The accused killer was undergoing monthly mental health counseling for his agoraphobia, his fear of being in public places, said Gary Dalbey, a neighbor who lived across the road from Thorpe in rural Smartville. (The Californian NC times Associated Press 1/12/01) ...